Summary
This reading begins with the social world of Jewish food practice. Table fellowship could signal whose food was trustworthy, whose home could be entered, and where communal boundaries lay. Peter’s withdrawal may therefore reflect pressure to preserve recognizably Jewish practice rather than simple personal hostility toward Gentiles.
What this contributes
It prevents the Antioch incident from becoming a modern story about private prejudice alone. Paul’s sharp response is better understood when the real religious and social costs borne by Jewish Christ-followers are kept in view.
Question to keep in view
Historical reconstruction cannot by itself explain why Paul calls the withdrawal a failure to walk in line with the truth of the gospel.