Acts 15:1-41

The Question of Circumcision

1-35. The Council of Jerusalem, 49 a.d. The usual view is that Galatians 2:1 describes the visit of St. Paul to Jerusalem on the occasion of this Council. Adopting this, the following was the course of events. The baptism of Gentiles by St. Paul on his First Missionary Journey, without requiring them to be circumcised or to keep the Law, was keenly criticised at Jerusalem by the Pharisaic party within the Church. Some of these malcontents even came to Antioch, teaching that 'except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved' (Acts 15:1). They falsely professed to have the support of Peter and James, and St. Paul indignantly refers to them as 'false brethren privily brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus' (Galatians 2:4). They demanded that Paul and Barnabas should go up to Jerusalem, and submit the matter to the superior authority of the Twelve. At first St. Paul refused to go, regarding himself as possessing an independent and equal authority. But on receiving a special revelation (Galatians 2:2) that the result would be favourable to his views, and would tend to the furtherance of the gospel, he consented to go, taking with him Barnabas, and Titus, one of his Gentile converts. Before the Council, private conferences were held between St. Paul and the heads of the Church of Jerusalem, with the object of reaching a settlement. As a step towards this, the circumcision of Titus was vehemently demanded by the Judaisers, and apparently recommended by the Twelve. As Titus was intended to be a fellow-worker of St. Paul, and would accordingly be brought into frequent close contact with Jews, much was to be said for this course. What happened is not quite clear. Most think that Titus was not circumcised; others that St. Paul, receiving an assurance that the main question, that of Gentile freedom, would be decided in his favour, gave way on the minor point, and circumcised Titus, not under compulsion, but as a spontaneous act of Christian charity (compare his conduct in the case of Timothy, Acts 16:3). Before the Conference a complete settlement was reached. The Twelve acknowledged Paul's teaching as orthodox, recognised him as the Apostle of the Gentiles, conceded his demand that the Gentiles should be free from the observance of the Law, and gave him the right hand of fellowship. After this the result of the Council was a foregone conclusion.

Some scholars take an entirely different view of the historical situation. They think that the visit to Jerusalem described in Galatians 2:1 is not that of Acts 15 at all, but that of Acts 11:29; Acts 11:30. They regard the Epistle to the Galatians as written before the Council, during the heat of the circumcision controversy, and they place Peter's visit to Antioch (Galatians 2:11.) also before the Council. Much can be said in favour of this view, and the present writer is inclined to favour it.