The Early Church · c. AD 37–44
Chapter 8
Peter and Cornelius
Peter opened his mouth and said, “Truly I perceive that God doesn’t show favoritism;but in every nation he who fears him and works righteousness is acceptable to him.
For parents
Peter’s speech says that they killed Jesus, hanging him on a tree (Acts 10:39). The chapter also mentions the persecution that broke out over Stephen, which scattered the believers (11:19), and a great famine (11:28). Circumcision is mentioned (10:45; 11:2–3), and its card explains it plainly.
A man named lived in . He was a in the unit of soldiers called the Italian Regiment. Cornelius was devout. He , and so did all his household. He gave generously to help the people who were in need, and he was always praying to God.
At about three o’clock one afternoon, in a vision, he plainly saw an of God coming to him. “Cornelius!” the angel said.
Cornelius looked hard at him and was afraid. “What is it, Lord?” he said.
The angel said to him, “Your prayers and your gifts to the needy have gone up before God as a memorial. Now send men to to get Simon, who is also called . He is staying with , whose house is down by the sea.”
After the angel who had spoken to him was gone, Cornelius called two of his household servants. He also called a devout soldier, one of the men who were always on hand to serve him. He explained everything to them and sent them to Joppa.
The next day, while the men were still on their way and getting close to the city, Peter went up on the housetop to pray. It was about noon.
He grew hungry and wanted food. But while they were getting a meal ready, he fell into a .
He saw heaven open, and a kind of container coming down to him. It was like a great sheet let down by its four corners onto the earth. It held all kinds of four-footed animals of the earth, wild animals, reptiles and birds of the sky.
Then a voice came to him: “Rise, Peter, kill and eat!”
“Not so, Lord!” said Peter. “I have never eaten anything that is unholy or .”
A second time the voice spoke to him: “What God has cleansed, you must not call unclean.”
This happened three times. Then, all at once, the thing was taken back up into heaven.
Peter was very puzzled, wondering what the vision he had seen could mean. Meanwhile, the men Cornelius had sent asked around and found Simon’s house. They stood at the gate and called out, asking whether Simon, who was also called Peter, was staying there.
Peter was still thinking the vision over when said to him, “Look, there are three men looking for you. But get up and go down. Go with them and don’t doubt anything, because I have sent them.”
Peter went down to the men. “Look, I’m the one you are searching for,” he said. “Why have you come?”
They said, “Cornelius, a centurion, is a man who does right and fears God, and the whole Jewish nation speaks well of him. A holy angel told him to invite you to his house and to listen to what you say.”
So Peter called them in and gave them a place to stay. On the following day Peter set off with them, and some of the brothers from Joppa came along.
The day after that they came into Caesarea. Cornelius was waiting for them, and he had called together his relatives and his closest friends.
As Peter came in, Cornelius met him, fell down at his feet and worshiped him.
But Peter raised him up. “Stand up!” he said. “I’m a man too.”
Peter went in, still talking with Cornelius, and found that many people had gathered. He said to them, “You know very well that a Jew isn’t allowed to keep company with someone from another nation, or to visit him. But God has shown me that I shouldn’t call anyone unholy or unclean.
“That’s why I came without arguing when you sent for me. So now I ask you, why did you send for me?”
Cornelius said, “Four days ago I was until this time of day, and at three in the afternoon I prayed in my house. And look, a man in bright clothes stood in front of me. He said, ‘Cornelius, your prayer is heard, and your gifts to the needy are remembered before God. So send to Joppa for Simon, who is also called Peter. He is staying by the sea in the house of a tanner named Simon. When he comes, he will speak to you.’
“That’s why I sent for you right away, and it was good of you to come. All of us are here now before God, to hear everything God has commanded you.”
Then Peter spoke. “Truly, I see that God doesn’t show favoritism,” he said. “In every nation, whoever fears him and does right is acceptable to him.
“He sent his word to the people of Israel, bringing the good news of peace by —he is Lord of all. You yourselves know what happened. It was told all through , starting in , after the preached. You know how God Jesus of with the Holy Spirit and with power. Wherever he went, he did good and healed all who were held down by the , because God was with him.
“We are witnesses of everything he did, both in the land of the Jews and in . And they killed him, hanging him on a tree. God raised him up on the third day and let him appear, not to all the people, but to witnesses God had chosen beforehand: to us. We ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead.
“He commanded us to preach to the people and to declare that this is the one God has appointed as the Judge of the living and the dead. All the testify about him: through his name, everyone who believes in him will be forgiven for their sins.”
Peter was still speaking these words when the Holy Spirit fell on all those who heard the word.
Those who had come with Peter, believers who were , were amazed, since the gift of the Holy Spirit was also poured out on the . They could hear them speaking in other languages and saying how great God is.
Then Peter spoke up. “Can anyone keep these people from being baptized with water? They have received the Holy Spirit just like us.”
He commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay on for some days.
The and the brothers and sisters in Judea heard that the Gentiles, too, had received the word of God.
When Peter went up to Jerusalem, those who were circumcised argued with him. “You went in among uncircumcised men,” they said, “and ate with them!”
But Peter began explaining it to them in order.
“I was in the city of Joppa, praying,” he said, “and in a trance I saw a vision. A kind of container was coming down, like a great sheet let down from heaven by four corners. It came all the way down to me. I looked hard at it and studied it, and I saw the four-footed animals of the earth, wild animals, creeping things and birds of the sky.
“I also heard a voice saying to me, ‘Rise, Peter, kill and eat!’ But I said, ‘Not so, Lord! Nothing unholy or unclean has ever gone into my mouth.’
“But the voice answered me a second time from heaven, ‘What God has cleansed, you must not call unclean.’ This happened three times, and then everything was pulled back up into heaven.
“And look, just then three men stood in front of the house where I was. They had been sent to me from Caesarea. The Spirit told me to go with them without discriminating. These six brothers came with me as well, and we went into the man’s house.
“He told us how he had seen the angel standing in his house and saying to him, ‘Send to Joppa and get Simon, who is called Peter. He will tell you words by which you will be saved, you and your whole household.’
“I had just started speaking when the Holy Spirit fell on them, as on us at the beginning. I remembered the Lord’s words, how he said, ‘John baptized people in water, but you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit.’
“If God gave them the same gift as us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, then who was I to oppose God?”
When they heard this, they had nothing more to say, and they praised God. “Then God has given that brings life to the Gentiles too!” they said.
Now the persecution that broke out because of had scattered people far and wide. Those who were scattered traveled as far as , and , but they told the message to no one except Jews.
But some of them, men of Cyprus and , came to Antioch and spoke to the , people who kept Greek customs and culture. They preached the Lord Jesus to them.
The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great many people believed and turned to the Lord.
The in Jerusalem heard the report about them, and they sent out to go as far as Antioch.
When Barnabas got there and saw God’s grace, he was glad. He urged them all to set their hearts on staying close to the Lord. Barnabas was a good man, and he was full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And many people were added to the Lord.
Then Barnabas went off to to look for . He found him and brought him to Antioch. There, for a whole year, they gathered with the assembly and taught a large number of people. The were first called in Antioch.
During these days, prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them, a man named , stood up. Through the Spirit he made known that a great famine was going to come on the whole world, a time when food would run short. And it did happen, in the days of .
Each of the disciples decided to send help to the brothers and sisters in Judea, as much as they could afford. And they did it. Barnabas and Saul took it to the .