The voyage to Rome was difficult, with opposing winds (Acts 27:4, 7) and then an extended storm or series of storms (27:14-20). Yet Paul had a vision of an angel, bearing the message that all on board the ship would survive (27:23-24). Though the ship itself would be wrecked (27:41), all reached shore in safety (27:44).

They ended up on Malta, where the natives expected Paul to die of a snakebite (28:4); and when he did not get sick they thought he must be a god (28:6). He was not; but he did pray for many people who were sick, who then got better (28:7-9). In gratitude the people of the island provided abundant provisions, and the soldiers and the prisoners found passage on another ship and made it to Italy, and then to Rome itself (28:11-16).

Paul remained under house arrest for at least two years (28:30). The story simply stops at that point. If Paul was then executed in Rome, why didn’t Luke include that as the end of the story? After all, he was obviously willing to tell the story of the death of Stephen (7:54-60) and the death of James (12:2). Or if Paul was not killed at the end of his two years in Rome, but was freed (and perhaps fulfilled his ambition to go preach in Spain), why wouldn’t Luke say that? Again, he was obviously willing to tell the story of Peter’s deliverance from prison (4:1-21; 12:6-11) and of Paul’s (16:25-40). The obvious explanation for how the narrative ends is this: Luke gave no further history because he had brought the narrative up to date. He said nothing more because nothing more had happened yet: which gives a date for the completion of the book of Acts at approximately 62-65 AD.

In the meantime, what Paul did in Rome even as a prisoner was to proclaim the gospel: his message was convincing to some but not to others (28:24), while for still others no report on results is given (28:31). We will sometimes know that people have responded, and sometimes not: in either case, it is for us to remain faithful in proclamation, even in difficult circumstances.

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And so you brought your apostle to Rome, O Lord, as you had said you would: on a long and dangerous voyage, where it looked like it might be disastrous at any moment. So we trust in you, that you will bring us as well to the place where you want us to be, even when it looks like we will get there via some sort of shipwreck.

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