Acts 28
28
On Shore at Malta
1When we were safe on shore, we found out that the island was called Malta. 2The people of the island were unusually kind. It was raining and cold. So they built a fire and welcomed all of us. 3Paul gathered some sticks and put them on the fire. A poisonous snake was driven out by the heat. It fastened itself on Paul’s hand. 4The people of the island saw the snake hanging from his hand. They said to one another, “This man must be a murderer. He escaped from the sea. But the female god Justice won’t let him live.” 5Paul shook the snake off into the fire. He was not harmed. 6The people expected him to swell up. They thought he would suddenly fall dead. They waited for a long time. But they didn’t see anything unusual happen to him. So they changed their minds. They said he was a god.
7Publius owned property nearby. He was the chief official on the island. He welcomed us to his home. For three days he took care of us. He treated us with kindness. 8His father was sick in bed. The man suffered from fever and dysentery. So Paul went in to see him. Paul prayed for him. He placed his hands on him and healed him. 9Then the rest of the sick people on the island came. They too were healed. 10The people of the island honored us in many ways. When we were ready to sail, they gave us the supplies we needed.
Paul Arrives in Rome
11After three months we headed out to sea. We sailed in a ship from Alexandria that had stayed at the island during the winter. On the front of the ship the figures of twin gods were carved. Their names were Castor and Pollux. 12We landed at Syracuse and stayed there for three days. 13From there we sailed to Rhegium. The next day the south wind came up. The day after that, we reached Puteoli. 14There we found some believers. They invited us to spend a week with them. At last we came to Rome. 15The believers there had heard we were coming. They traveled as far as the Forum of Appius and the Three Taverns to meet us. When Paul saw these people, he thanked God for them and was encouraged by them. 16When we got to Rome, Paul was allowed to live by himself. But a soldier guarded him.
Paul Preaches in Rome
17Three days later Paul called a meeting of the local Jewish leaders. When they came, Paul spoke to them. He said, “My brothers, I have done nothing against our people. I have also done nothing against what our people of long ago practiced. But I was arrested in Jerusalem. I was handed over to the Romans. 18They questioned me. And they wanted to let me go. They saw I wasn’t guilty of any crime worthy of death. 19But the Jews objected, so I had to make an appeal to Caesar. I certainly did not mean to bring any charge against my own people. 20I share Israel’s hope. That is why I am held with this chain. So I have asked to see you and talk with you.”
21They replied, “We have not received any letters from Judea about you. None of our people here from Judea has reported or said anything bad about you. 22But we want to hear what your ideas are. We know that people everywhere are talking against those who believe as you do.”
23They decided to meet Paul on a certain day. At that time even more people came to the place where he was staying. From morning until evening, he told them about God’s kingdom. Using the Law of Moses and the Prophets, he tried to get them to believe in Jesus. 24Some believed what he said, and others did not. 25They didn’t agree with one another. They began to leave after Paul had made a final statement. He said, “The Holy Spirit was right when he spoke to your people long ago. Through Isaiah the prophet the Spirit said,
26“ ‘Go to your people. Say to them,
“You will hear but never understand.
You will see but never know what you are seeing.”
27These people’s hearts have become stubborn.
They can barely hear with their ears.
They have closed their eyes.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes.
They might hear with their ears.
They might understand with their hearts.
They might turn, and then I would heal them.’ (Isaiah 6:9,10)
28-29“Here is what I want you to know. God has sent his salvation to the Gentiles. And they will listen!”
30For two whole years Paul stayed there in a house he rented. He welcomed all who came to see him. 31He preached boldly about God’s kingdom. He taught people about the Lord Jesus Christ. And no one could keep him from teaching and preaching about these things.
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Acts 28: NIrV
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Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®
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Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Acts 28
28
1When we were safely ashore, we discovered that we were on the island of Malta. 2The people there were very kind—they started a fire and called all of us over so we could warm up from the rain and the cold. 3Paul collected a bundle of firewood and threw it on the fire. But a poisonous snake was driven out of the bundle because of the heat and bit him, fastening itself on his hand. 4When the people there saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to each other, “This man must be a murderer. Even though he escaped death from the sea, Justice won't let him live.”
5However, Paul shook the snake off into the fire, and suffered no ill effects. 6They were expecting him to swell up, or suddenly fall down dead. But after waiting a long time, they saw that nothing bad had happened to him so they changed their minds and decided he must be a god.
7Nearby were lands that belonged to Publius, the chief official of the island. He welcomed us and looked after us for three days very hospitably. 8Now Publius' father was sick, lying in bed suffering from fever and dysentery. Paul went in to see him, and prayed for him, placed his hands on him, and healed him. 9After this happened, everyone else who was sick on the island came and was healed. 10They presented us with many gifts, and when we had to sail they provided everything we needed for the voyage.
11After a three month stay we set sail aboard a ship from Alexandria that had spent the winter at the island. It had a figurehead of the Heavenly Twins.#28:11. Named after the twin gods Castor and Pollux. 12We stopped at Syracuse, and spent three days there. 13From there we sailed on to Rhegium. The following day a south wind blew, and on the second day we arrived at the port of Puteoli, 14where we discovered some believers. They asked us to stay with them for a week.
So we came to Rome. 15When some of the believers from Rome heard we had arrived they came to meet us at the Forum of Appius and the Three Taverns. When Paul saw them, he was thankful to God and much encouraged. 16When we entered Rome, Paul was permitted to stay under house arrest with a soldier to guard him.
17Three days later Paul invited the Jewish leaders there to come to see him. When they were all together he told them, “Brothers, even though I had not done anything wrong against the people or the customs of our forefathers, I was arrested in Jerusalem and handed over to the Roman authorities. 18After they had interrogated me they wanted to release me because I had done nothing that warranted execution. 19But the Jewish leaders opposed this, so I was forced to appeal to Caesar—not that I had any accusations against my own people. 20That's why I asked to see you, and talk to you, because it is on account of the hope of Israel that I am chained up like this.”
21“We have not received any letters from Judea about you, and none of our people have come here with reports against you or to speak badly of you,” they told him. 22“But we do want to hear from you what you believe—especially regarding this sect, which we know is condemned everywhere.”
23They made an appointment to meet with him. On that day many people came to where he was staying. From morning till night Paul was explaining to them, telling them about the kingdom of God. He tried to convince them about Jesus using the writings of the law of Moses and the prophets. 24Some accepted what Paul said, but some refused to believe. 25They couldn't agree among themselves, and they left after Paul told them this: “The Holy Spirit said it well through Isaiah the prophet to your forefathers, 26‘Go to these people and tell them: Even though you hear, you won't ever understand, and even though you see, you won't ever comprehend. 27For the minds of these people have become calloused and hard, their ears cannot hear, their eyes are shut, in case they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and understand with their minds, and might come back to me and I would heal them.’#28:27. Quoting Isaiah 6:9-10.
28Consequently you should know that this salvation that comes from God has been sent to the foreigners and they will listen.” 29#28:29. This verse is not in all manuscripts, and some commentators think it may have been added.
30For two full years Paul stayed there in the house he rented, welcoming everyone who came to see him. 31He spoke of the kingdom of God, and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ very boldly. No one prevented him.
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com