Acts 2:6-12

2:6 When this sound ¹  occurred, a crowd gathered and was in confusion, ²  because each one heard them speaking in his own language. 2:7 Completely baffled, they said, ³  “Aren’t ⁴  all these who are speaking Galileans? 2:8 And how is it that each one of us hears them ⁵  in our own native language? ⁶  2:9 Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and the province of Asia, ⁷  2:10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene, ⁸  and visitors from Rome, ⁹  2:11 both Jews and proselytes, ¹⁰  Cretans and Arabs – we hear them speaking in our own languages about the great deeds God has done!” ¹¹  2:12 All were astounded and greatly confused, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”

Acts 2:32-36

2:32 This Jesus God raised up, and we are all witnesses of it. ¹²  2:33 So then, exalted ¹³  to the right hand ¹⁴  of God, and having received ¹⁵  the promise of the Holy Spirit ¹⁶  from the Father, he has poured out ¹⁷  what you both see and hear. 2:34 For David did not ascend into heaven, but he himself says,

‘The Lord said to my lord,

“Sit ¹⁸  at my right hand

2:35 until I make your enemies a footstool ¹⁹  for your feet.”’ ²⁰ 

2:36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know beyond a doubt ²¹  that God has made this Jesus whom you crucified ²²  both Lord ²³  and Christ.” ²⁴ 

[2:6]  ¹ tn Or “this noise.”

[2:6]  ² tn Or “was bewildered.”

[2:7]  ³ tn Grk “They were astounded and amazed, saying.” The two imperfect verbs, ἐξίσταντο (existanto) and ἐθαύμαζον (eqaumazon), show both the surprise and the confusion on the part of the hearers. The verb ἐξίσταντο (from ἐξίστημι, existhmi) often implies an illogical perception or response (BDAG 350 s.v. ἐξίστημι): “to be so astonished as to almost fail to comprehend what one has experienced” (L&N 25.218).

[2:7]  ⁴ tn Grk “Behold, aren’t all these.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) at the beginning of this statement has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[2:8]  ⁵ tn Grk “we hear them, each one of us.”

[2:8]  ⁶ tn Grk “in our own language in which we were born.”

[2:9]  ⁷ tn Grk “Asia”; in the NT this always refers to the Roman province of Asia, made up of about one-third of the west and southwest end of modern Asia Minor. Asia lay to the west of the region of Phrygia and Galatia. The words “the province of” are supplied to indicate to the modern reader that this does not refer to the continent of Asia.

[2:10]  ⁸ tn According to BDAG 595 s.v. Λιβύη, the western part of Libya, Libya Cyrenaica, is referred to here (see also Josephus, Ant. 16.6.1 [16.160] for a similar phrase).

[2:10]  ⁹ map For location see JP4 A1.

[2:11]  ¹⁰ sn Proselytes refers to Gentile (i.e., non-Jewish) converts to Judaism.

[2:11]  ¹¹ tn Or “God’s mighty works.” Here the genitive τοῦ θεοῦ (tou qeou) has been translated as a subjective genitive.

[2:32]  ¹² tn Or “of him”; Grk “of which [or whom] we are all witnesses” (Acts 1:8).

[2:33]  ¹³ tn The aorist participle ὑψωθείς (Juywqei") could be taken temporally: “So then, after he was exalted…” In the translation the more neutral “exalted” (a shorter form of “having been exalted”) was used to preserve the ambiguity of the original Greek.

[2:33]  ¹⁴ sn The expression the right hand of God represents supreme power and authority. Its use here sets up the quotation of Ps 110:1 in v. 34.

[2:33]  ¹⁵ tn The aorist participle λαβών (labwn) could be taken temporally: “So then, after he was exalted…and received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit.” In the translation the more neutral “having received” was used to preserve the ambiguity of the original Greek.

[2:33]  ¹⁶ tn Here the genitive τοῦ πνεύματος (tou pneumato") is a genitive of apposition; the promise consists of the Holy Spirit.

[2:33]  ¹⁷ sn The use of the verb poured out looks back to 2:17-18, where the same verb occurs twice.

[2:34]  ¹⁸ sn Sit at my right hand. The word “sit” alludes back to the promise of “seating one on his throne” in v. 30.

[2:35]  ¹⁹ sn The metaphor make your enemies a footstool portrays the complete subjugation of the enemies.

[2:35]  ²⁰ sn A quotation from Ps 110:1, one of the most often-cited OT passages in the NT, pointing to the exaltation of Jesus.

[2:36]  ²¹ tn Or “know for certain.” This term is in an emphatic position in the clause.

[2:36]  ²² tn Grk “has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” The clause has been simplified in the translation by replacing the pronoun “him” with the explanatory clause “this Jesus whom you crucified” which comes at the end of the sentence.

[2:36]  ²³ sn Lord. This looks back to the quotation of Ps 110:1 and the mention of “calling on the Lord” in 2:21. Peter’s point is that the Lord on whom one calls for salvation is Jesus, because he is the one mediating God’s blessing of the Spirit as a sign of the presence of salvation and the last days.

[2:36]  ²⁴ tn Or “and Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”