Acts 12:17An Understandable Version (2005 edition)[Upon entering the house] he held up his hand to quiet them, and then went on to explain how the Lord had rescued him from jail. He said to them, “[Go] tell all this to James [the Lord’s half-brother] and to [the rest of] the brothers.” Then he left [them] and went elsewhere. See the chapter |
For, before certain [leaders] came from James [i.e., Jesus’ brother, a leader of the Jerusalem church, See Acts 12:17; 15:13-22], he had eaten [a social meal] with some Gentiles. But when these men came, he abruptly discontinued this practice out of fear of the circumcised ones [i.e., out of concern for what the Jews would think of him].
Also, when they perceived that this [special] favor [of preaching to Gentiles] was granted to me, James, Cephas [i.e., Peter] and John, the highly regarded pillars [i.e., leaders of the church] extended to me and Barnabas their right hands [signifying an agreement] to share [in the preaching of the Gospel], with us going to the Gentiles and they going to the circumcised ones [i.e., Jews].