ESTUDIO DEL VERSÍCULO
Acts 2:38-39
Peter instructs the crowd to repent and be baptized in Jesus' name for forgiveness, with the Spirit's gift promised.
Escritura
- 38.Pedro les dijo: Arrepentíos, y bautícese cada uno de vosotros en el nombre de Jesucristo para perdón de los pecados; y recibiréis el don del Espíritu Santo.And Peter said unto them, Repent ye, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ unto the remission of your sins; and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
- 39.Porque para vosotros es la promesa, y para vuestros hijos, y para todos los que están lejos; para cuantos el Señor nuestro Dios llamare.For to you is the promise, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call unto him.
Qué significa este pasaje
Verse 38 packs three linked actions into a single response to the crowd's question in verse 37. The first is repentance, a turning away from the posture that placed Jesus on the cross. The second is baptism 'in the name of Jesus Christ,' a public identification with the One Peter has just declared to be Lord and Messiah. The third is forgiveness, and the fourth is the gift of the Holy Spirit. The construction moves the hearer from inner change to visible confession to divine gift, and the promise is stated for 'every one of you' rather than for a select group.
Verse 39 grounds the offer in the reliability of God's promise. The Greek particle γάρ (G1063) makes verse 39 the reason the offer in verse 38 is trustworthy. Peter widens the audience in stages: the immediate hearers, their children, and 'all that are afar off,' a phrase Luke's audience likely hears as a reference to the Gentiles. The limiting factor is not ethnic descent or proximity but divine calling, expressed as 'as many as the Lord our God shall call unto him.'
The two verses together frame conversion and Spirit-reception as both a present summons and a covenant continuation. The gift of the Spirit is not a reward for moral effort but is attached to the baptismal response itself, while the scope of the promise is universalized beyond its initial Jewish hearers. Scholars differ on how tightly the gift is tied to baptism in Luke's theology, but the textual sequence pairs them as Peter's instructions to the crowd on the day of Pentecost.
Contexto
Acts 2:38-39 sits at the climax of Peter's Pentecost sermon. In 2:36 he has just declared that God made the crucified Jesus both Lord and Messiah, and the pierced crowd in 2:37 asks what they should do. Peter's answer forms the convert's path that Luke will re-narrate throughout Acts, with 2:41 noting that about three thousand believed, were baptized, and joined the apostles' teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayers.
Palabras clave del original
- G3340 The verb μετανοέω (G3340) appears as the imperative Μετανοήσατε at the start of Peter's command. The gloss 'to think differently or afterwards, i.e. reconsider (morally, feel compunction)' indicates that Peter's call is not merely regret but a moral reorientation in response to the crucified Messiah.
- G0859 The noun ἄφεσιν (G0859), form of ἄφεσις, refers to release, pardon, or forgiveness. In verse 38 it is paired with εἰς (G1519), signaling purpose or result, so the baptism is directed toward the goal of forgiveness rather than being identified with forgiveness itself.
- G1860 The noun ἐπαγγελία (G1860) is rendered 'promise' in verse 39 and carries the sense of a divine assurance of good. Peter uses it to ground the baptismal offer in God's own pledged word, tying Pentecost back to the covenant language of Israel's scriptures.
Versículos relacionados
- Acts 22:16 Ananias tells Saul to rise, be baptized, and wash away his sins, calling on the name of the Lord. The pairing of baptism with the washing away of sins repeats the linkage of 2:38 within Luke's own narrative.
- Mark 16:16 The risen Jesus frames belief and baptism as the visible response tied to salvation, while unbelief is tied to condemnation. It parallels the order of repentance, baptism, and gift in 2:38-39, though the relationship between faith and baptism is stated differently.
- Luke 24:47 Luke's Gospel closes with a programmatic statement that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in Jesus' name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. Acts 2:38-39 is the first concrete instance of that program being carried out.
Preguntas frecuentes
Is Acts 2:38 saying baptism is required for salvation?
The verse links repentance and baptism with forgiveness and the Spirit, but 'unto' (εἰς, G1519) signals purpose or result rather than a strict mechanical cause. Christians across traditions differ on how to interpret the relationship, and the verse does not by itself resolve the broader theological question of baptism's necessity.
Who are 'them that are afar off' in verse 39?
Most scholars read 'afar off' as a reference to the Gentiles, echoing Old Testament language about nations far from Israel. Within Luke-Acts, the phrase foreshadows the spread of the message beyond Jerusalem in the following chapters, with Acts 10 as a key example.
Is the gift of the Holy Spirit something every believer receives?
In 2:38 Peter addresses the audience as a collective and promises 'the gift of the Holy Spirit' to those who respond. Acts later shows varied patterns of Spirit-reception, sometimes connected with baptism and sometimes with the laying on of hands, and scholars differ on how to harmonize these accounts.