42
Andδὲthey wereἦσανdevoting themselvesπροσκαρτεροῦντεςto the teachingτῇ διδαχῇof the apostlesτῶν ἀποστόλωνandκαὶto the fellowship,τῇ κοινωνίᾳto the breakingτῇ κλάσειof breadτοῦ ἄρτουandκαὶto the prayers.ταῖς προσευχαῖς
Acts 2:42
Study it in the app“And they were devoting themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers.”
The first community: teaching, breaking bread, prayer and sharing goodsFollowing JesusThe first believers: teaching, breaking bread, prayer, and a shared tableThe Church and CommunityThe first community shared teaching, bread, prayers, and goodsLoneliness
With the Greek beneath
Acts 2:42, word by word
- they wereἦσανēsan
be
To be: says who or what something is.
Where else “ēsan” appears- devoting themselvesπροσκαρτεροῦντεςproskarterountes
persevere
To keep at something day after day, without giving it up.
Where else “proskarterountes” appears- to the teachingδιδαχῇdidachēi
teaching
Teaching.
Where else “didachēi” appears- of the apostlesἀποστόλωνapostolōn
apostle
One of those Jesus chose and sent.
Where else “apostolōn” appears- to the fellowshipκοινωνίᾳkoinōniai
fellowship
Having something in common, a life joined together.
Where else “koinōniai” appears- to the breakingκλάσειklasei
breaking
Breaking, the breaking of bread.
Where else “klasei” appears- of breadἄρτουartou
bread
A piece of baked bread made from flour: the basic food.
Where else “artou” appears- to the prayersπροσευχαῖςproseuchais
prayer
Talking with God, asking him.
Where else “proseuchais” appears
Translation note
“The fellowship” (koinōnia) is “participation, what is held in common”; compare 2:44-45. “The breaking of bread” can be understood as the shared meals (2:46) or as the Lord’s Supper.
The context
41So those who received his word were immersed, and on that day about three thousand persons were added.
42 · This verse (above)
43And fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles.
To study Acts 2 in a group
1. What it says
What happened on the day of Pentecost when the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit, and what did the crowd hear? (vv. 4-8)
2. What it means
Peter explains what happened using the Scriptures and Jesus. What does he want the people to understand about Jesus? (vv. 22-36)
3. How I live it
The first believers shared teaching, meals and possessions (vv. 42-45). What could you share this week with someone close to you?