Acts 27 · Verse 20

Acts 27:20

And when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was then taken away.
Acts 27:20, King James Version

Acts 27:20 in other translations

BSBWhen neither sun nor stars appeared for many days and the great storm continued to batter us, we abandoned all hope of being saved.
WEBWhen neither sun nor stars shone on us for many days, and no small storm pressed on us, all hope that we would be saved was now taken away.
ASVAnd when neither sun nor stars shone upon us for many days, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was now taken away.
YLTand neither sun nor stars appearing for more days, and not a little tempest lying upon us, thenceforth all hope was taken away of our being saved.
DARBYAnd neither sun nor stars appearing for many days, and no small storm lying on us, in the end all hope of our being saved was taken away.
BBEAnd as we had not seen the sun or stars for a long time, and a great storm was on us, all hope of salvation was gone.
WebsterAnd when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was then taken away.

What does Acts 27:20 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Acts 27:19-20

19-20. cast out with our own hands--passengers and crew together. the tackling of the ship--whatever they could do without that carried weight. This further effort to lighten the ship seems to show that it was now in a leaking condition, as will presently appear more evident.

Read the full comment on Acts 27:19-20 →

Barnes' Notes
Verse 20. Neither sun nor stars, etc. As they could see neither sun nor stars, they could make no observations; and as they had no compass, they would be totally ignorant of their situation, and gave up all is lost.

(i) "all hope" Eze 37:11

Albert Barnes, 1834 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 20 Neither sun nor stars in many days appeared - And consequently they could make no observation; and, having no magnetical needle, could not tell in what direction they were going.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Acts 27:12-20

Those who launch forth on the ocean of this world, with a fair gale, know not what storms they may meet with; and therefore must not easily take it for granted that they have obtained their purpose. Let us never expect to be quite safe till we enter heaven. They saw neither sun nor stars for many days. Thus melancholy sometimes is the condition of the people of God as to their spiritual matters; they walk in…

Read the full comment on Acts 27:12-20 →

Acts 27:20 in the original Greek

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

μήτεmēteNeitherG3383
δὲdenowG1161
ἡλίουhēliousunG2246
μήτεmētenorG3383
ἄστρωνastrōnstarsG798
ἐπιφαινόντωνepiphainontōnappearingG2014
ἐπὶepiforG1909
πλείοναςpleionasmanyG4119
ἡμέρας,hēmerasdays,G2250
χειμῶνόςcheimōnostempestG5494
τεteandG5037
οὐκouknoG3756
ὀλίγουoligousmallG3641
ἐπικειμένουepikeimenouafflicted [us]G1945
λοιπὸνloiponfrom then onG3063
περιῃρεῖτοperiēreitowas abandonedG4014
ἐλπὶςelpishopeG1680
πᾶσαpasaallG3956
τοῦtouofG3588
σῴζεσθαιsōzesthaibeing savedG4982
ἡμᾶς.hēmasus.G3165

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Acts 27:20

  • Matthew 24:29

    Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:

  • Matthew 8:24-25

    And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep. And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish.

  • Ezekiel 37:11

    Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts.

  • Exodus 10:21-23

    And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt. And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days: They saw not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days: but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.

  • Ephesians 2:12

    That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:

  • Jeremiah 2:25

    Withhold thy foot from being unshod, and thy throat from thirst: but thou saidst, There is no hope: no; for I have loved strangers, and after them will I go.

  • Isaiah 57:10

    Thou art wearied in the greatness of thy way; yet saidst thou not, There is no hope: thou hast found the life of thine hand; therefore thou wast not grieved.

  • 1 Thessalonians 4:13

    But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.

  • 2 Corinthians 11:25

    Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;

  • Jonah 1:11-14

    Then said they unto him, What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us? for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous. And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you. Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring it to the land; but they could not: for the sea wrought, and was tempestuous against them. Wherefore they cried unto the Lord, and said, We beseech thee, O Lord, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man’s life, and lay not upon us innocent blood: for thou, O Lord, hast done as it pleased thee.

  • Jonah 1:4

    But the Lord sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken.

  • Psalms 107:25-27

    For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof. They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits’ end.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
neither.
Ex 10:21-23; Ps 105:28; Mt 24:29
and no.
Ps 107:25-27; Jon 1:4,11-14; Mt 8:24,25; 2Co 11:25
all.
Isa 57:10; Jer 2:25; Eze 37:11; Eph 2:12; 1Th 4:13

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Acts 27:19

    And the third day we cast out with our own hands the tackling of the ship.

  • Acts 27:20

    And when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was then taken away.

  • Acts 27:21

    But after long abstinence Paul stood forth in the midst of them, and said, Sirs, ye should have hearkened unto me, and not have loosed from Crete, and to have gained this harm and loss.

Read all of Acts 27

Acts 27:20 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Y no pareciendo sol ni estrellas por muchos días, y viniendo una tempestad no pequeña, ya era perdida toda la esperanza de nuestra salud.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Et comme durant plusieurs jours il ne parut ni soleil ni étoiles, et qu’une grande tempête nous pressait, dès lors toute espérance de pouvoir nous sauver nous fut ôtée.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Da aber viele Tage lang weder Sonne noch Sterne schienen und ein nicht geringes Unwetter auf uns lag, war zuletzt alle Hoffnung auf unsere Rettung entschwunden.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Neque autem sole, neque sideribus apparentibus per plures dies, et tempestate non exigua imminente, jam ablata erat spes omnis salutis nostræ.