Preface: In the first half of this chapter, Peter makes a full report as to his meeting with gentiles in Caesarea. In the second half, the church at Antioch seems to be booming, and Barnabas goes to check it out.

Bible Summary: Some in Jerusalem criticised Peter. He said, "The Spirit told me to go." Many in Antioch believed. Barnabas and Saul taught there.

The “Key” & Main Points of Chapter 11 (a chart); from Slide Player; accessed June 30, 2022.

This should be the most extensive examination of Acts 11 available, where you will be able to examine in depth every word of the original text.

Brief Overview: (taken from Light of the Word; accessed April 22, 2022).

Obviously, a portion of Acts 11 is missing here.

Time and Place as per Modern Literal Version 2020:

40-41 AD. Antioch, Phoenicia, Cyprus, etc. The Good-news extended to all the Gentiles. Jan., 41 AD Claudius becomes Emperor.

42 AD. Jerusalem to Antioch. Herod Agrippa receives kingdom of Judea & Samaria.

43-44 AD. Claudius goes to Britain.

(Great famine prophesied for) 47 A.D.

Outline of Chapter 11:

Preface

Introduction

         vv.     1–18         Peter Reports on the New Gentile Church in Caesarea

         vv.    19–30         Saul and Barnabas Become Involved in a Hellenist Church in Antioch

Chapter Summary

Addendum

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines:

         Preface               Preface

         Preface               Brief Overview

         Preface               The “Key” & Main Points of Chapter 11 (a chart)

         Preface               Quotations

         Introduction         Titles and/or Brief Descriptions of Acts 11 (by Various Commentators)

         Introduction         Brief, but insightful observations of Acts 11 (various commentators)

         Introduction         Fundamental Questions About Acts 11

         Introduction 

         Introduction         The Prequel to Acts 11

         Introduction         The Principals of Acts 11

         Introduction         The Places of Acts 11

         Introduction         By the Numbers

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Acts 11

         Introduction         Outlines and Summaries of Acts 11 (Various Commentators)

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Acts 11 from the Summarized Bible

         Introduction 

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         Introduction         The Big Picture (Acts 8–12)

         Introduction         Paragraph Divisions of Modern Translation for Acts 11

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         Introduction         Changes—additions and subtractions

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         v.      14              Operation Z (a chart)

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         v.      25              Tarsus, Antioch, Damascus and Jerusalem (a map)

         v.      26              Saul’s (Paul’s) Seminary Training

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         Summary            A Set of Summary Doctrines and Commentary

         Summary            Why Acts 11 is in the Word of God

         Summary            What We Learn from Acts 11

         Summary            Jesus Christ in Acts 11

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         Summary 

         Addendum          Footnote for Acts 11:1 (The Christian Community Bible)

         Addendum          Kretzmann’s Commentary on Acts 11:1–3

         Addendum          Kretzmann’s Commentary on Acts 11:4–15

         Addendum          Kretzmann’s Commentary on Acts 11:16–18

         Addendum          Kretzmann’s Commentary on Acts 11:19–21

         Addendum          Footnote for Acts 11:19 (The Christian Community Bible)

         Addendum          Kretzmann’s Commentary on Acts 11:22–26

         Addendum          Why use the term ‘Christian?’ (from the 2001 Bible)

         Addendum          Kretzmann’s Commentary on Acts 11:27–30

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         Addendum          A Complete Translation of Acts 11

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         Addendum          Doctrinal Teachers Who Have Taught Acts 11

         Addendum          Word Cloud from the Kukis Paraphrase of Acts 11

         Addendum          Word Cloud from Exegesis of Acts 11

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An Introduction to Acts 11

I ntroduction: Prior to Acts 11, Peter has been in Lydda, Joppa and then Caesarea. Somehow, word about Peter’s action in Caesarea have come back to Jerusalem and the people there appear to be aware of what Peter has done (see Acts 9 and Acts 10). They cannot get past the idea that Peter went into the home of a gentile and then had a meal with gentiles.

There were some limitations of contact between Jews and gentiles, and this related specifically to heathenism. God did not want His people to be taken in by the gods of the gentiles. However, the Jews were to be accepting of gentiles who believed in their God (for instance, Ruth) and they were to evangelize the gentiles (see the book of Jonah).

Entering into the house of a gentile or eating with gentiles was not specifically forbidden by the Law of Moses.

You may be thinking to yourself, Law of Moses? Isn’t this the Church Age? The book of Acts describe the natural evolution of the people of God to go from the Jewish Age to the Church Age. We take this for granted, as we were all raised in the Church Age. We have known nothing different. The first believers in Jesus were Jews, and they had not yet come out of the Age of Israel. They do not know that Jerusalem and the Temple will be destroyed in a.d. 70. They simply believe that the promised Messiah of the Old Testament is Jesus. There is not yet the concept that things have dramatically changed.

Furthermore, the original disciples were not expected to understand the times and seasons (that is, the succession of events and the epochs). Paul would understand this early on and his epistles would reflect that; but right now, we are at about a.d. 40, and God change of program is not at all clear to the existing Jewish believers.

Now, remember in past chapters where we read verses like, the disciples were all gathered and they were of one accord? That is no longer the case. Peter has just returned from a significant missionary journey and some of the circumcised believers are very upset with him.

Peter’s solution to this sudden opposition is to provide them with information. This seems like the logical approach. He does not say, “Listen, you are disciples but I am one of the Apostles, so what I say goes.” Peter is learning about what has happened along with everyone else. So, when met with a flurry of objections, Peter says, “Okay, listen, this is the series of events which led me to Caesarea.” We read about these events in Acts 11:4–18. It is interesting the note on which we leave this controversy. We do not read, “And all the disciples understood Peter’s circumstances and they rejoiced that gentiles were now a part of the Way.” Instead we read, When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, "Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life." (Acts 11:18; ESV). There is some celebration which takes place; but do not think that the legalistic Jews have seen the light and they are ready to march forward, hand-in-hand with gentiles. The Church Age began in Jerusalem, but the Jerusalem church is going to entertain legalism and they will be unable to let go of many of their Jewish beliefs.

What we read is not going to be a discussion or a debate. There is clearly some dissent within the church, and very much aimed at Peter, and Peter is going to straighten it all out by explaining the events and circumstances which took place over the past few weeks. The response recorded will be positive. The people who speak after Peter speaks will approve of what took place, There will be no debate and no other commentary. Peter simply lays out the truth. If there is any remaining opposition to Peter—and there probably is—we don’t know about it from this narrative. The response, given in a single verse, is very positive.

At v. 19, there is a great change in the narrative. A church in Antioch is established. This is a gentile church, and the Holy Spirit is, no doubt, making a contrast for us, between the legalistic church in Jerusalem and the new church established up in Antioch, Syria. This also suggests that gentile churches are beginning to pop up all over the Roman empire. First in Caesarea and now in Antioch.

What happened was, the persecution of believers in Jerusalem forced many believers to leave this area and travel. They could have traveled in several directions. Because this appeared at first to be a Jewish movement, many of the Jews who left Judæa did not interact with gentiles. Mostly they evangelized fellow Jews. However, there were a number of believers in Cyprus and Cyrene who, for whatever reason, traveled to Antioch and began speaking to the Hellenists (which are those who have adopted the Greek language and some aspects of Greek culture—these people could be Jew or gentile). Suddenly, Antioch found itself with a large church growing there, but without much guidance beyond the gospel.

Barnabas was soon dispatched from Jerusalem to check the scene out. After spending some time there teaching, Barnabas believed that it was time to call on Saul and bring him into the action. Both Saul and Barnabas taught the burgeoning church in Antioch for a year.

The believers in Antioch also became aware of the persecution taking place in Judæa and Jerusalem specifically, and they put together an offering to take down to Jerusalem. Saul and Barnabas were tasked with this responsibility.

Midway through this chapter, we begin to focus on Saul (later known as Paul). Peter’s name is found multiple times in nearly every chapter of the book of Acts until Acts 12 (over 50x). After that point, we will find Peter’s name only one more time (Acts 15:7). From Acts 13 and forward, Paul’s name will be found over 130 times.

Saul (Paul), along with the other Apostles, would have learned Bible doctrine in a number of ways. To the point in time, there were no teachers of Church Age doctrine. So all of them would have learned from the Old Testament Scriptures, with a heavy concentration upon Christology and Soteriology. Through experiences mixed with visions and possibly even teaching angels; and through the gifts of prophecy and knowledge, Peter and Paul (Saul) will grow spiritually (along with the other Apostles).

Because we have the epistles of Paul and because we know the order in which they were written, we can see how Paul’s understanding of Bible doctrine progressed. There is nothing incorrect or improper written in any of his writings, but it ought to be clear that Romans and Ephesians and the pastoral epistles are far more advanced than Galatians and the letters to the Thessalonians.

This tells us that, even though Paul was possibly prepared over a period of six years, that preparation and learning continued throughout his entire life. There were very few periods of time in Paul’s life when he was not advancing in the spiritual life.

In these two sections of Acts 11, the time frames covered are much different. Most of vv. 1–18 take place within an hour’s time. When Peter returns to Jerusalem from Caesarea, he is criticized for intermingling with gentiles. He tells the people at some sort of gathering exactly what took place (vv. 4–18). That whole thing transpires in less than an hour (Peter is describing what happened to him over a period of a few days, but his actual description to the brothers at Jerusalem takes less than an hour). All Peter is doing is describing the events of the previous chapter and a half to people who were not there.

Once we get to v. 19, Luke, the author of Acts, describes the events of four or five years. This is not a situation where a series of events are described, one taking place right after the other. This is more like Luke had a conversation with Barnabas, perhaps five years after the fact, and he asked, “What took place in Antioch when that church started?” Then Barnabas answered, “I was there for perhaps a couple of years; but I am familiar with its history before and after I was there. This is what happened over a period of about our or five years.” And in twelve verses, Barnabas sums up these four (or five) years.

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Peter Reports on the New Gentile Church in Caesarea

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:                       I will use the Westcott-Hort Greek text as the basis for my English translation. I use that test primarily because e-sword has a nice module by Rob Wolfram which has the interlinear English text, Strong’s #’s, and the Greek morphology. The e-sword tab is IWH+P. I do not use their English text for my translation. Also, throughout, I take in consideration alternate readings.

As a young Christian, I was quite interested in the alternative readings. After many decades of study, I have found that, as with the Hebrew text, disputed readings rarely have any affect on the interpretation of a text (apart from perhaps a half-dozen fairly well-known alternate readings, like the end of the book of Mark).

I will compare the Greek text to English translations of the Latin and Syriac (= Aramaic) texts, using the Douay-Rheims translation and George Lamsa’s translation from the Syriac. I often update these texts with non-substantive changes (e.g., you for thou, etc.).

In general, the Latin text is an outstanding translation from the Hebrew text into Latin and very trustworthy (I say this as a non-Catholic). Unfortunately, I do not read Latin—apart from some very obvious words—so I am dependent upon the English translation of the Latin (principally, the Douay-Rheims translation).

The Septuagint and the Dead Sea Scrolls are irrelevant, as they preceded the writing of the New Testament by over 200 years.

Underlined words indicate differences in the text.

Ancient texts:

Westcott-Hort Text (Greek)    Now heard the Apostles and the brothers, the [ones] being according to the Judæa, that even the gentiles received the word of the God.

Complete Apostles’ Bible      Now the apostles and the brothers who were in Judea heard that even the Gentiles had also received the word of God.

Douay-Rheims 1899 (Amer.) And the apostles and brethren, who were in Judea, heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God.

Holy Aramaic Scriptures        And The Shlikhe {The Sent Ones} and The Brothers who were in Yehud {Judea}, heard that the Gentiles also received The Miltha d'Alaha {The Word of God}.

James Murdock’s Syriac NT And it was reported to the legates and the brethren in Judaea, that the Gentiles also had received the word of God.

Original Aramaic NT              And it was heard by the Apostles and by the brethren who were in Judea that Gentiles had also received the word of God.

Significant differences: 

English Translations:          I have included translations which I disagree with and footnotes that I do not necessarily agree with. If I believe that the author is too far from the truth, I may even address that at the footnote. However, nearly all of the correct commentary will be found following the Greek text box and the translation of each phrase.

Limited Vocabulary Translations:

Bible in Basic English             Now the Apostles and the brothers who were in Judaea had news that the word of God had been given to the Gentiles.

Bible in Worldwide English     The apostles and other Christian brothers were in Judea. They heard that some people who were not Jews had also believed Gods message.

Easy English                          Peter returns to Jerusalem

The apostles and the other believers in Judea heard that Gentiles had also believed the message from God.

Easy-to-Read Version–2008  The apostles and the believers in Judea heard that non-Jewish people had accepted God's teaching too.

God’s Word™                         Peter Reports That Non-Jewish People Can Belong to the Church

The apostles and the believers throughout Judea heard that people who were not Jewish had accepted God’s word.

Good News Bible (TEV)         The apostles and the other believers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God.

J. B. Phillips                           The Church’s disquiet at Peter’s action

Now the apostles and the brothers who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received God’s message.

The Message                         God Has Broken Through

The news traveled fast and in no time the leaders and friends back in Jerusalem heard about it—heard that the non-Jewish “outsiders” were now “in.”

NIRV                                      Peter Explains His Actions

The apostles and the believers all through Judea heard that Gentiles had also received God’s word.

New Life Version                    Peter Tells Why He Preached to the People Who Are Not Jews

The missionaries and followers who were in the country of Judea heard that the people who were not Jews also had received the Word of God.

Thought-for-thought translations; dynamic translations; paraphrases:

Casual English Bible              ACTS 11

PETER’S COLLEAGUES BECOME HIS CRITICS

PETER DEFENDS BAPTIZING NON-JEWS

Word spread that non-Jews had accepted the message of God and joined the group of believers. The apostles [1] heard about it. So did other believers who were scattered all over the territory of Judea. [2]

¹11:1It means “messengers.” It was a title that originally referred to the 12 disciples of Jesus. Later it became the title for top leaders in the early Christian movement—leaders who personally had seen the resurrected Jesus.

²11:1Judea was a stretch of territory in the central part of what is now Israel and the West Bank. Jerusalem was the main city in this region. Caesarea was there too, along the northern border, near Jesus’s homeland region of Galilee.

Contemporary English V.       The apostles and the followers in Judea heard that Gentiles had accepted God's message.

The Living Bible                     Soon the news reached the apostles and other brothers in Judea that Gentiles also were being converted!

New Berkeley Version           .

The Passion Translation        The news traveled fast and soon reached the apostles and the believers living in Judea that non-Jewish people were also receiving God’s message of new life.

Plain English Version             Peter told the Jewish Christians what God taught him

Jesus’s other special workers, and the other Christians in Judea, they heard about Peter’s visit to Caesarea. They heard that some people in Caesarea, that were not Jews, believed God’s word.

UnfoldingWord Simplified T.  The apostles and other believers who lived in various towns in the province of Judea heard people say that some non-Jewish people had also believed the message of God about Jesus.

Williams’ New Testament      Now the apostles and the brothers all over Judea heard that the heathen too had accepted God's message.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          Soon thereafter, the Apostles and other brothers in Judea heard that gentiles were also accepting the word of God.

Beck’s American Translation .

Breakthrough Version            The missionaries and the brothers who were throughout Judea heard that the non-Jews also accepted God's message.

Common English Bible           Jerusalem church questions Peter

The apostles and the brothers and sisters throughout Judea heard that even the Gentiles had welcomed God’s word.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       And now the apostles and brethren in Judaea were told how the word of God had been given to the Gentiles.

NT for Everyone                     Controversy and vindication

The apostles, and the brothers and sisters with them in Judaea, heard that the Gentiles had received the word of God.

20^th Century New Testament The Apostles and the Brethren throughout Judea heard that even the Gentiles had welcomed God's Message.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Christian Standard Bible        Gentile Salvation Defended

The apostles and the brothers and sisters who were throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                Peter's Defence of Gentile Believers.

However, the apostles and brothers who were resident in Judea, learned that the heathen had received the message of God.

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           And the Apostles and the brethren that were throughout Jewry heard say that the Heathen had also received the word of God.

International Standard V        Peter Reports to the Church in Jerusalem

Now the apostles and the brothers who were in Judea heard that the gentiles had also accepted the word of God.

Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

Christian Community (1988)     Peter justifies his conduct

• News came to the apostles and the brothers and sisters in Judea that even foreigners had received the Word of God.

Footnote on Acts 11:1 is in the Addendum.

The Heritage Bible                 And the apostles and the brothers being in Judaea heard that the races had also received the word of God.

New American Bible (2011)   The Baptism of the Gentiles Explained.*

Now the apostles and the brothers who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles too had accepted the word of God.

* [11:1–18] The Jewish Christians of Jerusalem were scandalized to learn of Peter’s sojourn in the house of the Gentile Cornelius. Nonetheless, they had to accept the divine directions given to both Peter and Cornelius. They concluded that the setting aside of the legal barriers between Jew and Gentile was an exceptional ordinance of God to indicate that the apostolic kerygma was also to be directed to the Gentiles. Only in Acts 15 at the “Council” in Jerusalem does the evangelization of the Gentiles become the official position of the church leadership in Jerusalem.

New Catholic Bible                 Peter’s Explanation of Cornelius’ Baptism. The apostles and the brethren in Judea heard that the Gentiles too had accepted the word of God.

Revised English Bible–1989   News came to the apostles and the members of the church in Judaea that Gentiles too had accepted the word of God; and when Peter came up to Jerusalem those who were of Jewish birth took issue with him. V. 2 is included for context.

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Hebraic Roots Bible               And the apostles and the brothers who were throughout Judea heard that the gentiles also received the Word of YAHWEH.

Holy New Covenant Trans.    The delegates and the brothers in Judea heard that non-Jewish people had also accepted God’s message.

The Scriptures 2009              And the emissaries and brothers who were in Yehuah heard that the nations also received the word of Elohim.

Weird English, Olde English, Anachronistic English Translations:

Accurate New Testament       ...hear but The Delegates and The Brothers The [Men] Being in the judea for and The Nations receive the word [of] the god...

Alpha & Omega Bible            NOW THE APOSTLES AND THE BRETHREN WHO WERE THROUGHOUT JUDEA HEARD THAT THE GENTILES ALSO HAD RECEIVED THE WORD OF THEOS (The Alpha & Omega).

Awful Scroll Bible                   What is more, the sent-out ones and the brothers being along Judæa, hear that the nations also welcome the Word of God.

exeGeses companion Bible   THE VISION OF CORNELIUS: PETROS RELATES HIS VISION

And the apostles and brothers in Yah Hudah

hear that the goyim also receive the word of Elohim.

Orthodox Jewish Bible           And the Moshiach's Shlichim and the Achim b'Moshiach, the ones throughout Yehudah, heard that also the non-Jews received the dvar Hashem.

Rotherham’s Emphasized B           .        § 21. Peter’s defence to Them of the Circumcision.

Chapter 11.

Now the Apostles and the brethren who were throughout Judæa |heard| that ||the nations also|| had welcomed the word of God.

Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

The Amplified Bible                Peter Reports at Jerusalem

Now the apostles and the believers who were throughout Judea heard [with astonishment] that the Gentiles also had received and accepted the word of God [the message concerning salvation through Christ].

An Understandable Version   Now the apostles and the [other] brothers in Judea heard that the Gentiles had responded to the message of God.

The Expanded Bible              Peter Returns to Jerusalem

The apostles and the ·believers [^L brothers] in Judea heard that some Gentiles had accepted ·God’s teaching [^L the word of God] too.

Jonathan Mitchell NT             Now the sent-forth folks and the brothers (= fellow believers) who were down throughout Judea heard that the ethnic groups of the nations (the non-Jews; Gentiles) also welcomingly received and embraced the Logos of God (or: the Word which is God; the message from God; God's thought, idea and reason).

Translation for Translators                        Some Jewish believers criticized Peter.

Acts 11:1-3

The apostles and other believers who lived in various towns in Judea province heard people say that some non-Jewish people had believed the message from God about Jesus.

Bible Translations with a Lot of Footnotes:

Lexham Bible                         Peter’s Explanation to the Church in Jerusalem

Now the apostles and the brothers who were throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had accepted the word [Or “message”] of God.

NET Bible®                             Peter Defends His Actions to the Jerusalem Church

Now the apostles and the brothers who were throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles too had accepted¹ the word of God.²

^1tn See BDAG 221 s.v. δέχομαι 5 for this translation of ἐδέξαντο (edexanto) here.

^2tn Here the phrase “word of God” is another way to describe the gospel (note the preceding verb ἐδέξαντο, edexanto, “accepted”). The phrase could also be translated “the word [message] from God.”

New American Bible (2011)   .

The Spoken English NT         Peter Reports Back to the Apostles and Believers in Jerusalem
Then^a the apostles and the brothers and sisters throughout Judea^b heard that the Gentiles had accepted God’s message^c too.

^a.Lit. “And.”

^b.Prn. joo-dee-a.

^c.Or “the word of God.”

Wilbur Pickering’s New T.     Peter has to explain

Now the Apostles and the brothers throughout Judea¹ heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God.

(1) Talk about news spreading like wildfire; well this news was really ‘hot’!

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Analytical-Literal Translation  Now the apostles and the brothers [and sisters], the ones being throughout Judea, heard that the Gentiles also [had] received the word of God.

Benjamin Brodie’s trans.       Now, the apostles and the brethren [Jews] who resided throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also received the Word of God .

Context Group Version          Now the emissaries and the brothers that were in Judea heard that the ethnic groups also had received the word of God.

Green’s Literal Translation    And the apostles and the brothers who were throughout Judea heard that the nations also received the Word of God.

Modern English Version         Peter’s Report to the Church in Jerusalem

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

Modern Literal Version 2020  Now the apostles and the brethren who are in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also accepted the word of God.

New European Version          Peter explains his conversion of Cornelius to the Jewish brothers

Now the apostles and the brothers that were in Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God.

Niobi Study Bible                   Peter Defends God's Grace

And the apostles and the brethren who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the Word of God.

The gist of this passage: 

Translation: The Apostles and the brothers, the [ones] being throughout Judæa, heard...

It began to be noised about the Peter and some other disciples went to the home of some gentiles and gave them the Word of God (that is, the gospel of Jesus Christ). This is found in Acts 10 (HTML) (PDF) (WPD).

Translation: ...that even the gentiles received the Word of God.

These gentiles responded with great positive volition to the message of Peter. They apparently believed in the Revealed God and they also believed in Jesus.