Acts 2:3

Fire, as well as wind, symbolized the presence of God (cf. Genesis 15:17; Exodus 3:2-6; Exodus 13:21-22; Exodus 19:18; Exodus 24:17; Exodus 40:38; Matthew 3:11; Luke 3:16). The believers received a visual as well as an audio indication that the promised Holy Spirit of God had come. Evidently the apparent fire came at first in one piece and then separated into individual flames, which always resemble tongues of fire. "Distributing themselves" translates diamerizomenai, a present and probably a middle participle, suggesting that the fire was seen dividing itself. One of these "flames" abode on each believer present. God could hardly have visualized the distribution of His Spirit to every individual believer more clearly. The Spirit had in the past abode on the whole nation of Israel corporately symbolized by the pillar of fire. Now He abode on each believer, as He had on Jesus. This fire was obviously not normal fire because it did not burn up what it touched (cf. Exodus 3:2-6).

Probably the Jews present connected the tongues with which the believers spoke miraculously with the tongues of fire. They probably attributed the miracle of speaking in tongues to the God whose presence they had identified with fire in their history and who was now obviously present among them.

Was this the fulfillment of John the Baptist’s statement that Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit and fire (Matthew 3:11; Luke 3:16; cf. Joel 2:28-29; Malachi 3:2-5)? Some believe it was a complete fulfillment of those prophecies and that we should expect no further subsequent fulfillment. This seems doubtful since these prophecies occur in contexts involving the experiences of all Israel. Others believe that what happened on the day of Pentecost was an initial or partial fulfillment and that complete fulfillment is still future. Some who hold this second view believe that the prophecy about the baptism with the Holy Spirit was fulfilled on Pentecost, but the prophecy about baptism with fire was not fulfilled and will be fulfilled in the Tribulation. Others who hold this second view, including myself, believe that both baptisms occurred on Pentecost and both will occur again in the future and will involve Israel. I view what happened on Pentecost as a foreview of what will happen for Israel in the future. A third view is that what happened on Pentecost was not what the Old Testament predicted at all since those predictions have Israel in view. This explanation is unappealing to me because what happened on Pentecost has clear connections with these predictions. What we have in this verse is a gracious baptizing that involved the Holy Spirit and the presence and power of God symbolized by fire. [Note: See also my comments on 2:16-21 below.]