... The fury of the storm forced the crew to begin jettisoning cargo or equipment. These verses do not necessarily conflict with verse 38. The imperfect “began to jettison” does not imply completion. An owner would not wish to discard any more valuable cargo than necessary. One must guess at the meaning of the Greek word in verse 19. “Spare tackle” is reasonable. The language of verses 18–19 is somewhat repetitious, however, lending force to the view that the narrator has decided that this is a moment to evoke Jonah. This is not merely an allusion to Jonah 1:5, “They threw the cargo that was in the ship into the sea.” The object is to recall Jonah’s “death and resurrection.” The verse emphasizes the “passion” reference through the use of darkness/night as a symbol for death. Specifically, the loss of light recalls the darkness that shrouded the crucifixion of Jesus (Luke 23:44–45). The apocalyptic background indicates that a crisis is at hand ...