Fair Havens

Biblical Text

Fair Havens appears in Acts 27, in the account of the voyage on which Paul, now a prisoner, was taken from Caesarea to Rome. After transferring to a ship of Alexandria at Myra, the party, hindered by contrary winds, "had sailed slowly many days, and scarce were come over against Cnidus" (Acts 27:7). They then passed Salmone and sailed under the lee of Crete until they "came unto a place which is called The fair havens; nigh whereunto was the city of Lasea" (Acts 27:8).

Time was lost there, and because "the fast was now already past," sailing had become dangerous. Paul warned that continuing the voyage would bring loss "not only of the lading and ship, but also of our lives" (Acts 27:9–10), but the centurion placed more confidence in the master and the owner of the ship. Because Fair Havens was "not commodious to winter in," the majority advised moving on to Phenice, another harbor of Crete that "lieth toward the south west and north west," and wintering there (Acts 27:11–12). When the south wind blew softly, the ship left Fair Havens, but it was soon caught by a tempestuous wind called Euroclydon, was driven off course, and was finally wrecked on the island of Melita.

Background

The Korean name Mihang is a Sino-Korean term meaning "beautiful harbor," rendering the Greek Kaloi Limenes ("good harbors") of the original text. The site is commonly identified with Kali Limenes, a small bay on the southern coast of modern Crete, and the ancient name is understood to have survived to the present day. As the text indicates, it was a small anchorage sheltered from the wind, but it appears to have been unsuitable for a large ship to winter in.

"The fast" is generally understood to refer to the Day of Atonement, observed on the tenth day of the seventh month of the Jewish calendar, which falls around September or October. Ancient Mediterranean seafarers are known to have generally avoided open-sea voyages from roughly late autumn until the following spring, which explains why sailing at this point was hazardous. Scholars differ in their estimates of the year of the voyage.

Interpretation and Debated Points

• The nature of Paul's warning: Some interpreters read "I perceive" in Acts 27:10 as indicating revelation, while others read it as a judgment drawn from Paul's experience, since he had already suffered shipwreck several times (see 2 Corinthians 11:25). Paul at first warned of loss of life, but later, relaying the words of an angel, he declared that no one would lose his life (Acts 27:22–24). Some explain this difference by distinguishing between Paul's initial judgment and the revelation he subsequently received.
• The "we" passages: Because this account of the voyage is narrated in the first-person plural "we," it has traditionally been regarded as an eyewitness record by its author, Luke, who accompanied Paul. Some scholars, however, explain the first-person narration in other ways.
• Homiletical readings: The contrast between the name "fair havens" and the harbor's unsuitability for wintering, as well as the scene in which the ship left Fair Havens on the judgment of the experts and the majority only to meet a tempest, are often drawn upon as lessons in preaching. Such readings are applications added to the factual narrative; the text itself does not directly state that remaining at Fair Havens would have been the right choice.

In the Korean Church

The account of Paul's voyage to Rome is frequently treated in Korean church preaching together with the story of the "Euroclydon tempest," and Fair Havens is mentioned as the voyage's point of departure.