A Study of Acts: Kind Natives of Malta; A Viper Incident
Acts 28:1-6 - God’s intent for Paul will be fulfilled. Our proper place in this world is as a redeemed servant of the Lord, following His will and not caring about what others think about us.
“When they had been brought safely through, then we found out that the island was called Malta. The natives showed us extraordinary kindness; for because of the rain that had set in and because of the cold, they kindled a fire and received us all. But when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire, a viper came out because of the heat and fastened itself on his hand. When the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand, they began saying to one another, “Undoubtedly this man is a murderer, and though he has been saved from the sea, justice has not allowed him to live.” However he shook the creature off into the fire and suffered no harm. But they were expecting that he was about to swell up or suddenly fall down dead. But after they had waited a long time and had seen nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and began to say that he was a god.”
Acts 28:1-6 NASB1995
Everyone survived the shipwreck because of God’s providence and they discovered that the island was called Malta. This island was certainly known to the crew, but the location where they came ashore was not near the main ports. According to Enduring Word, Malta’s name may mean “refuge”, depending on the earliest source; it could also mean “a place of sweetness or honey” from the Greek. Here’s a very short history of Malta from Precept Austin; the number is a reference in the Studylight on-line Bible resources:
Malta (only NT use)(3194) (Melite) is the island of Malta (the modern name) which some translations render by the old name Melita. Malta is located about 174 miles from Italy and about 56 miles due south of Sicily. Because of its many harbors, Malta was a base for east-west commerce in the Mediterranean Sea and was frequently used by ancient ships as a place to spend the winter, the time when the Mediterranean could not be navigated safely. Because of its central position in the Mediterranean Sea, the Romans made it an important naval station. The Romans took Malta from the Carthaginians in 218 b.c and it had been under Roman rule since that time.
It should also be noted that people have been living on Malta since around 6900 B.C. The natives there were very kind to the shipwrecked victims. They set fires to provide warmth in the cold and rain and received all in the group. Paul gathered some sticks in a bundle to put on the fire; Paul obviously has a servant’s heart because he gathered the wood and didn’t expect someone else to do the labor. A viper, becoming active because of the heat, came out of the sticks and fastened itself to Paul’s hand with its fangs. Small vipers and non-venomous snakes are known to hide in wood piles.
The viper has been the subject of much controversy over the years because modern-day Malta does not have venomous snakes (well, maybe or maybe not - one of the current species, the Cat snake, is apparently mildly venomous). This apparent lack of vipers leads the finger-pointing skeptics to say that this could not have happened, so everything in the Bible is suspect. Some Bible scholars even allege that the snake was a non-venomous species. Several commentaries noted that modern Malta is one of the most densely-populated islands in the world and has been almost completely deforested. It would not be a surprise that a dangerous venomous snake could disappear or become very rare. It should also be noted that Malta is very close to North Africa and there are plenty of vipers in that region of the world. The natives were appalled to see this and their eyewitness testimony, captured by Luke, is good enough for me to appreciate the dangers of the snake.
When the natives see this, they immediately exclaim that Paul must have been a murderer. He was rescued from the sea but “justice” will not allow him to live (referring to the pagan goddess “justice”). This commentary from Chuck Swindoll, quoted on Precept Austin, is quite good:
The natives who observed the incident jumped to a conclusion both cruel and inaccurate. Instantly they judged that Paul’s calamity proved his guilt. Interestingly, even though these barbarians (the actual Greek term) lacked education and refined culture, they possessed an inner standard of justice. They leapt to an instantaneous (albeit incorrect) opinion: “Undoubtedly this man is a murderer.” To them the vicious snakebite represented justice getting her due. There is something amazingly relevant about this episode.
A “punishment” mind-set is not limited to rough islanders in the Mediterranean. Heathen tribespeople aren’t the only ones who jump to the erroneous conclusion that those who suffer are simply getting what they deserve. This “calamity-is-proof- of-guilt” attitude lives on with us today, a blunder as old as time itself. The classic case in Scripture is Job. Here was an upright man who worked hard, dealt honestly with people, reared a fine family, and walked with his God. Then suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, a whirlwind of multiple tragedies drove the man to his knees. This “calamity-is-proof-of-guilt” attitude lives on with us today . . . It was bad enough to lose his livestock and all other means of income, but on top of that he lost each one of his children, and finally . . . his health. With hardly a moment between these calamities to catch his breath and gain a measure of equilibrium, Job was reduced to a painful hulk of humanity, covered from head to toe with oozing skin ulcers. Exit: compassion. Enter: thoughtless counselors of blame. One man after another pointed a long, bony finger into the face of the sufferer, frowning at him with condemning words and advising him to confess his guilt. In effect, each one said, “You’re getting what you deserve.”
The confrontational dialogue contained in the ancient Book of Job is remarkably relevant. Who knows? Maybe it flashed across Paul’s mind when he heard, “Undoubtedly, this man is a murderer. Justice has not allowed him to live!” I wish there were some way for sufferers to be delivered from such unjust and unfair criticism, but I know of none. It is painful enough to endure the severe blows of life, isn’t it? But when words of condemnation based on superstition and prejudice bite into us, the venom is almost more than we can bear. (Start Where You Are)
I guess you could say a classic example of unjust condemnation based on superstition and prejudice would be the extreme measures that were taken by the Third Reich to eliminate Jews and others deemed “unworthy of life”. It began with innuendo and accusations and ended with deportations and mass murder.
Paul shakes off the viper into the fire and is unaffected. He barely reacts to the situation, because he knows the promise that has been made by God that he will reach Rome. Shipwrecks and snakes will not stop that forward momentum. The natives watch him carefully over a long period of time and see no adverse symptoms developing. Their perception of him completely changes and now they think he is a “god”. So he has gone from completely evil to godlike in the space of a few hours, which shows how fickle and extreme humans can be. Here’s a good commentary on this passage from Enduring Word:
a. When Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks: The great apostle gathered wood for the fire, even though there were probably scores of people among the 276 passengers and crew far more suited for the job. Paul’s servant heart was always evident.
b. A viper came out because of the heat, and fastened on his hand: Paul was faithful to God and living as a true servant. But this did not keep him from this trial. His humble service brought out a viper, and the viper didn’t just nibble on Paul – it fastened on his hand.
i. Paul didn’t let it bother him. He didn’t scream, “Why God? I can’t take any more of this!” or “Can’t You see I’m serving You?” Paul didn’t look at those sitting by the fire and say, “You lazy people! If you gathered wood instead of me, this wouldn’t have happened to me!”
ii. Paul’s reaction seemed calm and unconcerned: He shook off the creature into the fire.
c. No doubt this man is a murderer…yet justice does not allow to live: The natives were convinced that justice had finally caught up with this prisoner. Justice is actually a reference to the Greek goddess of justice, Dikee. The natives, knowing Paul was a prisoner, assumed he committed a great crime, and the goddess of justice would not permit Paul to escape unpunished.
d. And suffered no harm: God didn’t preserve Paul from the storm just to let him perish by a snake. Paul was protected. It was promised he would go to Rome (you must also bear witness at Rome, Acts 23:11), and Paul wasn’t to Rome yet. It wasn’t so much that nothing would stop Paul as it was that nothing would stop God’s promise from being fulfilled.
i. Paul could take God’s past faithfulness as a promise of future blessing and protection.
ii. By extension, we also see that “Divine Justice” had no more claim against Paul – it had all been satisfied by Jesus’ work on the cross. God’s justice could never harm Paul, nor anyone who has had all his or her sins paid for by the work of Jesus on the cross.
e. Said that he was a god: This is a typically human reaction. For these natives, Paul had to be seen in extremes. Either he was terribly evil or considered a god. In truth, Paul was neither a criminal deserving punishment nor a god. This is all the more reason we must be cautious about what others think of us, either for good or bad.
There’s a cautionary tale in that last paragraph. Our culture, primarily because of politics, is escalating rapidly into extremism on all sides. Social media provides echo chambers for people’s viewpoints and many see people with opposing viewpoints as one-dimensional brainless enemies, not as human beings who may not think like ourselves. Reconciliation becomes harder and harder in these circumstances. We are all not completely evil (well, perhaps most of us) nor are we anywhere close to being gods. Our proper place in this world is as a redeemed servant of the Lord, following His will and not caring about what others think about us.
My next devotional examines Acts 28: 7–10 - Paul heals Publius and others on Malta.
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - Please help me to turn away from controversies and opinions of others and turn to You as a humble, redeemed servant. Amen.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Precept Austin was accessed on 2/20/2025 to review commentary for Acts 28:1-6.
Commentary from Enduring Word by David Guzik is used with written permission.