1. Acts 10:2 (ESV)
  2. Exposition

What does it mean for Cornelius and his family to be devout and God-fearing?

Acts 10:2 (ESV)

2 a devout man who feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God.

A God-fearer is a term used to identify someone from a Gentile background who worships the Lord but has not been circumcised. This individual would have joined synagogue gatherings and forsaken the worship of idols.1 The fact that Cornelius and his family are said to be devout implies that his wife and children were also God-fearing.2