Pentecost and Speaking in Tongues

Pentecost, seven weeks after Passover, recalls Sinai’s covenant renewal. In Acts 2, wind and fire signal God’s presence as the Spirit descends. Disciples speak foreign tongues, reversing Babel, so all nations hear God’s mighty works. Some marvel, others mock, yet the Spirit reveals salvation near.

[Scripture]

[1] When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. [2] And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. [3] And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. [4] And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. [5] Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. [6] And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. [7] And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? (Acts 2:1-7, ESV)

[8] And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? [9] Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, [10] Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, [11] both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” [12] And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” [13] But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.” (Acts 2:8-13, ESV)

[Daily Word]

Pentecost is one of the three major Jewish festivals.

Pentecost falls on the seventh week after Passover, and in the Old Testament this feast was also a harvest festival. In particular, Jewish tradition understood Pentecost in connection with Moses receiving the Law on Mount Sinai. For this reason, Pentecost is also called the Feast of Covenant Renewal.

On this day of Pentecost, the disciples gathered in the upper room experienced a remarkable phenomenon: the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. They heard a sound like a mighty rushing wind coming from heaven, they saw what appeared to be tongues of fire that divided and spread, and one of these came to rest on each person present.

Luke specifically notes that the sound like a mighty rushing wind came “from heaven,” suggesting that this was a supernatural event. The appearance of what seemed to be tongues of fire resting on each person represents two phenomena that use natural imagery to describe a supernatural reality. Wind and fire, in other words, were the very phenomena that accompanied God’s presence in the Old Testament. God appeared to Elijah in a great wind (1 Kgs 19:11–12), and He appeared to Moses in a fire burning within a bush. Notably, when God descended on Mount Sinai, both wind and fire appeared together. [16] On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. (Exod 19:16, ESV) In that same sense, the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire were also manifestations of wind and fire.

Ultimately, Luke intentionally connects the Pentecost event of the Holy Spirit’s descent with the event of God’s presence at Mount Sinai through the imagery of mighty wind and fire. Going further, the Pentecost event is understood as God’s act of covenant renewal toward this world — an event parallel to Moses receiving the Law on Mount Sinai.

Speaking in Tongues Accompanied the Outpouring of the Holy Spirit.

As a result of this outpouring of the Holy Spirit, those in the upper room were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues. Paul understood these tongues as a gift given to enable believers to pray with great personal depth — a mysterious language that can only be understood through interpretation (1 Cor 12–14). Luke, however, makes clear that the tongues spoken here were unmistakably recognizable foreign languages, understood by those nearby without the need of an interpreter. Luke’s reasoning for this understanding is that, [6] And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. (Acts 2:6, ESV) diaspora Jews from every nation under heaven each heard the disciples speaking in their own native language.

In fact, the phenomenon of tongues traces back to the division of languages at the Tower of Babel. Yet at this Pentecost, as the Holy Spirit came upon each person, all barriers of language and ethnicity were transcended, and every person came to hear one language — the word of God.

The home regions of those who heard the tongues are introduced in verses 9–11. They came from a total of fifteen regions. The Parthians, Medes, and Elamites were from the Parthian Empire, while the rest — including Mesopotamia — were from the Roman Empire. Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia, Phrygia, and Pamphylia were located in Asia Minor. Luke summarizes this diverse crowd in verse 10, dividing them into Jews and those who had converted to Judaism. In other words, Luke’s intention in listing so many place names is to emphasize that people from the entire world had come to this place and heard, each in their own language, the mighty works of God — that is, words of praise to God.

Remarkably, what they all heard was one and the same thing. [11] both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” (Acts 2:11, ESV) — they heard the disciples declaring the mighty works of God in their own native tongues. And so they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, [12] And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” (Acts 2:12, ESV)

On the other hand, some mocked and accused the disciples of being drunk on new wine. However, Pentecost falls before the grape harvest, which means there would have been no newly fermented wine available at that time. This mockery is likely a taunt against the disciples’ speaking in tongues — much like how the priest Eli mistook Hannah’s earnest prayer for drunkenness.

Those who are seized by the Holy Spirit become people of the Spirit. The presence of the Holy Spirit is a signal that the work of God is being proclaimed. The work of salvation planned by God the Father was accomplished by Jesus through the cross and resurrection, and now the Holy Spirit applies that work to each person. Therefore, the presence of the Holy Spirit reveals that salvation is near. If your life has drifted from the Lord and you have been living without assurance, may we all be filled afresh with the Holy Spirit and personally experience the mighty works of God.

#Pentecost, #HolySpirit, #Acts2, #CovenantRenewal, #MightyWorksOfGod

Originally published in Korean at bible2u.com