Chapter 11

1The apostles—Jesus’ appointed messengers—and the other believers throughout Judea heard that non-Jews had also accepted God’s message.

2But when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised Jewish believers challenged him.

3They said, “You entered the homes of uncircumcised men and even ate with them!”

4So Peter explained the whole matter to them in order.

5Peter said, “I was praying in the city of Joppa when I fell into a trance and saw a vision. Something like a large sheet was being lowered from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to me.

6“I looked closely at it and saw four-footed animals, wild animals, reptiles, and birds.

7“Then I heard a voice say to me, ‘Get up, Peter. Kill something and eat.’

8“I answered, ‘Certainly not, Lord! I have never eaten anything considered ritually defiled or impure.’

9“The voice from heaven answered a second time, ‘You must not treat as unacceptable what God has made clean.’

10“This happened three times. Then everything was pulled back up into heaven.

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

12“God’s Spirit told me to go with them without making any distinction between them and us. These six fellow believers also came with me, and we entered the man’s house.

13“The man told us that he had seen an angel standing in his house. The angel said, ‘Send someone to Joppa and ask for Simon, who is also called Peter.

14“He will give you a message through which you and everyone in your household will be saved.’

15“As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came upon them, just as the Spirit came upon us at the beginning.

16“Then I remembered what the Lord had said: ‘John immersed people in water, but you will be immersed in the Holy Spirit.’

17“God gave them the very same gift he gave us when we put our trust in the Lord Jesus the Messiah. So who was I to stand in God’s way?”

18When the Jewish believers heard this, they stopped objecting and praised God. They said, “Then God has enabled even non-Jews to turn to him and receive life.”

19Meanwhile, the believers scattered by the persecution connected with Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch. They spoke God’s message only to Jews.

20But some of these believers, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and also spoke to Greek-speaking Jews, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus.

21The Lord’s power was with them, and a large number of people believed and turned to the Lord.

22News of this reached the community of believers in Jerusalem, so they sent Barnabas to Antioch.

23When Barnabas arrived and saw what God’s grace had accomplished, he was delighted. He encouraged everyone to remain wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord.

24Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith. A great many people committed themselves to the Lord.

25Barnabas then went to Tarsus to look for Saul.

26When he found Saul, he brought him to Antioch. For a full year, the two of them met with the community of believers and taught a large crowd. Antioch was the first place where the followers of Jesus were called Christians.

27During this time, prophets—people who delivered messages from God—came from Jerusalem to Antioch.

28One of them, named Agabus, stood up and, through the Spirit, predicted that a severe famine would spread throughout the Roman world. This happened during the rule of Emperor Claudius.

29The followers decided that each would send as much as they could afford to help their fellow believers living in Judea.

30They did so, entrusting the relief money to Barnabas and Saul to deliver to the elders who led the community.