NOTES for Act 28:1-16
1 And when they were escaped, then they knew that the island was called Melita. |
2 And the barbarous people shewed us no little kindness: for they kindled a fire, and received us every one, because of the present rain, and because of the cold. |
3 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. |
4 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. |
5 And he shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm. |
6 Howbeit they looked when he should have swollen, or fallen down dead suddenly: but after they had looked a great while, and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds, and said that he was a god. |
7 In the same quarters were possessions of the chief man of the island, whose name was Publius; who received us, and lodged us three days courteously. |
8 And it came to pass, that the father of Publius lay sick of a fever and of a bloody flux: to whom Paul entered in, and prayed, and laid his hands on him, and healed him. |
9 So when this was done, others also, which had diseases in the island, came, and were healed: |
10 Who also honoured us with many honours; and when we departed, they laded us with such things as were necessary. |
11 And after three months we departed in a ship of Alexandria, which had wintered in the isle, whose sign was Castor and Pollux. |
12 And landing at Syracuse, we tarried there three days. |
13 And from thence we fetched a compass, and came to Rhegium: and after one day the south wind blew, and we came the next day to Puteoli: |
14 Where we found brethren, and were desired to tarry with them seven days: and so we went toward Rome. |
15 And from thence, when the brethren heard of us, they came to meet us as far as Appiiforum, and The three taverns: whom when Paul saw, he thanked God, and took courage. |
16 And when we came to Rome, the centurion delivered the prisoners to the captain of the guard: but Paul was suffered to dwell by himself with a soldier that kept him. |
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Today's reading in a sense brings us back to the time of the Savior's earthly ministry, when the main signs of the nearness of the Kingdom were miracles and healings. The miraculous rescue of Paul himself and his companions was only the beginning. It was followed by the miracle with the snake (vv. 3-6) and the many healings performed through the apostle's prayers (vv. 7-9). All this was nothing other than a witness that the Kingdom of which Jesus spoke had truly entered the world and was spreading in it, drawing ever new people into itself.
The miracle with the snake is especially interesting in this respect. The first reaction of those who witnessed the incident was bewilderment: what could Paul have done that the gods, even after allowing him to set foot on shore, still intended to take his life (v. 4)? It is no surprise that they considered the apostle a murderer receiving deserved punishment. Yet when everything ended well, the same people were already ready to consider Paul a god (v. 6).
Meanwhile, everything that happened vividly demonstrates how the world changes as it becomes part of the Kingdom. In the world not yet transformed by God's action, evil is practically all-powerful, and in essence a person is unable to withstand it, just as he cannot overcome the effect of snake venom. In the fallen world, one has to speak not of resisting evil, but of trying to avoid it, and if a person succeeds in this, he is considered fortunate. In the Kingdom everything is different: here evil becomes powerless, and even snake venom cannot harm the one who already abides in it. The point is not that the power of the Kingdom is some special universal antidote, but that in the Kingdom everything changes in a completely real way, including the very laws of nature, so that substances that killed a person in our still untransformed world can no longer harm him.
It is no surprise that the pagans began to consider Paul a god: the ancients thought of their gods as not subject to the natural laws by which the whole earthly world lives. Thus the miracle with the snake becomes a witness to the Kingdom, understandable in its own way even to pagans.
Readings for 17 November 2025
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