Murderer or God?

Read Acts 28:1-16.

It's the end of a long journey. Paul is on his way to trial in Rome, and there's a lot of backstory here I don't have time to get into. What you need to know is this: the ship has been wrecked but because of God's protection on Paul, no life has been lost. They have all been safely delivered to the shore on Malta.

St. Paul's Bay, modern Malta

I've never been to Malta, but it looks like a beautiful place (as are the islands in general in that part of the world). In Paul's day, though it was a Roman colony (complete with an estate owned by the chief Roman official, Publius), it was still a dangerous place. Witness the snake that crawls out of the brushwood to bite Paul. It's a viper, Luke tells us (eyewitness detail), more commonly known (some believe) as a leopard snake.

These normally hide in dark places (like in a pile of brushwood) and generally feed on young birds, geckos, lizards and such. (Sounds yummy, doesn't it?) The surprise of being disturbed from his sleeping during the day may be what caused him to react and sink his teeth into Paul.

All of that is interesting (at least to me!), but what I find fascinating are the two ways the others from the island react to Paul. Those who had been with him on the ship already know he has a special connection to God, that God speaks to him (even if they didn't believe in or affirm Paul's God), but the islanders have no idea who he is. When he gets bit, they assume one thing: "He must be a murderer! The gods are punishing him!" When the bite doesn't kill him, they jump to another conclusion: "He must be a god!"

Paul is, of course, neither one (though, of course, if they were describing his "before-Christ life," they would be right in saying he's a murderer). Rather, he is a prisoner, unjustly accused, and headed to stand trial before Caesar. More than that, he self-describes as a slave to Christ, a witness to the resurrected Jesus, and one who knows that no matter what happens, he is safe in God's hands. Even had the snake bite killed him, Paul wasn't worried because he was safe with the one true God.

This passage reminds us to not make snap judgments about someone when we know so very little. (I've done that, and you have too, I bet, and we all learned later we were 100% wrong.) But more importantly, never assume we know for sure what God is up to (Paul wasn't being punished when he was bitten by a snake). And finally, trust the God who rules over it all to care for you and bring you home safely.