Acts 11:8 - Printer Friendly

ESV: But I said, ‘By no means, Lord; for nothing common or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’

NIV: "I replied, ‘Surely not, Lord! Nothing impure or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’

NASB: But I said, ‘By no means, Lord, for nothing unholy or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’

CSB: "‘No, Lord!’ I said. ‘For nothing impure or ritually unclean has ever entered my mouth.’

NLT: ‘No, Lord,’ I replied. ‘I have never eaten anything that our Jewish laws have declared impure or unclean. ’

KJV: But I said, Not so, Lord: for nothing common or unclean hath at any time entered into my mouth.

NKJV: But I said, ‘Not so, Lord! For nothing common or unclean has at any time entered my mouth.’

Peter is with the church leaders in Jerusalem, defending himself against charges that he ate with uncircumcised men—Gentiles. The charges are true, but there are extenuating circumstances.

Peter had been in Joppa, now called Jaffa, praying on the rooftop of a tanner named Simon. He fell into a trance and watched as a sheet filled with different kinds of animals lowered from heaven. Some of the animals were carnivores and reptiles, which are forbidden for Jews as food. A voice told him, "Rise, Peter; kill and eat" (Acts 10:13). Peter refused. He had never eaten any food that violated the laws given in Deuteronomy 14 and Leviticus 11, and he had no intention of starting (Acts 10:9–16).

"Common" comes from the Greek root word koinos. As Peter uses the term, it means something crass, low class, or unrefined. It's also used for anything that hasn't been dedicated for use in worshiping God. "Unclean" is from the Greek root word akathartos. Things that are unclean do not adhere to the Levitical law; in the case of food, they aren't kosher. "Unclean" doesn't mean sinful; many unpreventable physical conditions made a person unclean. But since the Babylonians took the Jews into exile and then Antiochus Epiphanes tried to destroy Judaism and Jewish culture, the Jews became very careful about obeying the Mosaic law. Even though Peter follows Jesus, he's still a Jew.

Acts 11:1–18 describes Peter defending his actions in Acts 10. The Holy Spirit led him to share Jesus' story with a house filled with Gentiles. As he had barely started, the Holy Spirit fell on the Gentiles and Peter had them baptized into the church. Now, he has returned to the church in Jerusalem and has some explaining to do. Despite Peter being the most prominent of Jesus' twelve disciples, the legalistic Jews have already gained significant influence in the church. It's a good reminder we must always follow God and be ready to defend our response to His leading.

Acts 11 accelerates the journey of the message of Jesus into the Gentile world. Peter returns to Jerusalem and explains to the church leaders how the Holy Spirit has fallen on a group of Gentiles in Caesarea Maritima (Acts 11:1–18). Then the church hears how Gentiles are coming to faith far north in Syrian Antioch; they send Barnabas to investigate and Barnabas brings in Saul (Acts 11:19–26). Finally, prophets travel from Jerusalem to Antioch to request aid for the Jerusalem church (Acts 11:27–30). The scene is almost set for Paul's extensive evangelism career to begin.

Until the martyrdom of Stephen (Acts 7:54–60), the story of Jesus' followers remained mostly in Jerusalem. Saul started persecuting the church and the members fled, taking Jesus' story with them. This included Philip who shared Jesus' story with Samaritans and an Ethiopian official (Acts 8). Saul's persecution even led to his own conversion (Acts 9). And Peter brought the gospel to a group of Gentiles (Acts 10). After one more story about Peter and rising persecution by the Roman government, the book of Acts will turn to Saul, who will use the Greek variation of his name, Paul, and his missionary journeys to southeast Europe.

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.