And when they had taken up the anchors
The four anchors they cast out of the stern, ( Acts 27:29 ) or "when
they had cut the anchors", as the Syriac and Arabic versions
render it; that is, had cut the cables to which the anchors were
fastened:
they committed themselves unto the sea;
or left them, the anchors, in the sea; or committed the ship to
the sea, and themselves in it, endeavouring to steer its course
to the place they had in view:
and loosed the rudder bands;
by which the rudder was fastened to the ship.---The rudder, in
navigation, is a piece of timber turning on hinges in the stern
of a ship, and which opposing sometimes one side to the water,
and sometimes another, turns or directs the vessel this way or
that. The rudder of a ship is a piece of timber hung on the stern
posts, by four or five iron hooks, called "pintles", serving as
it were for the bridle of a ship, to turn her about at the
pleasure of the steersman.---The rudder being perpendicular, and
without side the ship, another piece of timber is fitted into it
at right angles, which comes into the ship, by which the rudder
is managed and directed: this latter is properly called the
"helm" or "tiller", and sometimes, though improperly, the rudder
itself.---A narrow rudder is best for a ship's sailing, provided
she can feel it; that is, be guided and turned by it, for a broad
rudder will hold much water when the helm is put over to any
side; yet if a ship has a fat quarter, so that the water cannot
come quick and strong to her rudder, she will require a broad
rudder.---The aftmost part of the rudder is called the "rake" of
the rudder. This is the account of a rudder with the moderns
F26: with the ancients, the parts of
the rudder were these, the "clavus" or "helm", by which the
rudder was governed; the pole of it; the wings or the two
breadths of it, which were as wings, and the handle: some ships
had but one rudder, most had two, and some three, and some four;
those that had but one, seemed to have it in the middle of the
stern; and those that had two had them on the sides, not far from
the middle; and there were some ships which had them not only in
the stern, but also in the prow or head of the ship F1: that
the ancients had sometimes more rudders than one in a ship, has
been abundantly proved by Bochartus and Scheherus; take only an
instance or two. The Carthaginians, as F2
Aelianus reports, decreed two governors to every ship saying it
was absurd that it should have (duo phdalia) , "two rudders", and that he who was most
useful to the sailors, and had the government of the ship, should
be alone, and without successor and companion; and so Apuleius
F3 says, the ship in which we were
carried was shook by various storms and tempests, "utroque
regimine amisso", and having lost both its rudders, sunk at the
precipice. Some of the Indian ships have three rudders; that of
Philopator's had four rudders: how many this ship had, in which
the apostle was, cannot be said: but this is certain, that it had
more than one; for the words are, "and loosed the bands of the
rudders"; and since it is a clear case, that the ships of the
ancients had more rudders than one to each, there is no need to
suppose a figure in the text, and that the plural number is used
for the singular, as Beza thinks: and "the bands" of them were
those by which they were fastened; and they were "loosed", as
Schefferus conjectures, because when the anchors were cast out,
they fastened the rudders higher, that they might not be broken
by the dashing of the waves, especially as they were in a storm;
but now having taken up the anchors, they loosed these bands: and
certain it is, that not only oars but rudders were fastened with
cords or ropes to the ship F4: according to the notion of
modern navigation, the rudder band might be thought to be the
rope which is turned round the tiller, and made fast to the
ship's side, and as the tiller is moved, "surges" round the end
of the tiller; and very likely might be made fast, when the ship
was at anchor, on one side, to keep the ship from breaking her
sheer; but now being loosed, and the helm "a midship", and the
mainsail hoisted, the ship ran to the shore before the wind.
And hoised up the main sail to the wind:
which they had before struck or let down, ( Acts 27:17 ) . The main
sail is that which is upon the main mast. The Ethiopic version
renders it, "the great sail". The great sail was that which is
called "acatius", which is another word than is here used: so
Isidore F5 says "acatius" is the greatest sail,
and is placed in the middle of the ship; "epidromos" is the next
in size, and is placed at the stern; and "dolon" is the least
sail, and is fixed at the head: and both the Syriac and Arabic
versions here render it, "the little sail"; and which sailors put
up when they are afraid to use large sails, which would carry too
much wind; but the word here used is "artemo", which the above
writer says is commended rather for the sake of directing the
ship, than for swiftness. And this seems to be the use that was
now made of it, namely, to guide the ship into the creek or bay.
And made toward the shore;
which was in the creek, or to the haven in it.
F26 Chambers's Cyclopaedia in the word "rudder".
F1 Scheffer. de Militia Navali Vetorum, l. 2. c. 5. p. 145, 146.
F2 Var Hist. l. 9. c. 40.
F3 Metamorphos. l. 2. p. 24.
F4 Vegetus apud Scheffer. de Militia Navali Veterum, l. 2. c. 5. p. 139.
F5 Originum, l. 19. c. 3. p. 163.