Acts 2:7-11 New International Version (NIV)
7 Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? 9 Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,[a] 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome 11 (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!”
Wednesday - June 3 - Read Acts 2:7-11
In Genesis 10 there is a very similar list of nations to the one in this passage
of Acts. In Genesis 11 those nations gather together to do something great
and amazing. They build a tower in an attempt to reach into heaven. The
problem is not that working together is bad. They were attempting to work
their way up into heaven, just like Adam and Eve wanting to “be like God”
(Gen. 3:5). The desire to be free of God and be our own gods is still our
greatest act of rebellion. However, God confused the language of the
nations in Genesis 11 so that they could not accomplish their goal because
God had a different plan. Jesus would be the one who united God and
humanity. He would bridge the gap. He would bring heaven down to earth.
Now the Holy Spirit brings different languages together by the Gospel!