'‘It will come to pass in the last days,’ God says, ‘that I will pour out a portion of my spirit upon all flesh. Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, your old men shall dream dreams. 18 Indeed, upon my servants and my handmaids I will pour out a portion of my spirit in those days, and they shall prophesy. 19 And I will work wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below: blood, fire, and a cloud of smoke. 20 The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the coming of the great and splendid day of the Lord, 21 and it shall be that everyone shall be saved who calls on the name of the Lord (Acts 2:17-21).’'
Peter spoke for the twelve apostles and explained the meaning of the signs and sounds the crowd heard at the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 2:1-13). Peter quoted from the prophet Joel to explain to the crowd what was happening (Joel 3:1-5). The rushing wind and tongues of fire were the wonders in the heavens. The apostles prophesying in different languages were the signs on the earth below (v. 19). These signs were interpreted as the beginning of the long-awaited end-time (Acts 10:42). Peter was making three points by using the passage from Joel: (1) In the last days, (in this passage the time of the Church not the end-time), God will pour forth (v. 33) his Holy Spirit upon mankind and many will prophesy; (2) There will be signs of the end-time before it comes; (3) Everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved when the Lord Jesus returns (the Parousia). Those who repent and are baptized in the name of Jesus will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (v. 38) and be saved to the Lord Jesus.
Almighty God, your Word made flesh opened the way to salvation by his death and resurrection. Through our baptism, our contrite hearts and our profession of faith in Jesus we live in the hope of our salvation. Grant us the grace to always walk in the light of Christ and to be ambassadors for the faith to all whom we meet. This we pray through our Lord. Amen!
References
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Faculty of the University of Navarre. The Navarre Bible: New Testament Expanded Edition. Expanded Edition, Four Courts / Scepter, 2008.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
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