Troublesome Topic: Precepts about Tongues from Acts 10:30-31
Acts 10:30
Translation
Then Cornelius brought it to light,
Go to footnote number“four days ago, I was continually praying in my house until this hour, the ninth hour, and behold, a man stood before me in bright
Go to footnote numberclothes,
Paraphrase
Then Cornelius (meaning unknown) clearly showed [the concealed nature] of the situation, “I had been praying in my house up until this same hour of the day, until 3 in the afternoon, when an amazing thing happened, [out of nowhere] a man was standing in front of me dressed in shining clothes.
CORNELIUS HAD A BURNING QUESTION
Cornelius had a deep desire to know the answer to something concealed, hidden from him. His burning question likely sounded something like this, “Does the God of Creation, as described in the Hebrew Scriptures, accept a Gentile like me?” “Can Gentiles be saved or is salvation only for the Jews?” This was similar to the type of burning question that someone in the Old Testament era would have taken to the priest and if the priest could not answer it, he would consult the Urim and the Thummim, the Light and the Completion.
Acts 10:31
Translation
He brought to light,
Go to footnote number“Cornelius, your prayer
Go to footnote numberhas been heard, and your compassionate giving to the poor
Go to footnote numberhas been remembered before God.
Paraphrase
This angel made the following clear to me, “Cornelius (meaning unknown) when you exchanged your will for God’s will through prayer, God took note of that; when you showed compassion by giving to the needy, God took note of that too.
THE FIRST CONFIRMATION THAT GOD ACCEPTS GENTILES
The first part of the answer to his burning question, the revealing of that which had been concealed, came as a visit from an angel to Cornelius. The angel indicated that God had taken note of Cornelius and had listened to him. Now let’s jump ahead to when Peter shows up at Cornelius’ house in response to a vision from God followed immediately by the invitation brought by the men Cornelius had sent to him.
The next lesson in the Full and Mid Length Series on Tongues is Precepts about Tongues from Acts 10:44-47
Footnotes
1
The root of the word used here means “to shine or bring to light;” it appears to be the Greek word from which we get out English word “epiphany.” It was also used in a general sense of “to declare or to say.” The choice of this word by the author, Dr Luke, is very interesting because it is the opposite of what Cornelius wanted to express, which was a burning, unanswered question. What Cornelius brought to light was his need to have something important brought to light.
2
We get our English word “lamp” from a Greek word that comes from the same root word as this one.
3
This is the same word used above, “to shine, to bring to light, to illuminate a matter with words.” The angel was bringing to light the answer to Cornelius’s question.
4
This word for prayer comes from two words meaning “toward” and “exchange,” or we would say, “exchange toward.” What is being exchanged? The human is looking to God and exchanging his will for Gods’ will.
5
This word means to demonstrate compassion, mercy or pity by giving to the needy. It comes from a root word meaning “mercy, compassion, pity.”