Acts 27:30

Act 27:30

In an attempt to escape from the ship, the sailors let the lifeboat down into the sea, pretending they were going to lower some anchors from the bow.

Note 77: Every man for himself

This verse is pretty clear and if you compare it with a modern day TV newscast this passage is quite believable.  Unfortunately, over the last decade reports of crews abandoning passengers during a ship’s sinking is very commonplace. It may be sickening to hear but it still happens today.   Remember the saying “Abandon ship, every man for himself.”  We think of these crew members as cowards, but to them their priority is save themselves first, while the responsibility of the passenger is to save themselves by any means possible.

In more modern times Bruce Ismay, the director of the White Star was aboard the Titanic the night she sank.  He survived, along with the other 705 survivors by getting into a lifeboat. For the rest of his life he was haunted by his actions.  He was harshly criticized for ‘abandoning’ the ship as she sank, which was done in an effort TO SAVE HIS LIFE.   We make heros of the band members who bravely stayed on deck, playing music for the remaining passengers and then went down with the ship.  Today we really have a different attitude toward crews who leave passengers, however it is what it is.

Personal Note 78: Look to your own soul

At 2:20 AM, on April 15, 1912, the Titanic sank and 1,517 souls were lost with her. The blame for this tragedy ranges from blaming Captain Edward Smith, to blaming Bruce Ismay, to the ship going too fast near icebergs, to the Irish steel used for building the hull, to man’s arrogance in thinking it was unsinkable. In the long run, it really doesn’t matter to the people who were lost that cold night. We believe the crew of the Titanic acted bravely. We often believe the crew in Acts 27:30 acted like cowards. They hatched a plan to save themselves in the small boat.

One thing I have learned from studying shipwrecks and life in general,  YOU are responsible for YOU – It is the decisions YOU make and the actions YOU take that ultimately determine whether you are numbered as a lost soul or a survivor.

Note 79: Using the small boat to lower anchors?

It was a common practice to use the ship’s boat to carry the anchor out away from the boat to give it wider spacing for an anchorage.  Remember, at this time the ship was now being held by the four anchors attached to the stern, however, in that postition means the ship it could still swing like a watch on a string. If they dropped one anchor from the right side of the bow and one off the left side of the bow then they could have a three point anchorage, which is more stable.  However, if they just dropped two anchors at the bow then those anchors would be side by side.  In this case a crew would lower the boat and move each anchor a distance away from the ship.  Once again Luke provides a key piece of nautical information that is accurate and key to our modern understanding.