Many Christians think of Pentecost solely as a Christian holiday without realizing it goes back much farther.
The Feast of Weeks is a feast initially prescribed by God to celebrate the first of the wheat harvest (Leviticus 23:15-21, Numbers 28:26-31, Deuteronomy 16:9-12). In Hebrew, it is called Shavuot, which means “weeks” (7 weeks after Passover); in Greek, it is Pentecost, meaning “fiftieth” (50 days after Passover).
By the era of Jesus (and still today), it also became a time to celebrate God giving the Torah on Mount Sinai. Jewish sages had studied the Scriptures and made this time correlation between when the people left Egypt (Passover) and when God came down on Mount Sinai.
Comparing the giving of the Torah and the Spirit
Luke crafts his record of the events of Acts 2 to connect God’s gift of the Spirit with the original Pentecost where God gave his Torah:
- Both events happened on a mountain known as “the mountain of God” (Exodus 24:13)
- Both included wind, fire, and voices (Exodus 19:16-19). The Hebrew of Exodus 20:18 literally says, “And all the people saw the voices and the torches,” often translated as thunder and lightning. Jewish tradition says that the Israelites heard God speak in seventy tongues, idiomatic for all the languages of the world.
- Both demonstrated the presence of God (Exodus 19:18-20).
- About 3,000 people died because of their sin after the golden calf when Moses received the Torah (Exodus 32:28). About 3,000 people believed (were born again into new life) when the Spirit came. Sin brought death, but Jesus brought new life.
- At Mount Sinai, God wrote his law on stone tablets (Exodus 31:18). In Acts 2’s Pentecost, God wrote his law on people’s hearts as he had promised (Jeremiah 31:33).
- Torah means “teaching.” The Spirit, given on Shavuot, became the “Teacher” of the new community of Jesus’ followers. As John 14:26 says, “The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”
- The first fire was a national covenant, seen by all near Mount Sinai. The fire in Acts 2 was on each believer, as God’s Spirit became available to individuals who together became the temple of God.
- Before the giving of the Torah, God commanded the people to wash (Exodus 19:14). After the Spirit came, Peter preached and many were baptized. Archeologists have excavated dozens of ancient ritual baths near the Temple Mount that would have aided in these baptisms.
Two great gifts from a gracious God
God’s promises and covenants are eternal. One doesn’t replace another, but they become renewed, adapted, and expanded.
Thank the Lord today for his two beautiful gifts of Scripture and the Holy Spirit – something to rejoice about!!