Middletown transcript., 1916-11-04
LESSON FOR NOVEMBER 5.
sHIPwREckED AT MELITA CMaltal

the soul of his servants; and none OF
them that take refuge in him shall be
CONFERENCE.-The. S4:22.
Paul was at Malta three months,
from the last of November to the last
Of February, A. D. SO. A bay on the
north shore is still called st. Paurs
bay. Much help on this lesson can be
secured by reading Mr.. James Smiths
book on the "Voyage and Shipwreck OF
st. Paul." Sir William Ramsey's, "St.
Paul, the Traveller" and Everyday
Men," by Robert Elliott Thompson.
!. Paul safely ashore CT :38-44). AS
the day daWned the ship was lightened
for a third time to enable them to ap-
prOach nearer to the shore. This time
the main cargo Of wheat was thrown
| out. heretofore having been saved as
long as possible. The sailors were ia
miliar with Malta, but not with this
part where the ship now lay. DiscOv-
ering a small creek, they perceived a
certain bay with beach upon which
they might run the ship, and hold it
without its going to pieces before they
could land. 1t would have been i'm
possible to escape if they ran upon the
rocks in a heavy sea. The words
''taken up anchor" ". 40) indicates
that the sailors had cast them over
board but attached to the ship. Now
they cut the cables and permitted
themselves not to be anchored but to
Vx,i4 hn c,hO hot r11in
land upon the beach. Approaching the
inlet, where the waters of the bay
met that of the sea, "where the two
seas met" the vessel would not an
swer to its helm. The ship probably
drew about 1S feet of water, and the
bottom stuck in the clinging mud and
clay, and the forepart began to break
away from the rear, due to the vio-
lence of the waves. Here Paul had his
most narrow escape ". 42). Not
alone was he on the point of losing
his life by the sea, but the sword hung
over his head not that of a lawful ex-
cutioner, but of a selfish murderer.
Before it was danger from the sail
ors; now it is the soldiers, but the
centurion proved true, and all Of the
prisoners were saved for PauPs sake.
It would be interesting speculation as
to how many of those saved realized
that they were not for Paul's sake, but
for the sake of his Savior, and how
many of them were duly grateful. On
this second stage Of the Journey, after
having left Caesarea with the larger
ship, there were probably 276 persons,
by Gods guaranty was "there shall
be no loss of any mans life" and his
word is sure. Thus it was that by va
rious means, some perhaps good SWIM
mers, others on bits of board, all
safely reached the shore. Contrary
winds are the experience Of life.
Fierce storms frequently come upon
US like the hurricane.
Sometimes it is necessary to tighten
the ship of life, and frequently we are
wrecked, but it is possible for every
one to reach a safe home in port, |
Through the merits of Christ, our cap
tain, and the guidance of the Bible as
our chart, we may receive our Fa-
theirs welcome.
II. PauI's continued service (2S l. |
1O). This island is today and has |
been since 1900 under British rule. It |
was then governed by the Romans.
(D Comfort (vv., 1, p. The term
barbarian" does not indicate rudeness
or uncivilized people, but merely those |
of nOn-Greek birth. These people kin
died a fire because of the cold and Of |
the rain. They received everyone,
prisoners and soldiers like brothers,
and, in the persons of Paul and Luke
they certainly entertained angels una
wares. (Heb. 13 :2). (2) Cooperation
". 81: The fire would need continual
replenishing. Again Paul's energy is
conspicuous. Though the greatest of
men then living, he was ready to do
the humblest duty. Whether counsel
ing about difficulty or comforting un-
der dangers, he was ready to relieve
distress at all times, and thus held up
the banner of the cross and proved his
Christian spirit. Paul was willing to
do the smallest duty with the highest
motive, and turned the most common
responsibility into an opportunity to
serve God. (3) Contest wv. 4-6).
AS Paul gathered the roots and put
them upon the fire there came out a
viper, probably benumbed by the cold,
which fastened itself upon his hand.
There are now no venomous serpents
in Malta, but this is no reason to be-
lieve that in the earlier days, when
sparsely inhabited, this common Eu-
ropean serpent. known as the viper, or
possibly the Egyptian asp, may not
have been here. 1t was natural for
nations to expect that
this was the vengeance of q god
brought upon Paul because no doubt
he was murderer. Having escaped
from the wreck, Paul could not escape
from the sword of divine justice, and
the goddess of justice, Nemesis, the
avenger, suffered him not to live.
With perfect composure, doubtless
arising from Gods promises that Christ
had made to his servants Mark 16:
l8; Luke 10:19), and also the promises
that he should preach the gospel in
Rome, Paul shook the viper from his
wrist. They then changed their minds,
thinking that he must be god (see
Acts 14:8-19). These things were
Paul!s credentials so that the people
would be more likely to listen to his
of the gospel. and ready to
receive 1t. (4) Conquest wv. 7-1O). For
-hree months Paul lived in this island,
lays not of idleness as we see from
.hese verses. PubIius, the governor,
--nc Aho .,l,IoA rran.. - AL. - J.