Bible / Acts

Acts 2

World English Bible, Catholic edition, in plain modern English. About the translations

1 Now when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all with one accord in one place. 1 CCC

2 Suddenly there came from the sky a sound like the rushing of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.

3 Tongues like fire appeared and were distributed to them, and one sat on each of them. CCC

4 They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other languages, as the Spirit gave them the ability to speak. CCC

5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under the sky.

6 When this sound was heard, the multitude came together and were bewildered, because everyone heard them speaking in his own language. 2

7 They were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, “Behold, aren’t all these who speak Galileans?

8 How do we hear, everyone in our own native language?

9 Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia,

10 Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, the parts of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,

11 Cretans and Arabians – we hear them speaking in our languages the mighty works of God!” CCC

12 They were all amazed and were perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”

13 Others, mocking, said, “They are filled with new wine.”

14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice and spoke out to them, “You men of Judea and all you who dwell at Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to my words.

15 For these aren’t drunken, as you suppose, seeing it is only the third hour of the day.

16 But this is what has been spoken through the prophet Joel:

17 ‘It will be in the last days, says God, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh. Your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions. Your old men will dream dreams. CCC

18 Yes, and on my servants and on my handmaidens in those days, I will pour out my Spirit, and they will prophesy. CCC

19 I will show wonders in the sky above, and signs on the earth beneath: blood, and fire, and billows of smoke. CCC

20 The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and glorious day of the Lord comes. CCC

21 It will be that whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ CCC

22 “Men of Israel, hear these words! Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved by God to you by mighty works and wonders and signs which God did by him among you, even as you yourselves know, CCC · Fathers

23 him, being delivered up by the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by the hand of lawless men, crucified and killed; CCC

24 whom God raised up, having freed him from the agony of death, because it was not possible that he should be held by it. CCC · Fathers

25 For David says concerning him, ‘I saw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved.

26 Therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced. Moreover my flesh also will dwell in hope, CCC

27 because you will not leave my soul in Hades, neither will you allow your Holy One to see decay. CCC

28 You made known to me the ways of life. You will make me full of gladness with your presence.’

29 “Brothers, I may tell you freely of the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.

30 Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, he would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne, Fathers

31 he foreseeing this, spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that his soul wasn’t left in Hades, and his flesh didn’t see decay.

32 This Jesus God raised up, to which we all are witnesses.

33 Being therefore exalted by the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this which you now see and hear. CCC

34 For David didn’t ascend into the heavens, but he says himself, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit by my right hand CCC

35 until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’ CCC

36 “Let all the house of Israel therefore know certainly that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” CCC

37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” CCC · Fathers

38 Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 3 CCC · Fathers

39 For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are far off, even as many as the Lord our God will call to himself.”

40 With many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!”

41 Then those who gladly received his word were baptized. There were added that day about three thousand souls. CCC · Fathers

42 They continued steadfastly in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and prayer. 4 CCC

43 Fear came on every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. CCC

44 All who believed were together, and had all things in common. CCC

45 They sold their possessions and goods, and distributed them to all, according as anyone had need. CCC

46 Day by day, continuing steadfastly with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread at home, they took their food with gladness and singleness of heart, CCC

47 praising God and having favor with all the people. The Lord added to the assembly day by day those who were being saved. CCC

Where our lessons quote this chapter

  1. Verses 1–4: Why a Church?
  2. Verse 6: Words you’ll hear
  3. Verse 38: The catechumenate (OCIA/RCIA)
  4. Verse 42: Why a Church?

This chapter in the Catechism and the early Church

Where the Catechism of the Catholic Church cites these verses (from its footnotes on vatican.va), and where the earliest Church Fathers quote them (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1, public domain). Short quotes only; follow the links for the full text.

  1. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 1287 “This fullness of the Spirit was not to remain uniquely the Messiah's, but was to be communicated to the whole messianic people.…”
    • CCC 2623 “On the day of Pentecost, the Spirit of the Promise was poured out on the disciples, gathered "together in one place." While…”
  2. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 696 “Fire. While water signifies birth and the fruitfulness of life given in the Holy Spirit, fire symbolizes the transforming energy of the…”
  3. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 696 “Fire. While water signifies birth and the fruitfulness of life given in the Holy Spirit, fire symbolizes the transforming energy of the…”
  4. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 1287 “This fullness of the Spirit was not to remain uniquely the Messiah's, but was to be communicated to the whole messianic people.…”
  5. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 715 “The prophetic texts that directly concern the sending of the Holy Spirit are oracles by which God speaks to the heart of…”
  6. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 715 “The prophetic texts that directly concern the sending of the Holy Spirit are oracles by which God speaks to the heart of…”
  7. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 715 “The prophetic texts that directly concern the sending of the Holy Spirit are oracles by which God speaks to the heart of…”
  8. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 715 “The prophetic texts that directly concern the sending of the Holy Spirit are oracles by which God speaks to the heart of…”
  9. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 432 “The name "Jesus" signifies that the very name of God is present in the person of his Son, made man for the…”
    • CCC 715 “The prophetic texts that directly concern the sending of the Holy Spirit are oracles by which God speaks to the heart of…”
    • CCC 2666 “But the one name that contains everything is the one that the Son of God received in his incarnation: JESUS. the divine…”
  10. Read the Catechism and Fathers
    • CCC 547 “Jesus accompanies his words with many "mighty works and wonders and signs", which manifest that the kingdom is present in him and…”
    • “… my right hand, lest I should be moved: therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also, my flesh shall rest in hope: because Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt Thou give Thy Holy One to see corruption.”

      Quoted in Against Heresies, Book III, St. Irenaeus of Lyons (c. AD 180), Chapter XII. Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1

  11. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 597 “The historical complexity of Jesus' trial is apparent in the Gospel accounts. the personal sin of the participants (Judas, the Sanhedrin, Pilate)…”
    • CCC 599 “Jesus' violent death was not the result of chance in an unfortunate coincidence of circumstances, but is part of the mystery of…”
  12. Read the Catechism and Fathers
    • CCC 633 “Scripture calls the abode of the dead, to which the dead Christ went down, "hell" - Sheol in Hebrew or Hades in…”
    • CCC 648 “Christ's Resurrection is an object of faith in that it is a transcendent intervention of God himself in creation and history. In…”
    • “… of your faith, spoken of in days long gone by, endureth even until now, and bringeth forth fruit to our Lord Jesus Christ, who for our sins suffered even unto death, [but] "whom God raised from the dead, having loosed the bands of the grave.”

      Quoted in Letter to the Philippians, St. Polycarp of Smyrna (early 2nd century), Chapter I. Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1

  13. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 627 “Christ's death was a real death in that it put an end to his earthly human existence. But because of the union…”
  14. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 627 “Christ's death was a real death in that it put an end to his earthly human existence. But because of the union…”
  15. Read the Fathers
    • “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.”

      Quoted in Against Heresies, Book III, St. Irenaeus of Lyons (c. AD 180), Chapter XII. Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1

  16. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 659 “So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven, and sat down at the right…”
    • CCC 731 “On the day of Pentecost when the seven weeks of Easter had come to an end, Christ's Passover is fulfilled in the…”
    • CCC 788 “When his visible presence was taken from them, Jesus did not leave his disciples orphans. He promised to remain with them until…”
  17. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 447 “Jesus ascribes this title to himself in a veiled way when he disputes with the Pharisees about the meaning of Psalm 110,…”
    • CCC 449 “By attributing to Jesus the divine title "Lord", the first confessions of the Church's faith affirm from the beginning that the power,…”
    • CCC 731 “On the day of Pentecost when the seven weeks of Easter had come to an end, Christ's Passover is fulfilled in the…”
  18. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 447 “Jesus ascribes this title to himself in a veiled way when he disputes with the Pharisees about the meaning of Psalm 110,…”
    • CCC 449 “By attributing to Jesus the divine title "Lord", the first confessions of the Church's faith affirm from the beginning that the power,…”
    • CCC 731 “On the day of Pentecost when the seven weeks of Easter had come to an end, Christ's Passover is fulfilled in the…”
  19. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 440 “Jesus accepted Peter's profession of faith, which acknowledged him to be the Messiah, by announcing the imminent Passion of the Son of…”
    • CCC 447 “Jesus ascribes this title to himself in a veiled way when he disputes with the Pharisees about the meaning of Psalm 110,…”
    • CCC 449 “By attributing to Jesus the divine title "Lord", the first confessions of the Church's faith affirm from the beginning that the power,…”
    • CCC 597 “The historical complexity of Jesus' trial is apparent in the Gospel accounts. the personal sin of the participants (Judas, the Sanhedrin, Pilate)…”
    • CCC 695 “Anointing. the symbolism of anointing with oil also signifies the Holy Spirit, to the point of becoming a synonym for the Holy…”
    • CCC 731 “On the day of Pentecost when the seven weeks of Easter had come to an end, Christ's Passover is fulfilled in the…”
  20. Read the Catechism and Fathers
    • CCC 1433 “Since Easter, the Holy Spirit has proved "the world wrong about sin," i.e., proved that the world has not believed in him…”
    • “… both Lord and Christ." And when the multitudes exclaimed, "What shall we do then?" Peter says to them, "Repent, and be baptized everyone of you in the name of Jesus for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”

      Quoted in Against Heresies, Book III, St. Irenaeus of Lyons (c. AD 180), Chapter XII. Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1

  21. Read the Catechism and Fathers
    • CCC 1226 “From the very day of Pentecost the Church has celebrated and administered holy Baptism. Indeed St. Peter declares to the crowd astounded…”
    • CCC 1262 “The different effects of Baptism are signified by the perceptible elements of the sacramental rite. Immersion in water symbolizes not only death…”
    • CCC 1287 “This fullness of the Spirit was not to remain uniquely the Messiah's, but was to be communicated to the whole messianic people.…”
    • CCC 1427 “Jesus calls to conversion. This call is an essential part of the proclamation of the kingdom: "The time is fulfilled, and the…”
    • CCC 1433 “Since Easter, the Holy Spirit has proved "the world wrong about sin," i.e., proved that the world has not believed in him…”
    • “… both Lord and Christ." And when the multitudes exclaimed, "What shall we do then?" Peter says to them, "Repent, and be baptized everyone of you in the name of Jesus for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.”

      Quoted in Against Heresies, Book III, St. Irenaeus of Lyons (c. AD 180), Chapter XII. Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1

  22. Read the Catechism and Fathers
    • CCC 363 “In Sacred Scripture the term "soul" often refers to human life or the entire human person. But "soul" also refers to the…”
    • CCC 1226 “From the very day of Pentecost the Church has celebrated and administered holy Baptism. Indeed St. Peter declares to the crowd astounded…”
    • “And there were, in one day, baptized three, and four, and five thousand men.”

      Quoted in Against Heresies, Book IV, St. Irenaeus of Lyons (c. AD 180), Chapter XXIII. Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1

  23. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 3 “Those who with God's help have welcomed Christ's call and freely responded to it are urged on by love of Christ to…”
    • CCC 857 “The Church is apostolic because she is founded on the apostles, in three ways: - she was and remains built on "the…”
    • CCC 949 “In the primitive community of Jerusalem, the disciples "devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of the bread…”
    • CCC 1329 “The Lord's Supper, because of its connection with the supper which the Lord took with his disciples on the eve of his…”
    • CCC 1342 “From the beginning the Church has been faithful to the Lord's command. of the Church of Jerusalem it is written: They devoted…”
    • CCC 2178 “This practice of the Christian assembly dates from the beginnings of the apostolic age. The Letter to the Hebrews reminds the faithful…”
  24. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 2178 “This practice of the Christian assembly dates from the beginnings of the apostolic age. The Letter to the Hebrews reminds the faithful…”
  25. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 2178 “This practice of the Christian assembly dates from the beginnings of the apostolic age. The Letter to the Hebrews reminds the faithful…”
  26. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 2178 “This practice of the Christian assembly dates from the beginnings of the apostolic age. The Letter to the Hebrews reminds the faithful…”
  27. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 584 “Jesus went up to the Temple as the privileged place of encounter with God. For him, the Temple was the dwelling of…”
    • CCC 1329 “The Lord's Supper, because of its connection with the supper which the Lord took with his disciples on the eve of his…”
    • CCC 1342 “From the beginning the Church has been faithful to the Lord's command. of the Church of Jerusalem it is written: They devoted…”
    • CCC 2178 “This practice of the Christian assembly dates from the beginnings of the apostolic age. The Letter to the Hebrews reminds the faithful…”
  28. Read the Catechism
    • CCC 2640 “St. Luke in his gospel often expresses wonder and praise at the marvels of Christ and in his Acts of the Apostles…”