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From: Eddie Chumney
To: heb_roots_chr@hebroots.org
Subject: Acts 10: A Hebraic View
ACTS 10: A HEBRAIC VIEW (Part 1 of 2)
Dear Mishpochah (family):
As many of us know who have grown up in traditional
Christianity, Acts 10 is VERY MISUNDERSTOOD. Many use Acts 10 to
teach that the dietary laws of Leviticus 11 have been changed and
that non-Jewish believers in the Messiah only need to "pray" and they
can eat anything they want. In the article, we are going to examine Acts 10
from a Hebraic View.
ASSUMPTIONS USED TO TEACH ACTS 10
MEANT WE CAN EAT ANYTHING WE WANT
Assumption #1) When YHVH the Father through Yeshua gave the dietary laws in Leviticus 11, He didn't mean for them to be everlasting commandments
Assumption #2) Jews and non-Jews have a different set of Torah commandments. Dietary commandments are for Jews. Eating anything you want (not following the dietary commandments) are for non-Jews.
Assumptino #3) Non-Jews are being told in the NT that they can SIN (break the dietary commandments of Leviticus 11) and they don't need to follow the dietary commandments
Assumption #4) The NT contradicts the OT and we follow the NT because the NT is the "greater revelation" because we are living in a "new dispensation" (YHVH gave up on Plan A and resorted to Plan B)
Now, let's look at some of the FALLACIES of the above assumptions.
WHAT ARE THE DIETARY LAWS OF LEVITICUS 11?
KJV Leviticus 11:1 And the LORD spake unto Moses and to Aaron, saying unto them,
KJV Leviticus 11:2 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, These are the beasts which ye shall eat among all the beasts that are on the earth.
KJV Leviticus 11:3 Whatsoever parteth the hoof, and is clovenfooted, and cheweth the cud, among the beasts, that shall ye eat.
KJV Leviticus 11:5 And the coney, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
KJV Leviticus 11:6 And the hare, because he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the hoof; he is unclean unto you.
KJV Leviticus 11:7 And the swine, though he divide the hoof, and be clovenfooted, yet he cheweth not the cud; he is unclean to you.
KJV Leviticus 11:8 Of their flesh shall ye not eat, and their carcase shall ye not touch; they are unclean to you.
KJV Leviticus 11:9 These shall ye eat of all that are in the waters: whatsoever hath fins and scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the rivers, them shall ye eat.
KJV Leviticus 11:10 And all that have not fins and scales in the seas, and in the rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of any living thing which is in the waters, they shall be an abomination unto you:
KJV Leviticus 11:11 They shall be even an abomination unto you; ye shall not eat of their flesh, but ye shall have their carcases in abomination.
KJV Leviticus 11:12 Whatsoever hath no fins nor scales in the waters, that shall be an abomination unto you.
KJV Leviticus 11:13 And these are they which ye shall have in abomination among the fowls; they shall not be eaten, they are an abomination: the eagle, and the ossifrage, and the ospray,
KJV Leviticus 11:14 And the vulture, and the kite after his kind;
KJV Leviticus 11:15 Every raven after his kind;
KJV Leviticus 11:16 And the owl, and the night hawk, and the cuckow, and the hawk after his kind,
KJV Leviticus 11:17 And the little owl, and the cormorant, and the great owl,
KJV Leviticus 11:18 And the swan, and the pelican, and the gier eagle,
KJV Leviticus 11:19 And the stork, the heron after her kind, and the lapwing, and the bat.
KJV Leviticus 11:20 All fowls that creep, going upon all four, shall be an abomination unto you.
KJV Leviticus 11:21 Yet these may ye eat of every flying creeping thing that goeth upon all four, which have legs above their feet, to leap withal upon the earth;
KJV Leviticus 11:22 Even these of them ye may eat; the locust after his
kind, and the bald locust after his kind, and the beetle after his
kind, and the grasshopper after his kind.
KJV Leviticus 11:23 But all other flying creeping things, which have four feet, shall be an abomination unto you.
KJV Leviticus 11:24 And for these ye shall be unclean: whosoever toucheth the carcase of them shall be unclean until the even.
KJV Leviticus 11:25 And whosoever beareth ought of the carcase of them shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even.
KJV Leviticus 11:26 The carcases of every beast which divideth the hoof, and is not clovenfooted, nor cheweth the cud, are unclean unto you: every one that toucheth them shall be unclean.
KJV Leviticus 11:27 And whatsoever goeth upon his paws, among all manner of beasts that go on all four, those are unclean unto you: whoso toucheth their carcase shall be unclean until the even.
KJV Leviticus 11:28 And he that beareth the carcase of them shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: they are unclean unto you.
KJV Leviticus 11:29 These also shall be unclean unto you among the creeping things that creep upon the earth; the weasel, and the mouse, and the tortoise after his kind,
KJV Leviticus 11:30 And the ferret, and the chameleon, and the lizard, and the snail, and the mole.
KJV Leviticus 11:31 These are unclean to you among all that creep: whosoever doth touch them, when they be dead, shall be unclean until the even.
KJV Leviticus 11:32 And upon whatsoever any of them, when they are dead, doth fall, it shall be unclean; whether it be any vessel of wood, or raiment, or skin, or sack, whatsoever vessel it be, wherein any work is done, it must be put into water, and it shall be unclean until the even; so it shall be cleansed.
KJV Leviticus 11:33 And every earthen vessel, whereinto any of them falleth, whatsoever is in it shall be unclean; and ye shall break it.
KJV Leviticus 11:34 Of all meat which may be eaten, that on which such water cometh shall be unclean: and all drink that may be drunk in every such vessel shall be unclean.
KJV Leviticus 11:35 And every thing whereupon any part of their carcase falleth shall be unclean; whether it be oven, or ranges for pots, they shall be broken down: for they are unclean, and shall be unclean unto you.
KJV Leviticus 11:36 Nevertheless a fountain or pit, wherein there is plenty of water, shall be clean: but that which toucheth their carcase shall be unclean.
KJV Leviticus 11:37 And if any part of their carcase fall upon any sowing seed which is to be sown, it shall be clean.
KJV Leviticus 11:38 But if any water be put upon the seed, and any part of their carcase fall thereon, it shall be unclean unto you.
KJV Leviticus 11:39 And if any beast, of which ye may eat, die; he that toucheth the carcase thereof shall be unclean until the even.
KJV Leviticus 11:40 And he that eateth of the carcase of it shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until
KJV Leviticus 11:41 And every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth shall be an abomination; it shall not be eaten.
KJV Leviticus 11:42 Whatsoever goeth upon the belly, and whatsoever goeth upon all four, or whatsoever hath more feet among all creeping things that creep upon the earth, them ye shall not eat; for they are an abomination.
KJV Leviticus 11:43 Ye shall not make yourselves abominable with any
creeping thing that creepeth, neither shall ye make yourselves unclean
with them, that ye should be defiled thereby.
DIETARY LAWS = HOLY LIVING
What is the purpose of the dietary laws here in Leviticus 11? It is for the purpose of HOLY LIVING because YHVH I S HOLY.
KJV Leviticus 11:44 For I am the LORD your God: ye shall therefore SANCTIFY yourselves, and YE shall BE HOLY; for I AM HOLY: neither shall ye DEFILE yourselves with any manner of CREEPING THING that creepeth upon the earth.
KJV Leviticus 11:45 For I am the LORD that bringeth you up out of the
land of Egypt, to be your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am
holy.
MAKING A DISTINCTION BETWEEN CLEAN AND UNCLEAN
KJV Leviticus 11:46 This is the law of the beasts, and of the fowl, and of every living creature that moveth in the waters, and of every creature that creepeth upon the earth:
KJV Leviticus 11:47 To make a DIFFERENCE between the UNCLEAN and the CLEAN, and between the BEAST that MAY BE EATEN and the BEAST that may NOT BE EATEN.
ASSUMPTION #1: ARE THESE DIETARY COMMANDMENTS FOREVER?
The Torah commandments of YHVH are ETERNAL and EVERLASTING.
KJV 1 Chronicles 16:15 Be ye mindful always of his covenant; the WORD which he commanded to a THOUSAND GENERATIONS;
KJV 1 Chronicles 16:16 Even of the COVENANT which he made with Abraham, and of his oath unto Isaac;
KJV 1 Chronicles 16:17 And hath confirmed the same to Jacob for a LAW, and to Israel for an EVERLASTING COVENANT,
KJV Psalm 119:144 The righteousness of thy TESTIMONIES is EVERLASTING: give me understanding, and I shall live.
KJV Isaiah 24:5 The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants
thereof; because they have transgressed the LAWS, changed the
ordinance, BROKEN the EVERLASTING COVENANT.
KJV Psalm 119:89 FOR EVER, O LORD, thy WORD is settled in heaven.
KJV Psalm 119:97 O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day
KJV Psalm 119:44 So shall I KEEP THY LAW continually FOR EVER and EVER.
KJV Luke 16:17 And it is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the LAW to fail.
KJV Luke 21:33 Heaven and earth shall pass away: but MY WORDS shall
not pass away.
CONCLUSION: The TORAH is an EVERLASTING COVENANT and is ETERNAL.
DOES YHVH CHANGE HIS MIND ABOUT THE COMMANDMENTS?
KJV Malachi 3:6 For I am the LORD, I change not ...
KJV Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for
ever.
CONCLUSION: YHVH and YESHUA do NOT CHANGE.
ASSUMPTION #2: DOES THE TORAH / DIETARY COMMANDMENTS
PERTAIN TO NON-JEWS ???
ONE TORAH FOR NATIVE BORN AND STRANGER
KJV Exodus 12:49 ONE LAW shall be to him that is HOMEBORN, and unto the STRANGER that sojourneth among you.
KJV Leviticus 24:22 Ye shall have ONE manner of LAW, as well for the STRANGER, as for one of your OWN COUNTRY: for I am the LORD your God.
KJV Numbers 15:15 ONE ORDINANCE shall be both for you of the congregation, and also for the STRANGER that sojourneth with you, an ordinance FOR EVER in your generations: AS YE ARE, so shall the STRANGER be before the LORD.
KJV Numbers 15:16 ONE LAW and one manner shall be FOR YOU, and for the STRANGER that sojourneth with you.
KJV Numbers 15:29 Ye shall have ONE LAW for him that sinneth through
ignorance, both for him that is BORN among the children of Israel, and
for the STRANGER that sojourneth among them.
CONCLUSION: ONE TORAH for NATIVE BORN and STRANGER
IS THE STRANGER TO OBSERVE TORAH DIETARY LAWS?
KJV Leviticus 17:10 And whatsoever man there be of the HOUSE of ISRAEL, or of the STRANGERS that SOJOURN among you, that EATETH ANY manner of BLOOD; I will even set my face against that soul that eateth blood, and will CUT HIM OFF from among his people.
KJV Leviticus 20:25 Ye shall therefore PUT DIFFERENCE between CLEAN BEASTS and UNCLEAN, and between unclean fowls and clean: and ye shall not make your souls abominable by beast, or by fowl, or by any manner of living thing that creepeth on the ground, which I have separated from you as unclean.
KJV Leviticus 17: 14 For it is the life of all flesh; the blood of it is for the life thereof: therefore I said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall EAT the BLOOD of NO MANNER of FLESH: for the life of all flesh is the blood thereof: whosoever eateth it shall be CUT OFF.
KJV Leviticus 17:15 And EVERY SOUL that EATETH that which died of itself, or that which was TORN with BEASTS, whether it be one of your OWN COUNTRY, or a STRANGER, he shall both wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even: then shall he be clean.
CONCLUSION: The STRANGER is to observe the dietary laws
DID YESHUA TEACH AGAINST FOLLOWING TORAH?
What is sin?
KJV 1 John 3:4 Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.
SIN = BREAKING THE TORAH
Did Yeshua sin?
KJV 1 Peter 2:21 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should FOLLOW HIS STEPS:
KJV 1 Peter 2:22 WHO DID NO SIN, neither was guile found in his mouth:
Since Yeshua DIDN'T SIN (He DIDN'T BREAK THE TORAH) which meant that He followed the dietary laws. We are told to FOLLOW HIS STEPS (which mean that since He didn't sin and thus followed the dietary laws then we shouldn't sin and follow the dietary laws).
KJV 1 John 2:6 He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to
WALK, even AS HE WALKED.
HALACHA = WAY ONE WALKS
The Hebrew term for following the commandments is keeping the "halacha". The Hebrew word "halacha" comes from the Hebrew word "halak" which means "to walk"
KJV Psalm 119:1 Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who WALK
<1980> in the law of the LORD.
1980 %l;h' halak {haw-lak'} akin to 03212, a primitive root; TWOT - 498; v AV - go 217, walk 156,
1980 = halak = walk = AKIN to 3212
KJV Isaiah 2:3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will WALK <3212> in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the LAW, and the WORD of the LORD from Jerusalem.
3212 $l;y" yalak {yaw-lak'} a primitive root [compare
01980]; TWOT - 498; v AV - go 628, walk 122,
KJV 1 John 2:6 He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so
to WALK, even AS HE WALKED.
CONCLUSION: Messiah DIDN'T SIN (break the commandments) and taught
His followers NOT to sin (keep the commandments).
DID YESHUA TEACH AGAINST THE DIETARY LAWS?
Many people MISUNDERSTAND Matthew 15 and say that Messiah taught against the dietary laws. If He did teach against the dietary laws then He taught people to sin (I John 3:4). Since Messiah did NOT teach people to sin, what is it that we MISUNDERSTAND about Matthew 15 as it applies to the dietary laws?
KJV Matthew 15:1 Then came to Jesus scribes and Pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying,
KJV Matthew 15:2 Why do thy disciples transgress the TRADITION OF THE
ELDERS? for they wash not their hands when they eat bread.
WHAT IS THE TRADITION OF THE ELDERS?
The tradition of the elders is the ORAL LAW. The Pharisees teach that the ORAL LAW is ABOVE the WRITTEN LAW. Messiah taught that the ORAL LAW CANNOT be ABOVE the WRITTEN LAW.
The TRADITION OF THE ELDERS (ORAL LAW) taught that it is a SIN if you do NOT WASH your hands BEFORE you EAT. Messiah disagreed.
KJV Matthew 15:3 But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?
The COMMANDMENTS OF GOD is the WRITTEN LAW.
KJV Matthew 15:9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
DOCTRINES is HOW you FOLLOW the WRITTEN LAW.
WHAT DID MESSIAH TEACH IS TRUE DEFILEMENT?
Is TRUE defilement (being unclean) come from NOT washing your hands before you eat or does TRUE defilement come from the HEART?
KJV Matthew 15:10 And he called the multitude, and said unto them, Hear, and understand:
Hear and understand what? About true defilement. Is true defilement not washing your hands before you eat?
KJV Matthew 15:11 Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.
Is has already been established in Leviticus 11 what is clean and unclean food. Is Messiah having a discussion in Matthew 15 about clean and unclean FOOD? NO! He is ANSWERING the question of is it a sin to NOT wash before you eat. Does this give you a Torah status of unclean if you don't wash your hands before you eat is what is being answered by the Messiah.
The GIVEN based upon Leviticus 11 is that BOTH the native born and the STRANGER is to eat CLEAN foods.
KJV Matthew 15:15 Then answered Peter and said unto him, Declare unto us this parable.
Notice that the SAYING is a PARABLE. In other words it has a DEEPER MEANING that what it SEEMS to say at the surface (the surface meaning is the LITERAL meaning).
KJV Matthew 15:16 And Jesus said, Are ye also yet without understanding?
KJV Matthew 15:17 Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out into the draught?
What is Messiah saying? If you DON'T wash your hands before eating and then eat CLEAN foods, your body will take SOME of that CLEAN food and make it waste (have a bowel movement). Did the bowel movement (the WASTE from the food) mean that the FOOD is unclean? NO! The WASTE (bowel movement of the body is a NORMAL function of the body).
KJV Matthew 15:18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.
KJV Matthew 15:19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:
In other words, TRUE UNCLEANNESS comes from having a EVIL /
STUBBORN HEART.
What is an EVIL / STUBBORN HEART? It is a HEART that WON'T obey Torah.
KJV Zechariah 7:11 But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear.
KJV Zechariah 7:12 Yea, they made their HEARTS as an ADAMANT STONE, lest they should HEAR the LAW, and the words which the LORD of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the former prophets:
KJV Jeremiah 4:4 Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your HEART, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem:
KJV Jeremiah 4:14 O Jerusalem, wash thine HEART from WICKEDNESS, that thou mayest be saved. How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee?
KJV Jeremiah 4:18 Thy way and thy doings have procured these things
unto thee; this is thy WICKEDNESS, because it is bitter, because it
reacheth unto thine HEART.
WHAT WAS MESSIAH'S CONCLUSION?
KJV Matthew 15:20 These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.
Was Messiah having a discussion about FOOD LAWS? Was He
having a discussing about CHANGING the FOOD LAWS in the Torah? NO!
The discussion is about whether you are UNCLEAN if you WASH NOT your
hands prior to eating. The ORAL TRADITION said that you ARE UNCLEAN
if you don't wash your hands before you eat. Messiah disagreed. He
said that TRUE UNCLEANESS comes from an EVIL HEART. Scriptures
indicate that an EVIL HEART does NOT want to obey WRITTEN TORAH.
BACKGROUND TO UNDERSTAND ACTS 10
The order to understand the vison that was given to Peter in Acts 10, you need to understand a primary reason why Yeshua died on the tree.
According to the words of the Messiah in John 10:16-17, He died on the tree to restore and regather both houses of Israel.
KJV John 10:16 And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.
Messiah tells us that He has TWO SHEEPFOLDS that will become ONE SHEEPFOLD and have ONE SHEPHERD.
Who are the TWO SHEEPFOLD that are prophesied to be ONE SHEEPFOLD?
The TWO sheepfolds are the:
#1) House of Israel (Northern Kingdom)
#2) House of Judah (Southern Kingdom)
The are prophesied to be ONE in Hosea 1:11.
KJV Hosea 1:11 Then shall the children of Judah and the children of Israel be gathered together, and appoint themselves one head,
The ONE HEAD is the MESSIAH.
KJV Ezekiel 34:11 For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them out.
KJV Ezekiel 34:23 And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd.
KJV Ezekiel 37:24 And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them.
In order for there to be one shepherd and one sheepfold, Messiah said that He needed to die on the tree.
KJV John 10:17 Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.
We are told in John 11:49-52 that Messiah died on the tree to restore and regather both houses of Israel.
KJV John 11:49 And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all,
KJV John 11:50 Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not.
KJV John 11:51 And this spake he not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation;
KJV John 11:52 And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad.
Who are TWO NATIONS that are SCATTERED abroad and are the CHILDREN OF GOD and will be GATHERED TOGETHER into ONE?
The only TWO NATIONS that fit this description is:
#1) House of Israel (Northern Kingdom)
#2) House of Judah (Southern Kingdom)
ONE NEW MAN = MESSIAH RULING OVER A UNITED KINGDOM
The ONE NEW MAN in Ephesians 2:11-19 is those who are NEAR and those who are FAR OFF who are ONE in Messiah.
KJV Ephesians 2:13 But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were FAR OFF are made nigh by the blood of Christ.
KJV Ephesians 2:17 And came and preached peace to you which were AFAR OFF, and to them that were NIGH
Who are those FAR OFF and NEAR?
NEAR = house of Judah in exile
FAR OFF = house of Israel in exile
KJV 1 Kings 8:46 If they sin against thee, (for there is no man that sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they CARRY THEM away CAPTIVES unto the land of the enemy, FAR or NEAR
So, in being taken into exile, both houses of Israel are said to be FAR or NEAR. KJV Daniel 9:7 O Lord, righteousness belongeth unto thee, but unto us confusion of faces, as at this day; to the MEN of JUDAH, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and unto ALL ISRAEL, that are NEAR, and that are FAR OFF, through ALL the COUNTRIES whither thou hast DRIVEN THEM, because of their trespass that they have trespassed against thee.
In being scattered into all nations, the MEN O F JUDAH are said to be NEAR. All ISRAEL is said to be FAR OFF.
Paul used these terms for BOTH houses of Israel in Ephesians
2 who through the death of the Messiah is to be ONE NEW MAN.
THE SETTING OF ACTS 10
The setting of Acts 10 is that the Messiah died on the tree to restore and regather both houses of Israel (John 10:16-17) and (John 11:49-52) who are said to be "near" and "far off" (I Kings 8:46, Daniel 9:7) in all the countries where they have been scattered who are prophecied to have ONE SHEPHERD over a United Kingdom.
This background is SIGNIFICANT to understand the vision of Peter.
So, let's examine the details of Acts 10. Was Peter given a vision and told to forsake the dietary laws or was Peter being communicated something about the restoration and regathering of both houses of Israel?
KJV Acts 10:1 There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of the band called the Italian band,
KJV Acts 10:2 A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway.
Cornelius was a non-Jew. When we are told that he is a "devout man and one that feared God", this is terminolgy for a "proselyte".
A "proselyte" is a non-Jew who has a love for the Jewish
people, the God of Israel and is drawn to keeping the commandments.
CORNELIUS SENDS THREE MEN TO SEE PETER
KJV Acts 10:3 He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the
day an angel of God coming in to him, and saying unto him, Cornelius.
KJV Acts 10:4 And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, What is it, Lord? And he said unto him, Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God.
KJV Acts 10:5 And now send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname is Peter:
KJV Acts 10:7 And when the angel which spake unto Cornelius was
departed, he called two of his household servants, and a devout
soldier of them that waited on him continually;
PETER IS GIVEN A VISION
KJV Acts 10:9 On the morrow, as they went on their journey, and drew nigh unto the city, Peter went up upon the housetop to pray about the sixth hour:
KJV Acts 10:11 And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending unto him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth:
KJV Acts 10:12 Wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.
KJV Acts 10:13 And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat.
This is the vision which many in traditional Christianity have taught that Peter was told to violate the dietary laws. Notice Acts 10 is NOT about dietary laws.
Cornelious is sending three men to see Peter.
WHAT IS THE SHEET KNIT AT FOUR CORNERS?
This is a tallit katan (sheet / garment) which has tzi-tzit (fringes / strings) on the each corner. The children of Israel were commanded to wear this garment with tzi-tzit (strings / fringes on the four corners) in Numbers 15:37-39.
KJV Numbers 15:37 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
KJV Numbers 15:38 Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue:
KJV Numbers 15:39 And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of the LORD, and do them; and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring:
So why was Peter shown a tallit katan (garment) with fringes on the corner (knit at four corners) ??
TODAY, a Biblical / Jewish marriage is performed under a wedding canapy known as a chuppah. A chuppah has four poles and on the ceiling / top of the poles is a tallit.
Therefore, this sheet with four corners (tallit katan with tzi-tzit) also represents a MARRIAGE.
The MARRIAGE is Jew (symbolized by Peter) and non-Jew (symbolized by Cornelius and the three men) ONE in Messiah.
(End of Part 1 of 2)
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