The Acts of the Apostles tells us a lot about the “where” and the “when” of Paul’s travels but very little about the “how.” To understand the “how” of ancient travel, we need to be aware of what it was like to live in a world that was very different from the world we live in today.
Paul lived during a crucial time in history—in fact, he calls it the “fullness of time” (Gal. 4:4). He not only lived during the time of Jesus’ earthly ministry, but he was also born during the Pax Romana, the peace of Rome that lasted 200 years. During that period, the ancient Mediterranean world enjoyed an age of peace and prosperity, unlike anything the world had experienced before. The Rome Empire united the ancient world with a common culture, a common language, a common monetary system, and a road system—similar to a modern interstate highway system—that made travel around the Mediterranean easier than it had ever been.
While early missionaries like the apostle Paul benefited from the Roman road system, they were built primarily to allow the Roman legions to march hundreds of miles in an astonishingly short time. Since getting a legion from one place to another was often a matter of national security, the roads were built to last (unlike, it seems, many roads today). The first step in building a road was to dig two trenches on either side of the proposed road. In addition to providing drainage, the excavated dirt and rock were used to raise the height of the road. The road itself was comprised of four layers (or strata, from which we get the word “street”). The deepest layer was made of sand, followed by two layers of rock mixed with cement, and with stone blocks on the top. The road was also slightly raised in the middle to prevent water and mud from pooling on the road. Many of these roads still exist today, some of them even right alongside the modern highways that have replaced them.
Although travel was more accessible than ever—that does not mean it was “easy.” It was not. Paul did not have the advantage of traveling on an air-conditioned bus or an airplane. Like almost every other person in antiquity, Paul traveled on foot. Private carriages were only for the wealthy, and few people other than the military rode horses (with rudimentary saddles and no stirrups, riding a horse was not very comfortable for long distances). Donkeys and mules were the most popular animals for travel and transportation. Although these animals helped carry supplies, the advantage gained often did not outweigh the decrease in speed that came with them.
Paul likely traveled with friends from town to town with a walking stick to help him on steep terrain and to protect him from animals. He probably loaded his necessary supplies like water, food, a change of clothes, a leather purse to hold his money, his writing supplies, and perhaps a tent on a pack animal.
How far could a traveler expect to journey in a day? According to ancient travel narratives, the average daily distance was roughly 20 miles—assuming, of course, the road was not too steep, the weather was cooperative, and one did not encounter wild animals or bandits— all problems which Paul tells us he encountered on his many journeys (cf. 2 Cor. 11:25-27).
In addition to traveling by land, Paul also traveled by sea. While traveling by ship could be faster than by land (if one could find a ship), the sailing season was far too short of making it a regular mode of travel. June, July, and August were the only safe months for sailing. Winter storms effectively closed the Mediterranean for travel from November to February, and unstable weather conditions made travel highly risky in spring and fall. On his way to Rome as a prisoner, Paul’s ship started so late in the season that it battled a storm that lasted nearly three weeks (Acts 27:14-38) before it sunk off the coast of Malta. It is no wonder that Paul and his companions decided to wait three months in Malta until winter had passed before they risked sailing on to Rome (28:11).
Listen to Paul’s own description of the “how” of his travels.
“Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep; in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness” (2 Cor. 11:25-27).
As difficult as travel was for Paul, he spent most of his years of ministry on the road, traveling from town to town preaching the gospel. According to Acts, Paul made three separate missionary trips. His third missionary journey took several years as he set out from Antioch in Syria, across modern-day Turkey and Greece, and back to Jerusalem—a distance on land and sea of some twenty-seven hundred miles, roughly the distance from Los Angeles, California to Washington, D.C.
Why did Paul submit himself to so much difficulty, hardship, and danger? What was it that motivated him to keep going? Paul did not do it for personal accolades or earthly rewards. He did it because the love of Christ manifested in the cross would allow him to do nothing else (2 Cor. 5:14). The power of the risen Christ had transformed Paul’s life, and he wanted to do nothing else than to dedicate his life to sharing with the world the good news that had changed his life—the good news that God had acted to redeem the human race from the power of sin and death in Jesus.