John 3:5

3:5 Jesus answered, “I tell you the solemn truth, ¹  unless a person is born of water and spirit, ²  he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

John 3:34

3:34 For the one whom God has sent ³  speaks the words of God, for he does not give the Spirit sparingly. ⁴ 

Matthew 3:11

3:11 “I baptize you with water, for repentance, but the one coming after me is more powerful than I am – I am not worthy ⁵  to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. ⁶ 

Matthew 3:14

3:14 But John ⁷  tried to prevent ⁸  him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and yet you come to me?”

Mark 1:7-8

1:7 He proclaimed, ⁹  “One more powerful than I am is coming after me; I am not worthy ¹⁰  to bend down and untie the strap ¹¹  of his sandals. 1:8 I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

Luke 3:16

3:16 John answered them all, ¹²  “I baptize you with water, ¹³  but one more powerful than I am is coming – I am not worthy ¹⁴  to untie the strap ¹⁵  of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. ¹⁶ 

Acts 1:5

1:5 For ¹⁷  John baptized with water, but you ¹⁸  will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

Acts 2:4

2:4 All ¹⁹  of them were filled with the Holy Spirit, and they began to speak in other languages ²⁰  as the Spirit enabled them. ²¹ 

Acts 10:44-47

The Gentiles Receive the Holy Spirit

10:44 While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell on ²²  all those who heard the message. ²³  10:45 The ²⁴  circumcised believers ²⁵  who had accompanied Peter were greatly astonished ²⁶  that ²⁷  the gift of the Holy Spirit ²⁸  had been poured out ²⁹  even on the Gentiles, 10:46 for they heard them speaking in tongues and praising ³⁰  God. Then Peter said, 10:47 “No one can withhold the water for these people to be baptized, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did, ³¹  can he?” ³² 

Acts 11:15-16

11:15 Then as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on ³³  them just as he did ³⁴  on us at the beginning. ³⁵  11:16 And I remembered the word of the Lord, ³⁶  as he used to say, ³⁷  ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ ³⁸ 

Acts 19:2-6

19:2 and said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” ³⁹  They replied, ⁴⁰  “No, we have not even ⁴¹  heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” 19:3 So Paul ⁴²  said, “Into what then were you baptized?” “Into John’s baptism,” they replied. ⁴³  19:4 Paul said, “John baptized with a baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, ⁴⁴  that is, in Jesus.” 19:5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus, 19:6 and when Paul placed ⁴⁵  his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came ⁴⁶  upon them, and they began to speak ⁴⁷  in tongues and to prophesy. ⁴⁸ 

Acts 19:1

Disciples of John the Baptist at Ephesus

19:1 While ⁴⁹  Apollos was in Corinth, ⁵⁰  Paul went through the inland ⁵¹  regions ⁵²  and came to Ephesus. ⁵³  He ⁵⁴  found some disciples there ⁵⁵ 

Colossians 1:13

1:13 He delivered us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son he loves, ⁵⁶ 

Titus 3:5-6

3:5 he saved us not by works of righteousness that we have done but on the basis of his mercy, through the washing of the new birth and the renewing of the Holy Spirit, 3:6 whom he poured out on us in full measure ⁵⁷  through Jesus Christ our Savior.

[3:5]  ¹ tn Grk “Truly, truly, I say to you.”

[3:5]  ² tn Or “born of water and wind” (the same Greek word, πνεύματος [pneumatos], may be translated either “spirit/Spirit” or “wind”).

[3:34]  ³ tn That is, Christ.

[3:34]  ⁴ tn Grk “for not by measure does he give the Spirit” (an idiom). Leviticus Rabbah 15:2 states: “The Holy Spirit rested on the prophets by measure.” Jesus is contrasted to this. The Spirit rests upon him without measure.

[3:11]  ⁵ tn Grk “of whom I am not worthy.”

[3:11]  ⁶ sn With the Holy Spirit and fire. There are differing interpretations for this phrase regarding the number of baptisms and their nature. (1) Some see one baptism here, and this can be divided further into two options. (a) The baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire could refer to the cleansing, purifying work of the Spirit in the individual believer through salvation and sanctification, or (b) it could refer to two different results of Christ’s ministry: Some accept Christ and are baptized with the Holy Spirit, but some reject him and receive judgment. (2) Other interpreters see two baptisms here: The baptism of the Holy Spirit refers to the salvation Jesus brings at his first advent, in which believers receive the Holy Spirit, and the baptism of fire refers to the judgment Jesus will bring upon the world at his second coming. One must take into account both the image of fire and whether individual or corporate baptism is in view. A decision is not easy on either issue. The image of fire is used to refer to both eternal judgment (e.g., Matt 25:41) and the power of the Lord’s presence to purge and cleanse his people (e.g., Isa 4:4-5). The pouring out of the Spirit at Pentecost, a fulfillment of this prophecy no matter which interpretation is taken, had both individual and corporate dimensions. It is possible that since Holy Spirit and fire are governed by a single preposition in Greek, the one-baptism view may be more likely, but this is not certain. Simply put, there is no consensus view in scholarship at this time on the best interpretation of this passage.

[3:14]  ⁷ tc ‡ The earliest mss (א* B sa) lack the name of John here (“but he tried to prevent him,” instead of “but John tried to prevent him”). It is, however, clearly implied (and is thus supplied in translation). Although the longer reading has excellent support (Ì⁹⁶ א¹ C D^s L W 0233 0250 Ë^1,13 33 Ï lat[t] sy mae bo), it looks to be a motivated and predictable reading: Scribes apparently could not resist adding this clarification.

[3:14]  ⁸ tn The imperfect verb has been translated conatively.

[1:7]  ⁹ tn Grk “proclaimed, saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[1:7]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “of whom I am not worthy.”

[1:7]  ¹¹ tn The term refers to the leather strap or thong used to bind a sandal. This is often viewed as a collective singular and translated as a plural, “the straps of his sandals,” but it may be more emphatic to retain the singular here.

[3:16]  ¹² tn Grk “answered them all, saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant and has not been translated.

[3:16]  ¹³ tc A few mss (C D 892 1424 pc it ) add εἰς μετάνοιαν (ei" metanoian, “for repentance”). Although two of the mss in support are early and important, it is an obviously motivated reading to add clarification, probably representing a copyist’s attempt to harmonize Luke’s version with Matt 3:11.

[3:16]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “of whom I am not worthy.”

[3:16]  ¹⁵ tn The term refers to the leather strap or thong used to bind a sandal. This is often viewed as a collective singular and translated as a plural, “the straps of his sandals,” but it may be more emphatic to retain the singular here.

[3:16]  ¹⁶ sn With the Holy Spirit and fire. There are differing interpretations for this phrase regarding the number of baptisms and their nature. (1) Some see one baptism here, and this can be divided further into two options. (a) The baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire could refer to the cleansing, purifying work of the Spirit in the individual believer through salvation and sanctification, or (b) it could refer to two different results of Christ’s ministry: Some accept Christ and are baptized with the Holy Spirit, but some reject him and receive judgment. (2) Other interpreters see two baptisms here: The baptism of the Holy Spirit refers to the salvation Jesus brings at his first advent, in which believers receive the Holy Spirit, and the baptism of fire refers to the judgment Jesus will bring upon the world at his second coming. One must take into account both the image of fire and whether individual or corporate baptism is in view. A decision is not easy on either issue. The image of fire is used to refer to both eternal judgment (e.g., Matt 25:41) and the power of the Lord’s presence to purge and cleanse his people (e.g., Isa 4:4-5). The pouring out of the Spirit at Pentecost, a fulfillment of this prophecy no matter which interpretation is taken, had both individual and corporate dimensions. It is possible that since Holy Spirit and fire are governed by a single preposition in Greek, the one-baptism view may be more likely, but this is not certain. Simply put, there is no consensus view in scholarship at this time on the best interpretation of this passage.

[1:5]  ¹⁷ tn In the Greek text v. 5 is a continuation of the previous sentence, which is long and complicated. In keeping with the tendency of contemporary English to use shorter sentences, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[1:5]  ¹⁸ tn The pronoun is plural in Greek.

[2:4]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “And all.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[2:4]  ²⁰ tn The Greek term is γλώσσαις (glwssai"), the same word used for the tongues of fire.

[2:4]  ²¹ tn Grk “just as the spirit gave them to utter.” The verb ἀποφθέγγομαι (apofqengomai) was used of special utterances in Classical Greek (BDAG 125 s.v.).

[10:44]  ²² tn Or “came down on.” God now acted to confirm the point of Peter’s speech.

[10:44]  ²³ tn Or “word.”

[10:45]  ²⁴ tn Grk “And the.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[10:45]  ²⁵ tn Or “The Jewish Christians”; Grk “The believers from the circumcision.”

[10:45]  ²⁶ sn The Jewish Christians who were with Peter were greatly astonished because they thought the promise of the Spirit would be limited only to those of Israel. God’s plan was taking on fresh dimensions even as it was a reflection of what the prophets had promised.

[10:45]  ²⁷ tn Or “because.”

[10:45]  ²⁸ tn That is, the gift consisting of the Holy Spirit. Here τοῦ πνεύματος (tou pneumato") is a genitive of apposition; the gift consists of the Spirit.

[10:45]  ²⁹ sn The gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out. Compare the account in Acts 2, especially 2:33. Note also Joel 2:17-21 and Acts 11:15-18.

[10:46]  ³⁰ tn Or “extolling,” “magnifying.”

[10:47]  ³¹ tn Grk “just as also we.” The auxiliary verb in English must be supplied. This could be either “have” (NIV, NRSV) or “did” (NASB). “Did” is preferred here because the comparison Peter is making concerns not just the fact of the present possession of the Spirit (“they received the Spirit we now possess”), but the manner in which the Gentiles in Cornelius’ house received the Spirit (“they received the Spirit in the same manner we did [on the day of Pentecost]”).

[10:47]  ³² tn The Greek construction anticipates a negative reply which is indicated in the translation by the ‘tag’ question, “can he?” The question is rhetorical. Peter was saying these Gentiles should be baptized since God had confirmed they were his.

[11:15]  ³³ tn Or “came down on.”

[11:15]  ³⁴ tn The words “he did” are not in the Greek text but are implied. They form an ellipsis which must be supplied for the modern English reader. Some modern translations supply “it” rather than “he” because the gender of πνεῦμα (pneuma) in Greek is neuter, but there are sufficient NT contexts that use masculine pronouns to refer to the Spirit to justify the use of a masculine pronoun here in the translation.

[11:15]  ³⁵ sn At the beginning is an allusion to Acts 2 and Pentecost. The beginning is a way to refer to the start of the period of the realization of Jesus’ promise in Luke 24:49 and Acts 1:8. Peter was arguing that God gave Gentiles the same benefits he gave the Jews at the start of their mission.

[11:16]  ³⁶ sn The word of the Lord is a technical expression in OT literature, often referring to a divine prophetic utterance (e.g., Gen 15:1, Isa 1:10, Jonah 1:1). In the NT it occurs 15 times: 3 times as ῥῆμα τοῦ κυρίου (rJhma tou kuriou; here and in Luke 22:61, 1 Pet 1:25) and 12 times as λόγος τοῦ κυρίου (logo" tou kuriou; Acts 8:25; 13:44, 48, 49; 15:35, 36; 16:32; 19:10, 20; 1 Thess 1:8, 4:15; 2 Thess 3:1). As in the OT, this phrase focuses on the prophetic nature and divine origin of what has been said.

[11:16]  ³⁷ tn The imperfect verb ἔλεγεν (elegen) is taken as a customary imperfect.

[11:16]  ³⁸ sn John…Spirit. This remark repeats Acts 1:5.

[19:2]  ³⁹ tn The participle πιστεύσαντες (pisteusante") is taken temporally.

[19:2]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “they [said] to him” (the word “said” is implied in the Greek text).

[19:2]  ⁴¹ tn This use of ἀλλά (alla) is ascensive and involves an ellipsis (BDAG 45 s.v. ἀλλά 3): “No, [not only did we not receive the Spirit,] but also we have not heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” However, this is lengthy and somewhat awkward in English, and the ascensive meaning can be much more easily represented by including the word “even” after the negation. Apparently these disciples were unaware of the provision of the Spirit that is represented in baptism. The language sounds like they did not know about a Holy Spirit, but this seems to be only linguistic shorthand for not knowing about the Spirit’s presence (Luke 3:15-18). The situation is parallel to that of Apollos. Apollos and these disciples represent those who “complete” their transition to messianic faith as Jews.

[19:3]  ⁴² tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[19:3]  ⁴³ tn Grk “they said.”

[19:4]  ⁴⁴ sn These disciples may have had their contact with John early on in the Baptist’s ministry before Jesus had emerged. This is the fifth time Luke links John the Baptist and Jesus (Acts 1:5; 11:16; 13:25; 18:25).

[19:6]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “laid.”

[19:6]  ⁴⁶ sn The coming of the Holy Spirit here is another case where the Spirit comes and prophesy results in Acts (see Acts 2). Paul’s action parallels that of Peter (Acts 8) and not just with Gentiles.

[19:6]  ⁴⁷ tn The imperfect verb ἐλάλουν (elaloun) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.

[19:6]  ⁴⁸ tn The imperfect verb ἐπροφήτευον (eprofhteuon) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.

[19:1]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “It happened that while.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[19:1]  ⁵⁰ map For location see JP1 C2; JP2 C2; JP3 C2; JP4 C2.

[19:1]  ⁵¹ tn Or “interior.”

[19:1]  ⁵² tn BDAG 92 s.v. ἀνωτερικός has “upper τὰ ἀ. μέρη the upper (i.e. inland) country, the interior Ac 19:1.”

[19:1]  ⁵³ map For location see JP1 D2; JP2 D2; JP3 D2; JP4 D2.

[19:1]  ⁵⁴ tn Grk “and found.” Because of the length of the Greek sentence and the sequencing with the following verse the conjunction καί (kai) has not been translated here. Instead a new English sentence is begun.

[19:1]  ⁵⁵ tn The word “there” is not in the Greek text but is implied.

[1:13]  ⁵⁶ tn Here αὐτοῦ (autou) has been translated as a subjective genitive (“he loves”).

[3:6]  ⁵⁷ tn Or “on us richly.”