Pentecost
In the Book of Acts, the application of Joel’s prophecy to the events in Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost links the initial outpouring of the Spirit to the start of the “Last Days.” In Acts, the activity of the Spirit beginning on the Day of Pentecost is essential for understanding the rapid spread of the Gospel from Jerusalem to the very center of the Roman Empire, a process that must continue until the “arrival” or Parousia of Jesus.
Before the disciples began to proclaim
the Gospel, they were told to wait in Jerusalem until Jesus “sent the promise
of my Father upon you.” The receipt of the Spirit would equip them to
become witnesses to “the uttermost part of the Earth.”
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| [Downpour - Photo by John Fowler on Unsplash] |
After they received the Spirit, the Gospel began to move inexorably from Jerusalem to the eastern regions of the Mediterranean basin, then to the city of Rome itself - (Luke 24:45-49, Acts 1:6-11, 2:38-39).
The disciples waited until the
Spirit arrived on Pentecost when the feast had “fully come.” This term
translates a compound Greek verb that signifies the filling of something to the
full, to the very brim (sumpleroō). Thus, the age of fulfillment foreshadowed
by the annual feast day began in earnest with the bestowal of the Spirit on the
disciples in Jerusalem – (Acts 2:1-4).
When Jewish pilgrims were confounded
by the sights and sounds that accompanied the Spirit, Peter stood up and
declared, “These men are not drunk, but THIS is that which was spoken
through the prophet Joel.”
In the Greek clause, an
emphatic pronoun is found on his lips. THIS very thing
witnessed by the pilgrims in Jerusalem that day was the thing predicted by Joel
for the “Last Days” - (Joel 2:28-32).
THE SERMON
Peter quoted Joel but
deviated from the original Hebrew at key points. First, the original “afterward”
became the “Last Days.” Second, he added, “They shall prophesy”
after the promise of the Spirit for “servants and handmaidens.” Third,
the term “signs” was added and paired with “wonders.” Fourth, the
“great and terrible Day of Yahweh” became “The great
and manifest day of the Lord.” Fifth, Peter dropped the last half
of Joel 2:32 (“for in mount Zion and
in Jerusalem, there shall be those that escape, and among the remnant
those whom Yahweh calls”).
He then focused on Jesus and
what God did in and through him. He was a man “pointed
out of God by mighty works and wonders and signs,” but he also was “delivered by lawless men”
to be slain on the cross.
However, the Messiah could not be held by the “pangs of death.” Just as David foretold, God raised him from the dead and seated him at his “right hand.” This “same Jesus” also received the “promise of the Holy Spirit” which he poured out on his assembly, demonstrating that God “made Jesus both Lord and Messiah” – (Acts 2:22-36).
Peter’s description of “wonders
and signs” is a verbal link to the prophecy in Joel. The
predicted signs and wonders that were expected to characterize
the “Last Days” began in the ministry of Jesus, and following his ascension,
he “received of the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, that which you
see and hear.”
At the conclusion of his
sermon, Peter once more linked the Gift of the Spirit to the prophecy in Joel:
- “And when they heard this, they were pricked to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles: What are we to do, brethren? And Peter said to them: Repent and let each one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins, and you shall receive the free gift of the Holy Spirit; for to you is the promise and to your children, and un all them who are afar off, as many soever as the Lord our God shall call” - (Acts 2:37-39).
He identified the Gift as the “promise”
that was given to Israel, but also one for “all that are afar off, even as
many as the Lord our God shall call.” Likewise, the prophet Joel promised
that “WHOEVER calls on the name of the Lord will be saved,” an
open-ended invitation to all men and nations. God never intended to limit the
Good News and salvation to Israel.
Peter applied the prophecy to
the receipt of the Spirit by the Church on the Day of Pentecost. In doing
so, he connected the outpouring of the Spirit to the commencement of the “Last
Days,” the era of salvation for all “who call on the name of the Lord.”
SIGNS AND WONDERS
Joel foretold the coming of “wonders in the heavens and in the earth
before the great and terrible Day of Yahweh.” Peter added
the term “signs” or sémeion to the phrase and paired it
with “wonders” (teras).
Both terms occur together in Acts,
beginning with the final verses of Chapter 2 (“Many wonders and signs were
done by the apostles” – Acts 2:43). Thus, the “wonders”
predicted in Joel began on Pentecost with the “sound like a
rushing wind,” “tongues of fire,” and the disciples “speaking in
tongues.” Moreover, such signs continued through the evangelistic efforts
of the Church until we find Paul proclaiming the “Kingdom” while under
house arrest in Rome.
The reason for this
modification becomes clear in Peter’s sermon. Jesus was “a man
approved of God as demonstrated by wonders (teras) and signs (sémeion).” Together,
these two terms become thematic in Acts for the Spirit’s activity -
(Acts 4:30, 5:12, 6:8, 8:13).
The stress on visions, dreams,
and prophecy in Peter’s sermon prepares the reader for the activities of the
Spirit detailed in the later chapters of Acts - (Acts
9:10, 10:3, 10:10, 11:28, 16:9-10, 18:9, 19:6, 21:9).
THE CALL
Peter ended his quotation at
the midpoint of the original passage, “All who call on the name of the Lord
will be saved.” He did not include the original ethnic and
geographic limitations (“For in Mount Zion and
in Jerusalem there shall be those that escape”). Thus, no longer was
(or is) the promised salvation limited to Jerusalem or the remnant
of Israel. Instead, the offer of salvation and the Gift of the Spirit
were (and are) extended to everyone who responds in faith, to “all those who are afar off.”
In the sermon, the
prophecy by Joel is universalized. Its fulfillment commenced on the Day of
Pentecost with the initial outpouring of the Spirit, and it will continue being
fulfilled until the “Day of the Lord” when Jesus returns at the end of
the age.
The promise of the Spirit applies
to the entire church throughout the period between the departure of Jesus and
his return in glory. The period known as the “Last Days” is the time
when the Spirit is active and the summons to receive the “Good News” is
proclaimed “to the uttermost parts of the Earth.”
