When the day of Pentecost had come,
they were all together in one place.
And suddenly from heaven there
came a sound like the rush of a violent
wind, and it filled the entire house where
they were sitting. Divide tongues, as of
fire, appeared among them, and a tongue
rested on each of them. All of them were
filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak
in other languages, as the Spirit gave them
ability.
Now there were devout Jews from every people
under heaven living in Jerusalem. And at this
sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered,
because each one heard them speaking in the
native language of each. Amazed and astonished,
they asked, "Are not all these who are speaking
Galileans? And how is it that we hear each of us,
in our own native language? Parthians, Medes,
Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea
and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and
Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging
to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and
proselytes, Cretans and Arabs -- in our own
languages we hear them speaking about God's
deeds of power." All were amazed and perplexed,
saying to one another, "What does this mean?"
But others sneered and said, "They are filled with
new wine."
But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his
voice and addressed them,
Fellow Jews and all who live in
Jerusalem, let this be known to you,
and listen to what I say. Indeed, these
are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is
only nine o'clock in the morning. No,
this is what was spoken through the
prophet Joel:
"In the last days it will be, God declares,
that I will pour out 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.
Even upon my slaves, both men & women,
in those days I will pour out my Spirit,
and they shall prophesy.
And I will show portents in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood, and fire, and smoky mist.
The sun shall be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood,
before the coming of the Lord's
great and glorious day.
Then everyone who calls on the name of
the Lord shall be saved."
Fellow Israelites, listen to what I have to
say: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested
to you by God with deeds of power,
wonders, and signs that God did through
him among you,
as you yourselves know -- this man, handed
over to you according to the definite plan
and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and
killed by the hands of those outside the law.
But God raised him up, having released him
from the agony of death, because it was
impossible for him to be held in its power.
For David says concerning him,
I say the Lord always before me,
for he is at my right hand so that
I will not be shaken;
Therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue
rejoiced; moreover, my flesh will live in hope!
For you will not abandon my soul to Hades
or let your Holy One experience corruption.
You have made known to me the ways of life;
you will make me full of gladness with
your presence.
Fellow Israelites, I may say to you confidently
of our ancestors David that he both died and
was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.
Since he was a prophet, he knew that God had
sworn with an oath to him that he would put one
of his descendants on his throne. Foreseeing
this David spoke of the resurrection of the
Messiah, saying,
He was not abandoned to Hades,
nor did his flesh experience corruption.
This Jesus God raised up, and of that all of us
are witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the
right hand of God and having received from the
Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has
poured out this that you see and hear. For
David did not ascent into the heavens, but
he himself says,
The Lord said to my Lord,
'Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies your footstool.'
Therefore let the entire house of Israel know
with certainty that God has made him both
Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.
NOW when they heard this, they were cut to the heart
and said to Peter and to the other Apostles, "Brothers,
what should we do?"
Peter said to them, "Repent and be baptized every
one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your
sins may be forgiven, and you will receive the gift
of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you, for
your children, and for all those who are far away,
everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him."
And he testified with many other arguments and
exhorted them, saying, "Save yourselves from this
corrupt generation."
So those who welcomed his message were
baptized, and that day about three thousand persons
were added. They devoted themselves to the
apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking
of bread and the prayers.
Awe came up on everyone because many wonders
and signs were being done through the Apostles.
All who believed were together and had all things
in common; they would sell their possessions and
goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had
need. Day by day, as they spent much time together
in the Temple, they broke bread at home and ate their
food with glad and generous hearts, praising God
and having the goodwill of all the people. And day
by day the Lord added to their number those who
were being saved!
Acts of the Apostles chapter 2, verses 1 - 47
No comments:
Post a Comment