Expert: Elder Greg Madden - 4/25/2009

Question
ON THE DAY OF PENECOST, DID THE HOLY SPIRIT REST ON THE 120 PLUS THE 11, OR JUST ON THE 11?? I READ IT TO MEAN THE 120 PLUS THE 11, PLEASE ADVISE...

Answer
Charlotte,

Hope you don't mind, but your question was placed in the "question pool" by another volunteer and I though I could help.

I have always read this text to mean that there was a total of 120 people, not 120 plus 11 Apostles. However, I could be wrong. Here are a few commentaries that I found that you may find helpfull...

The following is on Acts 1:15...

John Gill's Exposition of the Bible, Acts 1:15

"in the midst of the disciples;"
not only the other ten, but the whole hundred and twenty. The Alexandrian copy, and some others, read, "in the midst of the brethren", and so reads the Vulgate Latin version; and the Ethiopic version, "in the midst of his own brethren";

were about an hundred and twenty;
among whom were the eleven apostles, and seventy disciples, which made eighty one; so that there were thirty nine persons more in this company: not that it is to be thought that these were all that were in Jerusalem that believed in Christ; but these were the number of the persons that met and embodied together in a church state, and who not only gave themselves to the Lord, but to one another, by the will of God; and their names being taken and registered, the historian calls the account of them, the number of the names, and not persons; though he means persons. This was a number pretty famous among the Jews; the sanhedrim of Ezra, called the men of the great synagogue, consisted of an "hundred and twenty elders"; the last of which was Simeon the just, and he comprehended the hundred and twenty.

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John Wesley's Explanatory Notes on the Whole Bible

Acts 1:15  The number of persons together - Who were together in the upper room. were a hundred and twenty - But he had undoubtedly many more in other places; of whom more than five hundred saw him at once after his resurrection,

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Matthew Henry Complete Commentary on the Whole Bible

Acts 1:15 The house consisted of about a hundred and twenty. This was the number of the names, that is, the persons; some think the men only, distinguished from the women. Dr. Lightfoot reckons that the eleven apostles, the seventy disciples, and about thirty-nine more, all of Christ’s own kindred, country, and concourse, made up this one hundred and twenty, and that these were a sort of synod, or congregation of ministers, a standing presbytery.

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Next are some notes on Acts 2:1 "...they were all with one accord in one place."

John Gill's Exposition of the Bible, Acts 2:1

in two ancient copies of Beza's, and in some others it is read, "all the apostles"; Matthias, and the eleven, with whom he was numbered, who are last spoken of, in (Acts 1:26) . Though this need not be restrained to the twelve apostles, but may be understood of the hundred and twenty, on whom, as well as on the apostles, the Holy Ghost might be poured forth, that so they might speak with tongues; since among these were many ministers of the Gospel, as the seventy disciples, and it may be more; and that his extraordinary gifts should be bestowed on others, is but what was afterwards done; see (Acts 8:17) (10:14) (11:15) and though there were so many of them together, they were very unanimous and peaceable; there were no jars nor contentions among them; they were of the same mind and judgment in faith and practice, and of one heart and soul, and had a cordial affection for one another; and were all in one place, which seems to be the temple; see (Acts 2:46) . And indeed, no other place or house could hold so many as came to hear them, of which number three thousand were converted.

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John Wesley's Explanatory Notes on the Whole Bible

2:1  At the pentecost of Sinai, in the Old Testament, and the pentecost of Jerusalem, in the New, where the two grand manifestations of God, the legal and the evangelical; the one from the mountain, and the other from heaven; the terrible, and the merciful one. They were all with one accord in one place - So here was a conjunction of company, minds, and place; the whole hundred and twenty being present.  

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Charlotte, after reading these I'm sure you can gather that there is differing opinons of the exact number. However, I feel certain that we can all agree that there were at least 120, if not more. And as I said before, I believe that there were just that, 120.

Please let me know if this helps, or if you have any further questions.

Elder Greg Madden