11:1 Now the apostles and the brothers who were throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles too had accepted 1 the word of God. 2 11:2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, 3 the circumcised believers 4 took issue with 5 him, 11:3 saying, “You went to 6 uncircumcised men and shared a meal with 7 them.” 11:4 But Peter began and explained it to them point by point, 8 saying, 11:5 “I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision, 9 an object something like a large sheet descending, 10 being let down from heaven 11 by its four corners, and it came to me. 11:6 As I stared 12 I looked into it and saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild animals, reptiles, 13 and wild birds. 14 11:7 I also heard a voice saying to me, ‘Get up, Peter; slaughter 15 and eat!’ 11:8 But I said, ‘Certainly not, Lord, for nothing defiled or ritually unclean 16 has ever entered my mouth!’ 11:9 But the voice replied a second time from heaven, ‘What God has made clean, you must not consider 17 ritually unclean!’ 11:10 This happened three times, and then everything was pulled up to heaven again. 11:11 At that very moment, 18 three men sent to me from Caesarea 19 approached 20 the house where we were staying. 21 11:12 The Spirit told me to accompany them without hesitation. These six brothers 22 also went with me, and we entered the man’s house. 11:13 He informed us how he had seen an angel standing in his house and saying, ‘Send to Joppa and summon Simon, who is called Peter, 11:14 who will speak a message 23 to you by which you and your entire household will be saved.’ 11:15 Then as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on 24 them just as he did 25 on us at the beginning. 26 11:16 And I remembered the word of the Lord, 27 as he used to say, 28 ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 29 11:17 Therefore if God 30 gave them the same gift 31 as he also gave us after believing 32 in the Lord Jesus Christ, 33 who was I to hinder 34 God?” 11:18 When they heard this, 35 they ceased their objections 36 and praised 37 God, saying, “So then, God has granted the repentance 38 that leads to life even to the Gentiles.” 39
11:19 Now those who had been scattered because of the persecution that took place over Stephen 40 went as far as 41 Phoenicia, 42 Cyprus, 43 and Antioch, 44 speaking the message 45 to no one but Jews. 11:20 But there were some men from Cyprus 46 and Cyrene 47 among them who came 48 to Antioch 49 and began to speak to the Greeks 50 too, proclaiming the good news of the Lord Jesus. 11:21 The 51 hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed 52 turned 53 to the Lord. 11:22 A report 54 about them came to the attention 55 of the church in Jerusalem, 56 and they sent Barnabas 57 to Antioch. 58 11:23 When 59 he came and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced and encouraged them all to remain true 60 to the Lord with devoted hearts, 61 11:24 because he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith, and a significant number of people 62 were brought to the Lord. 11:25 Then Barnabas departed for Tarsus to look for Saul, 11:26 and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. 63 So 64 for a whole year Barnabas and Saul 65 met with the church and taught a significant number of people. 66 Now it was in Antioch 67 that the disciples were first called Christians. 68
11:27 At that time 69 some 70 prophets 71 came down 72 from Jerusalem 73 to Antioch. 74 11:28 One of them, named Agabus, got up 75 and predicted 76 by the Spirit that a severe 77 famine 78 was about to come over the whole inhabited world. 79 (This 80 took place during the reign of Claudius.) 81