Acts 27:11

Bible

NIV

Acts

Acts 27

11 But the centurion, instead of listening to what Paul said, followed the advice of the pilot and of the owner of the ship.

Read Chapter Compare

PREVIOUS Acts 27:10 NEXT Acts 27:12

Acts 27:11 in Other Translations

KJV

11 Nevertheless the centurion believed the master and the owner of the ship, more than those things which were spoken by Paul.

ESV

11 But the centurion paid more attention to the pilot and to the owner of the ship than to what Paul said.

NLT

11 But the officer in charge of the prisoners listened more to the ship’s captain and the owner than to Paul.

MSG

11 The centurion set Paul's warning aside and let the ship captain and the shipowner talk him into trying for the next harbor.

CSB

11 But the centurion paid attention to the captain and the owner of the ship rather than to what Paul said.

Acts 27:11 Meaning and Commentary

Acts 27:11

Nevertheless the centurion believed the master and the
owner of the ship
Who were either one and the same person, or if two persons, the one was the owner, whose the ship was, and the other, he that was at the helm, and steered and directed it; or the one might be the captain, and the other the pilot. The (kubernhthv) , or "governor", as he is here called with the ancients, was he who sat on an eminence in the stern of the ship, at the helm, and had the direction of it; he gave the orders, which others executed: what qualified him for his post chiefly lay in three things; in the knowledge of the constellations, and winds, of the former that he might direct the course of the ship according to them, and by them foresee future tempests, and of the latter, that he might be acquainted with the several points, from whence they blew; also in the knowledge of ports, and places to put into, and of rocks and sands, that they might be escaped; likewise in the knowledge of the use of the helm, and sails ^F12; for one part of his business, as ^F13 Seneca observes, was to give orders after this manner; so and so move the helm, so and so let down the sails in every ship there was a governor, and in larger ones sometimes there were two; ^F14 Aelianus says, the Carthaginians had always two governors in a ship: the other word, (nauklhrov) , is in the glossary rendered "navicularius", which signifies "the owner" of the ship; and so we render it; though perhaps he is the same with the "proreta", who governed the prow or head of the ship, and was the next in dignity to the governor, and a kind of a sub-governor; and his business was to observe tempests, to explore promontories, rocks and sands, and show them to the governor ^F15; and so Isidore ^F16 says, the owner of the ship is called Naucleros, because the ship is in his lot, "cleros" signifying lot: and as these best understood naval affairs, Julius gave more heed to what they said, and rather believed them,

than those things which were spoken by Paul;
by a spirit of prophecy, which he had no notion of; for though he treated him civilly as a man, he had no regard to him as a Christian, or as one endued with the Spirit of God, which he knew nothing of.

FOOTNOTES:

F12 Scheffer. de Militia Navali Veterum, l. 4. c. 6. p. 296, 297.
F13 Ep. 95.
F14 Var. Hist. l. 9. c. 40.
F15 Scheffer. ib. p. 302, 303.
F16 Originum, l. 19. c. 1. p. 162.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Acts 27:11 In-Context

9 Much time had been lost, and sailing had already become dangerous because by now it was after the Day of Atonement. So Paul warned them,

10 “Men, I can see that our voyage is going to be disastrous and bring great loss to ship and cargo, and to our own lives also.”

11 But the centurion, instead of listening to what Paul said, followed the advice of the pilot and of the owner of the ship.

12 Since the harbor was unsuitable to winter in, the majority decided that we should sail on, hoping to reach Phoenix and winter there. This was a harbor in Crete, facing both southwest and northwest.

13 When a gentle south wind began to blow, they saw their opportunity; so they weighed anchor and sailed along the shore of Crete.