Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Acts 10:21-24

"And Peter went down to the men, and said, Behold, I am he whom ye seek: what is the cause wherefore ye are come? And they said, Cornelius a centurion, a righteous man and one that feareth God, and well reported of by all the nation of the Jews, was warned [of God] by a holy angel to send for thee into his house, and to hear words from thee. So he called them in and lodged them. And on the morrow he arose and went forth with them, and certain of the brethren from Joppa accompanied him. And on the morrow they entered into Caesarea. And Cornelius was waiting for them, having called together his kinsmen and his near friends." — Acts 10:21-24 (ASV)

(21–23a) In response to the Spirit’s urging, and probably by means of an outside stairway, Peter went down to meet the messengers. After he identified himself and asked why they had come, they told him of their master, Cornelius, of the angel’s visitation, and of their mission to bring Peter back so that he might tell their master what he had to say. In their response they characterized Cornelius as not only “a righteous and God-fearing man” (cf. comments on 10:2) but also as one whose personal qualities were witnessed to “by all the Jewish people.” Then Peter, in obedience to the command of the vision, received these Gentiles into the house as his guests, acting (no doubt with the tanner’s permission) more as a host than a lodger.

(23b–24) The conversation in the tanner’s house that evening must have been a lively one, with many of the Joppa believers joining in the discussion of the strange visions. Six of the Joppa believers accompanied Peter to Caesarea the next day (cf. 11:12), a wise action in view of the questions that would later be raised at Jerusalem. So the party of ten set out for Caesarea. It apparently took them longer to cover the thirty miles than the messengers had taken earlier because they did not get to Caesarea till the following day. Cornelius was expecting them and had drawn together a group of relatives and close friends to hear Peter.