Acts 2:14-21 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said to them, You men of Judaea, and all you that dwell at Jerusalem… I. THEY ARE NOT TO BE CONFOUNDED WITH THOSE OF SENSUOUS INTOXICATION. In this case the latter was not in the least likely, for it was still early morning. Indeed, Peter waves aside the explanation with an air of contempt. II. THEY ARE TO BE INTERPRETED BY THE LAWS OF SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE. 1. The teaching of the prophets - the most inspired and enlightened of the race - must be fallen back upon. The prophet lived near to the fount of truth, and was the mouthpiece of the oracles of God. The oracle quoted from Joel lies in the center of his short roll, and burns there like a core of fire. It seems the one portion of his prophecy which looks beyond the circumstances of his time, and can only be satisfied by repeated fulfillments in the course of all future history. 2. The contents of the oracle of Joel. (1) At some epoch undefined there is to be an outpouring of God's Spirit upon all mankind. (2) The effect of this will be a general outburst of sacred utterance; an intense inward illumination. (3) The whole manifestation is to be accompanied by wonders, symbolic and significant of a spiritual revelation, and the passing away of old and outworn customs. (4) It will be an era of deliverance, of salvation. Men will cry to Jehovah, of old the Deliverer, and will be heard and saved from their distresses, with these prophetic hints the apostle would explain the wondrous events of the day. Christianity begins with a new effusion of the Divine into the human, the strengthening and illumination of the finite mind, the enlargement of its gifts of expression; a profound and general impression of the nearness of God, and the joy of a new-found freedom and salvation. - J. Parallel Verses KJV: But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: |
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