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NASB | Acts 2:16 but this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel: |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Acts 2:16 but this is [the beginning of] what was spoken of through the prophet Joel: |
Subject: An Exegete of Acts 2 |
Bible Note: In response to the request to give a sound exegete of Acts 2, I offer the following. I apologize that it was written in haste. I hope, however, that everyone who reads it will come away having learned something about properly dividing the Word of God. One of the most valuable principles of sound hermeneutics is that Scripture explains Scripture. This passage is a perfect example. Here we have a didactic message of Peter taking place in a historical narrative. In his sermon, Peter cites an Old Testament passage, quoting it in full. "And it shall be afterward, I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh. And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. And also I will pour out My Spirit on the slaves and on the slave-girls in those days. And I will give signs in the heavens and in the earth: blood, and fire, and columns of smoke. The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of Jehovah. For it shall be, all who shall call on the name of Jehovah shall be saved. For salvation shall be in Mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, as Jehovah has said, and among the survivors whom Jehovah shall call." (Joel 2:28-32 LITV) The wonderful thing is that Peter tells us that this -- what his audience was witnessing there at Pentecost -- was the fulfillment of Joel's prophecy. No one needs to wonder any more about what Joel was talking about at the end of chapter 2 of his prophecy. Scripture has explained Scripture! Now, keep in mind that all such Old Testament prophecy has at least two purposes: It is a message to the people for whom it was written (that is true of all Scripture, of course), as well as a message to God's elect. (I will not, in this post, address the former purpose of Joel's prophecy, as that is beyond the scope of the current discussion.) Peter states clearly that this passage is fulfilled in Pentecost! Consider: What else does he say about it? He launches directly into an evangelical message directed at the very men who were responsible for Christ's crucifixion. Indeed, you will find nothing about normative Christian behavior in this passage. The fact of the matter is this: Peter wasn't giving a sermon on how the church should discover revelation. Indeed, the only revelation that he discusses is the fact that God Himself has spoken through the prophet Joel and through His Son! Joel brings up several points: 1. God will pour out His Spirit on all flesh. This will be apparent for how people will prophecy (declare the truth of God). Which is what was happening all around Peter's audience. 2. God will give signs in the heavens and the earth. These things took place in the ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ. (I'll leave it to the reader to find the appropriate references.) Peter goes on to say that these signs were how God "approved" of Jesus; i.e., gave proof that Jesus was the Messiah (see Acts 2:22). 3. God will save all who call upon His name. Certainly that was happening at Pentecost! Talk about revival! 4. God will bring about salvation to His called in Jerusalem. Again, clearly this was happening. Peter harkens back to this in Acts 2:39. Then Luke affirms this act of God in the 47th verse, making sure we understand that it was the Lord who was adding to the church. So, why did God want this included in His Word? Was it not to magnify the Lord Jesus Christ, as Luke explains the acts of the apostles? A sound hermeneutic never tries to derive normative behavior from narrative. Period. If you want to talk about dreams and visions, don't do it with a passage like this. It just isn't there, folks. Go instead to specific didactic teachings that do, indeed, speak of these things. Derive your doctrines from doctrinal teaching! You can root your doctrines much more soundly in the teachings of Paul, for example, to the church of Corinth. Those passages are much more difficult to refute. But bending the arm of the wrong kind of genre of Scripture into saying something it doesn't say is erroneous at best. We simply are not granted the authority to bend the Word of God to our will, no matter how many tel-evangelists try to persuade you otherwise. In Him, Doc |