The Council at Jerusalem (Acts 15:5–21)
2 UST I went up there because of what God revealed to me.{ It was not because someone asked me to come.} I told people the content of the good news that I preach to non- Jews. But I spoke privately to those whom your new teachers highly respect so that what I was doing and what I had done might not become useless. That could have happened if people rejected my message because they thought that I was teaching falsely,{ which could have happened if the leaders in Jerusalem would have disagreed with my message}. BSB BSB: I went in response to a revelation and set before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. But I spoke privately to those recognized as leaders, for fear that I was running or had already run in vain.
3 UST But those leaders did not even require Titus, who was with me and was an uncircumcised Gentile, to be circumcised. BSB BSB: Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek.
4 UST But this problem occurred because{ some people demanded that Titus be circumcised} after they had successfully pretended that they were fellow believers and associated with the true believers. They associated with the true believers in order that they might observe closely what we do because we are free from having to obey all the Jewish laws and rituals because of our close relationship with the Messiah Jesus. Those people wanted to make us like slaves of those rituals{ by convincing us that we cannot trust the Messiah solely but that we must also obey all the Jewish laws and rituals}. BSB BSB: This issue arose because some false brothers had come in under false pretenses to spy on our freedom in Christ Jesus, in order to enslave us.
5 UST But not even briefly did we do what they wanted regarding circumcision. We resisted them in order that you might continue to have, and benefit from, the true, correct, and unmodified good news. BSB BSB: We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel would remain with you.
6 UST The leaders in Jerusalem, whom your new teachers respect, did not add anything to what I proclaim. And I would add that what status those leaders had did not influence me, because God does not favor important and powerful persons more than others. BSB BSB: But as for the highly esteemed—whatever they were makes no difference to me; God does not show favoritism—those leaders added nothing to me.
7 UST Instead{ of those leaders adding to the content of the message that I tell people,} they understood that God had given me the good news so that I might proclaim it to the non- Jews, just like God had given the good news to Peter so that he might tell it to those who are Jews. BSB BSB: On the contrary, they saw that I had been entrusted to preach the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been to the circumcised.
8 UST That is, just like God had authorized and empowered Peter in order that he might be a representative of Jesus to take God’ s message to the Jews, he also had authorized and empowered me in order that I might be a representative of Jesus to take God’ s message to the non- Jews. BSB BSB: For the One who was at work in Peter’s apostleship to the circumcised was also at work in my apostleship to the Gentiles.
9 UST Those leaders knew that God had kindly given to me this special mission. So James, Peter, and John, the ones whom your new teachers respect because they are leaders of the believers, shook hands with us to show that they agreed that Barnabas and I are serving the Lord just like they are, and that we are preaching the same message that they are preaching. They also agreed that we are the ones whom God was sending to tell his message to non- Jews, but that God is sending them to tell his message to Jews. BSB BSB: And recognizing the grace that I had been given, James, Cephas, and John—those reputed to be pillars—gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, so that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the circumcised. 10 UST They only urged us to still remember to help the poor among the fellow believers who live in Jerusalem. That is exactly what I have been eager to do. BSB BSB: They only asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.
Paul Confronts Cephas 11 UST But later, Peter became guilty of doing wrong things. This happened while he was visiting us in the city of Antioch. So I confronted him directly about those things. BSB BSB: When Cephas came to Antioch, however, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned.
12 UST This is what happened: Peter had been eating with the non- Jewish believers there. But then some men came who were from{ the group of Jewish believers in Jerusalem that} James{ was leading}. These men said that believers should keep the Jewish laws. Peter was afraid of what people who want Jewish believers to keep the Jewish laws might do, and so he began to withdraw from the non- Jews and eat with only the Jewish believers. BSB BSB: For before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself, for fear of those in the circumcision group.
13 UST Also, the other Jewish believers who were in Antioch acted in a way that they knew was not right, along with Peter{, when they separated themselves from the non- Jewish believers}. The result was that{ they convinced} even Barnabas to stop associating with the non- Jewish believers! BSB BSB: The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray.
14 UST I had realized that they were not acting forthrightly and in a manner that was consistent with the correct facts and teachings of the good news about the Messiah.{ So when all the fellow believers had come together,} I told Peter{ the following:}“Although you are a Jew, you often conduct yourself like non- Jews do by disregarding Jewish laws about food. When you are among non- Jews, you do not customarily conduct yourself at all like Jews do. So, now it is wrong that you are causing non- Jews to think that they must obey all the Jewish rituals and customs! BSB BSB: When I saw that they were not walking in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in front of them all, “If you, who are a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews?”
15 UST We were born as Jews.{ We were} not{ born} as non- Jews. We Jews have always considered non- Jews to be‘sinners’ because they do not obey the Jewish rituals and laws. BSB BSB: We who are Jews by birth and not Gentile “sinners”
16 UST But we Jewish believers now know that it is not because some person obeys those things{ that God commanded} in the laws{ he gave the Jews} that God makes a person righteous.{ God makes a person righteous} only if that person trusts in the Messiah Jesus. So even we Jews have trusted the Messiah Jesus.{ We did that} so God would declare us good in his sight, because we trust the Messiah, and not because we try to obey the laws that God gave to Moses. We did that because God has said that he will not declare anyone good in his sight just because they obey those laws. BSB BSB: know that a man is not justified by works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have believed in Christ Jesus, that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.
17 UST Furthermore, because we{ Jewish believers} desired that God would make us righteous because of our relationship with the Messiah, it means that we ourselves, like non- Jews{ whom we called sinners,} also disobeyed the laws and rituals that God gave Moses. But we certainly cannot conclude that it is the Messiah who causes us to sin. No, the Messiah certainly does not cause anyone to sin. BSB BSB: But if, while we seek to be justified in Christ, we ourselves are found to be sinners, does that make Christ a minister of sin? Certainly not!
18 UST If I again believed that God would make me righteous because of my obeying the laws that he gave to Moses, I would be like a man who rebuilds an old building that he had torn down. If I did that I would show that I was guilty of acting wrongly. BSB BSB: If I rebuild what I have already torn down, I prove myself to be a lawbreaker.
19 UST I realized that God would not regard me as righteous because I tried to obey the laws that he gave to Moses. So I have decided not to respond to what those laws demand, just like a dead person does not respond to anything.{ I decided to do this} so that I may now live to serve God. It is as though I was with the Messiah when he died on the cross. BSB BSB: For through the law I died to the law so that I might live to God.
20 UST My old way of living ended since I began believing in the Messiah. No longer am I directing the way I behave as I did before{ I believed in the Messiah}. Now the Messiah is directing how I behave. And whatever I do now while I live in my earthly body, I do it by trusting in God’ s Son. He is the one who loved me and offered himself as a sacrifice for me. BSB BSB: I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.
21 UST I am not rejecting as useless what God kindly did for me{, as my opponents are doing}. If God considers people to be righteous because they obey the laws that he gave to Moses, then the Messiah died needlessly!” BSB BSB: I do not set aside the grace of God. For if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing.
Select verses for actions: Enter goes to them and Escape comes back.