Some readers of Acts may think that by the time of chapter nine, when Saul of Tarsus came into the Lord’s testing, Peter has moved out of the scene. However, in 9:32-43 we see that Peter is still in the scene, and these verses describe the spread of Peter’s ministry. His ministry has spread from Jerusalem to Lydda. Acts 9:32 says, “Now it came about that as Peter was passing through all those parts, he came down also to the saints dwelling at Lydda.” Lydda was a town about eleven miles southeast of Joppa, called in the Old Testament, Lod (1 Chron. 8:12; Ezra 2:33). While he was in Lydda, Peter healed a “certain man named Aeneas, who for eight years had been lying on a bed, for he was paralyzed” (v. 33). Peter said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you! Rise up and make your own bed!” Immediately Aeneas rose up, and “all those dwelling in Lydda and Sharon saw him, and they turned to the Lord” (vv. 34-35).
In 9:36-43 we have the healing, or quickening, of Dorcas in Joppa. Verse 36 says, “Now there was a certain disciple in Joppa named Tabitha (which translated is called Dorcas); this woman was full of good works and alms which she did.” “Dorcas” is the Greek equivalent of the Aramaic “Tabitha,” meaning gazelle. When the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, which was near to Joppa, “they sent two men to him, entreating him, Do not delay to come through to us” (v. 38). Peter came down to Joppa and healed Dorcas. It may be better to say that Dorcas was quickened.
Some may consider the quickening of Dorcas a case of resurrection. Dorcas may have been dead for a full day before Peter came to Joppa. Peter prayed and “turning to the body, he said, Tabitha, rise up! And she opened her eyes, and seeing Peter, she sat up” (v. 40). This may be considered an instance of resurrection. However, the term “resurrection,” a strong expression, is not used here. Therefore, instead of speaking of the resurrection of Dorcas, I prefer to say that through Peter she was healed or quickened.
In 9:32-43 we see Peter in his ministry outside of Jerusalem, even outside of Judea, in a region that is somewhat related to the Gentiles. When Peter was in Joppa, he was not far from Caesarea, which was a center for the Roman government. This means that Peter had moved away from Jerusalem, the capital of the Jewish center, toward the city of Caesarea, the place where one of the Roman governors resided. Because Joppa was close to Caesarea, it became a stepping stone for Peter to open the door of the kingdom to the Gentiles. Peter’s stay in Joppa, therefore, was a preparation for him to go to the house of Cornelius and use the second key given him by the Lord to open the door so that the Gentiles may enter into the kingdom. As we shall see, in Caesarea Peter opened the door for typical Roman Gentiles to enter into the kingdom of God.
Both in the case of Saul and that of Cornelius, the Lord worked through visions. In a vision the Lord appeared to Ananias: “Now there was a certain disciple in Damascus named Ananias, and the Lord said to him in a vision, Ananias! And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord” (9:10). Before this, Saul of Tarsus had a vision of the Lord Himself. The Lord appeared to Saul and spoke to him. Following that, Saul had another vision, in which he saw Ananias laying his hands on him. The Lord told Ananias about this, saying that Saul “has seen in a vision a man named Ananias coming in and laying his hands on him, so that he may receive his sight” (9:12). Therefore, with both Saul and Ananias there was a vision. Here we have the matter of visions related to the carrying out of the Lord’s work.
In the case of Cornelius the Lord also worked through visions. First, Cornelius “saw clearly in a vision about the ninth hour of the day, an angel of God coming in to him and saying to him, Cornelius!” (10:3). On the next day, Peter saw a vision as he was praying on the housetop (10:9-10, 17). Therefore, in the case of Cornelius we have two more visions—the vision seen by Cornelius and the vision seen by Peter.
We have pointed out that the cases of both Saul and Cornelius involve visions. A vision was given to Saul, and then to Ananias. Likewise, a vision was given to Cornelius, and then to Peter. In between these two cases, both of which involve visions, there are two miracles which took place through Peter. First we have the healing of Aeneas, and then the quickening of Dorcas. In our study of the book of Acts, we need to put together different cases such as these and then consider what is portrayed. We should not consider chapter nine in isolation. Rather, we should study this chapter in relation to what precedes it and to what follows it.