John Calvin Commentary Acts 27:41

"But lighting upon a place where two seas met, they ran the vessel aground; and the foreship struck and remained unmoveable, but the stern began to break up by the violence [of the waves]." — Acts 27:41 (ASV)

They thrust in the ship. And then it might have seemed that God had mocked Paul, and that Paul, by trifling, had led his companions into a false hope; but God immediately dispelled that misconception by granting them prosperous success. It was fitting that when the ship was broken, they would be so discouraged, and their spirits so disheartened, that their despair would magnify the glory of the miracle. For God usually moderates and governs His works in such a way that He makes some display of difficulty because of many hindrances that occur. By this means He sharpens our senses to greater attentiveness, so that we may eventually learn that, though all the world strives against Him, He will still have the victory. This is the reason why He would rather draw Paul and his companions to the shore after the ship was lost, than bring the ship safely to land.