Acts 28:1-14 Lesson 283

Acts 28:1-14
Lesson 283

Read both the "King James Bible" and the "New Living Translation."

In this lesson:

Snakebite (28:3-6).

Paul heals the sick (28:7-10).

Paul bitten by a viper.
By the Dutch artist Jan Luyken (1649-1712) and engraver Pieter Mortier (1661-1711).

Where was -

Melita -
The modern-day island of Malta located in the central Mediterranean Sea sixty miles south of Sicily. Malta is seventeen miles long and nine miles wide. The ancient Phoenicians settled the island, were conquered by the Greeks, and then the Carthagenians. At the time of Paul's shipwreck, Rome controlled the island. Malta became a British colony in 1813 and was granted its
independence in 1964. Today, the population is over 500,000.

Syracuse -
A town on the east coast of Sicily ninety miles from Malta. Syracuse was founded in 730 BC and became the capital of Sicily. In 212 BC, it was conquered by Rome. It is the birthplace of the famed inventor Archimedes. Today, the city has a population of 123,000 and is famous for its many ancient ruins.

Rhegium-
A town in southwest Italy on the Strait of Messina, a short sail from Sicily. Paul stopped here in his way to Rome (28:13). From Rhegium, it is 182 miles to Paul's next stop, Puteoli. Today, the city is called Reggio Calabria and has a population of close to 600,000.

Puteoli -
The seaport for the city of Campania eight miles southwest of Neapolis (Naples) and one hundred-twenty miles from Rome. Puteoli was famous for its many taverns. Today, it would be called a party town. Paul's guards had the group stop here on their way to Rome (28:13). The Roman emperor Hadrian is buried in Puteoli. Today, the city has a population of 85,000 and is called Pozzuoli.

Study Tip:

It's helpful to read passages a second time.
You reinforce lessons learned and catch essential points you might have missed with the first read.

The Acts of the Apostles

The King James Bible

Acts 28:1-14
On the island of Malta

1 And when they were escaped, then they knew that the island was called Melita.

2 And the barbarous people shewed us no little kindness: for they kindled a fire, and received us every one, because of the present rain, and because of the cold.

3 And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand.

4 And when the barbarians saw the venomous beast hang on his hand, they said among themselves, No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he hath escaped the sea, yet vengeance suffereth not to live.

5 And he shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm.

6 Howbeit they looked when he should have swollen, or fallen down dead suddenly: but after they had looked a great while, and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds, and said that he was a god.

7 In the same quarters were possessions of the chief man of the island, whose name was Publius; who received us, and lodged us three days courteously.

8 And it came to pass, that the father of Publius lay sick of a fever and of a bloody flux: to whom Paul entered in, and prayed, and laid his hands on him, and healed him.

9 So when this was done, others also, which had diseases in the island, came, and were healed:

10 Who also honoured us with many honours; and when we departed, they laded us with such things as were necessary.

11 And after three months we departed in a ship of Alexandria, which had wintered in the isle, whose sign was Castor and Pollux.

12 And landing at Syracuse, we tarried there three days.

13 And from thence we fetched a compass, and came to Rhegium: and after one day the south wind blew, and we came the next day to Puteoli:

14 Where we found brethren, and were desired to tarry with them seven days: and so we went toward Rome.

Margin notes:

"The barbarous people." (28:2) - The people of Malta were hardly barbarians. They were descended from the Phoenicians and were seeped in Roman culture. In Paul's day, "barbarous" simply meant anyone who didn't speak your language; and you were a barbarian to them (1 Corinthians 14:11).

"Vengeance suffereth not to live." (28:4) - "Justice won't allow him to live."

"And he shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm." (28:5) - Just as Jesus said (Mark 16:18; Luke 10:19).

"They changed their minds, and said that he was a god." (28:6) - This is similar to what happened to Paul once before in Lystra (14:11-18).

"Bloody flux." (28:8) - Dysentery, an illness similar to diarrhea.

"Paul entered in, and prayed, and laid his hands on him, and healed him." (28:8) - Remember, in Acts 19:11-12 (lesson 265), God gave Paul the power to perform miracles.

"We departed in a ship of Alexandria." (28:11) - This is Paul's third ship since he started this voyage. The first ship sailed from Caesarea to Myra and the second from Myra to Melita, where it sank.

"Castor and Pollux." (28:11) - From Greek mythology, Castor and Pollux were the twin sons of Zeus and Leda and the brothers of Helen of Troy and Clytemnestra. Known as the "Twin Gods," they were also called Castor and Polydeuces or simply The Dioscuri. They were believed to be the guardians of sailors, who prayed to them during storms. To safeguard their return, superstitious sailors carved their images on the prows of ships. Ancient Greeks believed that Castor and Pollux appeared in the night sky as the constellation Gemini.

"We fetched a compass, and came to Rhegium." (28:13) - Means "we circled around, and arrived at Rhegium."

New Living Translation

Acts 28:1-14
Paul on the Island of Malta

1 Once we were safe on shore, we learned that we were on the island of Malta.

2 The people of the island were very kind to us. It was cold and rainy, so they built a fire on the shore to welcome us.

3 As Paul gathered an armful of sticks and was laying them on the fire, a poisonous snake, driven out by the heat, bit him on the hand.

4 The people of the island saw it hanging from his hand and said to each other, "A murderer, no doubt! Though he escaped the sea, justice will not permit him to live."

5 But Paul shook off the snake into the fire and was unharmed.

6 The people waited for him to swell up or suddenly drop dead. But when they had waited a long time and saw that he wasn't harmed, they changed their minds and decided he was a god.

7 Near the shore where we landed was an estate belonging to Publius, the chief official of the island. He welcomed us and treated us kindly for three days.

8 As it happened, Publius's father was ill with fever and dysentery. Paul went in and prayed for him, and laying his hands on him, he healed him.

9 Then all the other sick people on the island came and were healed.

10 As a result we were showered with honors, and when the time came to sail, people supplied us with everything we would need for the trip.

Paul Arrives at Rome

11 It was three months after the shipwreck that we set sail on another ship that had wintered at the island-an Alexandrian ship with the twin gods as its figurehead.

12 Our first stop was Syracuse, where we stayed three days.

13 From there we sailed across to Rhegium. A day later a south wind began blowing, so the following day we sailed up the coast to Puteoli.

14 There we found some believers, who invited us to spend a week with them. And so we came to Rome.

This second Bible text from the "New Living Translation" (Tyndale House, Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois) is a paraphrase and not an accurate word for word translation of the Bible. However, it is a helpful tool when read with the "King James Version."

Today's Question:

1. Who did the people of Melita think was punishing Paul? (28:4)

"There are those who believe that a new modernity demands a new morality. What they fail to consider is the harsh reality that there is no such thing as a new morality. There is only one morality. All else is immorality."

U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919).

Answer: (Do you agree?)

1. The people of Melita (Malta) assumed that "divine justice" was punishing Paul. They believed that "divine justice" was a goddess who dispensed vengeance on the wicked and rewarded the just. They thought that evil tempted mankind and that a god rewarded those who resisted temptation. But unlike Christians, they believed that our reward or punishment came in this life, not after death. They were convinced that the poor, the sick, and the unfortunate were guilty of crimes against god and were being admonished, while the rich, healthy, and lucky were being rewarded.

Although they worshipped a false god, the people of Malta understood there had to be a higher power that ruled the earth. They were right about the existence of God; it was just their concept of God that was wrong. Paul spent three months on Malta healing and teaching the truth.

Application thought for the day:

What spiritual applications does this lesson teach on Christian fellowship?

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Thanks to the writings and commentary of John Wesley and Adam Clarke. Also, "The Layman's Bible Study Notebook" by Irving Jensen published by Harvest House Publishing, Irvine, California; the "Life Change Series" published by NavPress books, Colorado Springs, Colorado; the "Life Application Study Bible" published by Tyndale House Publishing, Carol Stream, Illinois; the "Quest Study Bible" published by The Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "Robertson's New Testament Word Studies;" "The MacArthur Bible Commentary" by John MacArthur published by Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee; "Wisdom of the Bible" CD by Topics Entertainment, Inc., Renton, Washington for their inspiring pictures; "My utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers published by Barbour Publishing, Inc., Uhrichsville, Ohio; The "Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge" by Reuben Archer Torrey; "Hope For Each Day" by Billy Graham published by J. Countryman, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee; "Easton's Bible Dictionary" by Matthew George Easton; "Unger's Bible Dictionary" by Merrill F. Unger, published by Moody Press, Chicago, Illinois; "Halley's Bible Handbook" by Henry H. Halley, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "The Everyday Bible" published by World Wide Publications, Minneapolis, Minnesota; "The Living New Testament" published by Tyndale house; "The New Living Translation" published by Tyndale House; "The New Testament" translated from the Latin Vulgate, published by Guild Press, New York, New York; BibleGateway.com for all their wonderful links; and of course the "King James Bible." All were critical in putting these lessons together.
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