32
So the soldiers cut the ropes and let the lifeboat fall into the water.
33
Just before dawn Paul began persuading all the people to eat something. He said, "For the past fourteen days you have been waiting and watching and not eating.
34
Now I beg you to eat something. You need it to stay alive. None of you will lose even one hair off your heads."
35
After he said this, Paul took some bread and thanked God for it before all of them. He broke off a piece and began eating.
36
They all felt better and started eating, too.
37
There were two hundred seventy-six people on the ship.
38
When they had eaten all they wanted, they began making the ship lighter by throwing the grain into the sea.
39
When daylight came, the sailors saw land. They did not know what land it was, but they saw a bay with a beach and wanted to sail the ship to the beach if they could.
40
So they cut the ropes to the anchors and left the anchors in the sea. At the same time, they untied the ropes that were holding the rudders. Then they raised the front sail into the wind and sailed toward the beach.
41
But the ship hit a sandbank. The front of the ship stuck there and could not move, but the back of the ship began to break up from the big waves.
42
The soldiers decided to kill the prisoners so none of them could swim away and escape.