Simon
Simon was a tanner in Joppa who hosted the apostle Peter in his home.
Biography
Simon the tanner was a craftsman residing in Joppa whose house stood by the sea (Acts 9:43; 10:6). He hosted the apostle Peter for several days following Peter's miraculous raising of Tabitha from the dead. Tanners were considered ceremonially unclean in Jewish society because their work involved handling dead animals, making Simon's occupation socially and religiously significant. His seaside home was the setting for one of the New Testament's most consequential visions, while Peter prayed on the roof, God showed him the sheet of animals descending from heaven, challenging Jewish food laws and preparing him to receive Gentile visitors from the household of Cornelius (Acts 10:9-16).
Significance
Simon the tanner's house serves as the unexpected staging ground for a pivotal expansion of the gospel beyond Jewish boundaries. That Peter was lodging with someone whose profession rendered him ritually impure foreshadows the vision's message: what God has made clean, no one should call common. The location thus embodies the very theological breakthrough it hosts. Simon's willingness to receive the apostle, and Peter's willingness to stay with him, signals early steps toward the dissolution of social barriers that the gospel demands. His household represents the threshold moment where Jewish Christianity prepared to embrace a universally inclusive mission.
Verse Appearances (5)
References
- Orr, J. (ed.) (1915) The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Chicago: Howard-Severance Company. [Public Domain]
- Tyndale House, Cambridge (n.d.) Translators Individualised Proper Names with all References (TIPNR). STEPBible. Available at: https://www.stepbible.org. [CC BY 4.0]
- Wikidata contributors (n.d.) Wikidata. Available at: https://www.wikidata.org. [CC0]
- Church of England (1769) The Holy Bible, Authorized (King James) Version. [Public Domain]