July 10
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PAUL SAILS FOR ROME
A poem by ILMA
Paul and other prisoners were placed under Julius’ custody
He was a Roman officer, a captain of the Imperial regiment
Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica was also with them
They left on a ship whose home port was Adramyttium in Asia.
The ship was scheduled to make many stops at ports along the coast
The next day, when they docked at Sidon, Julius was very kind to Paul
He let Paul go ashore to visit with friends so he can be given his needs
Putting out to sea from Sidon were strong headwinds so they sailed north.
They passed along the Cilician coast and Pamphylia, landing at Myra
The commanding officer found an Egyptian ship and transferred them there
They had several days of slow sailing and after great hardship, Paul spoke
He told the officers that they should take caution for it was dangerous.
The officer in charge of the prisoners listened more to the ships’ captain
Since Fair Havens was an exposed harbor, it was a poor place to spend winter
Most of the crew wanted to go on to Phoenix, up the coast of Crete
They though that it would be better to spend winter there.
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MEMORY VERSE
When the time came, we set sail for Italy. Paul and several other prisoners were placed in the custody of a Roman officer name Julius, a captain of the Imperial Regiment. – Acts 27:1
Read: Acts 27:1-12
After Paul met with King Agrippa and Festus, the governor Bernice, they agreed that Paul hasn’t done anything to deserve death or imprisonment. Agrippa told Festus that Paul could have been set free if he hadn’t appealed to Caesar. Their sail to Rome was long and not smooth sailing.
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REFLECTION
• Why do you think Paul insisted that he sees Caesar to bring his case?