12. Also, that harbor was not a good place for the ship to stay for the winter, so most of the men decided that we should leave there. They hoped we could reach Phoenix, where the ship could stay for the winter. Phoenix was a city on the island of Crete. It had a harbor that faced southwest and northwest.
13. Then a good wind began to blow from the south. The men on the ship thought, “This is the wind we wanted, and now we have it!” So they pulled up the anchor. We sailed very close to the island of Crete.
14. But then a very strong wind called the “Northeaster” came from across the island.
15. This wind took the ship and carried it away. The ship could not sail against the wind, so we stopped trying and let the wind blow us.
16. We went below a small island named Cauda. With the island protecting us from the wind, we were able to bring in the lifeboat, but it was very hard to do.
17. After the men brought the lifeboat in, they tied ropes around the ship to hold it together. The men were afraid that the ship would hit the sandbanks of Syrtis. So they lowered the sail and let the wind carry the ship.
18. The next day the storm was blowing against us so hard that the men threw some things out of the ship.
19. A day later they threw out the ship’s equipment.
20. For many days we could not see the sun or the stars. The storm was very bad. We lost all hope of staying alive—we thought we would die.
21. The men did not eat for a long time. Then one day Paul stood up before them and said, “Men, I told you not to leave Crete. You should have listened to me. Then you would not have all this trouble and loss.
22. But now I tell you to be happy. None of you will die, but the ship will be lost.
23. Last night an angel came to me from God—the God I worship and belong to.
24. The angel said, ‘Paul, don’t be afraid! You must stand before Caesar. And God has given you this promise: He will save the lives of all those sailing with you.’
25. So men, there is nothing to worry about. I trust God, and I am sure everything will happen just as his angel told me.
26. But we will crash on an island.”
27. On the fourteenth night we were still being blown around in the Adriatic Sea. The sailors thought we were close to land.
28. They threw a rope into the water with a weight on the end of it. They found that the water was 120 feet deep. They went a little farther and threw the rope in again. It was 90 feet deep.
29. The sailors were afraid that we would hit the rocks, so they threw four anchors into the water. Then they prayed for daylight to come.
30. Some of the sailors wanted to leave the ship, and they lowered the lifeboat to the water. They wanted the other men to think that they were throwing more anchors from the front of the ship.
31. But Paul told the army officer and the other soldiers, “If these men do not stay in the ship, you will lose all hope of survival.”