rgprice wrote: ↑Fri Jan 22, 2021 1:50 pm
@Charles Wilson
I'll just say this. Paul the Apostle did lots of traveling by boat around the Aegean Sea, going to and from Troas to Greece and various places. Paul's use of a boat makes a lot of sense.
Yes, which makes this entry more than a little humorous:
Polybius,
Histories 150:
"Their successors, Gnaeus Servilius and Gaius Sempronius, put to sea with their whole fleet as soon as it was summer and after crossing to Sicily proceeded thence to Libya, and sailing along the coast, made a number of descents in which they accomplished nothing of importance, and finally reached the isle of the Lotus-eaters, which is called Meninx and is not far distant from the lesser
Syrtis. Here, owing to their ignorance of these seas, they ran on to some shoals, and, on the tide retreating and the ships grounding fast, they were in a most difficult position. However, as the tide unexpectedly rose again after some time,
they managed with difficulty to lighten their ships by throwing overboard all heavy objects..."
Hmmm...Have we seen this before?
Acts 27: 14 - 20 (RSV):
[14] But soon a tempestuous wind, called the northeaster, struck down from the land;
[15] and when the ship was caught and could not face the wind, we gave way to it and were driven.
[16] And running under the lee of a small island called Cauda, we managed with difficulty to secure the boat;
[17] after hoisting it up, they took measures to undergird the ship; then, fearing that they should run on the Syr'tis, they lowered the gear, and so were driven.
[18] As we were violently storm-tossed, they began next day to throw the cargo overboard;
[19] and the third day they cast out with their own hands the tackle of the ship.
[20] And when neither sun nor stars appeared for many a day, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope of our being saved was at last abandoned.
Ahhh, Syrtis, where everyone runs aground and throws all equipment over the side so they can free their ships. Sorta' like the kid with the mask and snorkel. He's never without golf balls since, in five minutes at the golf course where the hole has a lake around it, he can find all he needs. We need to fund an Expedition to Syrtis to recover all of the debris from all the ships that ran aground there. Mebbe we'll find an autographed copy of
John-Mark, the Book.
"But Wait!!!...There's more!!!"
The Moffatt Translation tells the better Tale and perhaps tomorrow I'll fill in the blanks. Look at verse 17: "...after hoisting it up, they took measures to undergird the ship..." There is mischief here and Moffatt dutifully reports that an excellent Translation is given with the undergirding of the ship being provided with ropes.
SOOOO WHAT?!??
Tacitus,
Histories, Book 3:
Anicetus also set fire to the fleet, and, as the sea was not guarded, escaped, for Mucianus had brought up to Byzantium the best of the Liburnian ships and all the troops.
The barbarians even insolently scoured the sea in hastily constructed vessels of their own called "camarae," built with narrow sides and broad bottoms, and joined together without fastenings of brass or iron. Whenever the water is rough
they raise the bulwarks with additional planks according to the increasing height of the waves, till the vessel is covered in like a house. Thus they roll about amid the billows, and, as they have a prow at both extremities alike and a convertible arrangement of oars,
they may be paddled in one direction or another indifferently and without risk..."
Pretty neat, huh? Combine the Camarae story with running aground at Syrtis and "Paul" suddenly has a real adventure.
Acts has much more to say about this story but perhaps later.
[Edit Note: From a Moffatt Translation Online (
https://archive.org/details/newtestamen ... 2/mode/2up ) p. 183:
"...once it was hoisted aboard, they used ropes* to undergird the ship, and in fear of being stranded on the Syrtis they lowered the sail and lay to..."]