Acts 27:35

35 After he had said this, he took bread; and giving thanks to God in the presence of all, he broke it and began to eat.

Acts 27:35 Meaning and Commentary

Acts 27:35

And when he had thus spoken he took bread
A piece of bread, of common bread, into his hands; for this could never be the eucharist, or Lord's supper, which the apostle now celebrated, as some have suggested, but such sort of bread that seafaring men commonly eat: mention is before made of "meat" or "food", which the apostle entreated them to take, which includes every sort of sea provisions they had with them; and which, with the ancients, were usually the following: it is certain they used to carry bread corn along with them, either crude, or ground, or baked; the former when they went long voyages, the last when shorter ones; and it is plain that they had wheat in this ship, which after they had eaten they cast out, ( Acts 27:38 ) and corn ground, or meal, they had used to eat moistened with water, and sometimes with oil, and sometimes with oil and wine; and they had a sort of food they called "maza" which was made of meat and milk; likewise they used to carry onions and garlic, which the rowers usually ate, and were thought to be good against change of places and water; and they were wont to make a sort of soup of cheese, onions and eggs, which the Greeks call "muttootos", and the Latins "mosetum"; and they had also bread which was of a red colour, being hard baked and scorched in the oven, yea it was "biscoctus", twice baked F24; as our modern sea biscuit is, and which has its name from hence, and which for long voyages is four times baked, and prepared six months before the voyage is entered on; and such sort of red bread or biscuit very probably was this, which the apostle now took into his hands, and did with it as follows:

and gave thanks to God in the presence of them all:
and for them all, as Christ did at ordinary meals, ( Matthew 14:19 ) ( 15:36 ) .

and when he had broken it he began to eat:
which was all agreeably to the custom and manner of the Jews, who first gave thanks, and then said "Amen", at giving of thanks; when he that gave thanks brake and ate first: for he that brake the bread might not break it until the "Amen" was finished by all that answered by it, at giving of thanks; and no one might eat anything until he that brake, first tasted and ate F25.


FOOTNOTES:

F24 Vid. Scheffer. de Militia Navali Veterum, l. 4. c. 1. p. 252, 253, 254.
F25 T. Bab. Beracot, fol. 47. 1. Zohar in Num. fol. 100. 3.

Acts 27:35 In-Context

33 Just before daybreak, Paul urged all of them to take some food, saying, "Today is the fourteenth day that you have been in suspense and remaining without food, having eaten nothing.
34 Therefore I urge you to take some food, for it will help you survive; for none of you will lose a hair from your heads."
35 After he had said this, he took bread; and giving thanks to God in the presence of all, he broke it and began to eat.
36 Then all of them were encouraged and took food for themselves.
37 (We were in all two hundred seventy-six persons in the ship.)
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.