Acts 2

The Coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost

¹Now when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all with one accord in one place.

²Suddenly there came from the sky a sound like the rushing of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.

³Tongues like fire appeared and were distributed to them, and one sat on each of them.

⁴They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other languages, as the Spirit gave them the ability to speak.

⁵Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under the sky.

⁶When this sound was heard, the multitude came together and were bewildered, because everyone heard them speaking in his own language.

⁷They were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, “Behold, aren’t all these who speak Galileans?

⁸How do we hear, everyone in our own native language?

⁹Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia,

¹⁰Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, the parts of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,

¹¹Cretans and Arabians—we hear them speaking in our languages the mighty works of God!”

¹²They were all amazed and were perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”

¹³Others, mocking, said, “They are filled with new wine.”

Peter's Pentecost Sermon

¹⁴But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice and spoke out to them, “You men of Judea and all you who dwell at Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to my words.

¹⁵For these aren’t drunken, as you suppose, seeing it is only the third hour of the day.

¹⁶But this is what has been spoken through the prophet Joel:

¹⁷‘It will be in the last days, says God, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh. Your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions. Your old men will dream dreams.

¹⁸Yes, and on my servants and on my handmaidens in those days, I will pour out my Spirit, and they will prophesy.

¹⁹I will show wonders in the sky above, and signs on the earth beneath: blood, and fire, and billows of smoke.

²⁰The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and glorious day of the Lord comes.

²¹It will be that whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

²²“Men of Israel, hear these words! Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved by God to you by mighty works and wonders and signs which God did by him among you, even as you yourselves know,

²³him, being delivered up by the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by the hand of lawless men, crucified and killed;

²⁴whom God raised up, having freed him from the agony of death, because it was not possible that he should be held by it.

²⁵For David says concerning him, ‘I saw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved.

²⁶Therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced. Moreover my flesh also will dwell in hope,

²⁷because you will not leave my soul in Hades, neither will you allow your Holy One to see decay.

²⁸You made known to me the ways of life. You will make me full of gladness with your presence.’

²⁹“Brothers, I may tell you freely of the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.

³⁰Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, he would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne,

³¹he foreseeing this, spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that his soul wasn’t left in Hades, and his flesh didn’t see decay.

³²This Jesus God raised up, to which we all are witnesses.

³³Being therefore exalted by the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this which you now see and hear.

³⁴For David didn’t ascend into the heavens, but he says himself, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit by my right hand

³⁵until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’

³⁶“Let all the house of Israel therefore know certainly that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”

³⁷Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

³⁸Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

³⁹For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are far off, even as many as the Lord our God will call to himself.”

⁴⁰With many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!”

⁴¹Then those who gladly received his word were baptized. There were added that day about three thousand souls.

The Fellowship of the Believers

⁴²They continued steadfastly in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and prayer.

⁴³Fear came on every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.

⁴⁴All who believed were together, and had all things in common.

⁴⁵They sold their possessions and goods, and distributed them to all, according as anyone had need.

⁴⁶Day by day, continuing steadfastly with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread at home, they took their food with gladness and singleness of heart,

⁴⁷praising God and having favor with all the people. The Lord added to the assembly day by day those who were being saved.

Previous Acts 1

Next Acts 3

Acts 2 records the dramatic fulfillment of Jesus' promise as the Holy Spirit descends on the disciples at Pentecost, enabling them to speak in various languages to Jews from across the Roman world. Peter seizes this miraculous moment to deliver a powerful sermon, proclaiming Jesus as the promised Messiah who was crucified but raised from the dead, resulting in 3,000 conversions. The chapter concludes by describing the vibrant communal life of the early church, characterized by teaching, fellowship, shared meals, and generous care for one another.

Context

Following Jesus' ascension and the disciples' waiting period in Acts 1, this chapter launches the church's mission with the Spirit's empowerment for worldwide witness.

Key Themes

Outline

1-4
The Holy Spirit Descends Wind, fire, and tongues mark the Spirit's arrival as disciples speak in various languages.
5-13
Crowd's Amazement and Confusion International Jewish visitors hear the gospel in their native languages, responding with wonder and skepticism.
14-21
Peter's Opening Defense Peter refutes accusations of drunkenness and identifies the event as Joel's prophesied outpouring of God's Spirit.
22-36
Proclamation of Jesus as Messiah Peter declares Jesus' divine approval, crucifixion by God's plan, and resurrection as proof of his messiahship.
37-41
Call to Repentance and Mass Baptisms Convicted hearers ask what to do, leading to Peter's call for repentance and 3,000 baptisms.
42-47
Life of the Early Church New believers devote themselves to teaching, fellowship, breaking bread, and sharing possessions in joyful community.

The Coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost

2:1–2:13

narrative narration triumphant

The Holy Spirit descends at Pentecost, enabling the apostles to speak in various languages and proclaim God's mighty works to Jews from many nations.

theme_rarity

Luke's Pentecost account uniquely reverses Babel's linguistic confusion by enabling unified proclamation across language barriers, transforming diversity from division into divine witness.

Peter's Pentecost Sermon

2:14–2:41

narrative speech urgent

Peter delivers his first sermon at Pentecost, explaining the outpouring of the Spirit through Joel's prophecy and proclaiming Jesus' death and resurrection. Three thousand people respond with repentance and baptism.

quotation_chain

Peter's sermon contains the densest concentration of Old Testament quotations in Acts, weaving together Joel, Psalms, and prophetic texts to create Christianity's first systematic scriptural argument for Jesus' messiahship.

The Fellowship of the Believers

2:42–2:47

narrative narration joyful

The early Christian community demonstrates radical fellowship through shared teaching, breaking of bread, prayer, and communal sharing of possessions. The Lord continues to add believers to their number daily.

theme_rarity

Luke uniquely interweaves "communion" (koinonia) with radical economic generosity, creating the New Testament's only portrait where shared meals directly catalyze shared possessions.

Insight Rare Theme

Luke's Pentecost account uniquely reverses Babel's linguistic confusion by enabling unified proclamation across language barriers, transforming diversity from division into divine witness.

Insight Quotation Chain

Insight Rare Theme

Luke uniquely interweaves "communion" (koinonia) with radical economic generosity, creating the New Testament's only portrait where shared meals directly catalyze shared possessions.