Acts 2
Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition
2 And when the days of the Pentecost were accomplished, they were all together in one place:
2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a mighty wind coming, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.
3 And there appeared to them parted tongues as it were of fire, and it sat upon every one of them:
4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they began to speak with divers tongues, according as the Holy Ghost gave them to speak.
5 Now there were dwelling at Jerusalem, Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven.
6 And when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded in mind, because that every man heard them speak in his own tongue.
7 And they were all amazed, and wondered, saying: Behold, are not all these, that speak, Galileans?
8 And how have we heard, every man our own tongue wherein we were born?
9 Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and inhabitants of Mesopotamia, Judea, and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,
10 Phrygia, and Pamphylia, Egypt, and the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome,
11 Jews also, and proselytes, Cretes, and Arabians: we have heard them speak in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.
12 And they were all astonished, and wondered, saying one to another: What meaneth this?
13 But others mocking, said: These men are full of new wine.
14 But Peter standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and spoke to them: Ye men of Judea, and all you that dwell in Jerusalem, be this known to you, and with your ears receive my words.
15 For these are not drunk, as you suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day:
16 But this is that which was spoken of by the prophet Joel:
17 And it shall come to pass, in the last days, (saith the Lord,) I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.
18 And upon my servants indeed, and upon my handmaids will I pour out in those days of my spirit, and they shall prophesy.
19 And I will shew wonders in the heaven above, and signs on the earth beneath: blood and fire, and vapour of smoke.
20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and manifest day of the Lord come.
21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord, shall be saved.
22 Ye men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you, by miracles, and wonders, and signs, which God did by him, in the midst of you, as you also know:
23 This same being delivered up, by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, you by the hands of wicked men have crucified and slain.
24 Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the sorrows of hell, as it was impossible that he should be holden by it.
25 For David saith concerning him: I foresaw the Lord before my face: because he is at my right hand, that I may not be moved.
26 For this my heart hath been glad, and my tongue hath rejoiced: moreover my flesh also shall rest in hope.
27 Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, nor suffer thy Holy One to see corruption.
28 Thou hast made known to me the ways of life: thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance.
29 Ye men, brethren, let me freely speak to you of the patriarch David; that he died, and was buried; and his sepulchre is with us to this present day.
30 Whereas therefore he was a prophet, and knew that God hath sworn to him with an oath, that of the fruit of his loins one should sit upon his throne.
31 Foreseeing this, he spoke of the resurrection of Christ. For neither was he left in hell, neither did his flesh see corruption.
32 This Jesus hath God raised again, whereof all we are witnesses.
33 Being exalted therefore by the right hand of God, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath poured forth this which you see and hear.
34 For David ascended not into heaven; but he himself said: The Lord said to my Lord, sit thou on my right hand,
35 Until I make thy enemies thy footstool.
36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know most certainly, that God hath made both Lord and Christ, this same Jesus, whom you have crucified.
37 Now when they had heard these things, they had compunction in their heart, and said to Peter, and to the rest of the apostles: What shall we do, men and brethren?
38 But Peter said to them: Do penance, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of your sins: and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
39 For the promise is to you, and to your children, and to all that are far off, whomsoever the Lord our God shall call.
40 And with very many other words did he testify and exhort them, saying: Save yourselves from this perverse generation.
41 They therefore that received his word, were baptized; and there were added in that day about three thousand souls.
42 And they were persevering in the doctrine of the apostles, and in the communication of the breaking of bread, and in prayers.
43 And fear came upon every soul: many wonders also and signs were done by the apostles in Jerusalem, and there was great fear in all.
44 And all they that believed, were together, and had all things common.
45 Their possessions and goods they sold, and divided them to all, according as every one had need.
46 And continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they took their meat with gladness and simplicity of heart;
47 Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord increased daily together such as should be saved.
Acts 2
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 2
The Coming of the Spirit. 1 [a]When the time for Pentecost was fulfilled, they were all in one place together.(A) 2 And suddenly there came from the sky a noise like a strong driving wind,[b] and it filled the entire house in which they were.(B) 3 Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire,[c] which parted and came to rest on each one of them.(C) 4 And they were all filled with the holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues,[d] as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim.(D)
5 Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven staying in Jerusalem. 6 At this sound, they gathered in a large crowd, but they were confused because each one heard them speaking in his own language. 7 They were astounded, and in amazement they asked, “Are not all these people who are speaking Galileans?(E) 8 Then how does each of us hear them in his own native language? 9 We are Parthians, Medes, and Elamites, inhabitants of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the districts of Libya near Cyrene, as well as travelers from Rome, 11 both Jews and converts to Judaism, Cretans and Arabs, yet we hear them speaking in our own tongues of the mighty acts of God.”(F) 12 They were all astounded and bewildered, and said to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others said, scoffing, “They have had too much new wine.”(G)
II. The Mission in Jerusalem
Peter’s Speech at Pentecost. 14 [e]Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice, and proclaimed to them, “You who are Jews, indeed all of you staying in Jerusalem. Let this be known to you, and listen to my words. 15 These people are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning. 16 No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:
17 ‘It will come to pass in the last days,’ God says,
‘that I will pour out a portion of my spirit
upon all flesh.
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
your young men shall see visions,
your old men shall dream dreams.(H)
18 Indeed, upon my servants and my handmaids
I will pour out a portion of my spirit in those days,
and they shall prophesy.
19 And I will work wonders in the heavens above
and signs on the earth below:
blood, fire, and a cloud of smoke.
20 The sun shall be turned to darkness,
and the moon to blood,
before the coming of the great and splendid day of the Lord,
21 and it shall be that everyone shall be saved who calls on the name of the Lord.’(I)
22 You who are Israelites, hear these words. Jesus the Nazorean was a man commended to you by God with mighty deeds, wonders, and signs, which God worked through him in your midst, as you yourselves know.(J) 23 This man, delivered up by the set plan and foreknowledge of God, you killed, using lawless men to crucify him.(K) 24 But God raised him up, releasing him from the throes of death, because it was impossible for him to be held by it.(L) 25 For David says of him:
‘I saw the Lord ever before me,(M)
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
26 Therefore my heart has been glad and my tongue has exulted;
my flesh, too, will dwell in hope,
27 because you will not abandon my soul to the netherworld,
nor will you suffer your holy one to see corruption.(N)
28 You have made known to me the paths of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence.’
29 My brothers, one can confidently say to you about the patriarch David that he died and was buried, and his tomb is in our midst to this day. 30 But since he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants upon his throne,(O) 31 he foresaw and spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, that neither was he abandoned to the netherworld nor did his flesh see corruption.(P) 32 God raised this Jesus; of this we are all witnesses. 33 Exalted at the right hand of God,[f] he received the promise of the holy Spirit from the Father and poured it forth, as you [both] see and hear.(Q) 34 For David did not go up into heaven, but he himself said:
‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at my right hand(R)
35 until I make your enemies your footstool.”’
36 Therefore let the whole house of Israel know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.”(S)
37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and they asked Peter and the other apostles, “What are we to do, my brothers?”(T) 38 Peter [said] to them, “Repent and be baptized,[g] every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the holy Spirit.(U) 39 For the promise is made to you and to your children and to all those far off, whomever the Lord our God will call.”(V) 40 He testified with many other arguments, and was exhorting them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.”(W) 41 Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand persons were added that day.(X)
Communal Life.[h] 42 (Y)They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers.(Z) 43 Awe came upon everyone, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.(AA) 44 All who believed were together and had all things in common;(AB) 45 they would sell their property and possessions and divide them among all according to each one’s need. 46 Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple area and to breaking bread in their homes. They ate their meals with exultation and sincerity of heart, 47 praising God and enjoying favor with all the people. And every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.
Footnotes
- 2:1–41 Luke’s pentecostal narrative consists of an introduction (Acts 2:1–13), a speech ascribed to Peter declaring the resurrection of Jesus and its messianic significance (Acts 2:14–36), and a favorable response from the audience (Acts 2:37–41). It is likely that the narrative telescopes events that took place over a period of time and on a less dramatic scale. The Twelve were not originally in a position to proclaim publicly the messianic office of Jesus without incurring immediate reprisal from those religious authorities in Jerusalem who had brought about Jesus’ death precisely to stem the rising tide in his favor.
- 2:2 There came from the sky a noise like a strong driving wind: wind and spirit are associated in Jn 3:8. The sound of a great rush of wind would herald a new action of God in the history of salvation.
- 2:3 Tongues as of fire: see Ex 19:18 where fire symbolizes the presence of God to initiate the covenant on Sinai. Here the holy Spirit acts upon the apostles, preparing them to proclaim the new covenant with its unique gift of the Spirit (Acts 2:38).
- 2:4 To speak in different tongues: ecstatic prayer in praise of God, interpreted in Acts 2:6, 11 as speaking in foreign languages, symbolizing the worldwide mission of the church.
- 2:14–36 The first of six discourses in Acts (along with Acts 3:12–26; 4:8–12; 5:29–32; 10:34–43; 13:16–41) dealing with the resurrection of Jesus and its messianic import. Five of these are attributed to Peter, the final one to Paul. Modern scholars term these discourses in Acts the “kerygma,” the Greek word for proclamation (cf. 1 Cor 15:11).
- 2:33 At the right hand of God: or “by the right hand of God.”
- 2:38 Repent and be baptized: repentance is a positive concept, a change of mind and heart toward God reflected in the actual goodness of one’s life. It is in accord with the apostolic teaching derived from Jesus (Acts 2:42) and ultimately recorded in the four gospels. Luke presents baptism in Acts as the expected response to the apostolic preaching about Jesus and associates it with the conferring of the Spirit (Acts 1:5; 10:44–48; 11:16).
- 2:42–47 The first of three summary passages (along with Acts 4:32–37; 5:12–16) that outline, somewhat idyllically, the chief characteristics of the Jerusalem community: adherence to the teachings of the Twelve and the centering of its religious life in the eucharistic liturgy (Acts 2:42); a system of distribution of goods that led wealthier Christians to sell their possessions when the needs of the community’s poor required it (Acts 2:44 and the note on Acts 4:32–37); and continued attendance at the temple, since in this initial stage there was little or no thought of any dividing line between Christianity and Judaism (Acts 2:46).
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