Now there was a man in ^aCaesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of what was ^bcalled the Italian ¹cohort, 2 a devout man and ^aone who feared God with all his household, and ^bmade many charitable contributions to the Jewish people and prayed to God continually. 3 About ^athe ¹ninth hour of the day he clearly saw ^bin a vision ^can angel of God who had just come in and said to him, “Cornelius!” 4 And he ^alooked at him intently and became terrified, and said, “What is it, lord?” And he said to him, “Your prayers and charitable gifts ^bhave ascended ^cas a memorial offering before God. 5 Now dispatch some men to ^aJoppa and send for a man named Simon, who is also called Peter; 6 he is staying with a tanner named ^aSimon, whose house is by the sea.” 7 When the angel who *spoke to him left, he summoned two of his ¹servants and a devout soldier from his personal attendants, 8 and after he had explained everything to them, he sent them to ^aJoppa.

9 On the next day, as they were on their way and approaching the city, ^aPeter went up on ^bthe ¹housetop about ^2cthe sixth hour to pray. 10 But he became hungry and wanted to eat; but while they were making preparations, he ^afell into a trance; 11 and he *saw ^athe sky opened up, and an ¹object like a great sheet coming down, lowered by four corners to the ground, 12 and on it were all kinds of four-footed animals and ¹crawling creatures of the earth and birds of the sky. 13 A voice came to him, “Get up, Peter, ¹kill and eat!” 14 But Peter said, “By no means, ^aLord, for ^bI have never eaten anything ¹unholy and unclean.” 15 Again a voice came to him a second time, “^aWhat God has cleansed, no longer ¹consider unholy.” 16 This happened three times, and immediately the ¹object was taken up into the sky.

17 Now while Peter was greatly perplexed in ¹mind as to what ^athe vision which he had seen might ²mean, behold, ^bthe men who had been sent by Cornelius had asked directions to Simon’s house, and they appeared at the gate; 18 and calling out, they were asking whether Simon, who was also called Peter, was staying there. 19 While Peter was reflecting on ^athe vision, ^bthe Spirit said to him, “Behold, ¹three men are looking for you. 20 But get up, go downstairs and ^aaccompany them ¹without misgivings, for I have sent them Myself.” 21 Peter went down to the men and said, “Behold, I am the one you are looking for; what is the reason for which you have come?” 22 They said, “Cornelius, a centurion, a righteous and ^aGod-fearing man well spoken of by the entire nation of the Jews, ^bwas divinely directed by a ^choly angel to send for you to come to his house and hear ^1da message from you.” 23 So he invited them in and gave them lodging.Peter in Caesarea

Now on the next day he got ready and went away with them, and ^asome of ^bthe brothers from ^cJoppa accompanied him. 24 On the following day he entered ^aCaesarea. Now Cornelius was expecting them and had called together his relatives and close friends. 25 When Peter entered, Cornelius met him, and fell at his feet and ^1aworshiped him. 26 But Peter helped him up, saying, “^aStand up; I, too, am just a man.” 27 As he talked with him, he entered and *found ^amany people assembled. 28 And he said to them, “You yourselves know that it is ^aforbidden for a Jewish man to associate with or visit a ¹foreigner; and yet ^bGod has shown me that I am not to call any person ²unholy or unclean. 29 That is why I came without even raising any objection when I was sent for. So I ask, for what reason did you send for me?”

30 Cornelius said, “^aFour days ago to this hour, I was praying in my house during ^bthe ¹ninth hour; and behold, ^ca man stood before me in shining clothing, 31 and he *said, ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your charitable gifts have been remembered before God. 32 Therefore send some men to ^aJoppa and invite Simon, who is also called Peter, to come to you; he is staying at the house of Simon the tanner, by the sea.’ 33 So I sent men to you immediately, and you have ¹been kind enough to come. Now then, we are all here present before God to hear everything that you have been commanded by the Lord.”

34 ^aOpening his mouth, Peter said:“I most certainly understand now that ^bGod is not one to show partiality, 35 but ^ain every nation the one who ^1bfears Him and ²does what is right is acceptable to Him. 36 The word which He sent to the sons of Israel, ^apreaching ^1bpeace through Jesus Christ (He is ^cLord of all)— 37 you yourselves know the thing that happened throughout Judea, starting from Galilee, after the baptism which John proclaimed. 38 ¹You know of ^aJesus of Nazareth, how God ^banointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, ^2cand how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for ^dGod was with Him. 39 We are ^awitnesses of all the things that He did both in the ¹country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They also put Him to death by hanging Him on ^2ba cross. 40 ^aGod raised Him up on the third day and granted that He ¹be revealed, 41 ^anot to all the people, but to ^bwitnesses who had been chosen beforehand by God, that is, to us ^cwho ate and drank with Him after He arose from the dead. 42 And He ^aordered us to ¹preach to the people, and to ^btestify solemnly that this is the One who has been ^cappointed by God as ^dJudge of the living and the dead. 43 ^aAll the prophets testify of Him, that through ^bHis name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins.”

44 While Peter was still speaking these words, ^athe Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the ¹message. 45 ^aAll the ¹Jewish believers who came with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had also been ^bpoured out on the Gentiles. 46 For they were hearing them ^aspeaking with tongues and exalting God. Then Peter responded, 47 “^aSurely no one can refuse the water for these to be baptized, who ^bhave received the Holy Spirit just as we did, can he?” 48 And he ^aordered them to be baptized ^bin the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay on for a few days.

Now at ^1aCaesarea Maritima there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of what was ^bknown as the ²Italian Regiment, 2 a devout man and ^aone who, along with all his household, feared God. He ^bmade many charitable donations to the Jewish people, and prayed to God always. 3 About ^athe ninth hour (3:00 p.m.) of the day he clearly saw ^bin a vision ^can angel of God who had come to him and said, “Cornelius!” 4 Cornelius was frightened and ^astared intently at him and said, “What is it, lord (sir) ?” And the angel said to him, “Your prayers and gifts of charity ^bhave ascended as a ^cmemorial offering before God an offering made in remembrance of His past blessings. 5 Now send men to ^1aJoppa and have them call for a man named Simon, who is also called Peter and invite him here; 6 he is staying with ^aSimon the tanner, whose house is by the sea.” 7 When the angel who was speaking to him had gone, Cornelius called two of his servants and a devout soldier from among his own personal attendants; 8 and after explaining everything to them, he sent them to ^aJoppa.

9 The next day, as they were on their way and were approaching the city, ^aPeter went up on ^1bthe roof of the house about ^cthe sixth hour (noon) to pray, 10 but he became hungry and wanted something to eat. While ¹the meal was being prepared ^ahe fell into a trance; 11 and he saw ^athe sky opened up, and an ¹object like a great sheet descending, lowered by its four corners to the earth, 12 and it contained all kinds of four-footed animals and crawling creatures of the earth and birds of the air. 13 A voice came to him, “Get up, Peter, kill and eat!” 14 But Peter said, “Not at all, ^aLord, for ^bI have never eaten anything that is common (unholy) and ceremonially unclean.” 15 And the voice came to him a second time, “^aWhat God has cleansed and pronounced clean, no longer consider common (unholy) .” 16 This happened three times, and then immediately the object was taken up into heaven.

17 Now Peter was still perplexed and completely at a loss as to what ^ahis vision could mean when ^bthe men who had been sent by Cornelius, having asked directions to Simon’s house, arrived at the gate. 18 And they called out to ask whether Simon, who was also called Peter, was staying there. 19 While Peter was thoughtfully considering ^athe vision, ^bthe Spirit said to him, “Now listen, three men are looking for you. 20 Get up, go downstairs and ^ago with them without hesitating or doubting, because I have sent them Myself.” 21 Peter went down to the men and said, “I am the one you are looking for. For what reason have you come?” 22 They said, “Cornelius, a centurion, an upright and ^aGod-fearing man well spoken of by all the Jewish people, ^bwas divinely instructed by a ^choly angel to send for you to come to his house and hear ^dwhat you have to say.” 23 So Peter ¹invited them in and gave them lodging for the night.Peter at Caesarea

The next day Peter got up and left with them, and ^asome of ^bthe brothers from ^cJoppa went with him. 24 On the following day he and the others entered ^aCaesarea. Cornelius was waiting for them, and had called together his relatives and close friends. 25 When Peter arrived, Cornelius met him, and fell down at his feet and ^1aworshiped him. 26 But Peter raised him up, saying, “^aStand up; I too am only a man.” 27 As Peter talked with him, he entered the house and found a ^alarge group of people assembled. 28 He said to them, “You know that it is ^aunlawful for a Jewish man to associate with or befriend a Gentile, or to visit him; and yet ^bGod has shown me that I am not to call anyone common or ceremonially unclean. 29 Therefore when I was sent for, I came without raising an objection. So I ask for what reason have you sent for me?”

30 Cornelius said, “^aFour days ago to this hour, I was praying in my house during ^bthe ninth hour (3:00-4:00 p.m.) ; and ^ca man dressed in bright, dazzling clothing suddenly stood before me, 31 and he said, ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard, and your acts of charity have been remembered before God so that He is about to help you. 32 Therefore send word to ^aJoppa and invite Simon, who is also called Peter, to come to you. He is staying at the house of Simon the tanner by the sea.’ 33 So I sent for you at once, and you have been kind enough to come. Now then, we are all here present before God to listen to everything that you have been instructed by the Lord to say.”

34 ^aOpening his mouth, Peter said:“Most certainly I understand now that ^bGod is not one to show partiality to people as though Gentiles were excluded from God’s blessing, 35 but ^ain every nation the person who ^bfears God and does what is right by seeking Him is acceptable and welcomed by Him. 36 You know the message which He sent to the sons of Israel, ^aannouncing ^1bthe good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is ^cLord of all— 37 you know the things that have taken place throughout Judea, starting in Galilee after the baptism preached by John— 38 how God ^aanointed ^bJesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with great power; ^cand He went around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, because ^dGod was with Him. Is 61:1-3; Luke 4:18-21 39 We are personally ^aeyewitnesses of everything that He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem in particular. They also ^bput Him to death by hanging Him on a cross; 40 ^aGod raised Him to life on the third day and caused Him to be plainly seen, 41 ^anot to all the people, but to ^bwitnesses who were chosen and designated beforehand by God, that is, to us ^cwho ate and drank together with Him after He rose from the dead. Luke 24:42, 43; John 21:12-15 42 He ^acommanded us to preach to the people both Jew and Gentile, and to solemnly ^btestify that He is the One who has been ^cappointed and ordained by God as ^dJudge of the living and the dead. 43 ^aAll the prophets testify about Him, that through ^bHis name everyone who believes in Him whoever trusts in and relies on Him, accepting Him as Savior and Messiah receives forgiveness of sins.”

44 While Peter was still speaking these words, ^athe Holy Spirit fell on all those who were listening to the message confirming God’s acceptance of Gentiles. 45 All ^athe circumcised believers who came with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been ^bpoured out even on the Gentiles. 46 For they heard them ^atalking in unknown tongues (languages) and exalting and magnifying and praising God. Then Peter said, 47 “^aCan anyone refuse water for these people to be baptized, since they ^bhave received the Holy Spirit just as we did?” 48 And he ^aordered that they be baptized ^bin the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay there for a few days.