Acts 10:1-23 Rise, Peter, Kill and Eat

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Act 10:1-23 Rise, Peter, Kill and Eat

[Study Aired March 19, 2023]

Act 10:1  There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band,
Act 10:2  A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway.
Act 10:3  He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius.
Act 10:4  And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, What is it, Lord? And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God.
Act 10:5  And now send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname is Peter:
Act 10:6  He lodgeth with one Simon a tanner, whose house is by the sea side: he shall tell thee what thou oughtest to do.
Act 10:7  And when the angel which spake unto Cornelius was departed, he called two of his household servants, and a devout soldier of them that waited on him continually;
Act 10:8  And when he had declared all these things unto them, he sent them to Joppa.
Act 10:9  On the morrow, as they went on their journey, and drew nigh unto the city, Peter went up upon the housetop to pray about the sixth hour:
Act 10:10  And he became very hungry, and would have eaten: but while they made ready, he fell into a trance,
Act 10:11  And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending unto him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth:
Act 10:12  Wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.
Act 10:13  And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat.
Act 10:14  But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean.
Act 10:15  And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.
Act 10:16  This was done thrice: and the vessel was received up again into heaven.
Act 10:17  Now while Peter doubted in himself what this vision which he had seen should mean, behold, the men which were sent from Cornelius had made enquiry for Simon’s house, and stood before the gate,
Act 10:18  And called, and asked whether Simon, which was surnamed Peter, were lodged there.
Act 10:19  While Peter thought on the vision, the Spirit said unto him, Behold, three men seek thee.
Act 10:20  Arise therefore, and get thee down, and go with them, doubting nothing: for I have sent them.
Act 10:21  Then Peter went down to the men which were sent unto him from Cornelius; and said, Behold, I am he whom ye seek: what is the cause wherefore ye are come?
Act 10:22  And they said, Cornelius the centurion, a just man, and one that feareth God, and of good report among all the nation of the Jews, was warned from God by an holy angel to send for thee into his house, and to hear words of thee.
Act 10:23  Then called he them in, and lodged them. And on the morrow Peter went away with them, and certain brethren from Joppa accompanied him.

This section of scripture is the story of a spiritual earthquake for the early Jewish-Christian church. This is the beginning of the work of the holy spirit in the church, slowly and gradually opening their spiritual eyes and ears, to the very beginning of “[spiritual] things to come”:

Joh 16:13  Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

The entire Christian church, at that point in time, was still entirely composed of Jews and Jewish proselytes who were one and all “zealous of the law [of Moses]”. It would remain in that immature state for many years to come:

Act 21:17  And when we were come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly.
Act 21:18  And the day following Paul went in with us unto James; and all the elders were present.
Act 21:19  And when he had saluted them, he declared particularly what things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry.
Act 21:20  And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord, and said unto him, Thou seest, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are which believe; and they are all zealous of the law:
Act 21:21  And they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs.
Act 21:22  What is it therefore? the multitude must needs come together: for they will hear that thou art come.
Act 21:23  Do therefore this that we say to thee: We have four men which have a vow on them;
Act 21:24  Them take, and purify thyself with them, and be at charges with them, that they may shave their heads: and all may know that those things, whereof they were informed concerning thee, are nothing; but that thou thyself also walkest orderly, and keepest the law.
Act 21:25  As touching the Gentiles which believe, we have written and concluded that they observe no such thing, save only that they keep themselves from things offered to idols, and from blood, and from strangled, and from fornication.
Act 21:26  Then Paul took the men, and the next day purifying himself with them entered into the temple, to signify the accomplishment of the days of purification, until that an offering should be offered for every one of them.

Peter, Paul and Barnabas had agreed with “the holy spirit… and all the elders”, that the Gentiles were not required to keep the rituals of the law of Moses, such as making vows and practicing the purification rituals which accompanied those vows. Peter, Paul and Barnabas were all Jews, and they therefore consented to keeping the law of Moses, with the exception of going in unto Gentiles as this story reveals.

Making such a drastic change required a powerful witness that this change is indeed a work of God Himself, and these events in the lives of Peter and Cornelius and their closest associates are just such a great and powerful witness that this is truly a work of the Lord.

Foretelling the immediate future by telling two men who have never met each other what the other man will do, as in the case of Saul and Ananias, and telling Cornelius Peter’s name, and the name of the man with whom he is lodging, is a very powerful and convincing witness that what is taking place is a work of God Himself, because the Lord alone knows what the future holds. This is how the holy spirit put Ananias in touch with Saul of Tarsus. While speaking to Ananias about Saul the holy spirit was simultaneously speaking to Saul and telling him that a man named Ananias would come and give him back his sight and tell him what he must do.

In this case the holy spirit sent an angel to speak with the Roman centurion, Cornelius, and then the Lord gives Peter the same vision three times and then tells Peter that three men are at the gate seeking him, and He instructs Peter to go with these men to the house of the Gentile centurion, Cornelius.

Act 10:1  There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band,
Act 10:2  A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway.

Cornelius was a Gentile proselyte who could never enter the temple in Jerusalem without first being circumcised, but he had converted to the Jewish religion and “the people” to whom he “gave much alms” were the Jewish people. Cornelius was a devout proselyte, and he was obviously living under the law of Moses and all those laws prescribed for such people and for himself and Peter. Cornelius had heard of Christ and all that He had done, but he also knew that Jews were not permitted to eat with or come into the home of an uncircumcised Gentile.

Exo 12:48  And when a stranger shall sojourn with thee, and will keep the passover to the LORD, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and keep it; and he shall be as one that is born in the land: for no uncircumcised person shall eat thereof.

Act 10:3  He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius.

The fact Cornelius was praying “about the ninth hour”, indicates that he was living a devoutly Jewish life as a Gentile proselyte. Peter and John kept this tradition:

Act 3:1  Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour.

Act 10:4  And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, What is it, Lord? And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God.
Act 10:5  And now send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname is Peter:
Act 10:6  He lodgeth with one Simon a tanner, whose house is by the sea side: he shall tell thee what thou oughtest to do.

This is the same way the Lord dealt with Saul of Tarsus. He first got Saul’s attention. The Lord didn’t even break a sweat bringing the mighty Saul of Tarsus to the ground, but then he immediately used a man of the church, a man named Ananias, to deliver His instructions for Saul to follow:

Act 9:5  And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.
Act 9:6  And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must [G1163: ‘dei’] do.

The Greek word translated as ‘must’ here in Acts 9:6 is ‘dei’. It is the same word translated as ‘oughtest’ here is Acts 10:6:

Act 10:5  And now send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname is Peter:
Act 10:6  He lodgeth with one Simon a tanner, whose house is by the sea side: he shall tell thee what thou oughtest [G1163: ‘dei’] to do.

It is through the Lord’s words that we are all “told… what [we] must do”. The Lord always uses “some man [to] guide [us]”, as He used Philip to guide the Ethiopian eunuch:

Act 8:30  And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest?
Act 8:31  And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him.

Christ Himself could have told Saul, the eunuch, and Cornelius what they must do, but He has ordained that “the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world has been hid in God… [His] manifold wisdom [was to] be [made] known… unto the principalities and powers in [our] heavens… by the church”:

Eph 3:9  And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:
Eph 3:10  To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,
Eph 3:11  According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:

The Lord Himself, or “[His] angel”, will direct us to the church, but the fellowship of the mystery, by His own ordination, will be made known to the principalities and powers in our heavens, “by the church”.

Act 10:7  And when the angel which spake unto Cornelius was departed, he called two of his household servants, and a devout soldier of them that waited on him continually;

Cornelius is a ‘centurion’, employed by the Roman state. The “devout soldier” was also employed by the state. Neither was required to find another job before he could accept and begin serving the Lord. This accords with what the holy spirit tells us in:

1Co 7:20  Let every man abide in the same calling wherein he was called.
1Co 7:21  Art thou called being a servant? care not for it: but if thou mayest be made free, use it rather.
1Co 7:22  For he that is called in the Lord, being a servant, is the Lord’s freeman: likewise also he that is called, being free, is Christ’s servant.
1Co 7:23  Ye are bought with a price; be not ye the servants of men.
1Co 7:24  Brethren, let every man, wherein he is called, therein abide with God.

Twice, in verse 20 and in verse 24, we are told… “abide in the same calling wherein [we are] called”. The Lord does not expect us to immediately drop our well-paying jobs, as long as those jobs do not entail immediate disobedience to our Lord and His commandments. Nevertheless, in the same breath we are commanded… “but if you mayest be free, use it rather”. If we can feed, shelter, and clothe ourselves and our family and “be not the servants of men” then that is what is ideal in the Lord’s service.

What the title ‘centurion’ tells us is that Cornelius had under his command 100 Roman soldiers. At least one of them was “a devout soldier”, meaning that he, too, was a proselyte to Judaism, and was being led by the holy spirit to seek to know the Lord. The two servants of his household were obviously men who could also be trusted to follow Cornelius’s instructions without fail. This is the business of spreading the gospel, and it is not left in the hands of incompetent servants. It is given to those who are diligent in their business:

Pro 22:29  Seest thou a man diligent in his business? he shall stand before kings; he shall not stand before mean men.

Rom 12:11  Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;

Col 3:23  And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;

Act 10:8  And when he [Cornelius] had declared all these things unto them, he sent them to Joppa.

Cornelius called these three men together and declared everything that had happened to him in his vision. He told them that he had been visited by an angel of the Lord, and the angel had instructed him to send to Joppa and inquire in the house of a tanner named Simon, for another man who is also named Simon but “whose surname is Peter”.

The holy spirit is in the process of spreading the gospel to the world and Cornelius and these three servants are honored to have a part in that work in this age, and they are all very diligent to do their part “as to the Lord”.

Act 10:9  On the morrow, as they went on their journey, and drew nigh unto the city, Peter went up upon the housetop to pray about the sixth hour:

This was done to prepare Peter’s Jewish heart for a visit from three Gentiles of “the Italian band”. The Lord never fails to prepare our hearts to receive what He is doing in our lives:

1Ch 29:18  O LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, our fathers, keep this for ever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of thy people, and prepare their heart unto thee:

Psa 10:17  LORD, thou hast heard the desire of the humble: thou wilt prepare their heart, thou wilt cause thine ear to hear:

Act 10:10  And he became very hungry, and would have eaten: but while they made ready, he fell into a trance,
Act 10:11  And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending unto him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth:
Act 10:12  Wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.
Act 10:13  And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat.
Act 10:14  But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean.
Act 10:15  And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.
Act 10:16  This was done thrice: and the vessel was received up again into heaven.

At this time, Peter was not just hungry for his lunch at “the sixth hour”. We are told “he became very hungry” when the Lord showed him a vision of “common [and] unclean” beasts descending out of heaven in “a great sheet knit at the four corners”. The use of the phrase ‘four corners’, tells us that this is speaking of the whole of mankind.

The Number Four

The word translated as ‘corners’ is not the same Greek word translated as ‘corners’ or ‘quarters’ when speaking of the whole of the physical earth as in:

Rev 7:1  And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners [G1137: ’gonia’] of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.

Rev 20:8  And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters [G1137: ‘gonia’] of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.

The Greek word translated as ‘corners’ here in Acts 10:11 is the Greek word ‘arche’ (G746), and here is how this Greek word is defined:

Here are the various translations of this word in the King James Bible:

Notice the only two times this Greek word ‘arche’ is translated as ‘corners’ are here in Acts 10 and in the next chapter where Peter is relating this story to the other apostles:

Act 11:4  But Peter rehearsed the matter from the beginning, and expounded it by order unto them, saying,
Act 11:5  I was in the city of Joppa praying: and in a trance I saw a vision, A certain vessel descend, as it had been a great sheet, let down from heaven by four corners [G746: ‘arche’]; and it came even to me:
Act 11:6  Upon the which when I had fastened mine eyes, I considered, and saw fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.
Act 11:7  And I heard a voice saying unto me, Arise, Peter; slay and eat.
Act 11:8  But I said, Not so, Lord: for nothing common or unclean hath at any time entered into my mouth.
Act 11:9  But the voice answered me again from heaven, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.
Act 11:10  And this was done three times: and all were drawn up again into heaven.
Act 11:11  And, behold, immediately there were three men already come unto the house where I was, sent from Caesarea unto me.
Act 11:12  And the Spirit bade me go with them, nothing doubting. Moreover these six brethren accompanied me, and we entered into the man’s house:

So, the fact is that this story is the only place in all scripture where this Greek word ‘arche’ is translated as ‘corners.’

The Jonathan Mitchell New Testament uses the words “four… beginnings”. Putting the spiritual meaning of the number ‘four’ together with the spiritual meaning of the Greek word ‘arche’, which is most often translated as ‘beginnings’, the most likely meaning the Greek speaking apostles would have gotten out of what the Lord said to Peter at the house of Simon the tanner would be that this event is a whole new beginning for this newly begotten New Testament church. This ‘whole beginning’ being that the Lord is now beginning to show these Jewish apostles:

Rom 2:28  For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
Rom 2:29  But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

Nevertheless, this new revelation is going to take a long time to be accepted even by the apostles of Christ. This is a monumental event in “the time of reformation” (Heb 9:10). Here we have the holy spirit telling Peter, a devout Jew, to do something devout Jews until this moment have always been commanded not to do. The Old Testament scriptures unequivocally command Jews to never eat unclean meats:

Lev 11:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses and to Aaron, saying unto them,
Lev 11:2  Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, These are the beasts which ye shall eat among all the beasts that are on the earth.
Lev 11:3  Whatsoever parteth the hoof, and is clovenfooted, and cheweth the cud, among the beasts, that shall ye eat.
Lev 11:4  Nevertheless these shall ye not eat of them that chew the cud, or of them that divide the hoof: as the camel, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
Lev 11:5  And the coney, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
Lev 11:6  And the hare, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
Lev 11:7  And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be clovenfooted, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you.
Lev 11:8  Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcase shall ye not touch; they are unclean to you.

Peter was perplexed by this vision he had seen and the voice he had heard, whom he addressed as ‘Lord’. He was being told something contrary to the law of Moses, and He was not drawing any hasty conclusions.

Act 10:17  Now while Peter doubted in himself what this vision which he had seen should mean, behold, the men which were sent from Cornelius had made enquiry for Simon’s house, and stood before the gate,
Act 10:18  And called, and asked whether Simon, which was surnamed Peter, were lodged there.
Act 10:19  While Peter thought on the vision, the Spirit said unto him, Behold, three men seek thee.
Act 10:20  Arise therefore, and get thee down, and go with them, doubting nothing: for I have sent them.

This tells us in no uncertain terms that “the Spirit said unto him, Behold three men seek thee. Arise therefore, get the down and go with them, doubting nothing: for I have sent them.” These three men correspond to the three times Peter was told not to call unclean what the Lord has cleansed. “Go with them, doubting nothing: for I have sent them” is the spirit telling Peter, and the six Jews who would accompany Peter to the house of Cornelius, that the Lord had sent these men to Peter, and it was the Lord Himself commanding Peter to go with these Gentile men and enter into the house of a Gentile Roman centurion. This was not permitted before this very moment.

This is what the law of Moses has to say about fraternizing with Gentiles:

Deu 7:1  When the LORD thy God shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, and hath cast out many nations before thee, the Hittites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than thou;
Deu 7:2  And when the LORD thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them:

Deu 20:16  But of the cities of these people, which the LORD thy God doth give thee for an inheritance, thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth:

Christ Himself had never entered into the home of a Gentile and had even called the woman of Canaan a dog to her face:

Mat 15:21  Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon.
Mat 15:22  And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.
Mat 15:23  But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.
Mat 15:24  But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
Mat 15:25  Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me.
Mat 15:26  But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs.

Now, here at the home of Simon the tanner, the same Lord is telling Peter to go to the house of a Gentile Roman centurion. This whole experience is just a part of what Christ had foretold His disciples on the night of His apprehension by the Jews:

Joh 16:12  I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.
Joh 16:13  Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

It is very instructive to note that even though Christ first came “only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel”, the fact is that He listened to and healed the woman of Canaan’s daughter:

Mat 15:27  And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.
Mat 15:28  Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.

This event, along with the Lord’s words to the woman at the well and the few days He spent preaching the gospel to the Samaritans, were precursors to this event which is leading up to the revelation that:

Rom 2:28  … he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
Rom 2:29  But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

Act 10:21  Then Peter went down to the men which were sent unto him from Cornelius; and said, Behold, I am he whom ye seek: what is the cause wherefore ye are come?
Act 10:22  And they said, Cornelius the centurion, a just man, and one that feareth God, and of good report among all the nation of the Jews, was warned from God by an holy angel to send for thee into his house, and to hear words of thee.
Act 10:23  Then called he them in, and lodged them. And on the morrow Peter went away with them, and certain brethren from Joppa accompanied him.

The English phrase ‘warned from God’ is all translated from the one Greek word:

It does mean to warn, and it is the same word translated as such in these verses of scripture:

Mat 2:12  And being warned of God [G5537: ‘chrematizo’] in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.

Heb 11:7  By faith Noah, being warned of God [G5537: ‘chrematizo’] of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.

In all three cases the words ‘of God’ are added by the translators. The Greek simply reads ‘being warned’. Here in Acts 10 the three men from Cornelius tell Peter that the warning was “by an holy angel”, therefore the addition of the words “from God” are an acceptable addition which does not alter the message in any way.

Act 10:22  And they said, Cornelius the centurion, a just man, and one that feareth God, and of good report among all the nation of the Jews, was warned from God by an holy angel to send for thee into his house, and to hear words of thee.

This was a serious breach of Jewish conduct according to the law of Moses, and Peter wanted witnesses to what the holy spirit was working. As we read earlier these “certain brothers from Joppa” were six Jewish men who accompanied Peter and who were familiar with everything the holy spirit had orchestrated. Peter brought these six men with him to Jerusalem because he knew that what had taken place was going to be earthshattering to all Christian Jews at that time. This is what Peter told the leaders of the church in Jerusalem in the next chapter of the Acts of the apostles:

Act 11:12  And the Spirit bade me go with them, nothing doubting. Moreover these six brethren accompanied me, and we entered into the man’s house:

Peter had brought “these six brethren” all the way from Joppa to witness on his behalf as to why he had dared to eat with a Gentile. Those six, along with Peter, were a seven-fold witness to this part of “the time of reformation.” This “carnal ordinance” against entering the home of a Gentile was at this point beginning to be “broken down”:

Eph 2:11  Wherefore remember, that ye [Gentile Ephesians] being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands;
Eph 2:12  That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:
Eph 2:13  But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.
Eph 2:14  For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;

Heb 9:10  Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until [and only “until”] the time of reformation.

In our next study we will learn what Peter made of the vision the Lord gave Him, and we will learn what the words of the Lord… “What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common” mean. Suffice it to say that Peter certainly did not go out immediately and order a ham sandwich. That was not what Peter understood to be the meaning of his vision from God. More on this subject next week.

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