Acts 10:11 - Printer Friendly

ESV: and saw the heavens opened and something like a great sheet descending, being let down by its four corners upon the earth.

NIV: He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners.

NASB: and he *saw the sky opened up, and an object like a great sheet coming down, lowered by four corners to the ground,

CSB: He saw heaven opened and an object that resembled a large sheet coming down, being lowered by its four corners to the earth.

NLT: He saw the sky open, and something like a large sheet was let down by its four corners.

KJV: 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:

NKJV: and saw heaven opened and an object like a great sheet bound at the four corners, descending to him and let down to the earth.

God is spirit; He is present everywhere in His creation (John 4:24). He doesn't live in the sky, like a satellite, yet He often uses the image of clouds parting and the sky opening as a metaphor for His visible presence on earth (Ezekiel 1:1; Matthew 3:16; Acts 7:56). Other times, God draws more clouds to hide His presence from His fragile creation (Exodus 19:16; Mark 9:7). In this case, the skies open to reveal God's message.

The four corners of the sheet may represent the "four corners" of the world. In the sheet are "all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air" (Acts 10:12). A voice tells Peter to kill and eat the animals (Acts 10:13) but some of these creatures are not allowed by Mosaic law. The animals represent the people of the world who have been elected by God—some are devout Jews and some aren't, but Jesus wants Peter to accept them all.

We tend to forget that although God promised Abraham that his line would bless the whole earth (Genesis 12:3), at the time of Peter's vision it has been about 2000 years since that promise and no one is sure what God meant. Despite having seen Jesus bless Gentiles, despite watching the Holy Spirit descend on Samaritans (Acts 8:17), it takes Peter a long time to fully understand that Jesus is for everyone, not just the Jews.

Acts 10:9–23 occurs as Peter is in Joppa, after having healed a paralyzed man in nearby Lydda and raising Tabitha from the dead in Joppa (Acts 9:32–43). Peter doesn't know that a Roman centurion who worships the Jewish God is sending three men to bring Peter to Caesarea. The centurion wished to learn what God has planned for him, which he will find is to be saved in Jesus' name. First, God makes Peter understand that Jesus' offer of salvation is as available for Gentiles as it is for Jews.

Peter has been a dominant voice in the spread of Jesus' message to Jews and proselytes. Now he brings the gospel to Gentiles. An angel tells Cornelius, a centurion, to ask Peter to come to him. Peter is praying when he receives a vision of food—including non-kosher food—and God's voice telling him to eat. When the centurion's messengers arrive, Peter realizes the dream meant that Gentiles are no longer unclean. He follows the messengers and tells Cornelius' household about salvation through Jesus. Before Peter can lay his hands on them or baptize them, the Holy Spirit falls on them.

Jesus told the disciples they would be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). Oddly, the disciples didn't understand this meant the Holy Spirit would come upon Jews, Samaritans, and Gentiles alike. After several years reaching Jews and proselytes in Jerusalem (Acts 1—7) and Samaritans in Samaria (Acts 8:4–25), God calls Peter to bring the message to Gentiles. Peter's witness that Gentiles can be saved (Acts 11) clears the way for Paul's ministry to Gentiles in modern-day Turkey, Greece, and Italy (Acts 13—28).

The summary of the book of Acts is provided in Jesus' words in Acts 1:8: ''But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.'' In Acts 2:1–13, the Christ-followers receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:14—7:60 describes the rapid growth of the church in Jerusalem. Chapters 8—12 find Jewish persecution inadvertently spreading the gospel throughout Judea and Samaria. And in chapters 13—28, Paul and his companions spread the good news throughout the Roman Empire.