ActsChapter 11

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The apostles and the brothers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles too had received the word of God.

So when Peter came up to Jerusalem, those of the circumcision took issue with him,

saying, "You went in to uncircumcised men and ate with them."

Then Peter began and laid the matter out for them step by step:

"I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision: something like a large sheet was coming down, lowered from heaven by its four corners, and it came right down to me.

I looked into it closely and saw the four-footed animals of the earth, the wild beasts, the reptiles, and the birds of the air.

And I heard a voice saying to me, 'Get up, Peter; kill and eat.'

But I said, 'By no means, Lord, for nothing common or unclean has ever entered my mouth.'

The voice answered a second time from heaven, 'What God has cleansed, you must not call common.'

This happened three times, and then everything was drawn back up into heaven.

And at that very moment three men arrived at the house where we were staying, sent to me from Caesarea.

The Spirit told me to go with them without hesitating. These six brothers came with me as well, and we entered the man's house.

He told us how he had seen the angel standing in his house and saying, 'Send to Joppa and summon Simon who is called Peter;

he will speak words to you by which you will be saved, you and your whole household.'

As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them just as he had on us at the beginning.

Then I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, 'John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.'

So if God gave them the same gift he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to stand in God's way?"

When they heard this, they fell silent, and they glorified God, saying, "So then, God has granted even to the Gentiles the repentance that leads to life."

Now those who had been scattered by the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except Jews.

But some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, came to Antioch and began speaking to the Greeks as well, proclaiming the good news of the Lord Jesus.^f

The hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed and turned to the Lord.

News of them reached the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas off to Antioch.

When he arrived and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced, and he encouraged them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast hearts,

for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a large number of people were added to the Lord.

Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul,

and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. It was in Antioch that the disciples were first called Christians.

In those days prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch.

One of them, named Agabus, stood up and indicated through the Spirit that a severe famine was about to come over the whole world; this happened in the days of Claudius.

So the disciples determined, each according to his ability, to send relief to the brothers living in Judea.

And they did so, sending it to the elders by the hand of Barnabas and Saul.

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Summary2

Chapter 11

Main Theme: Peter’s defense of the mission to the Gentiles and the spread of the gospel to Antioch.

Content: Peter is criticized by the circumcised believers in Jerusalem for eating with Gentiles, but he defends himself by recounting his vision and how the Holy Spirit fell upon Cornelius’ household just as it had on the day of Pentecost. The church accepts this explanation and praises God that even the Gentiles have received repentance leading to life. In Antioch, the gospel spreads among Greek-speaking people, and Barnabas is sent there to strengthen the believers. He brings Saul from Tarsus, and together they teach for a year—it is here that the disciples are first called "Christians." The prophet Agabus predicts a famine, and the church sends relief to Judea.

Key Words/Images:

The Sheet with Animals: God’s vision showing that no people should be called unclean or unholy.
The Gift of the Holy Spirit: Proof that God accepts Gentiles on equal footing with Jews.
Christians: The name first used for disciples in Antioch.
Antioch: The center of the mission to the Gentiles and the first church comprising both Jews and Gentiles.

Historical context

Historical and Cultural Context for Acts 11

People

Barnabas (Βαρναβᾶς) emerges as a key figure in this chapter. He was a Levite from Cyprus (Acts 4:36). His Cypriot background made him especially suited to evaluate what happened in Antioch, where Cypriots were among the pioneers (v. 20). The name Barnabas means "son of encouragement" (υἱὸς παρακλήσεως), and his role as an encourager is clearly seen when he "urged them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose" (v. 23).

Saul (Σαῦλος) was brought by Barnabas from Tarsus (v. 25) to Antioch, where the two worked together for a whole year teaching the church (v. 26). Together they later brought relief to the elders in Jerusalem (v. 30).

Agabus (Ἅγαβος) is introduced as a prophet from Jerusalem (vv. 27–28). He also appears later in Acts 21:10–11. His prophecy about a famine "over all the world" (ἐφʼ ὅλην τὴν οἰκουμένην) was fulfilled during the reign of Emperor Claudius (AD 41–54). The Roman historian Suetonius mentions repeated famines under Claudius's rule, and Josephus describes a severe famine in Judea around AD 46–47.

The six brothers (οἱ ἓξ ἀδελφοὶ οὗτοι, v. 12) were Jewish believers from Joppa who accompanied Peter to Cornelius's house. They served as witnesses in Peter's defense before the church in Jerusalem and confirmed that the Holy Spirit had fallen upon Gentiles.

Places

Antioch in Syria was the third largest city in the Roman Empire after Rome and Alexandria, with an estimated population of 250,000–500,000. The city lay on the Orontes River, about 25 kilometers from the Mediterranean Sea. Antioch was known for its cosmopolitan character, with a large Jewish population that had lived there since the city's founding by Seleucus I around 300 BC. Archaeological excavations have uncovered remains of magnificent colonnaded streets and a large Jewish synagogue. The city's mixed population of Greeks, Syrians, Jews, and Romans created a natural environment for the spread of the gospel to non-Jews.

Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Cyrene are mentioned as places from which those who spread the gospel originated. Phoenicia was the coastal strip north of Israel (modern-day Lebanon), Cyprus was an island in the eastern Mediterranean with a significant Jewish diaspora, and Cyrene was a Greek colony in North Africa (modern-day Libya) with a large Jewish population. Simon of Cyrene, who carried Jesus's cross, and Lucius of Cyrene, mentioned in Acts 13:1, testify to the connection between Cyrene and the early church.

Tarsus, where Barnabas brought Saul (v. 25), was the capital of the province of Cilicia and an important cultural and philosophical center. The city was known for its Stoic school of philosophy and served as a crossroads for trade between East and West.

Events and Customs

Table fellowship and circumcision stand at the heart of the conflict in vv. 2–3. The expression οἱ ἐκ περιτομῆς ("those of the circumcision") refers to Jewish believers who believed that the ritual boundaries from the Mosaic Law still applied. The accusation "you went in to uncircumcised men and ate with them" (v. 3) shows that table fellowship was considered the most compromising issue. In Jewish tradition, sharing a meal expressed fellowship and acceptance. Later rabbinic literature contains detailed rules about eating together with Gentiles, mainly due to concerns about ritual impurity and non-kosher food.

The first use of the name "Christians" (Χριστιανούς) occurred in Antioch (v. 26). The word is formed according to a Latin pattern with the suffix -ianus, meaning "follower of." Similar formations such as "Herodians" and "Caesarians" were common. This suggests that the term came from the Greco-Roman population in Antioch who identified these believers as a distinct group connected to "Christos" (Messiah). It marks an important turning point where believers were no longer seen merely as a Jewish sect.

Key Terms

Τὰ ἔθνη ("the Gentiles" or "the nations") in vv. 1 and 18 is the Greek word corresponding to the Hebrew goyim. In a Jewish context, this marked a fundamental distinction between Israel and all other peoples. The recognition in v. 18 that "God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance unto life" represents a theological breakthrough, where salvation is now explicitly acknowledged as universal.

Ἑλληνιστάς (v. 20) is usually translated "Hellenists" or "Greek-speaking Jews." In this context, it likely refers to Gentiles with Greek culture and language, in contrast to Greek-speaking Jews (as in Acts 6:1). Some textual witnesses read "Ἕλληνας" ("Greeks"), which would make the beginning of the mission to the Gentiles even clearer.

Χρηματίσαι (v. 26), translated "were called," actually means "to receive an official name" or "to be publicly designated as." This suggests that the name "Christians" became a public, recognized designation, not merely a nickname.

Chapter-Specific Findings

The famine under Claudius is confirmed by several ancient sources. Josephus (Antiquitates 20.51–53, 101) describes how Queen Helena of Adiabene bought grain from Egypt and obtained figs from Cyprus to help those in distress in Jerusalem during this famine. Suetonius (Claudius 18) and Dio Cassius (60.11) also mention food shortages during this period. An inscription from Antioch mentions a certain Tiberius Claudius Cogidubnus as "curator of the grain supply" under Claudius, confirming that grain shortage was a widespread problem.

This external confirmation provides a reliable chronological marker for the events in the chapter and shows that Luke's historical notes align with contemporary sources. The collection for the poor in Judea (vv. 29–30) also demonstrates the early church's practice of economic solidarity across geographical and ethnic boundaries.

People7

Stephen1 Paul2 Barnabas1 John1 Peter4 Claudius1 Agabus1

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Key words

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Timeline3

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Bible stories3