Chapter 28
Winter in Malta. 1 Once we had reached safety we learned
that the island was called Malta. 2 The natives showed us extraordinary
hospitality; they lit a fire and welcomed all of us because it had begun to
rain and was cold. 3 Paul had gathered a bundle of brushwood and was putting it
on the fire when a viper, escaping from the heat, fastened on his hand. 4 When
the natives saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to one another,
“This man must certainly be a murderer; though he escaped the sea, Justice[a]
has not let him remain alive.” 5 But he shook the snake off into the fire and
suffered no harm. 6 They were expecting him to swell up or suddenly to fall
down dead but, after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to
him, they changed their minds and began to say that he was a god. 7 In the
vicinity of that place were lands belonging to a man named Publius, the chief
of the island. He welcomed us and received us cordially as his guests for three
days. 8 It so happened that the father of Publius was sick with a fever and
dysentery. Paul visited him and, after praying, laid his hands on him and
healed him. 9 After this had taken place, the rest of the sick on the island
came to Paul and were cured. 10 They paid us great honor and when we eventually
set sail they brought us the provisions we needed.
Arrival in Rome. 11 Three months later we set sail on a ship
that had wintered at the island. It was an Alexandrian ship with the
Dioscuri[b] as its figurehead. 12 We put in at Syracuse and stayed there three
days, 13 and from there we sailed round the coast and arrived at Rhegium. After
a day, a south wind came up and in two days we reached Puteoli. 14 There we
found some brothers and were urged to stay with them for seven days. And thus
we came to Rome. 15 The brothers from there heard about us and came as far as
the Forum of Appius and Three Taverns to meet us. On seeing them, Paul gave
thanks to God and took courage. 16 When he entered Rome,[c] Paul was allowed to
live by himself, with the soldier who was guarding him.
Testimony to Jews in Rome. 17 [d]Three days later he called
together the leaders of the Jews. When they had gathered he said to them, “My
brothers, although I had done nothing against our people or our ancestral
customs, I was handed over to the Romans as a prisoner from Jerusalem. 18 After
trying my case the Romans wanted to release me, because they found nothing
against me deserving the death penalty. 19 But when the Jews objected, I was
obliged to appeal to Caesar, even though I had no accusation to make against my
own nation. 20 This is the reason, then, I have requested to see you and to
speak with you, for it is on account of the hope of Israel[e] that I wear these
chains.” 21 They answered him, “We have received no letters from Judea about
you, nor has any of the brothers arrived with a damaging report or rumor about
you. 22 But we should like to hear you present your views, for we know that
this sect is denounced everywhere.”
23 So they arranged a day with him and came to his lodgings
in great numbers. From early morning until evening, he expounded his position
to them, bearing witness to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them
about Jesus from the law of Moses and the prophets. 24 Some were convinced by
what he had said, while others did not believe. 25 [f]Without reaching any
agreement among themselves they began to leave; then Paul made one final
statement. “Well did the holy Spirit speak to your ancestors through the
prophet Isaiah, saying:
26 ‘Go to this people and say:
You shall indeed hear but not understand. You shall indeed
look but never see.
27 Gross is the heart of this people; they will not hear
with their ears; they have closed their eyes, so they may not see with their
eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and be converted,
and I heal them.’
28 Let it be known to you that this salvation of God has
been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen.” [29 ][g]
30 [h]He remained for two full years in his lodgings. He
received all who came to him, 31 and with complete assurance and without
hindrance he proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus
Christ.
Footnotes
28:4 Justice: in Greek mythology, the pursuing goddess of
vengeance and justice.
28:11 Dioscuri: that is, the Twin Brothers, Castor and
Pollux, the sons of Zeus and the patrons of the sailors.
28:16 With Paul’s arrival in Rome, the programmatic spread
of the word of the Lord to “the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8) is accomplished.
In Rome, Paul is placed under house arrest, and under this mild form of custody
he is allowed to proclaim the word in the capital of the civilized world of his
day.
28:17–22 Paul’s first act in Rome is to learn from the
leaders of the Jewish community whether the Jews of Jerusalem plan to pursue
their case against him before the Roman jurisdiction. He is informed that no
such plan is afoot, but that the Jews of Rome have heard the Christian teaching
denounced. Paul’s offer to explain it to them is readily accepted.
28:20 The hope of Israel: in the words of Paul (Acts 23:6),
Luke has identified this hope as hope in the resurrection of the dead.
28:25–28 Paul’s final words in Acts reflect a major concern
of Luke’s writings: how the salvation promised in the Old Testament,
accomplished by Jesus, and offered first to Israel (Acts 13:26), has now been
offered to and accepted by the Gentiles. Quoting Is 6:9–10, Paul presents the
scriptural support for his indictment of his fellow Jews who refuse to accept
the message he proclaims. Their rejection leads to its proclamation among the
Gentiles.
28:29 The Western text has added here a verse that is not
found in the best Greek manuscripts: “And when he had said this, the Jews left,
seriously arguing among themselves.”
28:30–31 Although the ending of Acts may seem to be abrupt,
Luke has now completed his story with the establishment of Paul and the
proclamation of Christianity in Rome. Paul’s confident and unhindered
proclamation of the gospel in Rome forms the climax to the story whose outline
was provided in Acts 1:8—“You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem…and to the ends
of the earth.”
Source Catholic Bible: New American Bible Revised Edition (NABRE)
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Acts of the Apostles: Table of Contents
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