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The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost

And when (A)the day of Pentecost [a]had fully come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing (B)wind, and it filled (C)the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues like fire [b](D)distributing themselves, and [c]they [d]rested on each one of them. And they were all (E)filled with the Holy Spirit and began to (F)speak with other [e]tongues, as the Spirit was giving them [f]utterance.

Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem, (G)devout men from every nation under heaven. And when (H)this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were bewildered because each one of them was hearing them speak in his own [g]language. (I)So they were astounded and marveling, saying, “Behold, are not all these who are speaking (J)Galileans? And how is it that we each hear them in our own [h]language in which we were born? Parthians and Medes and Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and (K)Cappadocia, (L)Pontus and [i](M)Asia, 10 (N)Phrygia and (O)Pamphylia, Egypt and the district of Libya around (P)Cyrene, and [j](Q)visitors from Rome, both Jews and [k](R)proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs—we hear them in our own tongues speaking of the mighty deeds of God.” 12 And (S)they all continued in astonishment and great perplexity, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others, mocking, were saying, “(T)They are full of new wine.”

Peter’s Sermon at Pentecost

14 But Peter, [l]taking his stand with (U)the eleven, raised his voice and declared to them: “Men of Judea and all you who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you and give heed to my words. 15 For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, (V)for it is the [m]third hour of the day; 16 but this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:

17 (W)And it shall be in the last days,’ God says,
That I will pour out My Spirit on all [n]mankind;
And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
And your young men shall see visions,
And your old men shall dream dreams;
18 Even on My male slaves and female slaves,
I will in those days pour out My Spirit
And they shall prophesy.
19 And I will put wonders in the sky above
And signs on the earth below,
Blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke.
20 The sun will be turned into darkness
And the moon into blood,
Before the great and awesome day of the [o]Lord comes.
21 And it will be that (X)everyone who calls on the name of the [p]Lord will be saved.’

22 “Men of Israel, listen to these words: (Y)Jesus the Nazarene, (Z)a man [q]attested to you by God with [r]miracles and (AA)wonders and [s]signs which God did through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know— 23 this Man, delivered over by the (AB)predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, (AC)you nailed to a cross by the hands of lawless men and put Him to death. 24 [t]But (AD)God raised Him up again, putting an end to the [u]agony of death, since it (AE)was impossible for Him to be held [v]in its power. 25 For David says of Him,

(AF)I saw the [w]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 exulted;
Moreover my flesh also will live in hope;
27 Because You will not forsake my soul to (AG)Hades,
(AH)Nor give Your [x]Holy One over to see corruption.
28 You have made known to me the ways of life;
You will make me full of gladness with Your presence.’

29 “Men, brothers, I may confidently say to you regarding the (AI)patriarch David that he both (AJ)died and (AK)was buried, and (AL)his tomb is [y]with us to this day. 30 And so, because he was (AM)a prophet and knew that (AN)God had sworn to him with an oath to set one of the fruit [z]of his body on his throne, 31 he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the [aa]Christ, that (AO)He was neither forsaken to Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. 32 This Jesus (AP)God raised up again, to which we are all (AQ)witnesses. 33 Therefore having been exalted [ab](AR)to the right hand of God, and (AS)having received from the Father (AT)the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has (AU)poured out this which you both see and hear. 34 For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says:

(AV)The [ac]Lord said to my Lord,
Sit at My right hand,
35 Until I put Your enemies as a footstool for Your feet.”’

36 Therefore let all the (AW)house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both (AX)Lord and [ad]Christ—this Jesus (AY)whom you crucified.”

About Three Thousand Souls Saved

37 Now when they heard this, they were [ae]pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Men, brothers, (AZ)what should we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, “(BA)Repent, and each of you be (BB)baptized in the name of Jesus Christ [af]for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For (BC)the promise is for you and your children and for all who are (BD)far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.” 40 And with many other words he solemnly (BE)bore witness and kept on exhorting them, saying, “[ag]Be saved from this (BF)crooked generation!” 41 So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and that day there were added about three thousand (BG)souls. 42 And they were (BH)continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to (BI)the breaking of bread and [ah](BJ)to the prayers.

43 And fear came upon every soul; and many (BK)wonders and [ai]signs were taking place through the apostles. 44 And all those who had believed [aj]were together and (BL)had all things in common; 45 and they (BM)began selling their property and possessions and were (BN)dividing them up with all, as anyone might have need. 46 (BO)And daily devoting themselves with one accord in the temple and (BP)breaking bread [ak]from house to house, they were taking their [al]meals together with gladness and [am]sincerity of heart, 47 praising God and (BQ)having favor with all the people. And the Lord (BR)was adding [an]to their number daily (BS)those who were being saved.

Footnotes

  1. Acts 2:1 Lit was being fulfilled
  2. Acts 2:3 Or being distributed
  3. Acts 2:3 Lit it
  4. Acts 2:3 Or sat
  5. Acts 2:4 Or languages
  6. Acts 2:4 Or ability to speak out
  7. Acts 2:6 Or dialect
  8. Acts 2:8 Or dialect
  9. Acts 2:9 West coast province of Asia Minor
  10. Acts 2:10 Lit the sojourning Romans
  11. Acts 2:10 Gentile converts to Judaism
  12. Acts 2:14 Or being put forward as spokesman
  13. Acts 2:15 9 a.m.
  14. Acts 2:17 Lit flesh
  15. Acts 2:20 In OT, Yahweh, cf. Joel 2:31
  16. Acts 2:21 In OT, Yahweh, cf. Joel 2:32
  17. Acts 2:22 Or exhibited, accredited
  18. Acts 2:22 Or works of power
  19. Acts 2:22 Or attesting miracles
  20. Acts 2:24 Lit Whom God raised up
  21. Acts 2:24 Lit birth pains
  22. Acts 2:24 Lit by it
  23. Acts 2:25 In OT, Yahweh, cf. Ps 16:8
  24. Acts 2:27 Or devout or pious
  25. Acts 2:29 Lit among
  26. Acts 2:30 Offspring; lit of his loins
  27. Acts 2:31 Messiah
  28. Acts 2:33 Or by
  29. Acts 2:34 In OT, Yahweh, cf. Ps 110:1
  30. Acts 2:36 Messiah
  31. Acts 2:37 Or wounded in conscience
  32. Acts 2:38 Or because of
  33. Acts 2:40 Or Escape
  34. Acts 2:42 Lit the prayers
  35. Acts 2:43 Or attesting miracles
  36. Acts 2:44 One early ms omits were and and
  37. Acts 2:46 Or in the various private homes
  38. Acts 2:46 Lit food
  39. Acts 2:46 Or simplicity
  40. Acts 2:47 Lit together

Pentecost

When Pentecost Day arrived, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound from heaven like the howling of a fierce wind filled the entire house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be individual flames of fire alighting on each one of them. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages as the Spirit enabled them to speak.

There were pious Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. When they heard this sound, a crowd gathered. They were mystified because everyone heard them speaking in their native languages. They were surprised and amazed, saying, “Look, aren’t all the people who are speaking Galileans, every one of them? How then can each of us hear them speaking in our native language? Parthians, Medes, and Elamites; as well as residents of Mesopotamia, Judea, and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the regions of Libya bordering Cyrene; and visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism), 11 Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the mighty works of God in our own languages!” 12 They were all surprised and bewildered. Some asked each other, “What does this mean?” 13 Others jeered at them, saying, “They’re full of new wine!”

14 Peter stood with the other eleven apostles. He raised his voice and declared, “Judeans and everyone living in Jerusalem! Know this! Listen carefully to my words! 15 These people aren’t drunk, as you suspect; after all, it’s only nine o’clock in the morning! 16 Rather, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:

17 In the last days, God says,
I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
    Your sons and daughters will prophesy.
    Your young will see visions.
    Your elders will dream dreams.
18     Even upon my servants, men and women,
        I will pour out my Spirit in those days,
        and they will prophesy.
19 I will cause wonders to occur in the heavens above
    and signs on the earth below,
        blood and fire and a cloud of smoke.
20 The sun will be changed into darkness,
    and the moon will be changed into blood,
        before the great and spectacular day of the Lord comes.
21 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.[a]

22 “Fellow Israelites, listen to these words! Jesus the Nazarene was a man whose credentials God proved to you through miracles, wonders, and signs, which God performed through him among you. You yourselves know this. 23 In accordance with God’s established plan and foreknowledge, he was betrayed. You, with the help of wicked men, had Jesus killed by nailing him to a cross. 24 God raised him up! God freed him from death’s dreadful grip, since it was impossible for death to hang on to him. 25 David says about him,

I foresaw that the Lord was always with me;
    because he is at my right hand I won’t be shaken.
26 Therefore, my heart was glad
    and my tongue rejoiced.
Moreover, my body will live in hope,
27         because you won’t abandon me to the grave,
    nor permit your holy one to experience decay.
28 You have shown me the paths of life;
    your presence will fill me with happiness.[b]

29 “Brothers and sisters, I can speak confidently about the patriarch David. He died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this very day. 30 Because he was a prophet, he knew that God promised him with a solemn pledge to seat one of his descendants on his throne. 31 Having seen this beforehand, David spoke about the resurrection of Christ, that he wasn’t abandoned to the grave, nor did his body experience decay.[c] 32 This Jesus God raised up. We are all witnesses to that fact. 33 He was exalted to God’s right side and received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit. He poured out this Spirit, and you are seeing and hearing the results of his having done so. 34 David didn’t ascend into heaven. Yet he says,

The Lord said to my Lord, ‘Sit at my right side,
35     until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.’[d]

36 “Therefore, let all Israel know beyond question that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”

37 When the crowd heard this, they were deeply troubled. They said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”

38 Peter replied, “Change your hearts and lives. Each of you must 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 for you, your children, and for all who are far away—as many as the Lord our God invites.” 40 With many other words he testified to them and encouraged them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.” 41 Those who accepted Peter’s message were baptized. God brought about three thousand people into the community on that day.

Community of believers

42 The believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the community, to their shared meals, and to their prayers. 43 A sense of awe came over everyone. God performed many wonders and signs through the apostles. 44 All the believers were united and shared everything. 45 They would sell pieces of property and possessions and distribute the proceeds to everyone who needed them. 46 Every day, they met together in the temple and ate in their homes. They shared food with gladness and simplicity. 47 They praised God and demonstrated God’s goodness to everyone. The Lord added daily to the community those who were being saved.