"Whatever could this mean?"

Acts 2:5-13

5 And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. 6 And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and was confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language. 7 Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, "Look, are not all these who speak Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs — we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God." 12 So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, "Whatever could this mean?" 13 Others mocking said, "They are full of new wine." NKJV

5 And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven.

In our last study we discussed how the Holy Spirit came ‘suddenly’ upon the Jewish believers in the upper room. When God invades our life it is always by surprise, and He never asks us ahead of time if we will permit Him to interact with us. The disciples that day were expecting the Holy Spirit to blow upon them, but they were not told when. Believers who have this expectation and hope purify themselves (1 Jn.3:3).

3 And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. NKJV

But unbelievers are not expecting God to invade their life, as far as they are concerned they don’t need God (1 Thess.5:2; 2 Pet. 3:10). God uses the ‘severity’ of Adam’s fall to cause us to consider our sins, and the judgment that our sins deserve (Rom. 2:5; 11:22). What fell upon these believers was the goodness and kindness of God, because now that God has adopted the church (Rom. 8:15), we have access to our Heavenly Father; through Christ’s life, death, and resurrection by the Holy Spirit reconciling us and making us alive to God.

Eph 2:1-3

2 And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, 2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others. NKJV

God intervenes and interrupts this life in ways we don’t always like or understand, but if we have ears to hear; He has Words that give us eternal life (Matt. 11:15; Jn. 6:68). This was the divine mandate for the church on this historical day at Pentecost in Jerusalem. The Holy Spirit was given to the church as a ‘comforter’, as well as her sovereign Head.

John 14:15-18

15 "If you love Me, keep My commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever — 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. NKJV

Now that Holy Spirit has come upon the church, she is empowered to go into the world and be seen.

Matt 5:14-16

14 "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. NKJV

This truth demolishes the idea that the church is invisible. While the Holy Spirit is invisible working in the hearts of the elect (Lk. 17:20), the church's works are clearly seen, even as Christ's miracles were clearly seen (Matt 12:31-32).

The Unpardonable Sin (Mark 3:28-30) 31 "Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. 32 Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come. NKJV

The church is now empowered to be the light of the world. She not only is the light of the world, but as the Holy Spirit shines in her, she lights up the world. However, this light can be taken away from her (Rev. 2:5), and away from any nation that once was bearing His fruit (Rev. 18:23); because Christ is sovereign over the churches, and the world. It is important to note that as the Holy Spirit reigns in the earth, He (the Holy Spirit) who restrains will also be taken out of the way (2 Thess. 2:7). However the Holy Spirit cannot be taken away from individual Christians. You cannot lose the Holy Spirit, because no one can snatch them out of the Father’s hand; if, they have come to Christ by the Holy Spirit’s power (Jn. 6:39).

John 7:37-39

7 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. 38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water." 39 But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified. NKJV

5 And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. 6 And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and was confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language.

Pentecost was a major feast in Jerusalem, and men who loved the Lord, were also called ‘God fearers’, who came to celebrate the feast. The Greek adjective, εὐλαβής [eulabes /yoo·lab·ace/], describes these men as Jews who would ‘cautiously take hold of the worship of God with care and fear being sure of their religion'. Not all of these men lived in Jerusalem but traveled from far lands in foreign countries.

Therefore these God fearers, sometimes called, Hellenists, may not have necessarily been Jewish citizens; but were considered Jews because they practiced Judaism (Acts 6:1; 9:29; 11:20). These men have set up Jewish synagogues through out the world that will play a major role in the spread of the gospel later in our study of Acts. But, for now, these men come for the yearly feasts to offer up sacrifices to the God of Israel. And when these foreign men heard the sound of the disciples speaking, each one, in a different language, a crowd formed in confusion as to why they could understand what Christ’s disciples were speaking, because these men were uneducated Galileans.

7 Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, "Look, are not all these who speak Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs — we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God."

It should be obvious to us as readers that the ‘tongues’ given to the church this day was not some kind of gibberish or ‘angelic (unknown) language’. The Greek word for tongues is always used to describe languages. Therefore, when we come across the word ‘tongue’ it is synonymous with the word ‘language’. The Apostle Paul later has to address the Corinthian church for her misuse of the gift. I don’t have time to get into that here, but I want to make you aware of it, so that, you will not be deceived by the counterfeit.

12 So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, "Whatever could this mean?" 13 Others mocking said, "They are full of new wine." NKJV

It surprises me that even though all these men were able to hear the disciples ‘praising God’, no less, were still able to mock and laugh at them, even to the point of slander; saying, “They were drunk”. It seems to me, as an outside reader, that those “devout men” were not that devout. They were not able to take hold of the glorious works of God that the disciples were declaring that day. Why? Because the Spirit had not yet been given to them to understand. Lord willing our next study will lead us into Peter’s first sermon, as an official Apostle of God, that works repentance in the presence of the Jews that day in church history.