When they had taken up the anchors,— When they had weighed their anchors, they committed [the ship] to the sea. Some rather choose to render this, Having cut the anchors, they left them in the sea. The original is certainly dubious, and will admit of either sense. It is said, they loosed the rudder bands. Ships in those days had commonly two rudders, one on each side; which were fastened to the ship by bands or chains; and on loosing these bands it is supposed that the rudders sunk deeper into the sea, and by their weight rendered the ship less subject to be overset by the winds. But more probably the rudders had been fastened when they let the vessel drive; and were now loosened when they had need of them to steer her into the creek. For after they had just been throwing out their corn to lighten the ship, it is not easy to suppose they should immediately contrive a method to increase the weight of it. The word 'Αρτεμονα, seems properly to be translated main-sail. Grotius contends that it was a sail near the fore-part of the ship, answering either to what we call the foremast, or to the bowsprit; which last seems to agree best with the account which Stephens hascollected from the most considerable authorities. See his Latin Thesaurus on the word artemon. The last clause should be rendered, Hoisted up the mainsail, and were carried by the wind to the shore.
Related Commentaries of Acts 27:40
Acts 27:40
40 And when they had taken up the anchors, they committed themselves unto the sea, and loosed the rudder bands, and hoised up the mainsail to the wind, and made toward shore.