When they had been brought safely through, then we found out that the island was called Malta. The natives showed us extraordinary kindness; for because of the rain that had set in and because of the cold, they kindled a fire and received us all. But when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat and fastened itself on his hand. When the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they began saying to one another, “Undoubtedly this man is a murderer, and though he has been saved from the sea, justice has not allowed him to live.” However he shook the creature off into the fire and suffered no harm. But they were expecting that he was about to swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But after they had waited a long time and had seen nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and began to say that he was a god. Now in the neighborhood of that place were lands belonging to the leading man of the island, named Publius, who welcomed us and entertained us courteously three days. And it happened that the father of Publius was lying in bed afflicted with recurrent fever and dysentery; and Paul went in to see him and after he had prayed, he laid his hands on him and healed him. After this had happened, the rest of the people on the island who had diseases were coming to him and getting cured. They also honored us with many marks of respect; and when we were setting sail, they supplied us with all we needed.
Malta - "...is 60 mi (97 km) S of Sicily." (Ryrie)
"It is about sixty miles south of the nearest point of Sicily, and is seventeen miles long with a maximum breadth of nine miles. In St. Paul's days, it was included in the Roman province of Sicily." (Walker)
natives - "The primary meaning of the Greek word is 'people who speak a foreign tongue'; i.e., non-Greeks." (Ryrie)
"The name given by the Greeks to those who did not share their own birth and language. St. Luke, as a Greek, naturally uses the term of a population which was originally Phoenician, though it had a considerable admixture of blood from other races, since the island had passed successively under both Grecian and Roman rule." (Walker)
viper - "The locals must have recognized the snake as poisonous. Not only did Paul survive, but his hand did not even swell." (Ryrie)
justice has not allowed him to live - "The Greeks worshipped 'Justice', personified as a goddess (Dikee), reputed the daughter of Zeus and Themis. The Maltese may either have adopted her or have had a corresponding deity of their own." (Walker)
"Ordinarily this would have resulted in widespread inflammation and sudden death, and as the Melitans saw the viper hanging on his hand they concluded among themselves that he was doubtless a murderer who, though having escaped the sea, was about to be executed by Vengeance, or Justice, the goddess who supposedly sat beside Jupiter and disposed of such cases." (Stam)
the leading man of the island - "It may possibly represent a title which the Romans found attached to the principal person of Malta and which they adopted as the official name for their local governor, who would be the depute of the proprietor of Sicily. Otherwise, it must be regarded as denoting the honorary rank of a native magnate, who was allowed, under Roman rule, to retain his former title and, possibly, some of his former possessions and authority." (Walker)
after he had prayed - "This, to begin with, would show those present that he was not the author of the miracle but only the instrument; not a god, as they had supposed, but a messenger from God ... Strangely, nothing is said in the record about any preaching by Paul at Melita, nor about anyone being converted. We can understand that circumstances doubtless forbade his preaching aboard ship, but now, with three months to sped on the island, surely there was ample opportunity to proclaim Christ and His finished work. In cases of this kind we must not forget the selective principle in divine inspiration, which is so prominent in the Book of Acts. God's great purpose in Acts is not to record 'the birth and growth of the Church,' as some have supposed, but to record the fall of Israel and to vindicate His action in setting them aside while He demonstrates the righteousness and grace of the Messiah they have rejected. In this closing section of Acts it is not God's main purpose to show Paul's ministry among the Gentiles, but rather to show the apostle as rejected by Israel and sent in chains to Rome because of his ministry among the Gentiles (See Acts 22:21-23)." (Stam)
healed him - "This incident in the last chapter of Acts is followed by others, which prove that the era of miraculous demonstrations had not even yet passed." (Stam)
marks of respect - "Notice that Paul did not require gifts be given to him before he would heal. The supplies were given in appreciation for Paul's ministry." (Ryrie)
"They would never forget the apostle and the blessing he had brought them. Little wonder that this part of Malta is to this day known as St. Paul's Bay!" (Stam)
Malta - "...is 60 mi (97 km) S of Sicily." (Ryrie)
"It is about sixty miles south of the nearest point of Sicily, and is seventeen miles long with a maximum breadth of nine miles. In St. Paul's days, it was included in the Roman province of Sicily." (Walker)
natives - "The primary meaning of the Greek word is 'people who speak a foreign tongue'; i.e., non-Greeks." (Ryrie)
"The name given by the Greeks to those who did not share their own birth and language. St. Luke, as a Greek, naturally uses the term of a population which was originally Phoenician, though it had a considerable admixture of blood from other races, since the island had passed successively under both Grecian and Roman rule." (Walker)
viper - "The locals must have recognized the snake as poisonous. Not only did Paul survive, but his hand did not even swell." (Ryrie)
justice has not allowed him to live - "The Greeks worshipped 'Justice', personified as a goddess (Dikee), reputed the daughter of Zeus and Themis. The Maltese may either have adopted her or have had a corresponding deity of their own." (Walker)
"Ordinarily this would have resulted in widespread inflammation and sudden death, and as the Melitans saw the viper hanging on his hand they concluded among themselves that he was doubtless a murderer who, though having escaped the sea, was about to be executed by Vengeance, or Justice, the goddess who supposedly sat beside Jupiter and disposed of such cases." (Stam)
the leading man of the island - "It may possibly represent a title which the Romans found attached to the principal person of Malta and which they adopted as the official name for their local governor, who would be the depute of the proprietor of Sicily. Otherwise, it must be regarded as denoting the honorary rank of a native magnate, who was allowed, under Roman rule, to retain his former title and, possibly, some of his former possessions and authority." (Walker)
after he had prayed - "This, to begin with, would show those present that he was not the author of the miracle but only the instrument; not a god, as they had supposed, but a messenger from God ... Strangely, nothing is said in the record about any preaching by Paul at Melita, nor about anyone being converted. We can understand that circumstances doubtless forbade his preaching aboard ship, but now, with three months to sped on the island, surely there was ample opportunity to proclaim Christ and His finished work. In cases of this kind we must not forget the selective principle in divine inspiration, which is so prominent in the Book of Acts. God's great purpose in Acts is not to record 'the birth and growth of the Church,' as some have supposed, but to record the fall of Israel and to vindicate His action in setting them aside while He demonstrates the righteousness and grace of the Messiah they have rejected. In this closing section of Acts it is not God's main purpose to show Paul's ministry among the Gentiles, but rather to show the apostle as rejected by Israel and sent in chains to Rome because of his ministry among the Gentiles (See Acts 22:21-23)." (Stam)
healed him - "This incident in the last chapter of Acts is followed by others, which prove that the era of miraculous demonstrations had not even yet passed." (Stam)
marks of respect - "Notice that Paul did not require gifts be given to him before he would heal. The supplies were given in appreciation for Paul's ministry." (Ryrie)
"They would never forget the apostle and the blessing he had brought them. Little wonder that this part of Malta is to this day known as St. Paul's Bay!" (Stam)
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