What does Acts 28:2 mean?
Along with 272 soldiers, sailors, and passengers of the Alexandrian ship, Paul, Aristarchus, Luke, and Julius the centurion haven't seen the sun in two weeks. After barely surviving a storm, they have wrecked on the coast of Malta. They make it to shore by swimming or floating on the flotsam of the wreck and drag themselves onto the beach, whereupon it starts raining (Acts 27)."Native people" is from the Greek word barbaros. Originally, the term meant people from any nation with a harsh-sounding language. It came to be used for any non-Greek, similarly to how Gentile means non-Jew. The people of Malta spoke primarily Phoenician, not Greek. The Maltese were considered barbarian by Greeks and Romans, but "Malta" in Phoenician means "refuge": a far more appropriate description.
The fire draws the attention of a dangerous viper that fastens onto Paul's hand as he reaches for firewood. While the islanders wait for Paul to drop dead, Paul shakes his hand until the snake falls into the flames. That feat apparently draws the attention of the island's leader. He invites Paul's entourage to his home. When Paul discovers the leader's father is sick with dysentery, he heals him, then heals the sick on the rest of the island. What begins as kind hospitality of a fire on a rainy day grows into everything the travelers need for their three-month stay (Acts 28:3–10).
