The Acts 2
2
The Coming of the Holy Spirit
1When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2Suddenly a noise came from heaven. It sounded like a strong wind blowing. This noise filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3They saw something that looked like flames of fire. The flames were separated and stood over each person there. 4They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they began to speak different languages. The Holy Spirit was giving them the power to speak these languages.
5There were some religious Jews staying in Jerusalem who were from every country in the world. 6When they heard this noise, a crowd came together. They were all surprised, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. 7They were completely amazed at this. They said, “Look! Aren’t all these men that we hear speaking from Galilee?# The people thought men from Galilee could speak only their own language. 8But each of us hears them in his own language. How is this possible? We are from different places: 9Parthia, Media, Elam, Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia, 10Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, the areas of Libya near Cyrene, Rome 11(both Jews and those who had become Jews), Crete and Arabia. But we hear these men telling in our own languages about the great things God has done!” 12They were all amazed and confused. They asked each other, “What does this mean?”
13But others were making fun of them, saying, “They have had too much wine.”
Peter Speaks to the People
14But Peter stood up with the 11 apostles. In a loud voice he spoke to the crowd: “My fellow Jews, and all of you who are in Jerusalem, listen to me. Pay attention to what I have to say. 15These men are not drunk, as you think; it is only nine o’clock in the morning! 16But Joel the prophet wrote about what is happening here today:
17‘God says: In the last days
I will give my Spirit freely to all kinds of people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy.
Your old men will dream dreams.
Your young men will see visions.
18At that time I will give my Spirit
even to my servants, both men and women.
And they will prophesy.
19I will show miracles
in the sky and on the earth:
blood, fire and thick smoke.
20The sun will become dark.
The moon will become red as blood.
And then the great and glorious day of the Lord will come.
21Then anyone who asks the Lord for help
will be saved.’ Joel 2:28-32
22“Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus from Nazareth was a very special man. God clearly showed this to you by the miracles, wonders, and signs God did through him. You all know this, because it happened right here among you. 23Jesus was given to you, and you killed him. With the help of evil men you nailed him to a cross. But God knew all this would happen. This was God’s plan which he had made long ago. 24God raised Jesus from death. God set him free from the pain of death. Death could not hold him. 25For David said this about him:
‘I keep the Lord before me always.
Because he is close by my side,
I will not be hurt.
26So I am glad, and I rejoice.
Even my body has hope.
27This is because you will not leave me in the grave.
You will not let your Holy One rot.
28You will teach me God’s way to live.
Being with you will fill me with joy.’ Psalm 16:8-11
29“Brothers, I can tell you truly about David, our ancestor. He died and was buried. His grave is still here with us today. 30David was a prophet and knew what God had said. God had promised David that he would make a person from David’s family a king just as he was.# See 2 Samuel 7:13; Psalm 132:11. 31David knew this before it happened. That is why he said:
‘He was not left in the grave.
His body did not rot.’
David was talking about the Christ rising from death. 32So Jesus is the One who God raised from death! And we are all witnesses to this. 33Jesus was lifted up to heaven and is now at God’s right side. The Father has given the Holy Spirit to Jesus as he promised. So now Jesus has poured out that Spirit. This is what you see and hear. 34David was not the one who was lifted up to heaven. But he said:
‘The Lord said to my Lord:
Sit by me at my right side,
35until I put your enemies under your control.’# Literally, “until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” Psalm 110:1
36“So, all the people of Israel should know this truly: God has made Jesus both Lord and Christ. He is the man you nailed to the cross!”
37When the people heard this, they were sick at heart. They asked Peter and the other apostles, “What shall we do?”
38Peter said to them, “Change your hearts and lives and be baptized, each 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. 39This promise is for you. It is also for your children and for all who are far away. It is for everyone the Lord our God calls to himself.”
40Peter warned them with many other words. He begged them, “Save yourselves from the evil of today’s people!” 41Then those people who accepted what Peter said were baptized. About 3,000 people were added to the number of believers that day. 42They spent their time learning the apostles’ teaching. And they continued to share, to break bread,# This may mean a meal as in verse 46, or the Lord’s Supper, the special meal Jesus told his followers to eat to remember him (Luke 22:14–20). and to pray together.
The Believers Share
43The apostles were doing many miracles and signs. And everyone felt great respect for God. 44All the believers stayed together. They shared everything. 45They sold their land and the things they owned. Then they divided the money and gave it to those people who needed it. 46The believers met together in the Temple every day. They all had the same purpose. They broke bread in their homes, happy to share their food with joyful hearts. 47They praised God, and all the people liked them. More and more people were being saved every day; the Lord was adding those people to the group of believers.
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Copyright © 2015 by Tommy Nelson™, a Division of Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
Acts 2
2
The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost
1When the day of Pentecost came, all the believers gathered in one place. 2Suddenly a sound came from heaven. It was like a strong wind blowing. It filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3They saw something that looked like fire in the shape of tongues. The flames separated and came to rest on each of them. 4All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit. They began to speak in languages they had not known before. The Spirit gave them the ability to do this.
5Godly Jews from every country in the world were staying in Jerusalem. 6A crowd came together when they heard the sound. They were bewildered because each of them heard their own language being spoken. 7The crowd was really amazed. They asked, “Aren’t all these people who are speaking Galileans? 8Then why do we each hear them speaking in our own native language? 9We are Parthians, Medes and Elamites. We live in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia. We are from Pontus, Asia, 10Phrygia and Pamphylia. Others of us are from Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene. Still others are visitors from Rome. 11Some of the visitors are Jews. Others have accepted the Jewish faith. Also, Cretans and Arabs are here. We hear all these people speaking about God’s wonders in our own languages!” 12They were amazed and bewildered. They asked one another, “What does this mean?”
13But some people in the crowd made fun of the believers. “They’ve had too much wine!” they said.
Peter Speaks to the Crowd
14Then Peter stood up with the 11 apostles. In a loud voice he spoke to the crowd. “My fellow Jews,” he said, “let me explain this to you. All of you who live in Jerusalem, listen carefully to what I say. 15You think these people are drunk. But they aren’t. It’s only nine o’clock in the morning! 16No, here is what the prophet Joel meant. 17He said,
“ ‘In the last days, God says,
I will pour out my Holy Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy.
Your young men will see visions.
Your old men will have dreams.
18In those days, I will pour out my Spirit on my servants.
I will pour out my Spirit on both men and women.
When I do, they will prophesy.
19I will show wonders in the heavens above.
I will show signs on the earth below.
There will be blood and fire and clouds of smoke.
20The sun will become dark.
The moon will turn red like blood.
This will happen before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.
21Everyone who calls
on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ (Joel 2:28–32)
22“Fellow Israelites, listen to this! Jesus of Nazareth was a man who had God’s approval. God did miracles, wonders and signs among you through Jesus. You yourselves know this. 23Long ago God planned that Jesus would be handed over to you. With the help of evil people, you put Jesus to death. You nailed him to the cross. 24But God raised him from the dead. He set him free from the suffering of death. It wasn’t possible for death to keep its hold on Jesus. 25David spoke about him. He said,
“ ‘I know that the Lord is always with me.
Because he is at my right hand,
I will always be secure.
26So my heart is glad and joy is on my tongue.
My whole body will be full of hope.
27You will not leave me in the place of the dead.
You will not let your holy one rot away.
28You always show me the path that leads to life.
You will fill me with joy when I am with you.’ (Psalm 16:8–11)
29“Fellow Israelites, you can be sure that King David died. He was buried. His tomb is still here today. 30But David was a prophet. He knew that God had made a promise to him. God had promised that he would make someone in David’s family line king after him. 31David saw what was coming. So he spoke about the Messiah rising from the dead. He said that the Messiah would not be left in the place of the dead. His body wouldn’t rot in the ground. 32God has raised this same Jesus back to life. We are all witnesses of this. 33Jesus has been given a place of honor at the right hand of God. He has received the Holy Spirit from the Father. This is what God had promised. It is Jesus who has poured out what you now see and hear. 34David did not go up to heaven. But he said,
“ ‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at my right hand.
35I will put your enemies
under your control.” ’ (Psalm 110:1)
36“So be sure of this, all you people of Israel. You nailed Jesus to the cross. But God has made him both Lord and Messiah.”
37When the people heard this, it had a deep effect on them. They said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”
38Peter replied, “All of you must turn away from your sins and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then your sins will be forgiven. You will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39The promise is for you and your children. It is also for all who are far away. It is for all whom the Lord our God will choose.”
40Peter said many other things to warn them. He begged them, “Save yourselves from these evil people.” 41Those who accepted his message were baptized. About 3,000 people joined the believers that day.
The Believers Share Their Lives Together
42The believers studied what the apostles taught. They shared their lives together. They ate and prayed together. 43Everyone was amazed at what God was doing. They were amazed when the apostles performed many wonders and signs. 44All the believers were together. They shared everything they had. 45They sold property and other things they owned. They gave to anyone who needed something. 46Every day they met together in the temple courtyard. They ate meals together in their homes. Their hearts were glad and sincere. 47They praised God. They were respected by all the people. Every day the Lord added to their group those who were being saved.
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