Acts 11:1-18 - Peter's Explanation To The Church In Jerusalem

¹ Now the apostles and the [other] brothers in Judea heard that the Gentiles had responded to the message of God. ² And when Peter came up to Jerusalem, those [believers] of Jewish descent began to argue with him, ³ saying, "You went in and ate with non-Jewish people, did you not?"

⁴ Then Peter began to explain the whole matter to them, step by step, saying, ⁵ "I was in the city of Joppa and [one day], while praying, I fell into a trance [i.e., a semi-conscious, vision-like state] and saw a huge sheet-like container being lowered down from the sky by its four corners. As it came into view ⁶ I gazed at it and wondered [about it], as I saw [it full of] four-legged [domestic] animals, wild animals, crawling [reptiles] and birds of the sky. ⁷ I also heard a voice telling me to get up and kill and eat [one of them].

⁸ But I said, 'O no, Lord, for I have never even tasted anything ordinary or [ceremonially] unfit [for Jews to eat].' ⁹ Then the voice spoke from the sky again, saying, 'Do not consider something [to be] ordinary that God has made acceptable.'

¹⁰ And this was done three times before it was all lifted back up into the sky. ¹¹ "Then, just about that time, three men sent from Caesarea to get me, walked up to the house where we were [staying]. ¹² The Holy Spirit directed me to go with them, without showing any discrimination. With these six brothers accompanying me, we went into Cornelius' house ¹³ and he told us about seeing an angel standing in his house and saying [to him] 'Send to Joppa for Simon Peter and bring him [here] ¹⁴ so he can speak words to you that will bring salvation to you and your household.'

¹⁵ "And while I was speaking, [the power of] the Holy Spirit descended on them [i.e., Cornelius' Gentile household] just like [it fell] on us [Jewish apostles] at the beginning [i.e., the day of Pentecost, See chapter 2]. ¹⁶ Then I remembered what the Lord had said [See 1:4-5]: 'John immersed you [people] in water but you [apostles] will be immersed in the Holy Spirit.' ¹⁷ [Therefore], if God gave to them [i.e., the Gentiles] the same gift as He gave to us [Jews] when we [apostles, See chapter 1-2] believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, how could I stand against [the will of] God [by refusing to immerse them]?'"

¹⁸ So, when the apostles and the brothers from Judea heard these things, they stopped arguing [See verse 2] and gave honor to God, saying, "[This means] that God has permitted the Gentiles also [as well as the Jews] to repent [i.e., change their hearts and lives] so they, too, could have [the promise of never ending] life."