Acts 27:16
in Acts 27Passing to the lee of a small island called Cauda, we barely managed to secure the lifeboat.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And running under the lee of a small island called Cauda, we were able, with difficulty, to secure the boat:
KJV
And running under a certain island which is called Clauda, we had much work to come by the boat:
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This verse in Acts 27
Commentary
10 notes on this verseAnd running under a certain island,.... Or below a certain island and hard by, it or under the sea shore of it, where the sea might be smoother, the wind not being there so strong: which is called Clauda: by Ptolomy (x) it is called Claudus, and was near the island of Crete, and now called Gozo.
This site's exposition
gentle south wind began to blow
on Acts 27:13-17
Soon after a gentle south wind, a cyclone called the Northeaster swept down from Crete's mountains, and the ship was driven. The crew used ropes to undergird the ship and lowered the sea anchor, and Luke's vocabulary is the working sailor's.
This site's exposition
a small island called Cauda
Albert Barnes places Cauda about twenty miles southwest of Crete, where the island broke the force of the wind for a short stretch. Adam Clarke suggests the boat had been towed astern and was in danger of being smashed. The crew used this brief shelter to haul it aboard.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
A commentator
Apostolic ConstitutionsCONSTITUTIONS OF THE HOLY APOSTLES · Written before 380.
proposed
It came to pass, after Paul went out of the island Gaudomeleta,
The Medieval Church2 voices
We could scarcely obtain the lifeboat. After it was taken, they used auxiliary ropes. The lifeboat or Catascopos is a light boat, made of wicker and covered with rawhide. It is called in Greek from the act of viewing, because sailors or pirates on such …
And the south wind blowing softly, they thought they had obtained their purpose, etc., we could scarcely retain the boat. We wrote in the first book, following Isidore, that the boat was a light vessel, woven from wicker and covered with rawhide; but subsequently, upon …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
), and were going into it, having agreed among themselves, when they were in to make straight for the shore. The treacherous seamen are like the treacherous shepherd, who flees when he sees the danger coming, and there is most need of his help, John x. Thus true is that of Solomon, Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble is like a broken tooth or a foot out of joint.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A certain island - called Clauda - Called also Gaudos; situated at the south-western extremity of the island of Crete, and now called Gozo, according to Dr. Shaw. Much work to come by the boat - It was likely to have been washed overboard; or, if the boat was in tow, at the stern of the vessel, which is probable, they found it very difficult to save it from being staved, or broken to pieces.
2 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
16, 17. under--the lee of. a certain--"small" island . . . Clauda--southwest of Crete, now called Gonzo; about twenty-three miles to leeward. we had much work to come by--that is, to hoist up and secure. the boat--now become necessary. But why was this difficult?
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
And running under - Running near to an island. They ran near to it, where the violence of the wind was probably broken by the island, Which is called Clauda - This is a small island about 20 miles southwest of Crete. We had much work - Much difficulty; we were scarcely able to do it. To come by the boat - This does not mean that they attempted here to land in the boat, but they had much difficulty in saving the small boat attached to the ship by lifting it into the ship. The importance of securing the small boat is known by all seamen.
The words behind it
12 Greek wordsEvery Greek word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Greek | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| νησίον | nesion | An Island | G3519 → | |
| δέ | de | then | G1161 → | 2765 times |
| τι | ti | certain | G5100 → | 528 times |
| ὑποδραμόντες | hupodramontes | having run under | G5295 → | |
| καλούμενον | kaloumenon | being called | G2564 → | 147 times |
| Καῦδα | kauda | Cauda | G2802 → | |
| ἰσχύσαμεν | ischusamen | we were able | G2480 → | 28 times |
| μόλις | molis | with difficulty | G3433 → | 6 times |
| περικρατεῖς | perikrateis | control | G4031 → | |
| γενέσθαι | genesthai | to gain | G1096 → | 667 times |
| τῆς | tes | of the | G3588 → | 19766 times |
| σκάφης, | skaphes | lifeboat, | G4627 → | 3 times |
νησίονAn Island
nesionG3519 →
δέthen
deG1161 →2765 times
τιcertain
tiG5100 →528 times
ὑποδραμόντεςhaving run under
hupodramontesG5295 →
καλούμενονbeing called
kaloumenonG2564 →147 times
ΚαῦδαCauda
kaudaG2802 →
ἰσχύσαμενwe were able
ischusamenG2480 →28 times
μόλιςwith difficulty
molisG3433 →6 times
περικρατεῖςcontrol
perikrateisG4031 →
γενέσθαιto gain
genesthaiG1096 →667 times
τῆςof the
tesG3588 →19766 times
σκάφης,lifeboat,
skaphesG4627 →3 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
Where this verse is studied
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About Acts
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Apostolic Constitutions, CONSTITUTIONS OF THE HOLY APOSTLES; Bede, Commentary on Acts; Bede, Retractions on Acts; James Smith, The Voyage and Shipwreck of St. Paul; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.