Our ship is literally “we,” but in most languages our ship would have to be translated as “the ship in which we were traveling.” In a number of languages the appropriate equivalent would simply be “the ship.”

Would go on the rocks must be translated in some languages as “would be blown onto the rocks” or “the wind would blow the ship to where rocks were.”

The four anchors may be translated as “they lowered from the back of the ship four heavy weights to keep it from moving.”

The phrase back of the ship translates a technical Greek term referring to the “stern.”

They … prayed for daylight is appropriately rendered in some languages as “they … prayed that daylight would soon come.” One should not suggest that they were praying for daylight to occur in the middle of the night.

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on The Acts of the Apostles. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1972. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .