Acts 2:5 (ASV)

Passage

Now there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven.

Nearby Context

Acts 2:3 And there appeared unto them tongues parting asunder, like as of fire; and it sat upon each one of them.

Acts 2:4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Acts 2:5 Now there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven.

Acts 2:6 And when this sound was heard, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speaking in his own language.

Acts 2:7 And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying, Behold, are not all these that speak Galilaeans?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "dwelling", "jerusalem", "jews", "devout", "nation", "under", and "heaven". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "dwelling" and "jerusalem", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 4's "And they were all filled with the..." into verse 6's "And when this sound was heard the...", so "dwelling" and "jerusalem" belong inside that flow. In Acts context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "dwelling" and "jerusalem" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.