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We are the more concerned to take notice of and to improve what is here recorded concerning blessed Paul because, after the story of this chapter, we hear no more of him in the sacred history, though we have a great deal of him yet before us in his epistles. We have attended him through several chapters from one judgment-seat to another, and could at last have taken leave of him with the more pleasure if we had left him at liberty; but in this chapter we are to condole with him, and yet congratulate him. I. We condole with him as a poor shipwrecked passenger, stripped of all; and yet congratulate him, 1. As singularly owned by his God in his distress, preserved himself from receiving hurt by a viper that fastened on his hand (Act 28:1-6), and being made an instrument of much good in the island on which they were cast, in healing many that were sick, and particularly the father of Publius, the chief man of the island (Act 28:7-9). 2. As much respected by the people there (Act 28:10). II. We condole with him as a poor confined prisoner, carried to Rome under the notion of a criminal removed by "habeas corpus" (Act 28:11-16), and yet we congratulate him, 1. Upon the respect shown him by the Christians at Rome, who came a great way to meet him (Act 28:15). 2. Upon the favour he found with the captain of the guard, into whose custody he was delivered, who suffered him to dwell by himself, and did not put him in the common prison (Act 28:16). 3. Upon the free conference he had with the Jews at Rome, both about his own affair (Act 28:17-22) and upon the subject of the Christian religion in general (Act 28:23), the issue of which was that God was glorified, many were edified, the rest left inexcusable, and the apostles justified in preaching the gospel to the Gentiles (Act 28:24-29). 4. Upon the undisturbed liberty he had to preach the gospel to all comers in his own house for two years together (Act 28:30-31).

And when they were escaped,.... From the danger they were exposed to by shipwreck, and were got safe to land; this is omitted in the Syriac version: then they knew that the island was called Melita; an island toward the African shore, where it is placed both by Pliny (g), and Ptolomy (h); in which, the latter says, was the city Melita: it lies between Sicily and Tripolis of Barbary, and is now called Malta: it was famous for the knights of Rhodes, which are now called the knights of Malta: it has its name from "to escape", it being formerly a refuge to the Phoenicians, especially in stormy weather, in their long voyage from Tyre to Gades; and was indeed a place of escape to the Apostle Paul, and those that were with him. And perhaps it might be so called from its being a refuge for pirates; for Cicero (i) says, here pirates used to winter almost every year, and yet did not spoil the temple of Juno, as Verres did: though some say it was so called from the great abundance of honey found in it; for it was a very pleasant and fruitful island, bringing forth great plenty of wheat, rye, flax, cummin, cotton, figs, wine, roses, thyme, lavender, and many other sweet and delightful herbs, from whence bees did gather great plenty of honey. It was, according to Pliny, distant from Camerina eighty four miles, and from Lilybaeum a hundred and thirteen; and it is said to be distant from the promontory of Sicily an hundred miles, though others say sixty; and that it was so far from Syracuse, which is the next place the apostle came to in this voyage, was from Africa an hundred and ninety miles. On the east side, a little from the chief city of it, now called Malta, was a famous temple of Juno, spoiled by Verres, as before observed; and on the south side another of Hercules, the ruins of both which are yet to be seen. The compass of the island is about sixty miles, the length twenty, and the breadth twelve, and has in it five ports, and about sixty villages. (g) Nat. Hist. l 3. c. 8. (h) Geograph. l. 4. c. 3. (i) Orat. 9. in Verrem, c. 17.

But we desire to hear of thee what thou thinkest,.... What was his opinion and judgment, concerning the Messiah, whether he was come or not, and whether Jesus of Nazareth was he; and concerning other principles relating to him, embraced by the Christians; and what he had to say for the clearing up, proving, and confirming his sentiments about these things: for as concerning this sect; or heresy, meaning the Christian religion: in saying so, they reproached it; for the Gospel, or Christian religion, is not an human device, the choice and option of man's free will, and what he pleases himself with, as an opinion and invention of his own, or of other men, as "heresy" signifies; but it is of God, and by revelation of Jesus Christ, and is a doctrine of the highest wisdom: nor does it deny or take away any fundamental article of true religion; either natural, as known by the Gentiles, or as revealed, with which the Jews were made acquainted, under the former dispensation; but establishes every such article, as the unity of the divine Being; the worship of the one only and true God of Israel, in a spiritual manner; the doctrine of the Messiah, his person, office, and grace; the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment; and therefore could not be chargeable with heresy: nor was it set up for any worldly gain, or popular applause, which are the things that authors and abettors of heresy have in view; nor was it designed to divide and separate persons from the true church of God, but to bring them to it, and unite them together in it; see Act 24:14. We know that everywhere it is spoken against; this they knew, both by letters they received, and by persons who came from different parts of the world; and which was fact, and was no other than what was foretold concerning Christ, that he should be a sign that should be spoken against, Luk 2:34; and which the apostle found true of the Gospel preached by him, both among Jews and Greeks; it being to the one a stumblingblock, and to the other foolishness, Co1 1:23, and especially it was contradicted and blasphemed everywhere by the Jews; these in all places opposed themselves to it, and spoke evil of it, and of its preachers and professors: Christ, the author, sum, and subject of the Christian religion, was spoken against in his person; his deity and divine sonship were denied, as they still are; and his offices, as prophet, priest, and King; yea, his actions, even his works of mercy to the bodies of men, by healing their diseases, his conversing with sinners for the good of their souls, the several miracles he wrought, and the whole series of his life and conversation, were blasphemed and evil spoken of: the doctrines of the Gospel in general were contradicted, as they now are by many, as absurd and irrational, and as tending to licentiousness; and in particular those which respect the Father of Christ, as being the Father of Christ, his everlasting love to the elect in him, and his distinguishing grace in the choice of them; and those which relate to Christ, as that he is truly God, and the Son of God, and to his sacrifice, satisfaction, and imputed righteousness; and also which concern the Spirit of God, as his deity and personality, and his operations on the souls of men; and such as relate to a future state, the resurrection of all the dead, and judgment to come: likewise the ordinances of the Christian religion, baptism and the Lord's supper, were despised and spoken against, and the professors of it treated as fools and wicked men; the reasons of all this are, because the Christian religion, and the doctrines of it, are not of men, are contrary to the lusts of men, and particularly to the pride of men; they subject them to reproach and persecution, and gather men out from among them.

The Jews call the faith in Christ a heresy, because “everywhere it is spoken against.” You see, the Jews themselves testify that Christ is preached everywhere, even though not all receive this preaching, as the text says, but some of the Jews or the Gentiles speak against it, while the heretics, in a different way, do not conform to the true faith. In fact, it was necessary that there be heresies, so that the elected might appear, and all might fulfill what had been predicted by the prophet Simeon about Christ: “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed.”

How disturbed I am, and in the greatest necessities, you will be able to judge from this little book which I have written to you, Demetrianus, almost in unadorned words, as the mediocrity of my talent permitted, that you might know my daily pursuit, and that I might not be wanting to you, even now an instructor, but of a more honourable subject and of a better system. For if you afforded yourself a ready hearer in literature, which did nothing else than form the style, how much more teachable ought you to be in these true studies, which have reference even to the life! And I now profess to you, that I am hindered by no necessity of circumstance or time from composing something by which the philosophers of our sect which we uphold may become better instructed and more learned for the future, although they now have a bad reputation, and are commonly reproved, as living otherwise than is befitting for wise men, and as concealing their vices under the covering of a name; whereas they ought either to have remedied them, or to have altogether avoided them, that they might render the name of wisdom happy and uncorrupted, their life itself agreeing with their precepts.

Nevertheless, we wish to hear from thyself: "But we desire to hear of thee what thou thinkest": and then forestalled him by showing their own sentiments. "For as concerning this sect, it is known to us, that everywhere it is spoken against."

"As for this sect, it is known to us," say they, "that it is everywhere spoken against." True, but people are also everywhere persuaded.

Before he arrived. Paul was in Rome, the Jews had been commanded not to receive the preaching concerning Christ, and not only they alone, but also Jews everywhere in the world. How is this clear? We find in the books of the ancients that the priests and scribes and elders dwelling in Jerusalem, having written letters, sent them throughout the nations to the Jews everywhere, disapproving the teaching about Christ as foreign to God, and ordering by letters that it not be received. This, indeed, seems to be what the prophecy of Isaiah also means when it says: "Woe to the land, wings of ships beyond the rivers of Cush, sending captives by sea, and clay letters upon the water." (Isa. 18:1-2) By this he indicates that even beyond the land of the Ethiopians and the ends of the earth the sound of wickedness concerning those dwelling in Judea went forth like ships flying, and their apostles bearing clay letters, sailing over the waters, and filling the sea, ran throughout the whole world, slandering the word concerning our Savior. It is still the custom among the Jews to call "apostles" the circular letters brought to them by their leaders. [EUSEBIUS]

Even before Paul's arrival in Rome, the Jews had been persuaded not to accept the preaching about Christ — not only the Jews in Rome, but all Jews throughout the entire world. But how is this known? In the writings of ancient authors we find that the priests, scribes, and elders dwelling in Jerusalem wrote epistles and sent them to all countries, to the Jews living in them; in these epistles they reviled the teaching of Christ as a teaching alien to God, and urged them not to accept it. The same thing, it seems, is indicated by the following prophecy of Isaiah: "Woe to the land shadowing with wings, which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia, that sends ambassadors by the sea, even in vessels of papyrus upon the waters!" (Isa. 18:1–2). By this is signified that the impious voice of the people inhabiting Judea was carried on swift-sailing ships beyond the land of Ethiopia and to the uttermost ends of the earth, and that their "ambassadors," sailing upon the waters and crossing the sea, penetrated into all countries, carrying epistles and reviling the teaching about our Savior. Among the Jews it is still customary to this day to call ambassadors, or messengers, those persons who carry circular letters from their leaders. The next part of the prophecy — "go, swift messengers, to a nation strong and vigorous" — (ibid., 2) — speaks of the disciples of the Savior, whom the prophecy calls "swift messengers" — in contrast to the Jewish ones mentioned by him, and by virtue of the fact that they are proclaimers of good tidings to all people.

St. Paul, and the rest of the crew, getting safely ashore, find that the island on which they were shipwrecked is called Melita, Act 28:1. They are received with great hospitality by the inhabitants, Act 28:2. A viper comes out of the bundle of sticks, laid on the fire, and seizes on Paul's hand, Act 28:3. The people, seeing this, suppose him to be a murderer, and thus pursued by Divine vengeance, Act 28:4. Having shook it off his hand, without receiving any damage, they change their minds, and suppose him to be a god, Act 28:5, Act 28:6. Publius, the governor of the island, receives them courteously, and Paul miraculously heals his father, who was ill of a fever, etc., Act 28:7, Act 28:8. He heals several others also, who honor them much, and give them presents, Act 28:9, Act 28:10. After three months' stay, they embark in a ship of Alexandria, land at Syracuse, stay there three days, sail thence, pass the straits of Rhegium, and land at Puteoli; find some Christians there, tarry seven days, and set forward for Rome, Act 28:11-14. They are met at Appii Forum by some Christians, and Paul is greatly encouraged, Act 28:15. They come to Rome, and Julius delivers his prisoners to the captain of the guard, who permits Paul to dwell by himself only attended by the soldier that kept him, Act 28:16. Paul calls the chief Jews together, and states his case to them, Act 28:17-20. They desire to hear him concerning the faith of Christ, Act 28:21, Act 28:22; and, having appointed unto him a day, he expounds to them the kingdom of Christ, Act 28:23. Some believe, and some disbelieve; and Paul informs them that, because of their unbelief and disobedience, the salvation of God is sent to the Gentiles, Act 28:24-29. Paul dwells two years in his own hired house, preaching the kingdom of God, Act 28:30, Act 28:31.

For as concerning this sect - See the note on Act 24:14. A saying of Justin Martyr casts some light on this saying of the Jews: he asserts that the Jews not only cursed them in their synagogues, but they sent out chosen men from Jerusalem, to acquaint the world, and particularly the Jews everywhere, that the Christians were an atheistical and wicked sect, which should be detested and abhorred by all mankind. Justin Martyr, Dial. p. 234.

THE WINTERING AT MALTA, AND NOTABLE OCCURRENCES THERE--PROSECUTION OF THE VOYAGE TO ITALY AS FAR AS PUTEOLI, AND LAND JOURNEY THENCE TO ROME--SUMMARY OF THE APOSTLE'S LABORS THERE FOR THE TWO FOLLOWING YEARS. (Acts 28:1-31) knew the island was called Melita--(See on Act 27:39). The opinion that this island was not Malta to the south of Sicily, but Meleda in the Gulf of Venice--which till lately had respectable support among Competent judges--is now all but exploded; examination of all the places on the spot, and of all writings and principles bearing on the question, by gentlemen of the highest qualification, particularly SMITH (see on Act 27:41), having set the question, it may now be affirmed, at rest.

we desire--"deem it proper" to hear of thee what thou thinkest--what are thy sentiments, views, &c. The apparent freedom from prejudice here expressed may have arisen from a prudent desire to avoid endangering a repetition of those dissensions about Christianity to which, probably, SUETONIUS alludes, and which had led to the expulsion of the Jews under Claudius [HUMPHRY]. See on Act 18:2.