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Acts 15

KJV · Chapter 15/28

1And certain men which came down from Judea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.

2When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of them, should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question.

3And being brought on their way by the church, they passed through Phenice and Samaria, declaring the conversion of the Gentiles: and they caused great joy unto all the brethren.

4And when they were come to Jerusalem, they were received of the church, and of the apostles and elders, and they declared all things that God had done with them.

5But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, That it was needful to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.

6And the apostles and elders came together for to consider of this matter.

7And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe.

8And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us;

9And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.

10Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?

11But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.

12Then all the multitude kept silence, and gave audience to Barnabas and Paul, declaring what miracles and wonders God had wrought among the Gentiles by them.

13And after they had held their peace, James answered, saying, Men and brethren, hearken unto me:

14Simeon hath declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name.

15And to this agree the words of the prophets; as it is written,

16After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up:

17That the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, saith the Lord, who doeth all these things.

18Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world.

19Wherefore my sentence is, that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to God:

20But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood.

21For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.

22Then pleased it the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; namely, Judas surnamed Barsabas, and Silas, chief men among the brethren:

23And they wrote letters by them after this manner; The apostles and elders and brethren send greeting unto the brethren which are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia:

24Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, Ye must be circumcised, and keep the law: to whom we gave no such commandment:

25It seemed good unto us, being assembled with one accord, to send chosen men unto you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,

26Men that have hazarded their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

27We have sent therefore Judas and Silas, who shall also tell you the same things by mouth.

28For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things;

29That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well.

30So when they were dismissed, they came to Antioch: and when they had gathered the multitude together, they delivered the epistle:

31Which when they had read, they rejoiced for the consolation.

32And Judas and Silas, being prophets also themselves, exhorted the brethren with many words, and confirmed them.

33And after they had tarried there a space, they were let go in peace from the brethren unto the apostles.

34Notwithstanding it pleased Silas to abide there still.

35Paul also and Barnabas continued in Antioch, teaching and preaching the word of the Lord, with many others also.

36And some days after Paul said unto Barnabas, Let us go again and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the Lord, and see how they do.

37And Barnabas determined to take with them John, whose surname was Mark.

38But Paul thought not good to take him with them, who departed from them from Pamphylia, and went not with them to the work.

39And the contention was so sharp between them, that they departed asunder one from the other: and so Barnabas took Mark, and sailed unto Cyprus;

40And Paul chose Silas, and departed, being recommended by the brethren unto the grace of God.

41And he went through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the churches.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

A great debate arises over whether converted Gentiles must follow the Jewish law, especially circumcision. Gathered in Jerusalem, the apostles decide they do not, asking only for a few practical restrictions.

Explanation

This is the so-called 'Council of Jerusalem,' a decisive moment that kept Christianity from becoming merely a Jewish sect. Peter, Paul, Barnabas, and James debate openly, and the final decision is communicated by letter to the Gentile churches, showing a mature process of collective decision-making in the early church. The principle established — salvation by grace, not by rituals — would shape all later Christian theology. The chapter ends with a personal disagreement between Paul and Barnabas over bringing John Mark, a reminder that even great leaders of faith have human conflicts.

Fun facts

  • The 'four restrictions' requested of the Gentiles (avoiding food sacrificed to idols, blood, the meat of strangled animals, and sexual immorality) corresponded to practices that would most offend Jews living alongside the new Gentile Christians in mixed social settings.
  • John Mark, whose abandoning the journey sparked the quarrel between Paul and Barnabas here, would later be reconciled with Paul, who mentions him fondly in 2 Timothy 4:11 — showing that the separation was not final.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Acts 15:1The heart of the chapter’s conflict: one group argued that converted Gentiles first needed to become Jews, undergoing circumcision, before they could be accepted as full Christians.
  2. Acts 15:2The conflict with this group is strong enough that the church decides to send Paul, Barnabas, and others to Jerusalem, taking the question directly to the apostles and elders there.
  3. Acts 15:3On the way to Jerusalem, the group passes through Phoenicia and Samaria telling of the conversion of the Gentiles, news that other Christians along the way receive with joy.
  4. Acts 15:4On arriving, they are officially received by the church, the apostles, and the elders of Jerusalem, to whom they report everything God had done among the Gentiles.
  5. Acts 15:5There were Pharisees who had accepted Jesus as the Messiah but kept practicing, and demanding of others, the traditional Jewish law. It is this group that raises the discussion about requiring circumcision of the Gentiles.
  6. Acts 15:6Faced with the question raised, the apostles and elders meet formally to discuss and decide the matter of circumcising the Gentiles.
  7. Acts 15:7After much debate, Peter takes the floor, recalling that it was he himself, years before, whom God chose to preach to the Gentiles for the first time, a reference to the episode with Cornelius.
  8. Acts 15:8Peter argues that God, who knows the heart of every person, had already confirmed the Gentiles’ acceptance by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He had to the Jews.
  9. Acts 15:9Peter concludes that God made no distinction at all between Jews and Gentiles, purifying the hearts of both by faith, not by outward rituals.
  10. Acts 15:10Peter asks why they would place on the Gentiles a “yoke” (the weight of the law) that not even the Jews themselves, throughout their history, had managed to bear properly.
  11. Acts 15:11Peter closes his argument by saying that both Jews and Gentiles are saved by the same grace of Jesus, and not by keeping the law.
  12. Acts 15:12The assembled crowd falls silent, listening to Barnabas and Paul tell of the miracles God had done through them among the Gentiles, reinforcing Peter’s argument with concrete examples.
  13. Acts 15:13This James is neither of the two apostles with that name, but the brother of Jesus, who became the chief leader of the church in Jerusalem. His closing word carries the weight of a decision because he presided over this local body.
  14. Acts 15:14James (not to be confused with the apostles of the same name) uses Peter’s Hebrew name, Simeon, to refer to the account of how God first visited the Gentiles through him.
  15. Acts 15:15James states that this acceptance of the Gentiles is no baseless novelty: the words of the Old Testament prophets already agreed with it.
  16. Acts 15:16James quotes the prophet Amos, about rebuilding “the tabernacle of David” that had fallen, an image of the restoration of the kingdom that Christians applied to the work of Jesus.
  17. Acts 15:17The quotation goes on to say that this restoration would allow both the remnant of Israel and all the Gentiles called by God’s name to seek Him.
  18. Acts 15:18James closes the quotation by recalling that these works had been known to God from all eternity, not some last-minute improvised plan.
  19. Acts 15:19Based on all this, James gives his judgment: they should not make life difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God by demanding of them the full Jewish law.
  20. Acts 15:20Instead of requiring the whole Jewish law, the council asks the Gentiles to observe only a few practical restrictions tied to customs that most bothered Jews sharing a table with them, such as meat with blood in it and animals killed by strangling, along with sexual conduct. Scholars debate whether the list is about ritual purity or about social coexistence.
  21. Acts 15:21James justifies not needing to teach the law of Moses to the Gentiles by pointing out that it was already preached and read regularly in the synagogues of every city each sabbath, for anyone who wanted to learn it on their own.
  22. Acts 15:22Judas Barsabas and Silas are two representatives chosen to carry the letter with the council’s decision to Antioch, lending personal weight and credibility to the written message, beyond the document itself.
  23. Acts 15:23The council’s official letter opens with a simple greeting from the apostles, elders, and brethren of Jerusalem to the Gentile Christians of Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia.
  24. Acts 15:24The letter acknowledges the problem: some had gone out from Jerusalem without authorization and troubled the Gentiles by demanding circumcision and observance of the law, something the Jerusalem leadership had never commanded.
  25. Acts 15:25For this reason they decide, with one accord, to choose representatives to accompany Barnabas and Paul back, giving more weight and credibility to the written message.
  26. Acts 15:26The letter commends Barnabas and Paul as men who had already risked their own lives for the name of Jesus, reinforcing the confidence Jerusalem had in the two of them.
  27. Acts 15:27Along with the letter, they send Judas and Silas, who will also personally confirm by word of mouth everything that was written.
  28. Acts 15:28The final decision is credited to both the Holy Spirit and the council itself, a way of showing that the resolution was not merely human, but guided by God.
  29. Acts 15:29This is the council’s official decision, repeated in the letter sent to the Gentiles of Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia. It is the first formal document on record from the church addressing a doctrinal dispute.
  30. Acts 15:30As soon as they arrive in Antioch, the messengers gather the local congregation and deliver the letter with the council’s decision.
  31. Acts 15:31The reading of the letter brings immediate relief and joy to the Gentile Christians of Antioch, who finally had an official answer to the controversy.
  32. Acts 15:32Judas and Silas, who were also prophets, use the visit to encourage and strengthen the brethren with a good deal of teaching, beyond simply delivering the letter.
  33. Acts 15:33After some time in Antioch, the brethren send them off in peace to return to the apostles who had sent them.
  34. Acts 15:34This verse, present in older manuscript traditions such as the one the KJV follows but absent from many other Greek manuscripts, explains why Silas reappears in the city right afterward: he decides to stay there instead of returning with Judas.
  35. Acts 15:35Paul and Barnabas also remain in Antioch for a while, continuing to teach and preach the word of the Lord together with other coworkers.
  36. Acts 15:36After a while, Paul proposes to Barnabas that they go back to the cities where they had already preached, just to see how the new Christians were doing.
  37. Acts 15:37Barnabas wants to bring John Mark along again, the same nephew of his who had abandoned the previous journey in Pamphylia.
  38. Acts 15:38Paul disagrees, thinking it wrong to bring along someone who had already quit partway through the first journey, without finishing the agreed work.
  39. Acts 15:39Paul and Barnabas break up their partnership over John Mark, who had abandoned the previous journey. The text does not hide the personal conflict between the two leaders, showing that strong disagreements existed even among apostles.
  40. Acts 15:40After parting ways with Barnabas, Paul chooses Silas as his new traveling companion, and the two set out with the blessing and support of the brethren in Antioch.
  41. Acts 15:41Paul and Silas travel by land through Syria and Cilicia, visiting and strengthening churches that probably already existed in those regions.

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