Acts 27:34

Wherefore I beseech you to take some food: for this is for your safety: for there shall not a hair perish from the head of any of you.

Note the natural leadership of a man like Paul, who by the sheer weight of his moral authority and courage rises to the place of command in the hour of life's great emergencies. We may believe that one of the purposes of Luke in relating all the details of this great maritime disaster lies on the surface in what took place here. It is the prisoner who rallied all on board, compelled them to eat, emphatically assured them that they would not die, and, a moment later, solemnly gave thanks before them all! There are no greater examples of moral courage and authority than that which is visible here. The centurion saw this; and a bit later when the soldiers would have killed the prisoners, he too exhibited a similar courage by denying their request.