Bible verse referring to hidden islands full#

How would you have acted if you had been in Paul’s position? Suppose you became shipwrecked and lost all your human possessions. By the time Paul departed from Melita, he was so respected and honored that they loaded him down with everything necessary for the remainder of his journey! The man was miraculously healed, and soon the entire island was in revival! The Bible tells us, “So when this was done, others also, which had diseases in the island, came, and were healed” (Acts 28:9). While there, Paul laid hands on Publius’ father, who “…lay sick of a fever and of a bloody flux…” (Acts 28:8). In just a short time, Paul used the event to bring the whole island together for a crusade! Publius, the chief of the island, was so impressed that he took Paul into his own home for three days. When the barbarian crowd saw that Paul didn’t die, they assumed he was a god. This word pictures the apostle Paul shaking his hand back and forth until finally the viper released its fangs and fell into the fire. It is a compound of the word apo, meaning off and away, and the word tinasso, which means to shake. That is why Acts 28:4 says, “And when the barbarians saw the venomous beast hang on his hand, they said among themselves, No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he hath escaped the sea, yet vengeance suffereth not to live.”īut what did Paul do? He shook off that snake! Acts 28:5 says, “And he shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm.” The phrase “shook it off” is from the Greek word apotinasso.

Bible verse referring to hidden islands full#

That viper sunk its fangs deeply into Paul’s flesh and then released its full load of venom into his hand.

Not only did it bite him, but it also injected its venom into his hand, for the word kathapto also meant to introduce poison into the body. The verse says that this snake “fastened on his hand.” The word “fastened” is the Greek word kathapto, and it means to tightly fasten. The word “viper” is the Greek word echidna, and it refers to a highly venomous snake. Acts 28:3 says, “And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand.” When he dropped his wood onto the flames, that snake charged out of the pile of wood and bit Paul on the hand. Apparently a venomous viper was hidden in the sticks that he was carrying to lay on the fire. Once marooned on the island of Melita, Paul worked with the other crew members to collect wood for a fire. In that moment of crisis, Paul became God’s man on board ship! He spoke the word of faith to the crew and passengers, and soon he was in charge of the entire situation. In Acts 27, we read that Paul was traveling on board a ship that ran into rocks and broke into pieces. Even if the vessel was guided by strong and skilled leadership, currents were so strong that even the best ships could be carried directly into rocks and other dangerous obstacles. The routes often took them through waters cluttered with sharp rocks, reefs, and debris. Traveling by sea was a perilous and risky undertaking. Yet it is certain that too many significant events occurred during Paul’s ministry for all of them to be recorded in Luke’s account in the book of Acts. When I read about the travels of the apostle Paul, I find his story to be simply remarkable! What he had to endure to take the Gospel to the Gentiles was out of the ordinary!įor example, in Second Corinthians 11:25, Paul tells us that during the course of his ministry, he was shipwrecked three times! He writes, “…thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep.” This verse is a bit of a mystery, because only one shipwreck is recorded in the book of Acts. And he shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm.