Since the vision that follows doubtless may be regarded as an answer to Cornelius’ prayers, it is natural to think that he was seeking guidance to greater knowledge of God’s way (see Acts 11:14).
The people.
That is, the Jews, as contrasted with “the nations,” the Gentiles.
Much alms.
Cornelius was generous like the other centurion of whom the Jews said, “He loveth our nation, and he hath built us a synagogue” (Luke 7:5).
With all his house.
Cornelius was not satisfied with having found a higher truth for himself, but sought to impart it to his family, his servants, and others who came under his influence. The soldier sent to find Peter is called “devout” (v. 7).
One that feared God.
This expression, and the similar words, “one that worshipped God,” as well as the expression “devout persons,” are used repeatedly by Luke (chs. 10:22, 35; 13:16, 26, 50; 16:14; 17:4, 17; 18:7) in reference to Gentiles who, like Cornelius, had accepted Judaism to the extent of worshiping Jehovah. Many times, at least, this also involved keeping the Sabbath and abstaining from foods forbidden in the law. But such Gentiles did not fully identify themselves with Judaism by submitting to circumcision or by obeying punctiliously all the regulations required of a pious Jew. See Vol. V, pp. 62, 63.
These expressions have occasioned considerable scholarly discussion. The LXX refers to “those who feared” (2 Chron. 5:6) in such a way as to lead some scholars to think that a particular class apart from full-fledged Jews is indicated. Similarly, Josephus (Antiquities xiv. 7. 2 [110]; Loeb ed., vol. 7, p. 505) speaks of “those who worshipped God,” as sending gifts to the Temple from all over the world.
The additional suggestion has been made that those “that feared God” and those “that worshipped God,” mentioned in Acts, are the same as the “proselytes of the gate,” who are supposed to have constituted a recognized group of half-proselytes who though worshiping Jehovah and observing some of the Jewish law, were not circumcised, and therefore were not considered completely Jews. However, some question this explanation.
Thus it appears that the terms “one that feared God” (or “God fearer”) and “one that worshipped God” may have been technical expressions in the NT period for a particular class of half-proselytes to Judaism who enjoyed a certain recognition in the synagogue, as has often been suggested. In later Judaism a similar term, “fearers of Heaven,” may have represented some such group. The God fearers scarcely could have held any formally recognized status within the Jewish communities, and their relationship to Judaism must have been largely an informal one. Nevertheless the presence of such devout men throughout the Roman world provided Christian preachers with an audience of Gentiles, who, though not bound slavishly to the legalism of Judaism, were sincere seekers after God and were somewhat acquainted with the Jewish Scriptures (particularly the LXX) and Jewish beliefs.