< Acts 10 >
1 [There was] a man [who lived] in Caesarea [city] whose name was Cornelius. He was an officer who commanded 100 men in a large group of [Roman] soldiers from Italy.
2 He always tried to do what would please God; he and his entire household [MTY] [were non-Jews who] habitually worshipped God. He sometimes gave money to help poor [Jewish] people, and he prayed to God regularly.
3 [One day] at about three o’clock in the afternoon [Cornelius saw] a vision. He clearly saw an angel whom God [had sent]. The angel came into [his room] and said to him, “Cornelius!”
4 Cornelius stared at the angel and became terrified. Then he asked [fearfully], “Sir, what do you [(sg)] want?” The angel answered him, “You [(sg)] have pleased God because you have been praying [regularly to him] and you often give money to [help] poor people. [Those things have been] like a sacrifice [to God].
5 So, now command some men to go to Joppa and [tell them to] bring back a man named Simon whose other name is Peter.
6 He is staying with a man, [also] named Simon, who makes leather. His house is near the ocean.”
7 When the angel who spoke to Cornelius had gone, Cornelius summoned two of his household servants and a soldier who served him, one who also worshipped God.
8 He explained to them everything [that the angel had said. Then] he told them to go to Joppa [to ask Peter to come to Caesarea].
9 About noon the next day those [three men] were traveling [along the road] and were coming near [Joppa. As they were approaching Joppa], Peter went up on the [flat] housetop to pray.
10 He became hungry and wanted something to eat. While someone was preparing the food, [Peter] saw [this] vision:
11 (He saw heaven open/He saw an opening in the sky) and something like a large sheet was being lowered [to the ground]. [It was tied at] its four corners [with ropes].
12 Inside the sheet were all kinds of creatures. [These included animals and birds that the Mosaic laws forbade Jews to eat]. Some had four feet, others scurried across the ground, and others were wild birds.
13 Then [he heard] God [SYN] say to him, “Peter, stand up, kill [and cook some of these] and eat [their meat]!”
14 But Peter replied, “Lord, surely you [(sg)] do not [really want me to do that]! I have never eaten any [meat] that [our Jewish law says] is unacceptable to God or [something that we(exc)] must not eat!”
15 [Then Peter heard] [MTY] God talk to him a second time. He said, “[I am] God, [so] if I have made something acceptable [to eat], do not say that it is not acceptable [to eat]!”
16 [This happened] three [times, so Peter knew that he had to think carefully about what it might mean]. Immediately [after God had said that the third time], ([the] sheet [with the animals and birds] was the pulled back into heaven/[someone] pulled the sheet [with the animals and birds] up into the sky again).
17 While Peter was trying to understand what that vision meant, the men who had been sent by Cornelius {whom Cornelius had sent} [arrived in Joppa. They asked people how to get to] Simon’s house. [So they found his house] and were standing outside the gate.
18 They called and were asking if a man named Simon, whose other name was Peter, was staying there.
19 While Peter was still trying to understand [what] the vision [meant], [God’s] Spirit said to him, “Three men [are here who] want to see you.
20 So get up and go downstairs and go with them! Do not think that you [(sg)] should not go with them [because of their being non-Jews], because I have sent them [here]!”
21 So Peter went down to the men and said to them, “[Greetings!] I am [the man] you are looking for. Why have you come?”
22 One of them replied, “Cornelius, who is a [Roman] army officer, [sent us here]. He is a righteous man who worships God, and all of the Jewish people [HYP] [who know about him] say that he is a very good man. An angel (who was sent from God/whom God sent) said to him, ‘Tell some men to [go to Joppa to see Simon Peter and] bring him here, so that you [(sg)] can hear what he has to say.’”
23 So Peter [said that he would go with them, and then he] invited them into [the house] and told them that they could stay [there that night]. Acts 10:23b-26 The next day Peter got ready and went with the men. Several of the believers from Joppa went with him.
24 The day after that, they arrived in Caesarea. Cornelius was waiting for them. He had also invited his relatives and close friends [to come to his house, so they were there, too].
25 When Peter entered the house, Cornelius met him and bowed low in front of him to worship him.
26 But Peter [grasped Cornelius by the hand and] lifted him to his feet. He said, “Stand up! [Do not revere/worship me] I myself am only human, [like you]!”
27 While he was talking to Cornelius, Peter [and the others] entered [a large room inside the house]. Peter saw that many people had gathered together [there].
28 Then Peter said to them, “You all know that any [of us] Jews think we are disobeying [our Jewish] laws if we [(exc)] associate with a non-Jewish person or [if we even] visit him. However, God has shown me [in a vision] that I should not say about anyone that God will not accept him.
29 So when you sent [some men] to ask me to come [here], I came [right away. I] did not say that I could not go [with non-Jewish people. So, please tell me], why have you asked me to come [here]?”
30 Cornelius replied, “About this time four days ago I was praying [to God] in my house, [as I regularly do] at three o’clock in the afternoon. Suddenly a man whose clothes [shone] brightly stood in front of me,
31 and said, ‘Cornelius, when you [(sg)] have prayed, you have been heard by God {God has heard [when] you [(sg)] have prayed [to him]}. He has also noticed that you have [often] given money to [help] poor people, [and he is pleased with that].
32 So now, send [messengers to go] to Joppa, [in order] to ask Simon whose other name is Peter to come [here]. He is staying near the ocean in a house that belongs to [another] man named Simon, who makes leather. [When Simon Peter comes, he will tell you a message from God].’
33 So I immediately sent [some men who asked] you [(sg) to come here], and I [certainly] thank you for coming. Now we [(exc)] all are gathered [here, knowing that] God is with us, in order to hear all the things that the Lord [God] has commanded you [to say. So please speak to us].”
34 So Peter began to speak [MTY] to them. He said, “[Now] I understand that it is true that God does not favor only certain groups [of people].
35 Instead, from every group of people he accepts [everyone who] honors him and who does what pleases him.
36 [You know] the message that God sent to [us] Israelis. [He] proclaimed [to us the good news that he] would cause [people] to have peace [with him] because of what Jesus Christ [has done]. This [Jesus is Lord not only over us Israelis. He] is [also the] Lord [who rules] over all [people].
37 You know what [he] did throughout the land of Judea, beginning in Galilee. He began [to do those things] after John had been proclaiming [to people that they should turn away from their sinful behavior before] he baptized them.
38 You know that God gave [MTY] his Holy Spirit to Jesus, [the Man] from Nazareth [town], and gave him the power [to do miracles. You also know] how Jesus went to many places, always doing good deeds and healing [people. Specifically], he was continually healing all the people whom the devil was causing to suffer. [Jesus was able to do those things] because God was always helping him.”
39 “We [apostles] tell people about all the things that [we saw Jesus] do in Jerusalem and in the [rest of] Israel. [The leaders in Jerusalem] had him killed by being nailed to a cross.
40 However, God caused him to become alive again on the third day [after he had died]. God [also] enabled [some of us(exc)] to see him [so that we would know that he was alive again].
41 God [did] not [let] all the [Jewish] people see him. Instead, he had chosen us [apostles] beforehand to see [Jesus after he became alive again], and to tell others [about him]. We [apostles are the people] who ate meals with him (after he had become alive [again]/after he had risen from the dead).
42 God commanded us to preach to the people and tell them that Jesus is the one whom he has appointed to judge [everyone some day. He will judge all] those who will [still] be living and all those who will have died [by that time].
43 All of the prophets [who wrote about the Messiah long ago] told [people] about him. [They wrote] that if people believe in the Messiah [MTY], God would forgive [them for] their sins, because of what [the Messiah would do] for them.”
44 While Peter was still speaking those words, suddenly the Holy Spirit (came down on/began to control) all [those non-Jewish people] who were listening to the message.
45 The Jewish believers who had come with Peter [from Joppa] were amazed that [God] had generously given the Holy Spirit to the non-Jewish people, too.
46 [The Jewish believers knew that God had done that] because they were hearing those people speaking languages [MTY] [that they had not learned] and telling how great God is.
47 Then Peter said [to the other Jewish believers who were there], “[God] has given them the Holy Spirit just like [he gave him] to us [Jewish believers], so (surely all of you would agree that [we(exc)] should baptize these people!/would any of you forbid that these people should be baptized?) [RHQ]”
48 Then Peter told those [non-Jewish] people that they should be baptized [to show that they had believed] [MTY] in the [Lord] Jesus Christ. [So they baptized all of them. After they were baptized], they requested that Peter stay [with them] several days. [So Peter and the other Jewish believers did that].
