Acts 1:1-11
New American Standard Bible
Introduction
1 The first account I [a]composed, (A)Theophilus, about all that Jesus (B)began to do and teach, 2 until the day when He (C)was taken up to heaven, after He (D)had given orders [b]by the Holy Spirit to (E)the apostles whom He had (F)chosen. 3 To [c]these (G)He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking of (H)things regarding the kingdom of God. 4 [d]Gathering them together, He commanded them (I)not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for [e](J)what the Father had promised, “Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me; 5 for (K)John baptized [f]with water, but you will be baptized [g]with the Holy Spirit [h](L)not many days from now.”
6 So, when they had come together, they began asking Him, saying, “Lord, (M)is it at this time that You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” 7 But He said to them, “It is not for you to know periods of time or appointed times which (N)the Father has set by His own authority; 8 but you will receive power (O)when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be (P)My witnesses both in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and (Q)Samaria, and as far as (R)the remotest part of the earth.”
The Ascension
9 And after He had said these things, (S)He was lifted up while they were watching, and a cloud took Him up, out of their sight. 10 And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, then behold, (T)two men in white clothing stood beside them, 11 and they said, “(U)Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who (V)has been taken up from you into heaven, will (W)come in the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.”
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Acts 1:1-11
New Living Translation
The Promise of the Holy Spirit
1 In my first book[a] I told you, Theophilus, about everything Jesus began to do and teach 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven after giving his chosen apostles further instructions through the Holy Spirit. 3 During the forty days after he suffered and died, he appeared to the apostles from time to time, and he proved to them in many ways that he was actually alive. And he talked to them about the Kingdom of God.
4 Once when he was eating with them, he commanded them, “Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised, as I told you before. 5 John baptized with[b] water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
The Ascension of Jesus
6 So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking him, “Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom?”
7 He replied, “The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
9 After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see him. 10 As they strained to see him rising into heaven, two white-robed men suddenly stood among them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go!”
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Acts 2
New American Standard Bible
The Day of Pentecost
2 When (A)the day of Pentecost [a]had come, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly a noise like a violent rushing wind came from heaven, and it filled (B)the whole house where they were sitting. 3 And tongues that looked like fire appeared to them, [b]distributing themselves, and a tongue [c]rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all (C)filled with the Holy Spirit and began to (D)speak with different [d]tongues, as the Spirit was giving them the ability to speak out.
5 Now there were Jews residing in Jerusalem, (E)devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And when (F)this sound occurred, the crowd came together and they were bewildered, because each one of them was hearing them speak in his own [e]language. 7 (G)They were amazed and astonished, saying, “[f]Why, are not all these who are speaking (H)Galileans? 8 And how is it that we each hear them in our own [g]language [h]to which we were born? 9 Parthians, Medes, and Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea, and (I)Cappadocia, (J)Pontus and [i](K)Asia, 10 (L)Phrygia and (M)Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya around (N)Cyrene, and [j](O)visitors from Rome, both Jews and [k](P)proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs—we hear them speaking in our own [l]tongues of the mighty deeds of God.” 12 And (Q)they all continued in amazement and great perplexity, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others were jeering and saying, “(R)They are full of [m]sweet wine!”
Peter’s Sermon
14 But Peter, taking his stand with (S)the other eleven, raised his voice and declared to them: “Men of Judea and all you who live in Jerusalem, [n]know this, and pay attention to my words. 15 For these people are not drunk, as you assume, (T)since it is only the [o]third hour of the day; 16 but this is what has been spoken through the prophet Joel:
17 ‘(U)And it shall be in the last days,’ God says,
‘That I will pour out My Spirit on all [p]mankind;
And your sons and your daughters will prophesy,
And your young men will see visions,
And your old men will [q]have dreams;
18 And even on My male and female [r]servants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days,
And they will prophesy.
19 And I will [s]display wonders in the sky above
And signs on the earth below,
Blood, fire, and [t]vapor of smoke.
20 The sun will be turned into darkness
And the moon into blood,
Before the great and glorious day of the Lord comes.
21 And it shall be that (V)everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’
22 “Men of Israel, listen to these words: (W)Jesus the Nazarene, (X)a Man [u]attested to you by God with [v]miracles and (Y)wonders and [w]signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know— 23 this Man, delivered over by the (Z)predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, (AA)you nailed to a cross by the hands of [x]godless men and put Him to death. 24 [y]But (AB)God raised Him from the dead, putting an end to the [z]agony of death, since it (AC)was impossible for Him to be held [aa]in its power. 25 For David says of Him,
‘(AD)I saw the Lord continually before me,
Because He is at my right hand, so that I will not be shaken.
26 Therefore my heart was glad and my tongue was overjoyed;
Moreover my flesh also will live in hope;
27 For You will not abandon my soul to (AE)Hades,
(AF)Nor will You [ab]allow Your [ac]Holy One to [ad]undergo decay.
28 You have made known to me the ways of life;
You will make me full of gladness with Your presence.’
29 “[ae]Brothers, I may confidently say to you regarding the (AG)patriarch David that he both (AH)died and (AI)was buried, and (AJ)his tomb is [af]with us to this day. 30 So because he was (AK)a prophet and knew that (AL)God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one [ag]of his descendants on his throne, 31 he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the [ah]Christ, that (AM)He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh [ai]suffer decay. 32 It is this Jesus whom (AN)God raised up, [aj]a fact to which we are all (AO)witnesses. 33 Therefore, [ak]since He has been exalted [al](AP)at the right hand of God, and (AQ)has received (AR)the promise of the Holy Spirit from the Father, He has (AS)poured out this which you both see and hear. 34 For it was not David who ascended into [am]heaven, but he himself says:
‘(AT)The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at My right hand,
35 Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”’
36 Therefore let all the (AU)house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both (AV)Lord and [an]Christ—this Jesus (AW)whom you crucified.”
37 Now when they heard this, they were [ao]pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “[ap]Brothers, (AX)what are we to do?” 38 Peter said to them, “(AY)Repent, and each of you be (AZ)baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For (BA)the promise is for you and your children and for all who are (BB)far away, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.” 40 And with many other words he solemnly (BC)testified and kept on urging them, saying, “[aq]Be saved from this (BD)perverse generation!” 41 So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and that day there were added about three thousand [ar](BE)souls. 42 They were (BF)continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to (BG)the breaking of bread and (BH)to [as]prayer.
43 [at]Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many (BI)wonders and [au]signs were taking place through the apostles. 44 And all the believers [av]were together and (BJ)had all things in common; 45 and they (BK)would sell their property and possessions and share them with all, to the extent that anyone had need. 46 (BL)Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and (BM)breaking bread [aw]from house to house, they were taking their [ax]meals together with gladness and [ay]sincerity of heart, 47 praising God and (BN)having favor with all the people. And the Lord (BO)was adding to [az]their number day by day (BP)those who were being saved.
Footnotes
- Acts 2:1 Lit was being fulfilled
- Acts 2:3 Or being distributed, and
- Acts 2:3 Or sat
- Acts 2:4 Or languages
- Acts 2:6 Or dialect
- Acts 2:7 Lit Behold
- Acts 2:8 Or dialect
- Acts 2:8 Lit in
- Acts 2:9 I.e., west coast province of Asia Minor
- Acts 2:10 Lit the sojourning Romans
- Acts 2:10 I.e., Gentile converts to Judaism
- Acts 2:11 Or languages
- Acts 2:13 I.e., new wine
- Acts 2:14 Lit let this be known to you
- Acts 2:15 I.e., 9 a.m.
- Acts 2:17 Lit flesh
- Acts 2:17 Lit dream with dreams
- Acts 2:18 Or slaves
- Acts 2:19 Lit give
- Acts 2:19 I.e., like a volcanic eruption
- Acts 2:22 Or exhibited; or accredited
- Acts 2:22 Or works of power
- Acts 2:22 I.e., confirming miracles
- Acts 2:23 Lit men without the Law; i.e., pagan
- Acts 2:24 Lit Whom God raised up
- Acts 2:24 Lit birth pains
- Acts 2:24 Lit by it
- Acts 2:27 Lit give
- Acts 2:27 Or Devout; or Pious
- Acts 2:27 Lit see corruption
- Acts 2:29 Lit Men, brothers
- Acts 2:29 Lit among
- Acts 2:30 Lit of the fruit of his loins
- Acts 2:31 I.e., Messiah
- Acts 2:31 Lit see corruption
- Acts 2:32 Or of whom we
- Acts 2:33 Or having been...having received
- Acts 2:33 Or by
- Acts 2:34 Lit the heavens
- Acts 2:36 I.e., Messiah
- Acts 2:37 Or wounded in conscience
- Acts 2:37 Lit Men, brothers
- Acts 2:40 Or Escape
- Acts 2:41 I.e., persons
- Acts 2:42 Lit the prayers
- Acts 2:43 Lit fear was occurring to every soul
- Acts 2:43 I.e., confirming miracles
- Acts 2:44 One early ms does not contain were and and
- Acts 2:46 Or in the various private homes
- Acts 2:46 Lit food
- Acts 2:46 Or simplicity
- Acts 2:47 Lit the same
Acts 2
New Living Translation
The Holy Spirit Comes
2 On the day of Pentecost[a] all the believers were meeting together in one place. 2 Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. 3 Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. 4 And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages,[b] as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.
5 At that time there were devout Jews from every nation living in Jerusalem. 6 When they heard the loud noise, everyone came running, and they were bewildered to hear their own languages being spoken by the believers.
7 They were completely amazed. “How can this be?” they exclaimed. “These people are all from Galilee, 8 and yet we hear them speaking in our own native languages! 9 Here we are—Parthians, Medes, Elamites, people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, the province of Asia, 10 Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, and the areas of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome 11 (both Jews and converts to Judaism), Cretans, and Arabs. And we all hear these people speaking in our own languages about the wonderful things God has done!” 12 They stood there amazed and perplexed. “What can this mean?” they asked each other.
13 But others in the crowd ridiculed them, saying, “They’re just drunk, that’s all!”
Peter Preaches to the Crowd
14 Then Peter stepped forward with the eleven other apostles and shouted to the crowd, “Listen carefully, all of you, fellow Jews and residents of Jerusalem! Make no mistake about this. 15 These people are not drunk, as some of you are assuming. Nine o’clock in the morning is much too early for that. 16 No, what you see was predicted long ago by the prophet Joel:
17 ‘In the last days,’ God says,
‘I will pour out my Spirit upon all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy.
Your young men will see visions,
and your old men will dream dreams.
18 In those days I will pour out my Spirit
even on my servants—men and women alike—
and they will prophesy.
19 And I will cause wonders in the heavens above
and signs on the earth below—
blood and fire and clouds of smoke.
20 The sun will become dark,
and the moon will turn blood red
before that great and glorious day of the Lord arrives.
21 But everyone who calls on the name of the Lord
will be saved.’[c]
22 “People of Israel, listen! God publicly endorsed Jesus the Nazarene[d] by doing powerful miracles, wonders, and signs through him, as you well know. 23 But God knew what would happen, and his prearranged plan was carried out when Jesus was betrayed. With the help of lawless Gentiles, you nailed him to a cross and killed him. 24 But God released him from the horrors of death and raised him back to life, for death could not keep him in its grip. 25 King David said this about him:
‘I see that the Lord is always with me.
I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me.
26 No wonder my heart is glad,
and my tongue shouts his praises!
My body rests in hope.
27 For you will not leave my soul among the dead[e]
or allow your Holy One to rot in the grave.
28 You have shown me the way of life,
and you will fill me with the joy of your presence.’[f]
29 “Dear brothers, think about this! You can be sure that the patriarch David wasn’t referring to himself, for he died and was buried, and his tomb is still here among us. 30 But he was a prophet, and he knew God had promised with an oath that one of David’s own descendants would sit on his throne. 31 David was looking into the future and speaking of the Messiah’s resurrection. He was saying that God would not leave him among the dead or allow his body to rot in the grave.
32 “God raised Jesus from the dead, and we are all witnesses of this. 33 Now he is exalted to the place of highest honor in heaven, at God’s right hand. And the Father, as he had promised, gave him the Holy Spirit to pour out upon us, just as you see and hear today. 34 For David himself never ascended into heaven, yet he said,
‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit in the place of honor at my right hand
35 until I humble your enemies,
making them a footstool under your feet.”’[g]
36 “So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!”
37 Peter’s words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”
38 Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 This promise is to you, to your children, and to those far away[h]—all who have been called by the Lord our God.” 40 Then Peter continued preaching for a long time, strongly urging all his listeners, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!”
41 Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added to the church that day—about 3,000 in all.
The Believers Form a Community
42 All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper[i]), and to prayer.
43 A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. 44 And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. 45 They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. 46 They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity[j]— 47 all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.
Footnotes
- 2:1 The Festival of Pentecost came 50 days after Passover (when Jesus was crucified).
- 2:4 Or in other tongues.
- 2:17-21 Joel 2:28-32.
- 2:22 Or Jesus of Nazareth.
- 2:27 Greek in Hades; also in 2:31.
- 2:25-28 Ps 16:8-11 (Greek version).
- 2:34-35 Ps 110:1.
- 2:39 Or and to people far in the future, or and to the Gentiles.
- 2:42 Greek the breaking of bread; also in 2:46.
- 2:46 Or and sincere hearts.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
