Acts 10:12 kjv
Wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.
Acts 10:12 nkjv
In it were all kinds of four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, creeping things, and birds of the air.
Acts 10:12 niv
It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles and birds.
Acts 10:12 esv
In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air.
Acts 10:12 nlt
In the sheet were all sorts of animals, reptiles, and birds.
Acts 10 12 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Lev 11:2-3 | Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, These are the beasts... | Source of Jewish dietary laws |
| Lev 11:29-30 | These also shall be unclean unto you among the creeping things... | Specific examples of forbidden creeping things |
| Deut 14:3-8 | Thou shalt not eat any abominable thing... | Reiteration of clean/unclean animal distinctions |
| Isa 66:17 | They that sanctify themselves... eating swine's flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse | Gentile practices condemned by Jews |
| Gen 1:28 | God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful... have dominion... | Man given dominion over all creation |
| Gen 7:8-9 | Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls... | Clean/unclean distinction before the Law (Noah) |
| Gen 9:3 | Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb... | Post-Flood permission to eat all animals |
| Mk 7:19 | Because it entereth not into his heart, but into the belly... purging all meats. | Jesus declares all foods clean |
| Acts 10:14 | But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean. | Peter's initial resistance to the vision |
| Acts 10:28 | And he said unto them, Ye know how that it is an unlawful thing... | Peter acknowledges Jewish law regarding Gentiles |
| Acts 11:7-8 | And I heard a voice saying unto me, Rise, Peter; slay and eat. But I said, Not so... | Peter recounts the vision to others |
| Acts 15:7-11 | Peter stood up, and said... God made choice among us, that the Gentiles... | Peter uses vision to argue for Gentile inclusion |
| Rom 14:14 | I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of itself... | Paul on food and Christian conscience |
| Rom 14:17 | For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness... | Kingdom values supersede dietary restrictions |
| Gal 2:11-12 | Peter came to Antioch, I withstood him to the face... withdrew and separated himself | Peter's hypocrisy concerning food with Gentiles |
| Eph 2:14 | For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall... | Christ breaking down barriers (Jew/Gentile) |
| Col 2:16 | Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink... | Freedom from Old Covenant dietary laws |
| 1 Tim 4:4-5 | For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving... | God's creation is good for consumption |
| Tit 1:15 | Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled... | Purity is a matter of heart, not externals |
| Heb 9:9-10 | Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings... imposed on them until the time of reformation. | Old Covenant regulations were temporary |
Acts 10 verses
Acts 10 12 Meaning
Acts 10:12 describes the contents of the great sheet descending from heaven in Peter's vision, specifically listing "all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air." This comprehensive catalog of animals, significantly including many considered unclean under Jewish dietary laws, served to visually represent the scope of God's new covenant inclusion, extending salvation and acceptance to all people, including Gentiles, previously deemed outside the purified covenant community. It prepared Peter for the revolutionary understanding that external purity laws were no longer the dividing line for God's favor.
Acts 10 12 Context
Acts chapter 10 recounts Peter's vision and its subsequent fulfillment in the conversion of Cornelius and his household. The Jewish faith placed significant emphasis on ritual purity and dietary laws (kashrut), which served as distinct markers separating Israel from other nations. These laws rendered most Gentiles "unclean" by association, making it unlawful for a Jew to associate closely or eat with them. This vision, occurring simultaneously with Cornelius's own divine encounter, directly addresses these long-standing prohibitions. Verse 12 details the precise contents of the sheet, confronting Peter's deeply ingrained understanding of clean and unclean creatures, which symbolically prepares him to set aside the separation between Jew and Gentile, recognizing God's impartiality in salvation.
Acts 10 12 Word analysis
- wherein: (Greek: en hō) Implies "in which" or "on which." It specifies the location of the contents, tying them directly to the "great sheet" of the preceding verse (Acts 10:11). This highlights the sheet as the vessel of this revolutionary display.
- were all manner of: (Greek: panta ta) This phrase emphasizes universality and totality. "All manner of" denotes every kind, every species, every variety, making it clear that no type of animal was excluded from the sheet. This comprehensiveness is central to the challenge it poses to Peter's traditional worldview.
- fourfooted beasts of the earth: (Greek: tetrapoda and gēs) Refers broadly to all land-dwelling quadrupeds. This category included animals explicitly forbidden as food by Mosaic Law (e.g., swine, camels, hares, coneys; Lev 11:4-8). Their presence immediately introduces an element of the "unclean."
- and wild beasts: (Greek: kai thēria) This specific term highlights animals that are untamed, savage, or dangerous. While some four-footed beasts could be wild, this separate mention underscores the raw, potentially "uncivilized" or "undomesticated" aspect of creation, challenging purity notions further.
- and creeping things: (Greek: kai herpeta) This category includes creatures that crawl on the ground, such as reptiles and insects (Lev 11:20-23, 29-30). These were considered among the lowest and most defiling of animals in Jewish purity laws, representing the epitome of ritual uncleanness. Their inclusion forcefully demonstrates the extent of the purity challenge.
- and fowls of the air: (Greek: kai peteina tou ouranou) This refers to birds. Again, while some birds were clean, many types of birds were expressly forbidden (e.g., eagles, vultures, owls, storks; Lev 11:13-19). This category completes a broad summary of animals from land and air, emphasizing that all parts of creation previously distinguished as clean or unclean were now presented as undifferentiated.
- all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air: This complete and exhaustive list intentionally encompasses the full range of terrestrial and aerial creatures, particularly those expressly forbidden in Old Testament dietary laws (Lev 11; Deut 14). By gathering them all into a single vessel and presenting them to Peter, the vision dramatically signifies the obliteration of the legal and ritual distinctions between "clean" and "unclean." This breakdown is a symbolic precursor to the breakdown of barriers between Jew and Gentile, showing that God now considers all humanity as potentially clean and acceptable for salvation through Christ.
Acts 10 12 Bonus section
- The tripartite division of creatures (land animals, creeping things, and birds) often mirrors the ancient Hebrew categories for creation and dietary legislation, reinforcing the direct challenge to the very structure of the Mosaic Law concerning these distinctions.
- The dramatic presentation of "all manner of" creatures in a descending sheet underscores the divine origin and universal application of the message. This was not a selective modification of laws but a declaration that the entire category of clean/unclean distinctions regarding food, and its implication for people, was being superseded.
- This verse effectively functions as an interpretive key for later theological statements by Paul and other apostles regarding freedom from the Law (Col 2:16-17) and the breaking down of the Jew-Gentile barrier (Gal 3:28).
Acts 10 12 Commentary
Acts 10:12 provides the critical content of Peter's sheet vision, acting as a vivid illustration of the theological shift God was orchestrating. The specific and comprehensive enumeration of "all manner of" creatures, deliberately including animals strictly forbidden under the Mosaic Law, served as a stark challenge to Peter's deep-seated Jewish identity and purity concepts. It forced him to confront the notion that divinely established boundaries of cleanness were being re-evaluated. This scene is not merely about changing dietary practices; it symbolically represented the radical inclusiveness of the Gospel, preparing Peter to understand that if God had declared previously "unclean" animals (and by extension, "unclean" Gentiles) to be clean, then the previous dividing wall of separation (Eph 2:14-15) between Jew and Gentile had been removed. The verse sets the stage for a dramatic reorientation of mission, paving the way for the church's universal reach beyond Jewish confines.