The Day of Pentecost in the Upper Room
In my previous post, I explained the Jewish background to the “Day of Pentecost” mentioned in Acts 2:1 (see my post “What is Pentecost?“). However, from a Christian perspective, I’m more interested in that particular Pentecost that occurred 50 days after Jesus Christ was crucified and approximately 10 days after he ascended into heaven.
What can learn about this day from the scriptural account?
First, we know that some of Jesus’ followers were gathered together in the same place. (Acts 2:1) Where were they gathered? Luke does not directly specify where the disciples were gathered in this particular passage. However, it is likely that Luke intended his readers to understand the disciples were still meeting in the same place they had been meeting. Where had they been gathering? Luke says that 120 of Jesus’ disciples had been meeting together in an upper room during the time between his ascension into heaven and the day of Pentecost. (See Acts 1:12-14.)
Which upper room? Since Luke assumes his readers know which upper room he’s talking about (without explanation), the most likely location is the same upper room where Jesus ate with his disciples just before he was crucified. (See Luke 22:7-12.) Since the disciples continued to have access to this upper room of a home after Jesus’ death, burial, resurrection, and ascension, it is possible that the home belonged to one of Jesus’ disciples, but this is not specified. (Some speculate this was Mark’s home.)
Since Acts 2:1 says they were “all” together in one place, Luke is pointing back to the 120 disciples that he had mentioned earlier. (See Acts 1:15.) Who were these 120 followers of Jesus? We know the 11 apostles were among them. (Acts 1:13) We also know that Jesus’ mother, brothers, and sisters were among them. (Acts 1:14) There were at least 2 (but probably more) people who had followed Jesus since he was baptized by John the Baptist. (Acts 1:21) That still leaves others who had followed Jesus (at least after his resurrection).
What were they doing when they were gathered together? Again, in Acts 2, Luke does not specifically tell us what they were doing at that moment (when the Holy Spirit was sent). However, he did tell us previously that they had been praying together. (Acts 1:14) We also know that they had been eating together when Jesus was with them. (Acts 1:6)
So, what happened? When these 120 people were gathered together in the upper room – perhaps eating and praying together – God sent the Holy Spirit. This is what Jesus had told them was going to happen. (Acts 1:4-5) (Also, see my post “The Ascension of Jesus Christ.”)
We know that the Holy Spirit had been at work previously. We see him working through different people throughout the Old Testament. We see Jesus’ close connection with the Spirit in the Gospels. Now, though, something different was happening.
According to what Jesus had told his disciples (i.e., “wait for the promise of the Father”) and what Peter said later (i.e., “received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit”), the Spirit was working in a new manner, that is, in a way that he had not worked previously but in a way that had been promised or prophesied.
This was the setting of that specific day of Pentecost that came along 50 days after Jesus was crucified and 10 days after he ascended into heaven.
12 Comments
Leave a Comment
Social Connections
Search this Site
About Me
I am a follower of Jesus, PhD student in biblical theology, and an IT manager. My interests include running, coffee, and ecclesiology. My dissertation topic is the purpose of the gathering of the church in the New Testament. By God's grace, I try to live what I am learning about the church. Read more...
Since it is not specifically stated that they were in the upper room at that time could it not also be possible they were meeting at the temple as it was their custom.
see Act 2:46 And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple , and breaking bread from house to house , did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart
Also if it was in a upper private room how could the multitude have heard what happened?
see Act 2:5 ¶ And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven.
Act 2:6 Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language.
I think it’s very possible that all that transpired right there inthe temple.
Sabine,
It’s certainly possible that Luke meant that the disciples were gathered in the temple area. However, the passage that mentions the temple comes after his statement that they were all together in one place. Plus, Luke had already told his readers that the disciples were all staying together in the upper room in Acts 1:13. It seems more probable that this is the “one place” of Acts 2:1.
-Alan
Hi Alan
I stumbled on your site whilst looking for more clarity on what happened and where at Pentecost. I am currently looking at the evidences of the baptism in the Holy Spirit (my roots are pentecostal, now a reformed but unashamed charismatic), and I think that the location of the 120 when the Holy Spirit rushed in may be quite important. P reviously I had always imagined them going back to the upper room where the last supper and no doubt countless other suppers had taken place between Jesus and his closest followers. Maybe owned by sympathisers or followers. However…. at the end of Luke we have Jesus saying “stay in the city (24:49) until you are clothed with power from on high” , and the disciples “returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple, praising God” (24:52). This would seem to conflict with Luke’s other report of the disciples’ location immediately after the ascension – “When they had entered the city, they went up to the upper room where they were staying.” So I am confused. There seem to be two views.
But the outpouring occurring in the temple, rather than in the upper room, would seem to explain an anomaly which I have never been able to understand – how could the crowd hear the tongues, and converge with the 120 if they were cooped up in the upper room at the time? Surely Luke would mention how these two groups came together – ie, “the 120 spilled out onto the streets” . It would seem more plausible to me that the 120 were preparing to celebrate Pentecost in the Temple, and that the noise of tongues was heard there and attracted the diaspora who had convened in Jerusalem for the festival. Then, added to this, there’s the verse at the end of Acts 2 which suggests continuation of habit by these 120, now embraced by at least some of the 3,000 converts – “Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house…….”
I do not know what to do with the references to the upper room, but I cannot ignore the consistent allusions to the temple and also the explanation of how the interaction of disciples and Diaspora took place that day. Can you help?
Like your blog. Simple to read, solid and sound.
God bless you
Marcus
Marcus,
Interestingly, Luke only finds it important to tell us that Jesus’ disciples were “all together in one place” (Acts 2:1) when the Holy Spirit descended on the day of Pentecost. (I think it likely, though, that in order to speak to over 3,000 – many more than 3,000 since 3,000 actually accepted their good news – that they did not stay in one place for long.) I think it is quite fitting that Luke does not tell us exactly where the disciples were, because most of this book (Acts) centers on the fact that God is not housed in a certain building (temple), city (Jerusalem), or region (Judea).
-Alan
How many people starting out waiting for the Holy Spirit but left before He filled the 120 that remained in the upper room?
Debbie,
As far as I know, there’s no way for us to know if anyone left before the Holy Spirit came or not. There’s no mention of it at all.
-Alan
how many desciples did Jesus have again? Becuase in this it said he had
120
Latrell,
According to Luke, there were 120 disciples in the upper room on the day of Pentecost. I would assume there were more disciples of Jesus than that, but we’re not given an exact number. Why do you ask?
-Alan
good stuff. I am sure you’ve heard the take that the “obvious” place for Pentecost was actually the temple, not a home:
http://davewainscott.blogspot.com/2013/05/on-pentecost-happening-in-temple.html
Dave,
It’s certainly possible that they were all gathered in the temple. Of course, Luke doesn’t mention the temple at all until later in the passage, but he had already mentioned that they were gathering in the upper room. So, to me, the “one place” would point back to the place Luke had already mentioned. Could it be a completely different location? Sure, it could be.
-Alan
Where in Jerusalem is the Upper Room located. I understand it to be in the home of Mary Magdalene (?) if memory serves me correctly, but Im trying to figure out the direct city. They came from the Mount of Olivet to the Upper Room which took them a Sabbath days journey.
Acts 1:12-13.
Thanks in advance,
Karen, A student researching
Karen,
I don’t remember the upper room being associated with Mary Magdalene in Scripture. Do you know where that association is found?
-Alan