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Tag: angel

Tossed About in a Sinking Ship
How will you deal with the demise of your own failing flesh aboard the sinking ship of this brief life?

Acts of the Apostles 27

Sailing so slowly into a billowing whirlwind of destruction.

That’s how it must have felt for the Roman Centurion Julian, various guards and now others aboard a large Greek merchant ship hauling grain into a storm.

How did we arrive at these last days of a failed voyage to Rome?
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AD 59 - Acts [27] of the Apostle Paul
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- v.3 entering a (small) ship of Adramyttium, sailing only to nearby Tyre
- v.4-6 crawling along the coasts of Pamphylia and Asia to board this large ship hauling grain to Rome
- v.7 we had sailed slowly many days, and arrived with difficulty off Cnidus [still only along the coast of Asia {Minor} at the Southeast edge of the Aegean Sea], the wind not permitting us to proceed.
- Their ship had drifted on gentle waters into harbors along Crete. Barely had their voyage into the Mediterranean begun.
- The winds of winter near upon them now, their only hope a sheltered harbor away from which they were suddenly swept into the tempest. [v.7-17]
“Men, I perceive that this voyage will end with disaster and much loss, not only of the cargo and ship, but also our lives.”

Acts of the Apostles 27:10 NKJV – Paul, addressing the men onboard their grain ship

Swept asunder by the Tempest of a Euroclydon

Paul — Shipwrecked

276 souls on a sinking ship

Because we were being severely battered by the storm, they began to jettison the cargo the next day… On the third day, they threw the ship’s tackle overboard with their own hands…

For many days neither sun nor stars appeared, and the severe storm kept raging. Finally all hope was fading that we would be saved...

.. they had been without food for a long time…

Acts 27:18-21 excerpt CSB

Message of an Angel to Paul and all souls aboard
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We have not heard from the Apostle for several days now since his warning to the Centurian Julian had been ignored. As would have been his regular practice, no doubt Paul and Aristarchus had been praying. 

Now the Apostle appears with a new messenge of hope from an angelic messenger of God.
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“You men should have followed my advice not to sail from Crete and sustain this damage and loss. Now I urge you to take courage, because there will be no loss of any of your lives, but only of the ship.

Acts 27:21b-22 CSB
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'Preposterous,' these hungry men on a sinking ship laden with grain must have thought - Roman men and Greek sailors who would have been weak from fighting for their lives.

'YOU told us we would die and now that we're almost sinking into the sea you say that we will not.'  
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“For last night an angel of the God I belong to and serve stood by me and said, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul. It is necessary for you to appear before Caesar. And indeed, God has graciously given you all those who are sailing with you.’

Acts 27:23-24
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The crew must still be skeptical.
'Your god has graciously given you all of us sailing with you?' Many of these sailors and guards must have thought, 'You're the prisoner, not us!'
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Paul has already established his credibility as a Roman citizen with Julian, the Centurion officer charged with delivering the Apostle to Caesar.

And we are about to learn that in the protocol of the Roman Empire, it is the Centurion who is in charge of ALL of these men — NOT a captain or pilot of the ship or enlisted Roman guard.
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The Apostle continues by prophesying what is about to take place (rather than drowning in the depths of the sea as their ship sinks into the depths of the sea). 
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“So take courage, men, because I believe God that it will be just the way it was told to me. But we have to run aground on some island.”

Acts 27:25-26

drifting in the Adriatic Sea

When the fourteenth night came, we were drifting in the Adriatic Sea, and about midnight the sailors thought they were approaching land. They took soundings and found it to be 20 fathoms deep;
βολίζω – bolizō

to heave the lead, take a sounding

a line and plummet with which mariners sound the depth of the sea

ὀργυιά – fathom

the distance across the breast from the tip of one middle finger to the tip of the other when the arms are outstretched, 5 to 6 feet (2 m)
when they had sailed a little farther and sounded again,

they found it to be 15 fathoms deep.

Then, fearing we might run aground on the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and prayed for daylight to come.

Some sailors tried to escape from the ship;

they had let down the skiff into the sea, pretending that they were going to put out anchors from the bow.

Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers,

“Unless these men stay in the ship, you cannot be saved.”

Julian the Centurion in COMMAND

Then the soldiers cut the ropes holding the skiff and let it drop away.

When it was about daylight, Paul urged them all to take food..

“Today is the fourteenth day that you have been waiting and going without food, having eaten nothing. So I urge you to take some food. For this is for your survival, since none of you will lose a hair from your head.”

Acts 27:33b-34 CSB – encouragement of the Apostle Paul to the men of the ship
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Recall that Paul has this prophesy first hand from an Angel of God. 
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Breaking the Bread of Thanks

After he said these things and had taken some bread, he gave thanks to God in the presence of all of them, and after he broke it, he began to eat.

They all were encouraged and took food themselves.

Acts 27:35-36 CSB

And we were in all in the ship two hundred threescore and sixteen souls.
ACTS 27:37 KJV

And when they had eaten enough, they lightened the ship, and cast out the wheat into the sea.

Fleeing a Sinking Ship

When daylight came, they did not recognize the land but sighted a bay with a beach. They planned to run the ship ashore if they could.

After cutting loose the anchors, they left them in the sea, at the same time loosening the ropes that held the rudders.

Then they hoisted the foresail to the wind and headed for the beach.

Julian – Responsible for all men

The soldiers’ plan was to kill the prisoners so that no one could swim away and escape. But the centurion kept them from carrying out their plan because he wanted to save Paul,

and so he ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and get to land.

The rest were to follow, some on planks and some on debris from the ship.

In this way, everyone safely reached the shore.

Acts of the Apostles 27:44 CSB

Once safely ashore, we then learned that the island was called Malta.

Acts of the Apostles 28:1

To be continued…
September 24, 2025
Hail Mary, humble wife of GOD
And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.
Gospel of Luke 2:16 King James Version

Mary an Introduction
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Christians, Jews and unbelievers know parts of the iconic scene unfolding in Bethlehem through a virgin Jewish mother. 

Today I honor Mary most appropriately by retelling her story of Christmas mostly from the King James Version of the Holy Bible.
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Mary, Eve of the Virgin Birth

And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem..

.. with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.

Gospel of Luke 2:4-5 KJV excerpt

And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.

Mary, wife of Joseph?

Not quite, according to custom and Jewish law.
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Do YOU know any young woman who has been pregnant (even near full term) yet not married to the man she knew?
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μνηστεύω – Strong’s G3423 – mnēsteuō – from a derivative of G3415; to give a souvenir (engagement present), i.e. betroth:—espouse.
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Recall that GREEK is the common language not only of Luke the Physician but also of all of the Roman Empire ruled by Caesar Augustus. 
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Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused G3423 to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.

Gospel of Matthew 1:18 KJV

SCANDELOUS !

(as least in the A.D. First Century)

Mary, ENGAGED to Joseph

AND they both know that the Virgin Mary had NEVER come together with Joseph her fiancé!

Joseph, an honorable man
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(like his namesake and ancestor, Joseph, son of Jacob, who the LORD used to rule Egypt under Pharaoh.) 
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Gospel of Matthew 1:19- KJV

Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily. But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying,

Joseph, thou son of David,
fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife:
for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.
Matthew 1:20b KJV

And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS:

for he shall save his people from their sins.

Gospel of Matthew 1:21 KJV

An angel of the Lord speaks to you!

What to do?

The adoptive father of JESUS believes God (of course). And Joseph is a righteous and honorable man.

Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:

And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.

Gospel of Matthew 1:24-25 KJV

Signs and Witnesses

Prophesy of Isaiah and others centuries Before Christ.

Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

Isaiah 7:14 KJV

a Failure of Kings Advent 4 of Christ

Witness by a heavenly host of Angels – Luke 2:8 KJV

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

Gospel of Luke 2:8-14 King James Version

Witnesses and worship

And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him. .. Then took he him up in his arms, and blessed God, and said,

Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word:

For mine eyes have seen thy salvation,

Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people;

A light to lighten the Gentiles,

and the glory of thy people Israel.

Gospel of Luke 2:25-32 KJV excerpt [context]

Signs before Jesus’ birth

There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.

And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.

And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his course, According to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense.

And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense.

Gospel of Luke 1:5-11 King James Version
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An Angel of the Lord standing beside the Priest of God right inside the Holy of Holies! A pretty big deal.

Briefly, what happens next is a foretelling prophetic birth of JOHN the BAPTIST, preparing the way for the Lord Jesus, the consolation of Israel and Messiah sent of God the Father. 
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Elisabeth, John and the Holy Spirit
- Zacharias the Priest of God continued to serve his term in the Temple unable to speak.
  - Daily worshipers in Jerusalem must have know that something was up.
- He returns home.
- Elisabeth conceived.
- An angel of the Lord then appears in Nazareth prior to their trip to register for the census of Caesar and also tells Mary:
And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible.

Gospel of Luke 1:36-37 KJV
- And Mary went into the hill country of *Juda
- And entered into the house of Zacharias
- and (knowing the the angel had revealed) saluted Elisabeth.
And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary,

the babe leaped in her womb;

and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost:

Gospel of Luke 1:41 KJV signs confirming the Messiah when Mary greeted the mother of John the Baptist

In the Year of the most controversial birth in history

Jesus Christ born in a manger

Church fathers, theologians who study such things, took a few centuries to articulate the trinitarian Christology from the Apostles recorded in Scripture from the A.D. first century.

Creeds, Catechisms, Confessions & Christ – What do you believe?

The clarity of their CREEDS and CONFESSIONS of FAITH define our hope of eternal life in the Lord Jesus Christ.

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made.
Who, for us men for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary,
and was made man…
Nicene Creed excerpt
AD 325 & AD381

Born of the Virgin Mary

Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?

And the angel answered and said unto her,

The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee,

and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee:

therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.

Gospel of Luke 1:34-35 King James Version

εὐλογέω – eulogeō

.. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.

Luke 1:42b KJV

κύριος – kyrios

And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord,

And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.

For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden:

for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.

Gospel of Luke 1:46-48 KJV [familiar beginning of the Magnificat of Mary]

As were Joseph and others to whom the Lord sent His angels:

The soul of Mary is humble, as is JESUS from her womb to the Cross.

For he that is mighty hath done to me great things;
and holy is his name.
And his mercy
is on them that fear him
from generation to generation.
Gospel of Luke 1:49-50 King James Version – from the Magnificat of the Virgin Mary declaring that the Lord is mighty and holy is His Name.

Talk of JESUS . com

Comment on Scripture – Share the Gospel
December 24, 2024
His Angel at the gate
A messenger after an angel

Today we’ll move around between scenes and times hoping for a glance at an angel.

(Have you ever seen one?)

Acts of the Apostles 12:

So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church.
Acts of the Apostles 12:5 ESV

~ A.D. 42

Scene: Likely the same upper room where Peter and the Apostles have proclaimed the Gospel to the Church with great power. It is above a palatial home of Mary mother of Mark, who will record his Gospel during these next several years.

Like James, this time the Apostle has been seized in Jerusalem and led to prison.

Here in Mary’s house, the church prays continually for their pastor Peter, who Herod will soon execute to please the Jews.

A servant girl, Ῥόδη [Rhoda] comes up to them as claimed she saw Peter.

..and they kept saying, “It is his angel!”
Acts 12:15c ESV

These believers in the resurrected Christ seem pretty insistent that Peter wasn’t knocking at Mary’s gate as her servant girl insisted, but that Rhoda just saw an angel at the gate.

Just what is it that this flock of Peter’s believes about angels?

ἄγγελος – angelos
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 KJV Translation Count — Total: 186x
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- a messenger,
- envoy,
- one who is sent,
- an angel,
- a messenger from God
..in her joy she did not open the gate but ran in and reported that Peter was standing at the gate.

15 They said to her, “You are out of your mind.”

But she kept insisting that it was so, and they kept saying, “It is his angel!”

Perhaps some in the room had witnessed the risen Christ! (Jesus, though, IS more than just an angel). He demonstrated both spirit-like and human traits during those forty days after the resurrection a dozen years ago.

Perhaps Peter has sent a messenger from Herod’s prison, even a messenger sent from God.

Philip the Evangelist or Cornelius the Centurion

Luke does not account for who is present among those praying for Peter. Maybe John is mourning in a family home for his slain brother James. But Philip might be present, traveling from Caesarea even as Agrippa frequently does. Or maybe Cornelius, now a Roman brother in the Lord and follower of Peter, could have been there (or some of his family).

These men and others had seen angels and delivered the Lord’s message.

He distinctly saw an angel of God

Philip: Evangelizing Christ’s Sheep Beyond Gaza

But an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying,
“Get ready and go south to the road that descends from Jerusalem to Gaza.” (This is a desert road.)
Acts of Philip, disciple of the Apostles, 8:26 NASB20

A.D. 2022

Scene: In a neighborhood near my own home

I saw an angel. I understood her message, a graceful and timely gesture sent to me.
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Want to know more?
Comment on this post about angels, especially sharing any contemporary experience of your own, and I will privately share the rest of my brief recent encounter - RH
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Having experienced the mysterious and powerful work of the Holy Spirit personally on a Good Friday more than twenty years ago (even as many witnessed its mysteries on that first Pentecost more than a decade prior to our account from Acts of the Apostles 12), I do not marvel that those praying for Peter suggested that Rhonda, servant of the household of John Mark, had seen angel.
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Peter’s witness of Angels

It happens here in Acts 12, that this servant girl had not seen an angel at their gate.

¹³And when he knocked at the door of the gateway, a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer. ¹⁴Recognizing Peter’s voice, in her joy she did not open the gate but ran in and reported that Peter was standing at the gate.

Peter, however, has seen an angel – even as Luke records in Acts of the Apostles that he has before.

Arrested AND Released

“The men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people!”

Were some of those won to Christ by Peter’s preaching and powerful signs in the Temple (even before the stoning of Stephen) now present in this upper room where a servant girl has announced that Peter is at the gate?

Also, of course, there was the Voice Peter heard from the housetop when the angel of the Lord brought Cornelius to him: “Rise up, Peter, slaughter and eat!” .. “What God has cleansed, no longer consider defiled.”

So Peter was kept in prison..

It’s ten years beyond A.D. 30, when Jesus appeared to the Apostles and an angel released Peter from prison to preach in the Temple. And it’s a few months beyond A.D. 40, when an angel of the Lord appeared separately to Peter and Cornelius.

Scene:

A.D. 42 – a high-security prison of King Herod in Jerusalem at the time of the Passover

Agrippa’s timing is not unlike that of twelve years earlier, when Jerusalem’s former Prefect, Pontius Pilate, had crucified the Lord Jesus.

But now is the night before Herod Agrippa is about to make an example of Peter in front of the Passover crowds of Jerusalem, just as he had pleased the Jews so much (remember: *Herod really isn’t a Jew) by killing James with the sword of an executioner.
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*source: Herod the Great's father was half Edomite. Agrippa grew up around Rome. 

For more READ: Herod Vexing Opposition of the Church from our introduction to ACTS 12
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Acts 12:

τετράδιον – When he [Herod] had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him to four [sixteen men] squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out before the people.

[During every watch of the night..]

Peter was sleeping..
- between two soldiers,
- bound with two chains,
- and [two] guards in front of the door were watching over the prison.
No one is going to escape these Roman guards of Herod’s standing watch over Peter all night.

And behold, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared

and a light shone in the cell;

and he struck Peter’s side and woke him up, saying,

“Rise up quickly.”

And his chains fell off his hands.

And the angel said to him, “Gird yourself and [bind] your sandals.” And he did so.

And he said to him, “[Bind] your [cloak] around yourself and follow me.”

[So Peter] went out and continued to follow, and he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but was thinking he was seeing a vision.
Acts 12:9 of an angel leading Peter from prison

When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now truly I know that the Lord has sent His angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews.”

FREE from prison & certain death

Peter, standing in the early morning hours alone in the streets of Jerusalem.

And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying. And when he knocked at the door of the gate, a servant-girl named Rhoda came to answer…

ACTS of the Apostles – To be continued…
August 23, 2022