Attributed commentary excerpt
John Gill's Exposition on Acts 27:40
A historical reference excerpt for this verse. Read it alongside the biblical text and other available sources.
Exposition of the Old and New Testament
John Gill (1697–1771) · 18th-century historical commentary
Source: BibleWord.ai's local reference edition of this named work.
And when they had taken up the anchors, etc.] The four anchors they cast out of the stern, (<442729>Acts 27:29) or “when they had cut the anchors”, as the Syriac and Arabic versions render it; that is, had cut the cables to which the anchors were fastened: they committed themselves unto the sea; or left them, the anchors, in the sea; or committed the ship to the sea, and themselves in it, endeavouring to steer its course to the place they had in view: and loosed the rudder bands; by which the rudder was fastened to the ship. — -The rudder, in navigation, is a piece of timber turning on hinges in the stern of a ship, and which opposing sometimes one side to the water, and sometimes another, turns or directs the vessel this way or that. The rudder of a ship is a piece of timber hung on the stern posts, by four or five iron hooks, called “pintles”, serving as it were for the bridle of a ship, to turn her about at the pleasure of the steersman. — -The rudder being perpendicular, and without side the ship, another piece of timber is fitted into it at right angles, which comes into the ship, by which the rudder is managed and directed: this latter is properly called the “helm” or “tiller”, and sometimes, though improperly, the rudder itself. — -A narrow rudder is best for a ship’s sailing, provided she can feel it; that is, be guided and turned by it, for a broad rudder will hold much water when the helm is put over to any side; yet if a ship has a fat quarter, so that the water cannot come quick and strong to her rudder, she will require a broad rudder. — The aftmost part of the rudder is called the “rake” of the rudder. This is the account of a rudder with the moderns f1319: with the ancients, the parts of the rudder were these, the “clavus” or “helm”, by which the rudder was governed; the pole of it; the wings or the two breadths of it, which were as wings, and the handle: some ships had but one rudder, most had two, and some three, and some four; those that had but one, seemed to have it in the middle of the stern; and those that had two had them on the sides, not far from the middle; and there were some ships which had them not only in the stern, but also in the prow or head of the ship f1320: that the ancients had sometimes more rudders than one in a ship, has been abundantly proved by Bochartus and Scheherus; take only an instance or two. The Carthaginians, as f1321 Aelianus reports, decreed two governors to every ship saying it was absurd that it should have duo phdalia, “two rudders”, and that he who was most useful to the sailors, and had the government of the ship, should be alone, and without successor and companion; and so Apuleius f1322 says, the ship in which we were carried was shook by various storms and tempests, “utroque regimine amisso”, and having lost both its rudders, sunk at the precipice. Some of the Indian ships have three rudders; that of Philopator’s had four rudders: how many this ship had, in which the apostle was, cannot be said: but this is certain, that it had more than one; for the words are, “and loosed the bands of the rudders”; and since it is a clear case, that the ships of the ancients had more rudders than one to each, there is no need to suppose a figure in the text, and that the plural number is used for the singular, as Beza thinks: and “the bands” of them were those by which they were fastened; and they were “loosed”, as Schefferus conjectures, because when the anchors were cast out, they fastene…
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