King James Version · Under Rome
Acts 2
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And when the day of was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven like as of , and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Ghost, and began to speak with other , as gave them utterance. And there were dwelling at , devout men, out of every nation under . Now when this was noised abroad, came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language. And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galileans? 8And how hear we every man in our own , wherein we were born? Parthians, and , and Elamites, and the dwellers in , and in , and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and , Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in , and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of , and proselytes, Cretes and , we do hear them speak in our the wonderful works of . And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this? Others mocking said, These men are full of . But , standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of , and all ye that at , be this known unto you, and to my words: For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day. But this is that which was spoken by the Joel; And it shall come to pass , saith , I will pour out of upon : and your sons and your daughters shall , and your young men shall see , and your old men shall : And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of ; and they shall : And I will shew wonders in above, and signs in the earth beneath; , and , and vapour of smoke: The sun shall be turned into , and the moon into , before that great and notable come: And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall of shall be . Ye men of Israel, hear these words; of , a man approved of among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: Him, being by the determinate and foreknowledge of , ye have taken, and by hands have and slain: Whom hath up, having loosed the pains of : because it was not possible that he should be holden of it. For speaketh concerning him, I foresaw always before , for he is on my , that I should not be moved: Therefore did rejoice, and my was glad; moreover also my shall rest in : Because thou wilt not leave in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine One to see corruption. Thou hast to me the ways of life; thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance. Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch , that he is both and buried, and his is with us unto this day. Therefore being a , and knowing that had with an to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to , he would raise up Christ to sit on his ; He seeing this before spake of the of Christ, that his was not left in hell, neither his did see corruption. This hath up, whereof we all are . Therefore being by of exalted, and having received of the promise of the Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear. For is not ascended into : but he saith himself, said unto my , Sit thou on my , Until I make thy thy . Therefore let all the know assuredly, that hath made that same , whom ye have , both and Christ. Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their , and said unto and to the rest of , Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then said unto them, , and be every one of you in the name of for the remission of , and ye shall receive the gift of the Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as our shall call. And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, yourselves from this untoward generation. Then they that gladly received his word were : and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand . And they continued stedfastly in ’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every : and many wonders and signs were done by . And all that were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need. And they, continuing daily with one accord in , and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of , Praising , and having with all the people. And added to daily such as should be .
The 1611 translation, public domain. Its original printing included the Apocrypha, which is why the deuterocanonical books can be read here. Notes and cards are EKLI’s own.
Christians read this chapter differently
- Who should be baptized, and what does it do? · Acts 2:38-39
- Are the miraculous gifts still given today? · Acts 2
- Is baptism in the Spirit a second experience after conversion? · Acts 2
Every view at its strongest, with who holds it and what it has to answer for.
The world at this moment · Under Rome, 63 BC to AD 100 ›
Judea as a client kingdom and then a province. Roads, garrisons, taxes, crucifixion, and a common Greek language that let a message travel the empire faster than any before it.
- Rome
- The republic tears itself apart in civil war and comes out as an empire under Augustus. What follows is two centuries of relative peace across the whole Mediterranean, enforced by legions and paid for by taxes, with safe roads and safe sea lanes. Every one of Paul's journeys depends on that.
- Judea
- Governed first through Herod the Great, a client king of enormous ability and enormous brutality who rebuilds the temple into one of the wonders of the ancient world, then directly by Roman prefects. Crucifixion is the standard penalty for sedition and is used often and publicly.
- The wider world
- Greek is spoken from Spain to Syria, which means a letter written in Corinth can be read in Rome without translation. Jewish communities already exist in most major cities, which is where the first Christian preaching lands. Mystery religions, imperial cult, and philosophy all compete in the same marketplace.
- Further afield
- The Han dynasty rules China and trades silk westward along routes that touch the Roman world at second hand. In Britain the Roman conquest begins within a decade of the crucifixion.