BIBLE CHAPTER STUDY
Acts 2 — Pentecost and the Birth of the Church
Acts 2 records the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, Peter's sermon declaring the risen Jesus as Lord and Christ, and the formation of the first Christian community.
Scripture
1And when the day of Pentecost was now come, they were all together in one place.
2And suddenly there came from heaven a sound as of the rushing of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
3And there appeared unto them tongues parting asunder, like as of fire; and it sat upon each one of them.
4And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
5Now there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven.
6And when this sound was heard, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speaking in his own language.
7And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying, Behold, are not all these that speak Galilaeans?
8And how hear we, every man in our own language wherein we were born?
9Parthians and Medes and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, in Judaea and Cappadocia, in Pontus and Asia,
10in Phrygia and Pamphylia, in Egypt and the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and sojourners from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,
11Cretans and Arabians, we hear them speaking in our tongues the mighty works of God.
12And they were all amazed, and were perplexed, saying one to another, What meaneth this?
13But others mocking said, They are filled with new wine.
14But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and spake forth unto them, saying, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and give ear unto my words.
15For these are not drunken, as ye suppose; seeing it is but the third hour of the day.
16but this is that which hath been spoken through the prophet Joel:
17And it shall be in the last days, saith God, I will pour forth 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:
18Yea and on my servants and on my handmaidens in those days Will I pour forth of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy.
19And I will show wonders in the heaven above, And signs on the earth beneath; Blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke:
20The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the day of the Lord come, That great and notable day.
21And it shall be, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.
22Ye men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God unto you by mighty works and wonders and signs which God did by him in the midst of you, even as ye yourselves know;
23him, being delivered up by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye by the hand of lawless men did crucify and slay:
24whom God raised up, having loosed the pangs of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it.
25For David saith concerning him, I beheld the Lord always before my face; For he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved:
26Therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; Moreover my flesh also shall dwell in hope:
27Because thou wilt not leave my soul unto Hades, Neither wilt thou give thy Holy One to see corruption.
28Thou madest known unto me the ways of life; Thou shalt make me full of gladness with thy countenance.
29Brethren, I may say unto you freely of the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us unto this day.
30Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins he would set one upon his throne;
31he foreseeing this spake of the resurrection of the Christ, that neither was he left unto Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption.
32This Jesus did God raise up, whereof we all are witnesses.
33Being therefore by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he hath poured forth this, which ye see and hear.
34For David ascended not into the heavens: but he saith himself, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand,
35Till I make thine enemies the footstool of thy feet.
36Let all the house of Israel therefore know assuredly, that God hath made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom ye crucified.
37Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and the rest of the apostles, Brethren, what shall we do?
38And Peter said unto them, Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
39For to you is the promise, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call unto him.
40And with many other words he testified, and exhorted them, saying, Save yourselves from this crooked generation.
41They then that received his word were baptized: and there were added unto them in that day about three thousand souls.
42And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and the prayers.
43And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.
44And all that believed were together, and had all things common;
45and they sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all, according as any man had need.
46And day by day, continuing stedfastly with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread at home, they took their food with gladness and singleness of heart,
47praising God, and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to them day by day those that were saved.
What this passage means
Acts 2 is structured in three movements: the Pentecost event (vv. 1–13), Peter's sermon (vv. 14–36), and the community's response (vv. 37–47). At Pentecost, the disciples are gathered in one place when a sound like a rushing wind fills the house and tongues of fire rest on each of them; they are filled with the Holy Spirit and speak in other languages (vv. 1–4). The multilingual audience — Jews from Parthia, Media, Elam, Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia, Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, Libya, Rome, Crete, and Arabia — hears the mighty works of God in its own tongue (vv. 5–11). Some mock, saying the speakers are drunk (v. 13).
Peter answers the charge of drunkenness by citing Joel's prophecy: in the last days God will pour out the Spirit on all flesh, accompanied by visions, dreams, prophetic speech, cosmic signs, and the promise that whoever calls on the Lord's name will be saved (vv. 14–21). He then presents the gospel: Jesus of Nazareth was attested by God through miracles; delivered by God's set purpose, he was crucified but raised, because death could not hold him (vv. 22–24). Peter reads Psalm 16 as a prophecy of the resurrection — David died and was buried, yet he spoke of One whose soul would not be left in Hades and whose flesh would not see corruption (vv. 25–32). He then reads Psalm 110: David did not ascend, but spoke of the Lord saying to his Lord, "Sit on my right hand" (vv. 33–36). The conclusion: God has made this Jesus, whom they crucified, both Lord and Christ.
The hearers are pricked in heart and ask what to do; Peter answers: repent, be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for forgiveness of sins, and receive the Holy Spirit — a promise for them, their children, and all who are far off (vv. 37–39). About three thousand are added that day (v. 41). The believers devote themselves to the apostles' teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayers; they share possessions, meet daily in the temple, eat with gladness, and the Lord adds to their number daily (vv. 42–47).
Context
The chapter note identifies the content as 'Pentecost, Peter's sermon, early church.' Acts 2 falls after the events of Acts 1, where the disciples were instructed to wait in Jerusalem. The chapter opens with the disciples gathered together at the arrival of the day of Pentecost. The audience in Jerusalem consists of devout Jews from many nations, and the geographic list reflects the Jewish diaspora of the period as presented in the text.
The sermon operates through scripture quotation: Peter cites the prophet Joel for the Spirit outpouring and the promise of salvation to those who call on the Lord, then cites David (Psalms 16 and 110) to argue that the resurrection and exaltation of Jesus fulfill David's words. The chapter closes with a portrait of the community's practices drawn directly from the text: devotion to apostles' teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, prayers, sharing of possessions, daily temple gathering, and glad worship.
Key words in the original
- G4157 In Acts 2:2 the term πνοή (pnoē) is used for the rushing sound that fills the house. Its gloss in the provided entry is 'respiration, a breeze,' and in context it denotes a violent, rushing breath from heaven accompanying the Spirit's coming.
- G1100 In Acts 2:3–11 γλῶσσα (glōssa) is used for the 'tongues' that appeared like fire and for the languages spoken by the Spirit-filled disciples. The provided gloss notes it means 'the tongue; by implication, a language (specially, one naturally unacquired),' which matches the text's presentation of unlearned languages understood by the diaspora audience.
- G4005 In Acts 2:1 Πεντηκοστή (Pentēkostē) designates the festival of Pentecost. The provided entry glosses it as 'fiftieth... the festival of "Pentecost",' and the chapter opens with the day of this feast having come and the disciples being gathered together.
Related verses
- Joel 2:28 Peter's quotation in Acts 2:17–18 of the Spirit being poured out on all flesh comes from this verse in Joel, anchoring the Pentecost event in the prophetic promise that sons, daughters, young men, and old men will prophesy, dream, and see visions.
- Joel 2:32 Acts 2:21 — 'whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved' — is Peter's rendering of this Joel passage. The chapter frames the promise of salvation explicitly in terms of calling on the Lord's name.
- Psalms 16:11 Peter reads David's words in Psalm 16 as foretelling that God's Holy One would not see corruption and would be shown the path of life. In Acts 2:25–28 this passage is applied to Jesus' resurrection, with the claim that David himself died and was buried while his tomb remained among them.
Common questions
How does the chapter describe the giving of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost?
The text describes the disciples gathered in one place at the arrival of the day of Pentecost. A sound like a rushing mighty wind from heaven fills it, tongues as of fire appear and rest on each person, and they are filled with the Holy Spirit and speak in other languages as the Spirit gives utterance (vv. 1–4).
What is the structure of Peter's sermon, and which scriptures does he quote?
Peter's sermon begins by refuting the charge of drunkenness and citing the prophet Joel about the outpouring of the Spirit in the last days (vv. 14–21). He then presents Jesus as attested by God through miracles, crucified according to God's set purpose, and raised because death could not hold him (vv. 22–24). He cites David (Psalm 16) for the resurrection and David again (Psalm 110) for the exaltation to God's right hand, concluding that God has made the crucified Jesus both Lord and Christ (vv. 25–36).
What response does the sermon produce, and how does the new community live?
The hearers are pricked in heart and ask what they should do. Peter answers: repent, be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for forgiveness of sins, and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, a promise extending to them, their children, and those far off whom the Lord calls (vv. 37–39). About three thousand are added that day. The believers devote themselves to the apostles' teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayers; they share their possessions, meet daily in the temple, eat with gladness and singleness of heart, and the Lord adds daily those who are being saved (vv. 41–47).