Peter is challenged for eating with Gentiles
1 Now the apostles and other believers who were in Judea heard that the other nations also received the Word of God. 2 But when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the Judeans confronted him 3 and said, “You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them!”
4 So Peter gave them the order of events: 5 “I was praying in the city of Joppa, when I fell into a trance. I saw a vision of a container made of a large sheet held by its four corners coming down to me from heaven. 6 I examined it closely and saw the four-footed animals of the earth, the beasts, the reptiles, and the birds of the sky. 7 Then I heard a voice telling me, ‘Get up, Peter! Slaughter and eat!’
8 “But I objected, ‘Absolutely not, Master! Nothing contaminated or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’ 9 Yet the voice from heaven responded a second time, ‘What God has cleansed, do not call contaminated!’ 10 This happened three times, and then it was all pulled up to heaven.
11 “Suddenly there were three men from Caesarea waiting at the house where we were. 12 Then the Spirit told me to go along with them without prejudice. These six fellow believers also came with me, and we entered the man’s house. 13 He reported to us how he saw the angel standing in his house and saying, ‘Send people to Joppa to ask for Simon who is also called Peter. 14 He will proclaim to you how you can be saved— you and your entire household.’
15 “But as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them, just as it did on us at the beginning. 16 And then I remembered what the Master declared when he said, ‘John did indeed immerse you in water, but you will be immersed in the Holy Spirit’. 17 So since God gave them the same gift he gave to us when we put our trust in Master Jesus Christ, who was I to get in God’s way?”
18 Upon hearing all this, they calmed down and praised God: “So God really has also granted the other nations the option to turn to God and live!”
The Congregation at Antioch
19 Now it happened that those who had been scattered, due to the persecution that began over Stephen, went as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch. But they had only spoken the Word to Judeans. 20 However, some of them were men from Cyprus and Cyrene who went into Antioch and spoke to the Greeks as well, telling them the good news about Master Jesus. 21 The power of the Master was with them, and as a result a great number who believed turned toward the Master.
22 This report reached the Congregation in Jerusalem, so they sent Barnabas to Antioch. 23 Arriving there, he saw the favor of God and was very happy, and he passionately urged everyone to remain with the Master. 24 He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a sizable crowd was added to the Master. 25 Then he went away to Tarsus to look for Saul. 26 When he found him, he took him to Antioch. It turned out that they stayed a whole year with that Congregation, teaching a large crowd. And it was at Antioch that the disciples were first labeled Christians.26
The prophecy of a famine
27 Now in those days prophets came from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 One of them, named Agabus, stood up and indicated through the Spirit that a great famine was about to come upon the whole civilized world; this occurred during the rule of Claudius. 29 So the disciples, in proportion to how each had prospered, set funds aside to be distributed to the sisters and brothers living in Judea. 30 They chose to send it to the elders via Barnabas and Saul.
- 26 It is believed that “Christian”, which literally means “Messiah follower”, was a pejorative term given by its opponents, but happily adopted by the believers as sharing the disgrace of Jesus. It is only used in Acts 11:26, 26:28, and 1 Peter 4:16. More common terms for the believers were Disciples and Holy Ones (trad. Saints).