Acts 10:1-8

A God Fearing Gentile Is Directed to Seek the Truth

The city of Caesarea, according to Ash, was "an important seaport and the center of the Roman government and militia for the area. Both Greeks and Jews populated the city, often inharmoniously." Luke told Theophilus that in that city was a centurion, or commander of a hundred men, named Cornelius. He was of the Italian regiment, or cohort, which would have numbered between 600 and 1,000. The beloved physician described him as being devout, God fearing, one who gave generous gifts to those who might have been in need and prayed. Luke noted that his household also feared God, which was a way of describing one who believed in the God of Abraham but had refused to be circumcised.

At three in the afternoon, which was the ninth hour and a Jewish hour of prayer, an angel appeared to Cornelius in a vision. He reassured the frightened centurion by telling him God positively received his sacrifices. Then, as the ultimate proof of that acceptance, God directed that Cornelius send men to Joppa to call for Simon Peter at the house of a tanner named Simon. Immediately following the angel's departure, Cornelius dispatched two servants and a religious soldier to the city of Joppa (Acts 10:1-8).