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Four things are spoken of here. The same four things are listed in verse 20, although the order is different. However the order in Acts 21:25 is the same as in the quotation at the head of this article. The things listed appear in a letter sent by the apostles, and the elders, and the brethren from Jerusalem after there had been a meeting about the matter of circumcision (Acts 15:6). Some would call it a church council, though it is not called that in Scripture. It was said in the letter that “it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us” (verse 28). All this would indicate that the matter had the weight of the Holy Spirit behind it as well as that of the apostles and elders and therefore it should be taken seriously by the Lord’s people. It is also clear that Paul took the decrees seriously because he and Silas passed them on to the assemblies that they visited as recorded in Acts 16:4. |
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Certain things are to be noticed. Firstly, three out of the four things mentioned are clearly matters of what we should eat. Secondly, the things are not prescriptions only laid down in the Mosaic law; they were in existence before then. This we shall have to demonstrate. We may say that the order is not important as it is not the same in all three places where the prohibitions are listed. Language makes it necessary for things to be mentioned one after the other: all cannot be spoken at the same instant or written on the same spot. Perhaps we should bear this in mind when noting the order in which things are put in Scripture. |
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There are actually two pairs of things mentioned: “pollutions of idols, and from fornication” and also “what is strangled, and from blood” (Acts 15:20). |
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Taking the second pair first it is clear that the prohibition was originally laid down by God in Genesis 9:4. In Eden God had given the fruits of all the trees to Adam and Eve to eat save the fruit of one tree (Genesis 2:16/17) and it is also clear from Genesis 1:29/30 and 3:18 that man was permitted to eat all |