Luke and Paul on Food Rendered Common
by Contact with Gentiles
Acts 10:10-28; Galatians 2:11-15; Romans 14:1-4
Luke and Paul on food rendered common by contact with Gentiles DIG: Is there a biblical mitzvah forbidding Jews from mingling with and even eating with Gentiles? What do orthodox Jews believe about food prepared by a Gentile or without Jewish supervision today?
REFLECT: Who is “ritually unclean” in your neighborhood? Have you ever had a “Peter’s sheet” moment with another race? Do you avoid eating certain foods for “religious” reasons? How willing are you to oppose the stereotypes of your culture to reach others for Messiah?
There is no biblical mitzvah forbidding Jews from mingling with or eating with Gentiles.
One of the rigors of First Century Temple Judaism was a prohibition from eating in the homes of Gentiles, or from eating food that was prepared by them. Though we have little information on the exact nature of the prohibition, it is largely inferred from Acts 10:28, Galatians 2:12 and Romans 14:2. It seems to also be reflected in the Mishnah where we read, “The dwelling places of Gentiles are unclean” (m.Oholot 18:7).
The Torah of Moshe contains no such mitzvah. There is no biblical mitzvah forbidding Jews from mingling with or even eating with Gentiles. There are prohibitions in regard to eating idol sacrifices (Exodus 34:15), but YHVH never made a mitzvah stating that one may not enter a Gentile home or eat with a Gentile. Those laws and traditions came from the Oral Law (see the commentary on The Life of Christ, to see link click Ei – Oral Law) as rabbis tried to build a fence around the Torah to protect Jews from the possibility of ritual contamination. One of the matters of concern to the Sages in the Mishnah was the very real possibility that Gentile homes contained corpses buried beneath them or within them. Entering such a structure would, indeed, be ritually unclean according to the Torah (Leviticus 118 and 43). Foods stored in a home where a dead body was kept would also be contaminated (Numbers 19:14-15). In order to preclude such possibilities, the Sages of the First Century instituted a prohibition against eating with Gentiles. Even though there was a Court of the Gentiles in the Temple courtyard, according to the mainstream Jewish interpretation (in First Century Isra’el) of the mitzvot of clean and unclean, Gentiles were classified as unclean and to be avoided in their dwelling places and socially. Even worse was the likelihood that Gentile food had been offered, in part, to an idol. For all the above reasons, entering Gentile homes was considered contaminating, and eating their food was not a possibility.
But things changed after Peter’s vision of something like a great sheet coming down from the heavens with all sorts of ritually unclean animals on it (see the commentary on Acts Bf – Peter’s Vision). A voice came to him saying: Get up, Peter. Kill and eat. (10:13). The rabbis taught that when God speaks in heaven, “the daughter of His voice” the bat-kol, or an echo, is heard on earth. After the last of the prophets, it was considered that God provided the bat-kol to continue to give guidance to the people (Tractate Yoma 9b). How does ADONAI speak to us today? He can speak to us through our circumstances, through mature believers, certainly through His Word. Yet, Ha’Shem can also speak through a still small voice (First Kings 19:11-13). The prohibition against eating unclean animals constitutes a central Jewish belief, and devout Jews frequently chose martyrdom rather than eating forbidden food. Many in Isra’el were fully resolved and confirmed themselves not to eat any unclean thing. So, they chose rather to die, that they might not be defiled with meats, and that they might not profane the holy Covenant, so then they died (First Maccabees 1:62-63; also see Ezekiel 4:13-14; Dani’el 1:8). As any pious Jew would have been, Peter was horrified. He was hungry, but not that hungry to eat non-kosher food.
Peter protested immediately: Certainly not, for never have I eaten anything unholy or unclean (Acts 10:14). He had zealously kept the dietary commandments all his life, believing that YHWH required eating kosher. His strict adherence reflected his devotion to pleasing ADONAI. Yet, he had put God in a box. How could Peter throw that lifelong habit away? What was he to think? It is important to understand that Yeshua was not abolishing the dietary commandments in the Torah. That would not be consistent with His own words: I tell you that until heaven and earth pass away, not so much as a yud or a stroke will pass from the Torah – not until everything that must happen has happened (Matthew 5:18; Luke 16:17 CJB). However, in the Dispensation of Grace, we have freedom in Messiah to eat kosher or not. Today there are many Messianic Jews and Gentiles who choose to eat kosher. There is nothing right or wrong about doing so. It is merely a matter of personal choice.
Peter resisted the message so strongly that the bat-kol came to him, a second time saying: What God has made clean (kosher), you, you Peter, must not consider unholy. God had made all animals kosher fulfillment of the statement of Yeshua found in Mark 7:18-19. And because the context is eating food it shows that the vision included both food as well as its application of Gentiles later in the passage. ADONAI has made Gentiles clean, but also in the immediate context, He has made unkosher animals kosher.
Now in Matthew 15:15-20, Messiah predicted that He was going to make all meats clean. Yet in the Matthew account this was particularly addressed to Peter at that time, and now Peter must learn the lesson once again. All meats are now clean. In other words: What God has made clean (kosher), you, you Peter, must not consider unholy. The dietary regulations were so ingrained into his life that he still could not comprehend what was happening. Those unclean animals would cause contamination. This happened three times for emphasis, and suddenly the sheet was immediately taken up to heaven (Acts 10:15-16). At this point, Peter believed that God was speaking to him only about food. But that was only the first part of an analogy that the Lord would apply to Gentiles shortly. Why was ADONAI making those changes at that time? Because the Gentiles were coming into the Church (Ephesians 2:14), and Peter had the keys to the Kingdom (see The Life of Christ Fx – On This Rock I Will Build My Church).
As Peter was coming out of his vision, he didn’t have it all figured out. He was puzzled about what he had seen might mean. Just then, the men sent by Cornelius found the tanner’s house and appeared before the gate. The arrival of the men at this point is clearly providential. They called out and began to ask whether Simon, also called Peter, was staying in this place as a guest (Acts 10:17-18). Peter did not hear them because he was still on the roof of the house puzzling about his vision, his puzzling, however, was short-lived.
But while Peter was mulling over the vision, the Spirit of God spoke directly to him and said: Look here, three men are looking for you. So get up at once, go downstairs, and go with those men without hesitating, because I Myself have sent them (Acts 10:19-20). At this point, God had not told Peter that his visitors were Gentiles! God used an angel, the bat-kol, the Ruach Ha’Kodesh, and two visions, one to Cornelius and one to Peter so that nothing was left to chance. Here was the situation that the vision was meant to prepare Peter.
As had Cornelius, Peter obeyed, although he probably still didn’t fully understand what was happening. Nevertheless, he went down to the men. He was probably shocked when he opened the door and saw three Gentiles standing there! Nevertheless, he said: Here, I’m the one you’re looking for. What is the reason for your coming? Because of what the Ruach Ha’Kodesh had told him, he was quite willing to listen to them. Nevertheless, their reply must have astonished Peter, “Cornelius, a centurion, a righteous and God-fearing man well-spoken of by all the Jewish people, was directed by a holy angel to summon you to his house and to hear a message from you” (Acts 10:21-22). This was new information for the reader, Luke having saved it up for this point to add to the literary and dramatic effect of the story. Peter began to see the ramifications of his vision. He was to witness to this centurion whom Ha’Shem had directed to him.
Dear Heavenly Father, Praise You for the greatness of Your love that willingly opened the door of heaven not only Jews, but to all who love and profess You as their Savior and Lord. For you are all children of God through trusting in Messiah Yeshua. For all of you who were immersed in Messiah have clothed yourselves with Messiah. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female – for you are all one in Messiah Yeshua (Galatians 3:26-28).
How great it is that neither Jews nor Gentiles come in as second class citizens of Your Kingdom; but rather You have created a new Body made up of both Jews and Gentiles. For through Him we both have access to the Father by the same Ruach. So then you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but you are fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household. You have been built on the foundation made up of the emissaries and prophets, with Messiah Yeshua Himself being the cornerstone. In Him the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple for the Lord. In Him, you also are being built together into God’s dwelling place in the Ruach (Ephesians 2:18-22). Praise Your infinite and enduring love . We look forward to praising Your Great Name throughout eternity! In the holy name of Yeshua and by the power of His resurrection. Amen
Notice how perfectly YHVH coordinated the entire episode. For while Peter was praying and seeing his vision, the men from Cornelius were approaching Joppa (Acts 10:9-16); while Peter was puzzled about what he had seen might mean, they arrived at the house (Acts 10:17-18); while Peter was mulling over the meaning of the vision, the Ruach told him that the men were looking for him and he must not hesitate to go with them (Acts 10:19-20); and when Peter went down and introduced himself to them, they explained to him the purpose of their visit (Acts 10:21-22).185
Because it was too late for them to return to Caesarea that day, Peter invited them to spend the night as his guests (Acts 10:23a). Under normal circumstances, a truly scrupulous Jew would never invite a Gentile to stay with him. Jubilees 22:16 reads, “Separate yourself from the [Gentile] nations, and do not eat with them. And do nothing according to their works. Do not associate with them, for their works are unclean. And all their ways are a pollution and an abomination and uncleanness. So, the fact that Peter invited them to spend the night as his guests hints that he was beginning to understand the message of the vision. By entertaining those Gentile guests, Peter went against the customs and traditions of Isra’el, but not against the Word of God. Possibly, at that very moment, the Ruach Ha’Kodesh flooded Peter’s heart with an understanding that although the TaNaKh said that His people were not to become like their pagan neighbors, it also said that YHVH wanted His people to be a light to their neighbors who didn’t know Him.186 Through the descendants of Abraham, all the families of the earth [would] be blessed (Genesis 12:3b). In the final analysis, Peter understood that God had shown him not to call any person common or unclean (Acts 10:28).
Paul reported that Simon Peter was still not completely settled on the issue of whether or ot it was permissible to eat with Gentiles (see the commentary on Galatians Bb – The Antioch Incident: How Can You Force Jews to Live Like Gentiles). The Jewish customs referred to by Paul were rabbinic traditions forbidding Jews to eat with Gentiles. In the home-setting of the early congregations where the breaking of bread together was a regular function of Shabbat, such scruples meant complete separation between Jewish and Gentile believers. Peter “lived like a Gentile” in as much as he feely fellowshipped with, and ate with, Gentiles after his vision of the sheet. But under the influence of certain men from James, Peter apparently had second thoughts.
It is a similar question of table-fellowship between Jewish and Gentile believers that lies behind the Torah questions of Romans 14 (see the commentary on Romans Dg – Torah Questions). The man of weak faith who eats only vegetables is most likely the Jew who will not eat meat or wine (though it is technically kosher) from a Gentile table. And the man of strong faith who eats everything is the Jew who has accepted the ruling that kosher foods are not made common (and therefore forbidden) simply because they have been prepared by Gentiles or because they were in the possession of Gentiles. To this day, the halachah of orthodox Judaism holds that food prepared by a Gentile without Jewish supervision is not kosher. Wine made without Jewish supervision is likewise considered forbidden on the basis that some of it might have been poured out as a libation to an idol. But that’s next (see Bs – Luke and Paul on Food Rendered Ritually Unclean by Idols).187
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