The Lord saw to it that Paul and those with him were welcomed with kindness. Paul was bitten by a viper but suffered no ill effects, causing the people to say he was a god. He prayed for and healed the island’s leading man’s father and many others. Three months later they left the island on a ship that had wintered there. After brief stops at Syracuse and Rhegium, they disembarked at Puteoli, where they found brethren who invited them to stay with them seven days. From there it was on to Rome.

What cheer must it have been to Paul when brethren came more than forty miles to meet him. All along the way the Lord had watched over His servant and had seen to it that he was treated kindly.

Now at Rome he was allowed to live by himself, chained and under guard, in a house he rented. He could receive all who came to him. First of all, he called the Jewish leaders and explained his situation to them. Many of them came back again. For a whole day he explained and solemnly testified to them what he taught about the kingdom of God and Jesus. They did not agree among themselves. Some were persuaded while others disbelieved.

Paul, prisoner of Christ Jesus, sustained by Him, now turned to the Gentiles, continuing to make the salvation of God known. May we do the same, undeterred by difficult conditions, opposition, or indifference we may encounter. Let us strive to be “steadfast, immoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.”