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Does
Peter’s Vision Show That Christians
Allowed to Eat Pork?
Eric V. Snow
Does the vision of Peter in Acts 10:10-17, 11:7-10 authorize
Christian to eat pork, shellfish, and other kinds of unclean meat? Since the bible’s own interpretation of the
vision shows that it was about not calling any (gentile) man unclean, It wasn’t
about revealing that unclean food is permissible to eat.
To ask a general question related to this subject, are the
laws concerning clean and unclean meat binding on Christians? Those who believe the laws prohibiting the
eating of pork, shellfish, and other animals found in Leviticus 11:1-32;
Deuteronomy 14:1-21 were abolished commonly cited the vision of Peter in Acts
10 to justify their doctrine.
However, how does the bible itself interpret this
vision? It’s claimed that one can't say
the gentiles are literally clean without the animals in the vision having been
made clean as well. However, this conclusion was not what Peter drew
from his vision--all he mentioned when interpreting it for us was it concerned
the gentiles being clean (v. 10): "You yourselves know how
unlawful it is for a man who is a Jew to associate with a foreigner or to visit
him; and yet God has shown me that I should not call any man unholy [literally,
'common'] or unclean." Why should we read more into it? To do so becomes an exercise with eisegesis,
or reading into a text a desired meaning, instead of exegesis, which is
deriving out from a text its meaning. After all, God may have
ordered Peter to "Arise . . . kill and eat!," but it is
hazardous to take literally anything associated with a vision
itself. (Furthermore, God ordered Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, but
that was a command He did not actually wish to be fully obeyed). Many years after Jesus’ death, which
supposedly ended the laws prohibiting the eating of unclean meat, Peter still
replied to this command to eat these animals (Acts 10:14): ‘By no means, Lord, for I have never eaten
anything unholy and unclean.” He saw
the sheet with the animals descend three times (verses 16-17), which evidently
corresponded to the three gentiles who wanted to meet him: “And while Peter was reflecting on the
vision, the Spirit said to him, ‘Behold, three men are looking for you. But arise, go downstairs, and accompany them
without misgivings; for I have sent them Myself.’” So this vision clearly isn’t
about abolishing the laws regulating clean and unclean meat.
Above all, we know from elsewhere in the New Testament that
not all the animals are now clean (Rev. 18:2): "And she
[Babylon] has become a . . . prison of every unclean and hateful
bird." Furthermore, when the Second Coming occurs, punishment
comes upon those who eat unclean food, which shows these animals aren't clean
now (Isaiah 66:16-17):
“For the Lord will execute judgment by fire and by His sword
on all flesh, and those slain by the Lord will be many. Those who
sanctify and purify themselves to go to the gardens, following one in the
center, who eat swine's flesh, detestable things, and mice, shall come to an
end altogether,' declares the Lord.
Therefore, good reasons exist to believe the law against eating
clean and unclean meat is still binding today on Christians.”
As explained above, Peter’s vision about the sheet full of
clean and unclean animals was about accepting repentant gentiles into the
faith, not about making unclean meat clean.
Eric V. Snow
www.lionofjudah1.org
Eric Snow
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