Chapter 15
The Council of Jerusalem[a]
The Question of Circumcision. Some men who had come down from Judea were teaching the brethren, “Unless you are circumcised in accordance with the tradition of Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2 As a result, Paul and Barnabas engaged in a lengthy and acrimonious debate with them, and finally it was decided that Paul and Barnabas and some of the others should go up to Jerusalem to discuss this question with the apostles and the elders.3 So the church sent them on their journey; and as they passed through Phoenicia and Samaria, they reported how the Gentiles had been converted, and this news was received with great joy by all the brethren. 4 When they arrived in Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the Church and by the apostles and the elders, and they gave a report of all that God had accomplished through them. 5 But some from the group of Pharisees who had become believers stood up and declared, “It is necessary for the Gentiles to be circumcised and ordered to observe the Law of Moses.”
Salvation through the Grace of Christ. 6 The apostles and the elders convened to consider this matter. 7 After a long period of debate, Peter stood up to address them. “Brethren,” he said, “you are well aware that in the early days God made his choice among you that it would be through my mouth that the Gentiles would hear the message of the gospel and become believers. 8 And God, who knows the heart, bore witness by giving to them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us. 9 He made no distinction between them and us, for he purified their hearts by faith.
10 “Therefore, why are you determined to try God’s patience by laying a yoke on the neck of the disciples that neither we nor our ancestors have found easy to bear? 11 On the contrary, we believe that we are saved in the same way as they are, through the grace of the Lord Jesus.” 12 On hearing this, the whole assembly fell silent, and they listened as Barnabas and Paul described all the signs and wonders that God had worked through them among the Gentiles.
13 James on Dietary Law. After they had finished speaking, James responded, “Brethren, listen to me. 14 Simon[b] has related how God first looked favorably upon the Gentiles and took from among them a people for his name. 15 This agrees with the words of the Prophets, as it is written,
16 ‘After this I will return
and rebuild the fallen tent of David.
From its ruins I will rebuild it
and raise it up again,
17 so that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord,
as well as all the Gentiles whom I have claimed as my own.
Thus says the Lord who is doing this,
18 as he made known from long ago.’
19 “Therefore, I have come to this decision. We should not make things more difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. 20 Rather, we should send a letter simply instructing them to abstain from things that have been polluted by idols, from unchastity, from the meat of animals that have been strangled, and from blood. 21 For in every town for many generations, Moses has had those who proclaim him, for he is read aloud in the synagogues on every Sabbath.”
22 The Letter of the Apostles. Then the apostles and the elders, with the approval of the whole Church, decided to choose representatives from their number and to send them with Paul and Barnabas to Antioch. They sent Judas, who was called Barsabbas,[c] and Silas, leaders in the community, 23 to deliver the following letter:
The apostles and the elders, your brethren,
To the brethren in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia:
Greetings.
24 It has come to our attention that some of our number, without having received any instructions from us, have upset you with their teachings and disturbed your peace of mind. 25 Therefore, we have decided unanimously to choose representatives and send them to you together with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, 26 men who have dedicated their lives to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 27 And so we are sending Judas and Silas who will confirm these things by word of mouth.
28 It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and also our decision not to lay any further burden upon you beyond these essentials: 29 you are to abstain from food that has been sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of animals that have been strangled, and from unchastity. If you avoid these, you will be doing what is right.
Farewell.
30 Delegates at Antioch. So the men departed. When they reached Antioch, they summoned together the entire congregation and delivered the letter. 31 Upon reading it, the community rejoiced at its encouragement.
32 Judas and Silas, who were themselves prophets, spoke at length to strengthen and encourage the brethren. 33 After they had spent some time there, they were sent off in peace by the brethren to return to those who had sent them. 34 [But Silas decided to remain there.][d] 35 Meanwhile, Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, where, along with many others, they taught and proclaimed the word of God.
Paul’s Second Missionary Journey[e]
36 Paul and Barnabas Separate.[f] After some time had passed, Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us go back and visit the brethren in all the cities where we proclaimed the word of the Lord so that we can see how they are progressing.” 37 Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, 38 but Paul was adamant about not taking with them a man who had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued to share in their work.
39 As a result, there was such a sharp disagreement that they parted company, and Barnabas sailed to Cyprus with Mark. 40 However, Paul chose Silas and set out on his journey, as the brethren commended him to the grace of the Lord.
41 Pastoral Visit to Asia Minor.[g] He traveled through Syria and Cilicia, bringing strength to the churches.
Footnotes
- Acts 15:1 Christian communities have sprung up everywhere and include converts from both Jews and Gentiles. Radical problems have also arisen. The Church is clearly aware that she exists thanks only to the union of the two very contrasting portions of humanity of that time: Jews and Gentiles (Acts 15:14-17); this union should express the true reality of salvation in Jesus Christ. What we see here is an authentically theological inquiry, which consists in interpreting the experience of the apostles’ encounters with the Gentiles and shedding light on them from the Scriptures.
1
As they reflect on the words of the Prophets, the members of the Council realize that the People of God, with which all the prophecies are concerned, exists in its full reality only at the moment when Gentile inquiry meets the original nucleus of Jewish testimonies. However, the practical decisions made are more cautious than the great theological statements. The Council asks for the observance of some elementary precepts that no Jew can abandon and that people know almost everywhere.
They are not to eat meat that has been sacrificed, because this would signify a fellowship with the divinities of the Gentiles (see 1 Cor 10:18-20). They are to avoid illegitimate unions (“unchastity”). They are not to eat flesh with blood in it (“[abstain] from the meat of animals that have been strangled, and from blood” [v. 20]), since according to the mind of the time blood was the sacred principle of life. The last two concern dietary laws (see Gen 9:14; Lev 3:17; Deut 12:16, 23; 1 Sam 14:34; Ezek 33:25).
All agree on these theological principles and their practical consequences. What a staggering sentence we read here for the first time, one that has passed from the Council to our own day: “It is the decision of the Holy Spirit and also our decision”! - Acts 15:14 Simon: the Greek text has “Simeon.” “Simon,” the Semitic name of Peter, is unusual but fits well on the lips of James, who was very attached to Jewish culture.
- Acts 15:22 Barsabbas: otherwise unknown. Silas is perhaps Paul’s coworker (from Acts 15:40 on).
- Acts 15:34 This verse is lacking in the better manuscripts.
- Acts 15:36 The planned visit to the communities already established turns into the “second missionary journey,” during which the Gospel enters into the daily life and culture of the Greco-Roman world.
- Acts 15:36 The choice of members of the team is not without difficult but normal confrontations. Attitudes toward John Mark lie at the origin of the tension (see Acts 13:5; 13:13). Finally, two teams are formed for two different projects. Barnabas takes John with him, and Paul takes Silas.
- Acts 15:41 Paul is opposed in principle to the circumcision of Christians of non-Jewish origin, but Timothy is a special case. If he were not circumcised, he could not speak in a synagogue and, in addition, he would have been regarded as an apostate, since his mother was Jewish; in the present missionary program, the first contacts were still taking place in the synagogues. The Spirit mysteriously intervenes to decide which direction the mission is to take. The whole Book of Acts is written in this perspective: the entire spread of the Gospel has been guided by the Spirit (see 1 Pet 1:12).