Meaning of The Promise in Acts 2:39
In Acts 2:39, Peter declares, "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" [1]. This statement comes at the climax of Peter's sermon on the Day of Pentecost, immediately following his call to repentance and baptism for the forgiveness of sins and the reception of the Holy Spirit [1].
The "promise" in this verse refers primarily to the gift of the Holy Spirit, which Peter had just explained was poured out by the exalted Jesus [3, 8]. This gift of the Spirit is understood as a central blessing of the new covenant, fulfilling prophecies such as Joel 2:28-32, which Peter quotes earlier in his sermon [3, 4, 5]. However, the promise also encompasses the purification from sin and every grace associated with the Holy Spirit [4]. Some interpretations also connect it to the promise of the Messiah and salvation through him, or the remission of sins as part of the covenant with God's household [6].
Peter specifies the recipients of this promise: "to you," referring to the Jews present in Jerusalem, and "to your children" [1]. This inclusion of children is significant, as it reflects a continuity of God's covenantal dealings across generations [5, 9]. The phrase "to all who are far off" is widely understood to refer to the Gentiles, indicating the universal scope of the gospel, though it was "to the Jew first" [3, 4]. While Peter may not have fully grasped the extent of Gentile inclusion at this moment, the Holy Spirit guiding his words certainly had this in view [4].
The concluding clause, "even as many as the Lord our God will call to himself," acts as a limiting factor, emphasizing that the promise is for those whom God effectually calls by his grace [1, 6]. This highlights divine initiative in salvation. The concept of God's promises extending to all who are called is a consistent theme in Scripture, with God's faithfulness to these promises being a foundational theological point [2]. The plan of salvation, including its promises, has been consistent throughout history, revealed progressively through the Old Testament and fully in the New [7].
Sources
- Acts “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.” -- Acts 2:39”
- Torrey's Topical Textbook “Torrey's Topical Textbook: Promises of God, The — Contained in the Scriptures -- Ro 1:2. Made in Christ -- Eph 3:6; 2Ti 1:1. Made to Christ. -- Ga 3:16,19. Abraham. -- Ge 12:3,7; Ga 3:16. Isaac. -- Ge 26:3,4. Jacob. -- Ge 28:14. David. -- 2Sa 7:12; Ps 89:3,4,35,36. The Israelites. -- Ro 9:4. The Fathers. -- Ac 13:32; 26:6,7. All who are called of God. -- Ac 2:39. Those who love him. -- Jas 1:12; 2:5. Confirmed by an oath -- Ps 89:3,4; Heb 8:6. Covenant established upon -- Heb 8:6. God is faithful to -- Tit 1:2; Heb 10:23. God remembers -- Ps 105:42; Lu 1:54,55. Are Good. -- 1Ki 8:56. Holy. -- ”
- Acts (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Acts 2:39: For the promise--of the Holy Ghost, through the risen Saviour, as the grand blessing of the new covenant. all afar off--the Gentiles, as in Eph 2:17), but "to the Jew first."”
- Acts (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on Acts 2:39: For the promise is unto you - Jews of the land of Judea: not only the fulfillment of the promise which he had lately recited from the prophecy of Joel was made to them, but in this promise was also included the purification from sin, with every gift and grace of the Holy Spirit. To all that are afar off - To the Jews wherever dispersed, and to all the Gentile nations; for, though St. Peter had not as yet a formal knowledge of the calling of the Gentiles, yet, the Spirit of God, by which he spoke, had undoubtedly this in view; and therefore the words are added, even as”
- Isaiah (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Isaiah 59:21: 59:21 The members of the new community have the Spirit, and they know and practice God’s word (see also Ezek 36:24-28). The Lord promises to regenerate the children by his Spirit and bring them into the covenant of obedience and love for the Lord (Joel 2:28; Acts 2:39).”
- Acts (Baptist/Reformed) “John Gill on Acts 2:38: Either of the Messiah, and salvation by him, which was particularly given forth to the people of the Jews; or of the remission of sins, which was a branch of the covenant made with the house of Israel, in a spiritual sense, even the whole household of God; or of the pouring forth of the Spirit: and this promise was not only to them, but to theirs, even to as many of them as belonged to the election of grace; and whom the Lord their God would effectually call by his grace, as the last and limiting clause of the text, and which is to be connected with every part of it, sh”
- CCEL (Reformed (Old Princeton)) “Charles Hodge, Systematic Theology, Vol. 2, section 74: the assertions of the New Testament writers and from their expositions of the ancient Scriptures, that we learn the amount of truth revealed to those who lived before the coming of Christ. From the Scriptures, therefore, as a whole, from the New Testament, and from the Old as interpreted by infallible authority in the New, we learn that the plan of salvation has always been one and the same; having the same promise, the same Saviour, the same condition, and the same salvation. The Promise of Eternal Life made before the Advent. That the p”
- Acts (Methodist/Wesleyan) “Adam Clarke on Acts 2:33: By the right hand of God exalted - Raised by omnipotence to the highest dignity in the realms of glory, to sit at the right hand of God, and administer the laws of both worlds. The promise of the Holy Ghost - This was the promise that he had made to them a little before he suffered, as may be seen in Joh 14:16, etc., Joh 16:7, etc., and after he had risen from the dead. Luk 24:49, and which as the apostle says was now shed forth.”
- CCEL (Reformed) “John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, section 98: place a manifest indication of favour before his eye, added the promise of possession of the land of Canaan. In the same way we should understand all the terrestrial promises which were given to the Jewish nation, the spiritual promise, as the head to which the others bore reference, always holding the first place. Having handled this subject fully when treating of the difference between the old and the new dispensations, I now only glance at it. 12. Under the appellation of children the difference they observe is this, that the ch”