What did the Jerusalem Council require Gentiles to abstain from?
DirectA clear verse states this directly, and no higher-or-equal-authority text overturns it.
The Jerusalem Council required Gentile believers to abstain from four things: food polluted by idols (things sacrificed to idols), blood, meat from strangled animals, and sexual immorality.
The four requirements are stated explicitly in the council's own letter (Acts 15:28–29) and confirmed identically in James's proposal (Acts 15:20) and his later summary (Acts 21:25), three independent statements of the same list with no ambiguity.
Key texts:
Acts 15:1Tier 5 · Other
“Some men came down from Judea and taught the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised after the custom of Moses, you can’t be saved.””
Acts 15:5Tier 5 · Other
“But some of the sect of the Pharisees who believed rose up, saying, “It is necessary to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.””
Acts 15:6Tier 5 · Other
“The apostles and the elders were gathered together to see about this matter.”
…and 13 more verses weighed in the full analysis.
Checking access…
Original-language words behind this answer:
SAM answers from primary-source texts only, weighing each verse by its authority tier. Every quotation is verified word-for-word. How the method works →