And when the angel who was speaking to him had departed, having called two of his household and a pious soldier of those who were constantly with him,
The angel leaves, and nothing looks different — a Roman officer in Caesarea has orders to fetch a stranger from another town. What Cornelius does next, and whom he picks to do it, says a great deal about him and about how God works.
Cornelius sent three men on an errand. One writer sets that small act against the new thing God was doing:
Here is a new and important fact. God was thinking about the Gentiles, and desired to admit them to the assembly without their becoming Jews or submitting to the law. Cornelius was a truly devout man, humble, and fearing God. He acts at once on the angel's word. He calls two of his servants and a devout soldier, tells them everything that had happened, and sends them to call for Peter.
Notice what the angel did not do:
Here is another point worth noticing. Angels are not mentioned as preaching the gospel. When God sent the angel to Cornelius to guide him in his search for truth, the angel did not preach the gospel to him. He told him to send for a man. Cornelius heard of the Saviour not from the mouth of the mighty angel, but from the lips of a sinner saved by grace. So we see how in service a man in grace enjoys a privilege denied to angels.
There is no gap between the angel leaving and the men leaving. One writer makes that speed the point:
Look at this earnest seeker! No sooner has the angel departed than he obeys the instructions God gave him (Acts 10:7-8). He feels that not a moment is to be lost. And, my reader, can you afford to wait another day to settle the concerns of your soul? The moment this man hears God's word, he sends off his three servants to Joppa, a forty-mile journey along the sea-coast. Travelling was not very fast in those days, and they no doubt stayed somewhere for the night (Acts 10:9). But Cornelius was not kept waiting long. God loves to meet an anxious soul, and often does it straight away.
Why send for Peter at all, instead of going to Joppa himself?
The angel tells him not to go to Joppa himself, but to send men to bring Simon Peter from there, and gives directions for finding him. This was the occasion when Gentiles were publicly admitted into the kingdom of heaven. So it was important that Peter should present the gospel to many of them together. Cornelius chose two household servants and a devout soldier he could depend on to carry the message to Peter.
Why would a soldier be called devout? Look at the man he served:
He feared God "with all his house." There are very few people of whom that can be said. "With all his house" would include his servants and children.
The three who set out from Caesarea had a part beyond carrying a message:
Man's will had to be shut out, as well as man's wisdom. What could do that better than the vision of Cornelius on one side and the vision of Peter on the other? The "three men" from Caesarea, and the six believers who came with Peter from Joppa, bore witness to their agreement, which was of high value and unmistakable meaning. Men were largely used here, and they were deeply involved, but in a way that showed every honest mind that God was the moving spring in it all.
The verse mentions the soldier in passing. One writer keeps his eye on him:
The "devout soldier" with two household servants has his lowly but valuable place. He was soon to share the blessing, and so was the devout centurion he waited on so closely. That blessing is marked by the power of grace. It brings down people far higher than Cornelius, and lifts up people far lower than the Roman soldier. It unites all believers, even here below, in one heavenly and unbreakable relationship to Christ.
- Word. The angel gave directions, not the gospel. He sent Cornelius to a man, because the news of the Saviour comes from the lips of someone saved by grace.
- Obedience. As soon as the angel left, Cornelius acted — no delay, no thinking it over; God loves to meet an anxious soul quickly.
- Messengers. He sent men he could depend on — two from his house, one from his guard. Their witness later confirmed that God was behind the whole thing.
- Household. The verse calls the soldier devout. His master feared God with all his house, and that house included his servants.
- Share. The soldier who carried the message shared the blessing. Grace lifted a Roman soldier and a Roman officer into one relationship to Christ.
and related all things to them, he sent them to Joppa.
An angel has just told Cornelius, a Roman officer, where to find a man named Peter. Peter is some forty miles away in the port town of Joppa. Verse 8 records what Cornelius did with that instruction — and how one errand opened the way for the gospel to reach non-Jews.
The timing of this errand comes with a question for the reader.
Look at this earnest seeker! No sooner has the angel departed than he obeys the instructions God gave him (Acts 10:7-8). He feels that not a moment is to be lost. And, my reader, can you afford to wait another day to get the concerns of your soul settled? The moment this man hears God's word, he sends his three servants off to Joppa, a forty-mile journey along the sea-coast. Travel was not very fast in those days, and no doubt they stayed somewhere for the night (Acts 10:9). But Cornelius was not kept waiting long. God loves to meet an anxious soul, and often does it at once.
Behind the speed was the state of his heart:
To this interesting Gentile, then, the gospel of Christ was to be declared. The angel told him to send for Peter, who was then at Joppa, staying with Simon a tanner. His obedience was prompt, his heart simple before God. He sent off two household servants with a devout soldier.
Cornelius does not send the men off with a bare order. He passes on the whole account first. And the errand belongs to something new — God reaching Gentiles apart from the Jews.
Independently of the Jews, He sends His angel to Cornelius. His prayers and alms are recognised as being acceptable to God. He is told to send men to Joppa to call for Simon, who, the angel tells him, was staying with one Simon, a tanner. He would tell him what he ought to do. Here is a new and important fact. God was thinking about the Gentiles. He desired to admit them to the assembly without their becoming Jews or submitting to the law. Cornelius is a devout man, humble, and fearing God. He acts at once on the word of the angel. He calls two of his servants and a devout soldier, tells them all that had happened, and sends them to call for Peter.
The angel could have explained the gospel on the spot and spared everyone the journey. He did not. The reason lies in who may carry such a message.
No difficulty arose here, for Cornelius did at once what he was told. The angel, you notice, did not cut a long story short by telling Cornelius the message himself. The message of grace can only be rightly told by a man who is himself a subject of grace. So Peter must be called.
Three messengers go, picked from his household and his guard. Cornelius stays behind — and the group waiting with him is part of why Peter had to come.
He is told not to go to Joppa himself, but to send men to bring Simon Peter from there, with directions where to find him. This was the occasion of openly admitting Gentiles into the kingdom of heaven. So it was important that Peter should present the gospel to many of them together. Cornelius chose two household servants and a devout soldier he could depend on to carry the message to Peter (vv.7-8).
Two visions and three messengers, and still no one could claim the plan was his own. The men who ran the errand also shared in what they carried.
But it was of the greatest importance that man's will should be shut out as well as man's wisdom. What could be more effective for this than the vision of Cornelius on the one hand and that of Peter on the other?... Men were much used here, and were concerned in the deepest way. But it was all done so as to show every honest mind that God was the moving spring in it all. The "devout soldier" with the two servants has his lowly but valuable place. He was soon to share the blessing, and so was the devout centurion he waited on so closely. That blessing is marked by the power of grace which brings down one far higher than Cornelius, and lifts up one far lower than the Roman soldier. It unites all believers, even here below, in one heavenly and unbreakable relationship to Christ.
- Sent at once. The messengers were on the road as soon as the angel left. Obedience that waits for tomorrow is not obedience.
- Sent informed. Cornelius told his men the whole story first. They carried a message they understood, not just an order.
- Sent for a man. The angel did not preach. Only a man who has himself received grace can rightly tell the message, so Peter had to be called.
- Sent by choice. He picked two servants and a soldier he could rely on, since Peter had to come and preach to a group of Gentiles together.
- Sent into blessing. The soldier who ran the errand came to share the blessing himself. Grace brings down the highest and lifts up the lowest, and joins all believers to Christ.