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Act 2:17-18. Καὶ ἔσται, κ.τ.λ.) Joe 3:1-5 [in Engl. Vers. Act 2:28], LXX., καὶ ἔσται μετὰ ταῦτα καὶ ἐκχεῶ-καὶ ἐπὶ τοὺς δούλους μου-καὶ δώσουσι τέρατα ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς αἷμα-πρὶν ἐλθεῖν-σωθήσεται.-ἐσχάταις, the last) All the days of the New Testament are last days: and these last days have now advanced far forward.-πνεύματος, of My Spirit) A sweet antithesis; of My Spirit, and, upon all flesh.[11]-ΠᾶΣΑΝ, all) The promise does not appertain to that Pentecost alone: see Act 2:39. In Joel the expression is My Spirit; Peter’s expression is, “of My Spirit,” having special respect to that particular Pentecost.-καὶ, and) Men are described of every sex, age, and rank.-προφητεύσουσιν, shall prophesy) Prophecy is an extraordinary spiritual gift, an especial proof of God’s working in men.-ὁράσεις, Κ.Τ.Λ., visions, etc.) waking and sleeping. Among the young especially the external senses are in the fullest vigour, and are thus suited to visions: in the case of the old, the internal senses are most vigorous, and are therefore adapted to dreams. The apostles were young men: and Peter therefore appropriately places the young men first; whereas Joel places the old men first. A vision was vouchsafed to Peter, ch. Act 10:17 : also to Paul, and that too in the night, ch. Act 16:9. However young men are not excluded from dreams, nor old men from visions.-ἐνυπνίοις) So most MSS., and so Alex. also in Joel. Others read ἘΝΎΠΝΙΑ, and no doubt very often the LXX. have ἘΝΎΠΝΙΟΝ ἘΝΥΠΝΙΆΖΕΣΘΑΙ: but in this passage, with equal appropriateness, or even with a larger (grander) signification, the expression used is, ἘΝΥΠΝΊΟΙς ἙΝΥΠΝΙΑΣΘΉΣΟΝΤΑΙ. A similar phrase occurs in Act 2:30, ὍΡΚῼ ὬΜΟΣΕΝ.[12]-καί γε) and truly.-δούλους μου, My servants) Servants according to the flesh are meant, as distinguished from the children in Act 2:17; but at the same time, these, servants of GOD.
[11] Flesh is frequently opposed to Spirit: and the partitive ἀπὸ with Gen. is opposed to the universal ἐπὶ πᾶσαν.-E. and T.
[12] Therefore the Gnomon, abandoning the judgment pronounced by the larger Ed., follows the margin of the 2d Ed., which awards the preference to the reading ἐνυπνίοις.-E. B.
Ἐνύπνια is the reading of E and Rec. Text: so de, Vulg. ‘somnia.’ Ἐννπνίοις is that of must of the oldest authorities, ABC, and D corrected.-E. and T.