Acts 28:11-13

‘And after three months we set sail in a ship of Alexandria which had wintered in the island, whose figurehead was ‘The Sons of Zeus' (The Twin Brothers). And touching at Syracuse, we tarried there three days. And from there we weighed anchor (or ‘took a circuitous route'), and arrived at Rhegium, and after one day a south wind sprang up.'

Three months were spent in Malta. No ship would put to sea over those three winter months. But there was a grain ship from Alexandria wintering in the island (how galling to the shipowner of the wrecked ship). Its figurehead was the Twin Brothers (Castor and Pollux). The word is ‘dioskurois' - the ‘sons of Zeus'. Luke no doubt saw it as ironic that the sons of Zeus should carry to Rome the greatest opponent of Zeus in the Roman Empire. (How blind Zeus must have been). So they went aboard and set sail, arriving at Syracuse, on the east coast of Sicily, where they lingered a few days (‘three days'). This may have been because of the weather, or because of something needed aboard ship, or because of a small extra cargo being unloaded. There may be a contrast in this ‘three days' here with the ‘seven days' at Puteoli where there were Christians, the one a short wait, the other a period of heaven on earth.

‘Took a circuitous route and arrived at Rhegium.' After this they had to take an indirect route (as with our modern tacking but without the same ability) to Rhegium on the toe of Italy, because of the weather, but then a south wind sprang up and they were able to sail for Puteoli, 180 miles up the coast. Alternately Alpha and B have ‘weighed anchor and arrived at Rhegium.'