What Was the Holy Spirit at Pentecost?
When the power of the Holy Spirit descended on Pentecost with the sound “of a rushing mighty wind” and with the appearance of “cloven tongues like as of fire,” it needed no advance announcement. Both wind and fire are self-announcing: “They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”
We need not think of the “cloven tongues like as of fire” as being either literal tongues or literal fire. They were said to be “like as of fire.” To the spiritually discerning disciples, the tongues of fire brought to mind such incidents as Moses at the burning bush, the mountain that appeared to be on fire when the law was given on Sinai, and the fire that was upon the tabernacle by night throughout the wilderness wanderings. The use of brightness or the appearance of fire is common in the Scriptures to mark the presence of God or of His angels. The “fire” was an external sign used to call attention to the advent of the Holy Spirit.
The faithful followers gathered in the upper room. It being the time of the Pentecost festival, devout worshipers from all parts of the then-known world would have been assembled at Jerusalem, gathering for the celebration of the Feast. The “rushing mighty wind” may have caught the ear of some of those assembled for the Feast, for it is obvious that a crowd quickly assembled “and were confounded [perplexed], because that every man heard them speak in his own language. And they were all amazed and marvelled, … how hear we every man in our own tongue … the wonderful works of God?,
As usual, there were the doubters on the outskirts of the crowd, saying, “They are full of new wine.” To these, the speaking was unintelligible and appeared as the babbling of a drunkard. Obviously there was both a miracle of speaking and a miracle of hearing, both the work of the Spirit of God, because not everyone that heard understood what was being said.
Peter, the apostle who had “followed afar off” when his Lord was being maltreated and crucified only fifty days before, now rose to the occasion. It is evident that he had “received power” from above. The Peter of the day of Pentecost was not the Peter of the day of the Passover. Prompted by the newly-acquired Power, he accepted the challenge boldly, pouring forth an inspiring sermon, beginning with the words, “These are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel. And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh…” (Acts 2:15-17).
It is on this point that the majority of theologians stumble, connecting verse 16 with verse 17, and seeing in the Pentecost descent of the Holy Spirit the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy in its entirety. We cannot accept this view, since it is not in accord with the context of either Joel’s prophecy or Peter’s sermon.
• Two Outpourings, Two Rains …
Let us look at Joel’s prophecy: “Fear not, O land; Be glad and rejoice, For the Lord has done marvelous things! Be glad then, you children of Zion, And rejoice in the Lord your God; For He has given you the former rain faithfully, And He will cause the rain to come down for you—The former rain, And the latter rain in the first month.…You shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, And praise the name of the Lord your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you;…Then you shall know that I am in the midst of Israel; I am the Lord your God And there is no other.…And it shall come to pass afterward That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh;…And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My spirit in those days.” (Joel 2:21, 23, 26-29).
Joel’s prophecy covers two distinct outpourings, and Peter, recapping Joel’s words, is likewise speaking of two separate events. “This is what was spoken by the prophet Joel,” began Peter. This event which they had just witnessed was “the former rain” of Joel 2:23. “And,” continued Peter, “it shall come to pass in the last days, says God, That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh.” This prophecy is yet future, to be fulfilled at the end of man’s rule, just before the Kingdom is established.
Joel, as is common in prophetic language, spoke as though the “former rain” were already an accomplished fact, but the beginning of the above quotation shows that it is prophecy: “The Lord will do great things.” The “former rain,” translated from the Hebrew moreh, is defined as “a sprinkling rain.” It was to be given moderately, as was the Spirit at Pentecost. It was given to comparatively few of the population.
A marginal reference on “the former rain” in the King James Bible is enlightening. The “former rain” is here defined as “a teacher of righteous-ness.” God is this “teacher of righteousness.” By means of His Spirit He sent His knowledge to men through various instruments of His choosing. Here He was bestowing it upon a group of individuals who had been commissioned by Jesus to go out and preach the Gospel to the then-known world. The power of the Spirit not only brought to their minds the necessary words, but it also served to convince many through miracles.
… and a Time of No Rain
A “former rain” and a “latter rain” indicates two separate events with a time between when there would be no “rain,” no Holy Spirit power. This is the time in which we live. We have never seen an angel or heard a voice from heaven. We have never seen a man crippled from birth leap to his feet; we have never seen a blind man made to see or anyone raised from the dead. The power by which such miracles were performed, the Holy Spirit, was withdrawn at the end of the Apostolic Age and has not yet been restored.
When the power of the Holy Spirit is restored at the coming of Elijah, the remainder of Joel’s prophecy will be fulfilled. Jesus foretold: “Elijah is coming first and will restore all things” (Matt. 17:11). The restoration of the power of the Spirit will be “the latter rain.”
The original Hebrew word translated “latter rain” is malqosh and has for its definition “a great rain before the harvest.” This aptly describes the out-pouring of the Spirit that will accompany the coming of Elijah when “greater works than these,” greater works than were done by the apostles will be done. This will include raising to life all covenant-makers who have died during the six thousand years of man’s rule, a prerequisite to meeting the Lord in the air at His coming. Then will not everyone know that the Lord or His power is in their midst and that He is all-powerful?
The Abundant Rain
Continuing with Joel’s prophecy, we read that “it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out of My spirit on all flesh . . .” Afterward denotes a later time, a time following the fulfillment of the preceding prophecies. This prophecy is yet future and will not meet its fulfillment until Christ comes and takes control of the world government.
Peter quoted Joel’s prophecy as, “It shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh.” This will be a more abundant outpouring of the Holy Spirit than was witnessed at Pentecost. It will be given to young and old alike, to servants and handmaidens (subjects of the Kingdom), “and they shall prophesy”-not necessarily speak prophetically; prophesy also suggests teaching, or speaking for a cause.
Verses 19 and 20 of Acts 2 pinpoint the time of the fulfillment: “I will show wonders in heaven above And signs in the earth beneath: Blood, and fire and vapour of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome [glorious, Knox] day of the Lord.” This forecast, though couched in figurative language, could describe nothing other than the Battle of Armageddon, a time of worldwide destruction of all evil and evildoers, a thorough cleansing of the earth. This is necessary before the glorious thousand-year-day of the Lord can begin.
Acts 2:21 is another verse often misunderstood: “And it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of the Lord Shall be saved.” The verse is often taken out of context and used to support the false doctrine of last-minute repentance. Certainly Peter, preaching with the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit, did not mean to convey such a thought.
Taken with the two previous verses, it contains a consoling promise to all who are living on the earth at the time of the Battle of Armageddon. In the course of the great battle, all who will not submit to the new rule will be cut off, but “whoever calls on the name of the Lord Shall be saved.” They may or may not be saved eternally; that is decided by their life after they submit, but they will be saved from the destruction at that time.
The closing verses of Peter’s Pentecost sermon present the challenge. When they asked, “What shall we do?” Peter answered, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God will call” ( Acts 2:38-39).
Peter was conveying a meaning deeper than simply saving they were sorry for their sin and being baptized after which they would receive Holy Spirit power. Peter was preaching a gospel of “repentance,” a thorough changing of the heart and life. a complete change from sin to righteousness, as the Greek verb metanoeo means. And in return for this change Peter assured them of the divine promise of the “gift of the Holy Spirit,” the greater power, life eternal with all its blessings. His promise to those who repent extends beyond his hearers and reaches even to us. The promise is that of eternal life: and this promise still holds because “God…will render to each one according to his deeds: eternal life to those who by patient continuance in doing good seek for glory, honor, and immortality:” (Rom. 2:5-7). “For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call” (Acts 2:39).
The commission of the Holy Spirit under which they were speaking at the time was never so far-reaching as this.
Paul and the Spirit
Paul’s work as the greatest Christian missionary this world has ever known began with the miraculous appearance of Jesus. This experience of Saul on the Damascus Road is one of the best known events in the Bible (Acts 9). It marked a turning point not only in the life of Saul but also in history. The Christian religion was to gain a foothold in the world that (in its apostate form) would last until the Founder of that faith would return to take charge of the whole world.
For Saul, it was the beginning of a new life with a new name, Paul. The life of Paul exemplified his own words: “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation: old things have passed away; behold all things have become new” (2 Cor. 5:17). Of Paul it could be truly said, “old things have passed away;…all things have become new.” For him it meant an entirely new beginning, a complete reversal of his course. It meant supporting the new faith with the same zeal with which he had previously persecuted those who followed Christ.