Acts 2–5

The Holy Spirit Comes at Pentecost

2The day of Pentecost came. The believers all gathered in one place. ²Suddenly a sound came from heaven. It was like a strong wind blowing. It filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³They saw something that looked like tongues of fire. The flames separated and settled on each of them. ⁴All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit. They began to speak in languages they had not known before. The Spirit gave them the ability to do this.

⁵Godly Jews from every country in the world were staying in Jerusalem. ⁶A crowd came together when they heard the sound. They were bewildered because they each heard the believers speaking in their own language. ⁷The crowd was really amazed. They asked, “Aren’t all these people from Galilee? ⁸Why, then, do we each hear them speaking in our own native language? ⁹We are Parthians, Medes and Elamites. We live in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia. We are from Pontus, Asia, ¹⁰Phrygia and Pamphylia. Others of us are from Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene. Still others are visitors from Rome. ¹¹Some of the visitors are Jews. Others have accepted the Jewish faith. Also, Cretans and Arabs are here. We hear all these people speaking about God’s wonders in our own languages!” ¹²They were amazed and bewildered. They asked one another, “What does this mean?”

¹³But some people in the crowd made fun of the believers. “They’ve had too much wine!” they said.

Peter Speaks to the Crowd

¹⁴Then Peter stood up with the Eleven. In a loud voice he spoke to the crowd. “My Jewish friends,” he said, “let me explain this to you. All of you who live in Jerusalem, listen carefully to what I say. ¹⁵You think these people are drunk. But they aren’t. It’s only nine o’clock in the morning! ¹⁶No, here is what the prophet Joel meant. ¹⁷He said,

“ ‘In the last days, God says,

I will pour out my Holy Spirit on all people.

Your sons and daughters will prophesy.

Your young men will see visions.

Your old men will have dreams.

¹⁸In those days I will pour out my Spirit

even on those who serve me, both men and women.

When I do, they will prophesy.

¹⁹I will show wonders in the heavens above.

I will show miraculous signs on the earth below.

There will be blood and fire and clouds of smoke.

²⁰The sun will become dark.

The moon will turn red like blood.

This will happen before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.

²¹Everyone who calls

on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

²²“Men of Israel, listen to this! Jesus of Nazareth was a man who had God’s approval. God did miracles, wonders and signs among you through Jesus. You yourselves know this. ²³Long ago God planned that Jesus would be handed over to you. With the help of evil people, you put Jesus to death. You nailed him to the cross. ²⁴But God raised him from the dead. He set him free from the suffering of death. It wasn’t possible for death to keep its hold on Jesus. ²⁵David spoke about him. He said,

“ ‘I know that the Lord is always with me.

He is at my right hand.

I will always be secure.

²⁶So my heart is glad. Joy is on my tongue.

My body also will be full of hope.

²⁷You will not leave me in the grave.

You will not let your Holy One rot away.

²⁸You always show me the path that leads to life.

You will fill me with joy when I am with you.’

²⁹“Brothers, you can be sure that King David died. He was buried. His tomb is still here today. ³⁰But David was a prophet. He knew that God had made a promise to him. He had taken an oath that someone in David’s family line would be king after him. ³¹David saw what was ahead. So he spoke about the Christ rising from the dead. He said that the Christ would not be left in the grave. His body wouldn’t rot in the ground. ³²God has raised this same Jesus back to life. We are all witnesses of this. ³³Jesus has been given a place of honor at the right hand of God. He has received the Holy Spirit from the Father. This is what God had promised. It is Jesus who has poured out what you now see and hear. ³⁴David did not go up to heaven. But he said,

“ ‘The Lord said to my Lord,

“Sit at my right hand.

³⁵I will put your enemies

under your control.” ’

³⁶“So be sure of this, all you people of Israel. You nailed Jesus to the cross. But God has made him both Lord and Christ.”

³⁷When the people heard this, their hearts were filled with shame. They said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”

³⁸Peter replied, “All of you must turn away from your sins and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then your sins will be forgiven. You will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹The promise is for you and your children. It is also for all who are far away. It is for all whom the Lord our God will choose.”

⁴⁰Peter said many other things to warn them. He begged them, “Save yourselves from these evil people.” ⁴¹Those who accepted his message were baptized. About 3,000 people joined the believers that day.

The Believers Share Life Together

⁴²The believers studied what the apostles taught. They shared life together. They broke bread and ate together. And they prayed. ⁴³Everyone felt that God was near. The apostles did many wonders and miraculous signs. ⁴⁴All the believers were together. They shared everything they had. ⁴⁵They sold what they owned. They gave each other everything they needed. ⁴⁶Every day they met together in the temple courtyard. In their homes they broke bread and ate together. Their hearts were glad and honest and true. ⁴⁷They praised God. They were respected by all the people. Every day the Lord added to their group those who were being saved.

Peter Heals the Disabled Beggar

3One day Peter and John were going up to the temple. It was three o’clock in the afternoon. It was the time for prayer. ²A man unable to walk was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful. He had been that way since he was born. Every day someone put him near the gate. There he would beg from people going into the temple courtyards.

³He saw that Peter and John were about to enter. So he asked them for money. ⁴Peter looked straight at him, and so did John. Then Peter said, “Look at us!” ⁵So the man watched them closely. He expected to get something from them.

⁶Peter said, “I don’t have any silver or gold. But I’ll give you what I have. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk.” ⁷Then Peter took him by the right hand and helped him up. At once the man’s feet and ankles became strong. ⁸He jumped to his feet and began to walk. He went with Peter and John into the temple courtyards. He walked and jumped and praised God. ⁹All the people saw him walking and praising God. ¹⁰They recognized him as the same man who used to sit and beg at the temple gate called Beautiful. They were filled with wonder. They were amazed at what had happened to him.

Peter Speaks to the Jews

¹¹The beggar was holding on to Peter and John. All the people were amazed. They came running to them at Solomon’s Porch. ¹²When Peter saw this, he said, “Men of Israel, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us? We haven’t made this man walk by our own power or godliness. ¹³The God of our fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, has done this. He has brought glory to Jesus, who serves him. But you handed Jesus over to be killed. Pilate had decided to let him go. But you spoke against Jesus when he was in Pilate’s court. ¹⁴You spoke against the Holy and Blameless One. You asked for a murderer to be set free instead. ¹⁵You killed the one who gives life. But God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this. ¹⁶This man whom you see and know was made strong because of faith in Jesus’ name. Faith in Jesus has healed him completely. You can see it with your own eyes.

¹⁷“My friends, I know you didn’t realize what you were doing. Neither did your leaders. ¹⁸But God had given a promise through all the prophets. And this is how he has made his promise come true. He said that his Christ would suffer. ¹⁹So turn away from your sins. Turn to God. Then your sins will be wiped away. The time will come when the Lord will make everything new. ²⁰He will send the Christ. Jesus has been appointed as the Christ for you. ²¹He must remain in heaven until the time when God makes everything new. He promised this long ago through his holy prophets. ²²Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me. He will be one of your own people. You must listen to everything he tells you. ²³Those who do not listen to him will be completely cut off from their people.’

²⁴“Samuel and all the prophets after him spoke about this. They said these days would come. ²⁵What the prophets said was meant for you. The covenant God made with your people long ago is yours also. He said to Abraham, ‘All nations on earth will be blessed through your children.’ ²⁶God raised up Jesus, who serves him. God sent him first to you. He did it to bless you. He wanted to turn each of you from your evil ways.”

Peter and John Are Taken to the Sanhedrin

4Peter and John were speaking to the people. The priests, the captain of the temple guard, and the Sadducees came up to the apostles. ²They were very upset by what the apostles were teaching the people. The apostles were saying that because Jesus rose from the dead, people can be raised from the dead. ³So the temple authorities arrested Peter and John. It was already evening, so they put them in prison until the next day. ⁴But many who heard the message believed. The number of men who believed grew to about 5,000.

⁵The next day the rulers, the elders and the teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. ⁶Annas, the high priest, was there. So were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and others in the high priest’s family. ⁷They had Peter and John brought to them. They wanted to question them. “By what power did you do this?” they asked. “And through whose name?”

⁸Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit. He said to them, “Rulers and elders of the people! ⁹Are you asking us to explain our actions today? Do you want to know…