Acts x. 34, 35. Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons : but in every nation lie that fear eth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.
GOD's purpose of love towards the Gentile world had been made known even from the time that God
separated Abraham and his posterity as a peculiar people unto himself. The call of Abraham in an un- circumcised state, and the justifying of him by faith whilst he yet continued uncircumcised, was in itself a sign that God would not ultimately limit his mer- cies to those of the circumcision: and his declaration, that in Abraham and his seed all the nations of the earth should be blessed, was a pledge that in due time all the nations of the earth, Gentiles as well as Jews, should be blessed in Christ. Our Lord had repeatedly informed his Disciples, that " he had other sheep, which were not of the Jewish fold ; " and, that " many should come from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and sit down with the Patriarchs in the kingdom of heaven ;" whilst the Jews, the natural " children of that kingdom, should be cast out." He had given the express com- mand, that " his Gospel should be preached to every creature ;" and he had actually " given to Peter the keys of the kingdom of heaven," that he might open the gates thereof both to Jews and Gentiles. In obedience to this commission, Peter had opened the kingdom to the Jews on the day of Pentecost; but so entirely was he under the power of Jewish prejudice, that, for six years, both he, and all the other Apostles, had forborne to preach unto the Gentiles : nor, till he was overcome by the force of evidence which he could no longer doubt, would he believe that the Gentiles were to be admitted to the privileges of the Gospel. His doubts however being at last removed, he, with a mixture of surprise and joy, acknowledged his former error, and proclaimed the blessed truth which we have just read to you.
We propose to state, I. The import of his words —
Plain as the words of our text appear, they have been very differently interpreted by different persons; some supposing them to be decisive upon points, wherewith, in the eyes of others, they have no imme- diate connexion. We will endeavour therefore to shew,