Category: Acts for a 21st c. Church

And in the day of the Pentecost being fulfilled, they were all with one accord at the same place

Acts 2:1 YLT

50 days later: Pentecost

Please discard your New Testament notions of Pentecost for a moment and allow me to narrate what has just taken place for the Apostles in first century Jerusalem which the witness Luke and other Christians have already seen.

Perhaps like many, you may not be familiar with the Jewish festivals so central to Jesus’ crucifixion and Scripture more familiar to first century Jews. Festivals brought the crowds to Roman-occupied Jerusalem three times each year.

Luke gives an account of several acts which take place on this day of Pentecost:

1. in the upper room where the a hundred followers of JESUS have remained after our Lord’s ascension on the fortieth day after the Passover festival and
2. outside in the crowded streets of Jerusalem and later
3. in the even more crowded courtyards of the Temple.

Before we join Jerusalem’s crowds on this particular day of Pentecost in the same year Jesus was crucified and resurrected, first let’s understand Pentecost by it’s varied English names.

πεντηκοστή – Pentecost

• Pentecost = “the fiftieth day”
  • the second of the three great Jewish feasts, celebrated at Jerusalem yearly, the seventh week after the Passover, in grateful recognition of the completed harvest
• Shavuot, the plural of a word meaning “week” or “seven,” alludes to the fact that this festival happens exactly seven weeks (i.e. “a week of weeks”) after Passover.[14]
  • In the Bible, Shavuot is called the “Festival of Weeks” (Hebrew: חג השבועות‎, Chag HaShavuot, Exodus 34:22, Deuteronomy 16:10); “Festival of Reaping” (חג הקציר, Chag HaKatzir, Exodus 23:16),[12] and “Day of the First Fruits” (יום הבכורים, Yom HaBikkurim, Numbers 28:26).[13]

Three Biblical Festivals

“Three times a year you shall celebrate a feast to Me.

“Three times a year all your males shall appear before the Lord GOD.

Exodus 23:14,17 NASB20

Crowds in Jerusalem – Multitudes of faithful Jews

Although Luke begins his account of this festival scene with what happened inside the upper room, he immediately takes the reader to the crowds outside to the crowded streets of Jerusalem.

Having heard the RUSHING WIND FROM HEAVEN, like most curious observers, the multitudes of Jewish pilgrims rush to the scene of this unusual phenomenon on the day of Pentecost which begins their festival week.

Now there were dwelling in Yerushalayim Yehudim, devout men, from every nation under the sky. When this sound was heard, the multitude came together, and were bewildered, because everyone heard them [various Apostles] speaking in his own language.

Acts 2 – Hebrew Names Version: vs.5-6

We’ll return to this crowd scene in a moment, but first let’s address the attesting signs of power first witnessed by the crowds, signs not entirely unfamiliar to Jews rooted in Scripture.

Suddenly Echoes of a Blast of Wind from Heaven

 καὶ ἐγένετο ἄφνω ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ ἦχος ὥσπερ φερομένης πνοῆς βιαίας καὶ ἐπλήρωσεν ὅλον τὸν οἶκον οὗ ἦσαν καθήμενοι

Do you understand this from the common Greek of Acts 2:2?
 
Most witnesses on this Pentecost would have, but not all. 
Soon we will understand what all heard: the Power of the Holy Spirit.

Old Testament Scripture

Consider some of Scripture familiar to first century Jews encountering the sudden sound from the sky.

And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.. And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

Genesis 1:2a, 2:7 KJV

What must they have wondered about these unfolding mysteries?

Job 37 (KJV)

God thundereth marvellously with his voice; great things doeth he, which we cannot comprehend.. Out of the south cometh the whirlwind: and cold out of the north.

Then the LORD answered Job from the whirlwind and said,

“Who is this who darkens the divine plan
By words without knowledge?

Job 38:1-2 NASB20

Moses [Exodus 19]

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, I will come to you in a thick cloud, so that the people may hear when I speak with you and may also trust in you forever.” Then Moses told the words of the people to the LORD.

Now Mount Sinai was all in smoke because the LORD descended upon it in fire; and its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the entire mountain quaked violently. When the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him with [a voice that sounded like] thunder.

Elijah [2 Kings 2]

Now it came about, when the LORD was about to bring Elijah up by a whirlwind to heaven, that Elijah left Gilgal with Elisha.. And Elijah took his coat, folded it, and struck the waters, and they were divided here and there, so that the two of them crossed over on dry ground.. And as they were walking along and talking, behold, a chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire, and they separated the two of them. Then Elijah went up by a whirlwind to heaven.

From Luke’s first account of the acts and teachings of Jesus

What happens on this Pentecost may have amazed others, but the Apostles had known the powerful work of the Spirit before.

Gospel of Luke 9:

Now He called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all the demons, and the power to heal diseases.

Peter and the Apostles received power though Jesus at times during the Lord’s three-year journeys with them. They also witnessed signs from heaven which Jesus forbid them to reveal at those times..

When the apostles returned, they gave an account to Him of all that they had done.. But the crowds were aware of this and followed Him..

Jesus with Moses and Elijah

33 And as these two men were leaving Him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good that we are here; and let’s make three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”—not realizing what he was saying. But while he was saying this, a cloud formed and began to overshadow them; and they were afraid as they entered the cloud.

Do you understand why Peter had asked Jesus to build a temporary tabernacle of worship in three booths?

The Apostles now speaking in Jerusalem during the festival of weeks and giving powerful signs on this Pentecost after Christ’s resurrection and ascension had witnessed all these things!

• Strong’s H5521 – sukâ
  • סֻכָּה çukkâh, sook-kaw’; feminine of H5520; a hut or lair:—booth, cottage, covert, pavilion, tabernacle, tent.

David before moving the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem –

And Uriah said to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah are staying in temporary H5521 shelters H5521, and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are camping in the open field.

2 Samuel 11:11a NASB20 – H5521 = shelters or booths – סֻכָּה

Acts 2 – Tongues of Fire in the Upper Room

And suddenly a noise like a violent rushing wind came from heaven, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.

(As Luke will record shortly, this awesome phenomenon would actually happen again!)

And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness.

Acts 4:31 NASB20

(Luke also records later: ‘And the [community or literally, multitude] congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul.. Acts 4:32a)

And tongues that looked like fire appeared to them, distributing themselves, and a tongue rested on each one of them.

- Acts 2:3

WAIT! & Don’t skip past this heavenly manifestation taking place over the heads of these worshipers in an upper room in Jerusalem.

Suppose you were one of the hundred believers present. Wouldn’t YOU have been in absolute AWE?

And from beyond this upper room full of believers, other faithful worshipers of the LORD in Jerusalem would also witness even more acts by the Holy Spirit.

Acts of the Holy Spirit

ALL must have feared these unknown acts of GOD: fear as of a Holy Ghost unseen rather than an all-to-familiar ‘holy spirit’ embraced by 21st century christians. ALMIGHTY GOD acted in Jerusalem this Pentecost!

And from these Acts of the Holy Spirit of the Lord God and Jesus Christ, the church ignited the world with the hope of the Gospel.

Roger@talkofJESUS.com – on Acts 2

These hundred believers, thought by the crowds to be merely pilgrims from Galilee in Jerusalem for celebration of the week of Shavuot, AND filled with the Holy Spirit of the LORD, went out into the crowds attracted by the great heavenly wind which came upon that place.

They began to speak in other languages of the Nations, ‘as the Spirit was giving them the ability to speak out.’

Many Worshipers Perplexed by Ordinary Men

.. because each one of them was hearing them speak in his own language. They were amazed and astonished, saying,

“Look, aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans?

“And how is it that we each hear them in our own [dialect] to which we were born?

from Acts 2:7 & 8, CSB & NASB

9 Parthians, Medes, and Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea, and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya around Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs

Acts of Amazement and Perplexity

They were all astounded and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”

Acts 2:12 CSB

Luke uses two Greek words to describe the reactions of the multitudes to these miracles of God:

• ἐξίστημι – existēmi – lit. to throw out of position, displace; amazed, astonished, astounded, beside ones self, insane
• διαπορέω – diaporeō – to be entirely at loss, to be in perplexity

Their continued amazement at the workings of the Holy Spirit this Pentecost certainly left ordinary men without explanation. Yet note the earlier use of these words by Luke in similar circumstances:

“What does this mean?”

• ἐξίστημι Strong’s G1839 – existēmi
  • And all who heard Him [Jesus at age 12 responding to teachers in the Temple] were amazed G1839 at His understanding and His answers. – Gospel of Luke 2:47
  • Her parents were amazed G1839; but He [Jesus] instructed them to tell no one what had happened. – Gospel of Luke 8:56, after Jesus had raised the daughter of a synagogue official from death.
  • “But also some women among us left G1839 us bewildered G1839. When they were at the tomb early in the morning, and did not find His [Jesus’] body, they came, saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said that He was alive.- Luke 24:22-23

YES, AMAZING indeed, these Acts which happened on Pentecost. But look also at Luke’s previous use of perplexity.

• διαπορέω – Strong’s G1280 – diaporeō [to be entirely at loss, to be in perplexity]
  • Now Herod the tetrarch heard about all that was happening; and he was greatly G1280 perplexed G1280, because it was said by some that John [the Baptist] had risen from the dead, and by some that Elijah had appeared, and by others that one of the prophets of old had risen. – Luke 9:7-8, after [v.6] the Apostles began going throughout the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.

They were amazed and astonished G2296, saying, “Why, are not all these who are speaking Galileans?”

Acts of the Apostles 2:7 NASB20

• θαυμάζω – Strong’s G2296 – thaumazō – marvel (29x), wonder (14x), have in admiration (1x), admire (1x),

NEXT: Peter’s Amazing Answer