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Passage
[Ac 28:1] Once safely on shore, we
found out that the island was called Malta. [2] The islanders
showed us unusual kindness. They built a fire and welcomed us all
because it was raining and cold. [3] Paul gathered a pile of
brushwood and, as he put it on the fire, a viper, driven out by the
heat, fastened itself on his hand. [4] When the islanders saw
the snake hanging from his hand, they said to each other, "This man
must be a murderer; for though he escaped from the sea, Justice has
not allowed him to live." [5] But Paul shook the snake off
into the fire and suffered no ill effects. [6] The people
expected him to swell up or suddenly fall dead, but after waiting a
long time and seeing nothing unusual happening to him, they changed
their minds and said he was a god.
Background
The beginning setting for this passage is
in Malta. In the previous chapter, we learned that Paul was involved
in a shipwreck. Apparently, Paul was traveling on the seas during one
of the dangerous months for sea travel. In the ancient near east,
there are good seasons for sea travel and bad. Paul was on his way to
a trial in Rome, but ran into this shipwreck instead, which delayed
his trial for a time. Acts does not tell us the conclusions of the
trial. Perhaps the conclusions for Paul were not good. However legend
has it, that Paul was beheaded. Malta was known as a haven for ships,
as it had many good harbors. Therefore, this helps explain why his
ship was so close to Malta when it was shipwrecked. It was not
coincidence that Paul was near Malta. The viper in verse 3 is the
name of a very deadly snake. The word Viper is used many times in the
bible, but he is often referred to as a king of snakes (Isa. 14:29,
Pro. 23:32). Snakes in many of the contexts used in scripture were
referred to as evil. It is no surprise then, that many in
Paulís day and even today hate snakes.
Luke was a physician, and companion to Paul. Luke wrote the book of
Acts before the destruction of the Temple in AD 70. Without
Lukeís medical expertise Paul would have been dead. There were
times when Paul was stoned and needed Luke. Of all the gospel writers
Luke was the most educated, as he did attend a quality academy.
Lukeís main reason for writing the book of Acts was so that
others would see the ministry lives of the apostles and the Holy
Spirit in work. In Acts 28:1-6 Luke is displaying a literal
fulfillment of Jesusíwords in Luke 10:19, Mark 16:18, an
allegorical battle between God and Satan, and an excellent example of
Godís power.
Occasion: Structure and Context
Acts 28:1-5 is a comic plot and outside
the main genre of the book which is a historic book. The Old
Testament books of Joshua and Judges are also historical genre. Acts
is the only book in the New Testament that can fall under this genre.
It is important when looking at this passage, not to overlook
Jesusí previous words in Luke and Mark. In Luke 10:19, after
Jesus speaks with his missionaries, he tells them that he saw Satan
fall from heaven, and he assures them that he has given them power to
trample on the snakes and the scorpions. I know that in Palestine
there were hundreds of snakes and scorpions, many of which were very
dangerous. In my own exegesis, I tend to lean on the view that Jesus
was not referring to literal snakes and scorpions, but he is using
these dangerous creatures to refer to the enemies of God, such as the
false prophets. However, I believe that Jesus may also have been
speaking of literal snakes and scorpions, and that they would not
overcome us. For example, in Mark 16:18 Jesus does say that his
followers will be able to withstand snakes, and their poison. At
first, I took that as allegory, but after reading Paulís
adventure, it can also mean literally.
Vocabulary and Theology
I can foresee a temporal setting in this
passage located on the island of Malta. The reason why is because I
will consider the viper the dominant power, because no human can
withstand its deadly poison. I saw a show once on Animal Planet, in
which scientists were testing a vipers poison with human blood, and
timing the fatality speed on human blood. One particular Viper
species located around the geographical location of Malta can kill a
human in a few minutes. I have some clear evidence that leans towards
the view that the Viper whom bit Paul was the second deadliest snake
species in the world! For example, the islanders expected Paul to die
suddenly. There is no doubt; the viper is the character conflict of
this story. The viper, even though he could not speak in this story,
represented Satan, whom first appeared as a snake in Genesis chapter
3.
In verses 1-5 of chapter 28, I would say that these verses are an
example of a plot conflict. To be more specific, according to Leland
Rykan, physical conflict (Rykan 1984, 40). It seems like any human
would be unable to withstand the poison, but God works through Paul,
and this is an good example of a death-rebirth motif, perhaps the
greatest death-rebirth motif in all of Paulís letters!
V [3]
In this verse, I believe that the powers of the evil one were at
work, and would not stop at any cost to destroy Paul. In earlier
stories, satanic powers were at work to destroy Paul, but they all
failed. Satan wants to destroy people who are productive in the Lord.
Nevertheless, he laughs at those that are not. The viper in verse 3
according to my view is symbolic for Satan, whom is symbolic for the
ancient serpent (Rev 20:2). In Genesis, 3:15 God predicts that Satan
will one-day strike the offspring of the woman, and this was
fulfilled in Jesusí death at the cross.
V [4]
In this passage, I can see a great display of the islanders view of
Poetic justice. According to Rykan ìIt consists of the
narrative situation in which good characters are rewarded and bad
ones punishedî (Rykan 1984, 56). The islanders thought that
Paul was a murderer, and was meant to die by the sea, but somehow
escaped, and God had sent a deadly Viper to finally kill Paul.
However, in reality God was using this snake to further his glory, as
after this event, God was glorified, and Paulís message was
accepted. God did not send the snake to bite Paul, as Paul did not
suffer in this verse. ìNeither storm nor serpent bite is to be
taken as Godís judgement on Paulî (Talbert 1997,
222).
V [5]
Paul did not suffer any ill effects from the snakebite, since God was
with him. However, we know that God did want Paul to appear before
Caesar and his destiny had not been met. When the snake bites Paul
and Paul does not die, this is indeed a miracle by God and a
representation of Godís power over the powers of Satan. Jesus
did not die to the serpent/devilís bite, and neither will
Paul. Jesus himself mentioned in Luke 10:19 that he has given
authority to his followers to trample on snakes and scorpions. This
is fulfilled as Paul tramples on his enemy by throwing the snake into
the fire. Likewise, how Satan will be destroyed by being cast into
the Lake of fire (Rev 20:10). Jesus also said in Mark 16:18, that his
followers will be able to withstand deadly snake poison. To a
contemporary exegesis, Jesus is using allegorical language here, but
to others Jesus literally means that his followers can drink poison
and live. When the snake bit Paul, Paul did not die but lived. This
is a fulfillment of Mark 16:18. I believe that Mark 16:18 can be
taken either symbolic or literal, but at the same time I do not
recommend that anyone who reads my paper test the validity of my
sentiments by handling a viper.
V [6]
The species Paul encountered was the deadly adder. According To
William Neil, these are no longer on Malta. ìPoisonous adders
are no longer found in Malta, though they may have been in
Paulís dayî (Neil 1973, 254). The islanders probably
lost loved ones to this viper species, so they had the exposure to
the poison. It is interesting how the islanders thought Paul was a
god, because he did not suffer any ill effects because of the snake
poison. Joseph Fitzmyer comments: ìPaulís survival
reveals to the credulous natives that he is an extraordinary person,
even divineî (Fitzmyer 1998, 783).
Perhaps the area on Malta in this story was inhabited by this deadly
viper species, but its possible that another snake could have been in
the wood pile that they mistook as the deadly adder viper species, so
when Paul did not die, they concluded that another snake had bitten
him, and he would get ill, but not die.
Conclusion
The KJV version is a more literal
translation in most areas however its usage of the word "barbarous" in
verse 2 is not the best translation and communicates a negative
connotation in modern English and refers to someone who is uncivilized,
often violent, and/or stupid. The KJV is the only major translation that
uses the word as even the NKJV has abandoned it. The NIV uses the
word "islanders" which in my opinion is a better
word and I believe the NIV translation does a very
good job at translating verses 1 and 2 into a language that I can
understand. Nevertheless, its important to
take from this
passage that those who are productive in the Lord may be persecuted,
that Satan will try to destroy at any cost. However its good to
remember
that God is watching over us, and will keep us safe. Anything is
possible with God, and not everything we believe to be allegory or
symbolic actually is. It is important to understand the art and science
of biblical interpretation or
hermeneutics. The rest of the passage seems to be translated without
any noticeable errors when comparing the NIV and KJV versions.
REFERENCES
Fitzmyer, Joseph. 1998. The Acts of the
Apostles. New York: Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc.
Neil, William. 1973. The Acts of the Apostles. England: Wm. B.
Eerdmans Publ. Co.
Rykan, Leland. 1984. How to read the Bible as Literature. Michigan:
Zondervan Corporation.
Talbert, James. 1997. Reading Acts. New York: The Crossroad
Publishing Company.
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