Luke the beloved physician wrote how he, Paul, and others with him were sailing toward Rome, “and they ran the ship aground; and the forepart stuck fast, and remained unmoveable, but the hinder part was broken with the violence of the waves. And the soldiers' counsel was to kill the prisoners, lest any of them should swim out, and escape”, and in chapter twenty-seven and verse forty-three of the book of Acts Luke shared, “But the centurion, willing to save Paul, kept them from their purpose” where we read:
But the centurion, willing to save Paul, kept them from their purpose;
and commanded that they which could swim should cast themselves first into the sea, and get to land:
The verse begins, “But the centurion, willing to save Paul, kept them from their purpose;” Luke began with the words, “but the centurion” which means “however, nonetheless, notwithstanding and moreover the Roman officer who was the captain of one hundred men, Julius”, “willing to save Paul” or “purposing, minded and desiring with affection to preserve, rescue and bring Paul, whose name means small or little, to safety”, “kept them from their purpose” which means “hindered, prevented, denied and refused to allow the soldiers who wanted to kill the prisoners apart from their counsel and will”. Luke shared how the Roman captain over one hundred men, Julius, desired to preserve and rescue “Paul”, so he did not allow the “soldiers” to “kill” the “prisoners”.
The verse goes on to say, “and commanded that they which could swim should cast themselves first into the sea, and get to land:” Luke continued with the words, “and commanded” which means “and ordered” “that they which could swim” or “that the people on board the ship who were able to swim” “should cast themselves first” which means “were to principally and foremost throw their own selves overboard” “into the sea” or “into the body of water known as the Adriatic Sea”, “and get to land” which means “and go forth to the arable land, ground and seashore”. Luke shared how the “centurion” ordered that the people who were onboard the ship who could “swim” were to throw themselves overboard into the “sea” first, and afterward they would swim to the seashore.
When we consider Luke's words in this verse, we learn how the “centurion, Julius” wanted to preserve “Paul”, and prohibited the “soldiers” who desired to “kill” all the “prisoners” from doing so. He ordered those aboard the ship who were able to “swim” to throw themselves overboard and swim to the shore. He makes provision for the others on the ship in our next verse. God preserved “Paul's” life through the “centurion” because “Paul” was to bear witness of the gospel of Jesus Christ within the city of “Rome”. God loves everybody, and He knows sin separates them from a personal relationship with Him. He sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross for the sins of all mankind, and anyone who yields their lives to Him will be forgiven of their sins and granted everlasting life. Let all who read these words yield themselves to Jesus who desires to preserve them for all eternity.
Next time Luke shares about, “the rest, some on boards, and some on broken pieces of the ship”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".
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