Some
men came down from Judea and taught the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised after the custom of Moses, you can’t be saved.” Therefore when Paul and Barnabas had no small discord and discussion with them, they appointed Paul and Barnabas, and some others of them, to go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders about this question. They, being sent on their way by the assembly, passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria, declaring the conversion of the Gentiles. They caused great joy to all the brothers. When they had come to Jerusalem, they were received by the assembly and the apostles and the elders, and they reported all things that God had done with them. But some of the sect of the Pharisees who believed rose up, saying, “It is necessary to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.”
Acts 15:1-5
Acts 14 [24.] They passed through Pisidia, and came to Pamphylia. When they had spoken the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia. From there they sailed to Antioch, from where they had been committed to the grace of God for the work which they had fulfilled. When they had arrived, and had gathered the assembly together, they reported all the things that God had done with them, and that he had opened a door of faith to the nations. They stayed there with the disciples for a long time.
Acts 15 [1.] Some men came down from Judea and taught the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised after the custom of Moses, you can’t be saved.” Therefore when Paul and Barnabas had no small discord and discussion with them, they appointed Paul and Barnabas, and some others of them, to go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders about this question. They, being sent on their way by the assembly, passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria, declaring the conversion of the Gentiles. They caused great joy to all the brothers. When they had come to Jerusalem, they were received by the assembly and the apostles and the elders, and they reported all things that God had done with them.
Acts 15 [5.] But some of the sect of the Pharisees who believed rose up, saying, “It is necessary to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.”
Acts 15 [6.] The apostles and the elders were gathered together to see about this matter. When there had been much discussion, Peter rose up and said to them, “Brothers, you know that a good while ago God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the nations should hear the word of the Good News, and believe. God, who knows the heart, testified about them, giving them the Holy Spirit, just like he did to us. He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith. Now therefore why do you tempt God, that you should put a yoke on the neck of the disciples which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear? But we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they are.”
Meaning:
Paul and Barnabas had just returned to Antioch from their first missionary journey. They “reported all the things that God had done with them, and that he had opened a door of faith to the nations” (Acts 14:27). Many Gentiles had believed. Now a question arose that would shape the whole church: must Gentile believers become Jews in order to belong to God’s people? These verses describe how the dispute began and how the church chose to settle it.
- “Unless you are circumcised after the custom of Moses, you can’t be saved”
Circumcision was the sign of God’s covenant with Abraham: “Every male among you shall be circumcised… It will be a token of the covenant between me and you” (Genesis 17:10-11). For devout Jews it was not a minor custom. It marked who belonged to the covenant people. The visitors from Judea were not denying that Jesus saves. They were adding a condition: faith in Jesus was not enough without circumcision and the law. Peter had faced a similar complaint after visiting Cornelius: “You went in to uncircumcised men, and ate with them!” (Acts 11:2). That earlier dispute had ended in praise to God (Acts 11:18), but the question had now returned in a sharper form.
- “No small discord and discussion with them”
Paul and Barnabas did not keep quiet for the sake of peace. They saw that the heart of the Good News was at stake. Paul later wrote of “false brothers secretly brought in, who stole in to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage” (Galatians 2:4). Many readers connect those words with this dispute; others link Galatians 2 with the earlier famine visit. Either way, Paul’s view is clear: “in Christ Jesus neither circumcision amounts to anything, nor uncircumcision, but faith working through love” (Galatians 5:6).
- “To go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders about this question”
The church at Antioch did not simply split over the matter. It sent Paul, Barnabas and others to Jerusalem, where the apostles and elders were. The question affected every church.
- “Declaring the conversion of the Gentiles. They caused great joy”
On the way the delegates passed through Phoenicia and Samaria. Samaria had already known great joy when Philip “proclaimed to them the Christ” (Acts 8:5). Now the believers there rejoiced to hear that Gentiles were turning to God. Their joy echoes heaven’s: “there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner repenting” (Luke 15:10).
- “Some of the sect of the Pharisees who believed”
These men were believers, not enemies of the church. Paul himself had been “concerning the law, a Pharisee” (Philippians 3:5). They sincerely wanted to honor God’s law, and said, “It is necessary to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.” The council that followed had to decide whether this was right.
The Significance of Acts 15:1-5
- Guarding the Good News
Some disagreements are about preferences; others touch the heart of the faith. When anything is added to faith in Christ as a condition of salvation, the Good News itself is at risk. The early church took that seriously.
- Disagreeing well
The church at Antioch did not ignore the conflict or let it divide them. They took it to the apostles and elders. Disputes handled openly and humbly can strengthen the church instead of breaking it.
Cross-References:
Genesis 17:11: "It will be a token of the covenant between me and you." Circumcision as the sign of God’s covenant with Abraham.
Galatians 5:6: "For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision amounts to anything, nor uncircumcision, but faith working through love." Paul’s answer to the question.
Acts 11:2: "You went in to uncircumcised men, and ate with them!" An earlier form of the same dispute.
Luke 15:10: "There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner repenting." The joy of Phoenicia and Samaria.
Conclusion: Teachers from Judea told the Gentile believers in Antioch that they could not be saved unless they were circumcised. Paul and Barnabas strongly disagreed, and the church sent them to Jerusalem, where they reported all that God had done, while some believing Pharisees insisted that Gentiles must keep the law of Moses. The scene is set for the council that would decide how Gentiles enter God’s people.
PIB Scriptures are derived from the World English Bible