Peter's Vision: About People, Not Food
Why Acts 10 doesn't abolish clean and unclean food distinctions
The Question
In Acts 10, Peter receives a vision with a sheet full of animals and a voice saying "kill and eat." Many interpret this as God abolishing the clean/unclean food distinctions. But Peter himself tells us what the vision meant, and it wasn't about food at all.
The Vision in Context
What Peter Saw (Acts 10:9-16)
"And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending unto him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth: Wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air. And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat. But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean. And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common."Acts 10:11-15
What Peter Understood (Acts 10:28, 34-35)
"God hath shewed me that I should not call any man common or unclean... Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him."Acts 10:28, 34-35
Peter's Own Interpretation
Peter did not say "God showed me that all foods are now clean." He said "God hath shewed me that I should not call any man common or unclean." The sheet full of animals represented Gentile nations. God was preparing Peter to enter a Gentile home, which Jewish custom forbade, and to welcome Cornelius into the faith.
Clean and Unclean: A Creation Distinction
The distinction between clean and unclean animals did not begin at Sinai. Noah knew it over 1,600 years before Moses.
God gave Noah these instructions without explanation, indicating Noah already understood the distinction. This predates the Levitical system by over a millennium. Like the Sabbath, the clean/unclean distinction is a creation ordinance, not a ceremonial shadow.
| Creation Ordinances | Ceremonial Laws |
|---|---|
| Existed before Sinai | Given at Sinai |
| Examples: Sabbath, clean/unclean animals, marriage | Examples: Sacrifices, feast days, temple rituals |
| Reflect God's eternal design | Pointed to Christ's sacrifice |
| Still binding after the cross | Fulfilled at the cross |
Isaiah's End-Time Warning
If clean/unclean food distinctions were abolished at the cross, why does Isaiah prophesy judgment on those eating unclean food at the end of time?
Five verses later, the same chapter describes Sabbath worship in the new earth:
Diet and Sabbath appear together because both reflect God's original creation design. Neither was abolished at the cross. Both remain tests in the end times.
Common Objections
Objection: "But the voice said 'What God hath cleansed, call not thou common'"
Response
Yes, and Peter tells us what was cleansed: people, not pigs. The vision used animals as symbols for Gentile nations. God was cleansing the separation between Jew and Gentile for fellowship and gospel purposes, not declaring all animals fit for food. Peter never ate the animals in the vision. He never afterward claimed the vision changed dietary practice.
Objection: "Mark 7:19 says Jesus declared all foods clean"
Response
The phrase "purging all meats" (KJV) or "thus he declared all foods clean" (NIV) refers to the digestive process, not to abolishing food categories. Jesus was addressing hand-washing traditions, not clean/unclean distinctions. The context is ritual defilement from unwashed hands, not which animals may be eaten. If Jesus abolished food laws in Mark 7, why was Peter still keeping them years later in Acts 10?
Objection: "Romans 14 says nothing is unclean of itself"
Response
Romans 14:14 uses the Greek word "koinos" (common), not "akathartos" (unclean). Paul is addressing whether food sacrificed to idols is defiled by association, not whether pigs are now kosher. The distinction between ritually common (koinos) and inherently unclean (akathartos) is significant. Peter used both words in Acts 10:14: "I have never eaten any thing that is common (koinos) or unclean (akathartos)."
The Timeline Test
Ask: When did clean/unclean begin? Does it continue into eternity?
What About the Sabbath?
The original question was: "If God changed the food laws through a vision, why didn't He give a similar vision about the Sabbath?"
The answer is now clear: God did not change the food laws through Acts 10. Peter's vision was about people, not food. The clean/unclean distinction, like the Sabbath, is a creation ordinance that predates Sinai and continues into eternity.
No vision was needed to change either one because neither was changed.
The Bottom Line
Peter's vision in Acts 10 was about welcoming Gentiles into the faith, not about abolishing dietary distinctions. Peter himself said the vision taught him not to call any man common or unclean.
The clean/unclean animal distinction predates Sinai (Genesis 7:2), continues through the cross, and remains relevant at the end of time (Isaiah 66:17). Like the Sabbath, it reflects God's original creation design.
Full Study: Clean and Unclean Foods →