Acts 10 10

Acts 10:10 kjv

And he became very hungry, and would have eaten: but while they made ready, he fell into a trance,

Acts 10:10 nkjv

Then he became very hungry and wanted to eat; but while they made ready, he fell into a trance

Acts 10:10 niv

He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance.

Acts 10:10 esv

And he became hungry and wanted something to eat, but while they were preparing it, he fell into a trance

Acts 10:10 nlt

and he was hungry. But while a meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance.

Acts 10 10 Cross References

VerseTextReference
Acts 10:1"There was a man in Caesarea called Cornelius..."Cornelius, a Gentile God-fearer
Acts 10:9"On the next day, as they were on their journey... Peter went up on the housetop to pray..."Setting: Prayer and preparation
Acts 11:5"I was in the city of Joppa praying; and in a trance I saw a vision..."Peter's own retelling of the trance
Acts 22:17"When I had returned to Jerusalem... I fell into a trance and saw Him saying to me..."Paul's trance for divine instruction
Ezek 1:3"...the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel the priest... and the hand of the Lord was upon him there."Prophets experiencing divine states
Ezek 8:1"...I was sitting in my house... the hand of the Lord God fell upon me there."God's hand leading to a visionary state
Rev 1:10"I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day..."John's visionary experience
2 Cor 12:2-4"I know a man in Christ... caught up to the third heaven... into Paradise and heard inexpressible words..."Paul's out-of-body spiritual experience
Num 24:3-4"The oracle of Balaam the son of Beor... he says who hears the words of God, who sees the vision of the Almighty, falling down with unveiled eyes..."Visionary state for prophetic revelation
Lev 11:46-47"This is the law of the beasts... to make a difference between the unclean and the clean..."Old Covenant dietary laws
Deut 14:3"You shall not eat any abominable thing."Prohibition against unclean foods
Mark 7:19"...thus declaring all foods clean."Jesus abolishes food distinctions
Rom 14:14"I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself..."Paul on the clean/unclean distinction in Christ
1 Tim 4:3-5"who forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving..."New Covenant freedom concerning foods
Gal 3:28"There is neither Jew nor Gentile... for you are all one in Christ Jesus."Unity of believers in Christ
Eph 2:14"For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility."Breaking down the Jew-Gentile barrier
Col 3:11"Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all."No ethnic distinctions in Christ
Acts 1:8"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses... to the end of the earth."Mandate for universal witness
Prov 16:9"The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps."Divine guidance in human plans
Ps 81:10"I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it."God's provision for need, spiritual readiness
Phil 4:19"And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus."God's divine provision and timing
Gen 15:12"As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him."Abram's trance during covenant promise
Dan 8:18"As he was speaking to me, I fell into a deep sleep with my face to the ground. But he touched me and made me stand up."Daniel's experience before revelation

Acts 10 verses

Acts 10 10 Meaning

Acts 10:10 describes a pivotal moment in the ministry of the Apostle Peter. While Peter was at Simon the tanner's house, a deep physical hunger came upon him. As food was being prepared, he experienced a supernatural phenomenon, falling into a trance. This altered state of consciousness was God's means of preparing Peter for a profound revelation, essential for expanding the early Christian community beyond its Jewish origins to include Gentiles. His natural desire for physical food was interrupted by a divine provision of spiritual understanding.

Acts 10 10 Context

Acts chapter 10 marks a crucial turning point in the early church's mission. Up to this point, the gospel message had primarily been shared with Jewish people and Samaritan "half-Jews." Chapter 10 begins with Cornelius, a devout Roman centurion (Gentile) who receives a vision from an angel, instructing him to send for Peter. Concurrently, Peter, staying at Simon the tanner's house in Joppa, goes up to the housetop to pray. It is in this context of a direct divine intersection of two separate narratives—Cornelius's and Peter's—that Peter's trance occurs, specifically addressing the deeply ingrained Jewish dietary laws and, by extension, the social and religious separation between Jews and Gentiles. His hunger provides a natural, relatable setup for a supernatural, world-altering event.

Acts 10 10 Word analysis

  • And he became hungry (ἐγένετο δὲ προσπεινάσας - egeneto de prospenasas): This phrase indicates a strong, perhaps sudden and intense, hunger. The prefix pros- often intensifies the verb, suggesting more than just slight hunger. It highlights a very natural human physical need, setting up a sharp contrast with the supernatural spiritual event that immediately follows. God often meets people in their mundane daily lives or basic human needs.
  • and desired to eat (καὶ θέλων γεύσασθαι - kai thelon geusasthai): This reinforces Peter's physical craving and expectation of a meal. Geusasthai implies tasting or partaking of food. It emphasizes that Peter's mind was actively focused on an immediate physical act, making the sudden divine interruption even more striking and impactful.
  • but while they were preparing (παρασκευαζόντων δὲ αὐτῶν - paraskeuazonton de auton): This detail specifies the precise moment of divine intervention. The "preparing" suggests that a meal was imminent but not yet served, indicating a liminal, in-between state. It implies a human activity being abruptly paused or overshadowed by a superior, divine activity. This timing demonstrates God's sovereignty, breaking into ordinary human rhythms for His extraordinary purpose.
  • he fell into a trance (ἐπέπεσεν ἐπ’ αὐτὸν ἔκστασις - epipesen ep' auton ekstasis):
    • ἐπέπεσεν (epipesen): Means "fell upon" or "came upon," suggesting a sudden, overpowering, and unbidden experience. It's something that seized Peter, rather than an internal initiation.
    • ἔκστασις (ekstasis): This Greek word is significant. It literally means "standing outside oneself," an "out of mind" experience. In biblical context, it refers to an altered state of consciousness induced by God, usually for the purpose of receiving divine revelation or a vision (e.g., Acts 11:5, 22:17). It is not mere fainting or a self-induced ecstatic state, but a temporary suspension of normal faculties to perceive spiritual realities. This indicates the profound and direct nature of God's communication to Peter, circumventing his natural human perceptions and preconceptions. It's a key signifier of supernatural intervention.
  • Words-Group Analysis:
    • "And he became hungry... fell into a trance": This highlights the powerful contrast between a mundane, bodily function (hunger and expectation of a meal) and a profound, supernatural spiritual experience (a trance from God). God uses Peter's physical state to set the stage for a spiritual lesson. The natural prepares the ground for the supernatural.
    • "desired to eat; but while they were preparing": This sequence emphasizes a state of anticipation being suddenly overridden. Peter's natural, immediate desire and the ongoing human action of meal preparation are dramatically interrupted by divine initiative, showing God's ultimate control and precise timing.

Acts 10 10 Bonus section

  • The immediate location of this trance is significant: on the housetop, a common place for prayer, solitude, and meditation in the ancient Jewish world. This elevation physically and symbolically separated Peter from the household below, providing an apt setting for divine encounter and elevated understanding.
  • Peter's natural hunger served as a divine 'hook' or thematic link to the subsequent vision involving dietary laws, making the revelation personally relevant and immediately pressing for him. God often connects spiritual truths to our natural, tangible experiences.
  • The use of "trance" (ἔκστασις) in Scripture always denotes a supernatural experience where human faculties are overridden for divine purposes, affirming the authoritative nature of the subsequent vision for Peter. It ensures Peter understood that what he was about to see was from God, not from his own mind.

Acts 10 10 Commentary

Acts 10:10 encapsulates a moment of divine redirection for Peter and the early church. Peter's profound hunger is not accidental; it primes him for a vision concerning food—a highly symbolic category for observant Jews. The trance (ekstasis), described as something that "fell upon" him, signifies a powerful, God-initiated suspension of normal consciousness, designed specifically for the reception of supernatural revelation. This was not a passive dream or mere imagination, but a direct, immersive encounter with divine truth, allowing God to communicate beyond Peter's deeply ingrained Jewish paradigms. This seemingly simple verse is the direct setup for Peter's vision of the sheet with all kinds of clean and unclean animals, a prelude to God dismantling the age-old barriers between Jews and Gentiles and welcoming all into His universal church.