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In Acts, Was the Pentecost Event in Jerusalem at the Temple or at a Private Upper Room?
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Steefen
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September 1, 2026 - 2:20 pm

First, to the Forum
Second, if Necessary to Bart (I do wonder how Bart answered this, if he did):

In Acts, Was the Pentecost Event in Jerusalem at the Temple or at a Private Upper Room?

= = = = = =

The exact location of the Pentecost event in Acts 2 is actively debated by scholars, with strong arguments pointing to either the Temple Mount or a private house/Upper Room. [** you do not have permission to see this link **]
While traditional popular belief places the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the Upper Room (the Cenacle), many modern biblical scholars and historians argue that the events likely happened in or around the Temple Mount (such as the southern steps or porticoes). [** you do not have permission to see this link **]
Arguments for the Temple Mount
  • Crowd Capacity: Acts 2 describes thousands of Jewish pilgrims (3,000 baptized just after Peter’s sermon, plus a massive gathered crowd). An upper room could only hold about 150 people, whereas the expansive Temple Mount platform easily accommodated tens of thousands of festival visitors. [** you do not have permission to see this link **]
  • The “House” Terminology: Acts 2:2 states that a sound filled the “house” where they were sitting. In biblical Hebrew and Greek idioms, the Temple is frequently referred to as “the house” or the “House of the Lord”. [** you do not have permission to see this link **]
  • Festival Context: Pentecost (Shavuot) was a major mandatory pilgrimage feast requiring Jewish men to appear at the Temple. Furthermore, the 9:00 AM timing of Peter’s speech (Acts 2:15) corresponds with the traditional morning hour of prayer and sacrifice at the Temple. [** you do not have permission to see this link **]
  • Access to Water: The 3,000 new believers were baptized immediately. The massive stepped entrances of the southern Temple area featured numerous ritual immersion pools (miqva’ot) capable of handling rapid baptisms on a massive scale. [** you do not have permission to see this link **]
Arguments for the Upper Room
  • Context from Acts 1: The disciples had been staying and continually returning to an upper room in Jerusalem where they devoted themselves to prayer immediately prior to Pentecost (Acts 1:13–14).
  • Early Tradition: The identification of the Upper Room as the site has ancient backing, though specific localized traditions pointing directly to the current traditional site largely emerged centuries later in the Byzantine era. [** you do not have permission to see this link **]
Opinions on ** you do not have permission to see this link **]
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Steefen
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September 1, 2026 - 2:37 pm

Bart,

Second QUESTION:

The exact location of the Pentecost event in Acts 2 is actively debated by scholars, with strong arguments pointing to either the Temple Mount or a private house/Upper Room.

In Acts, Was the Pentecost Event in Jerusalem at the Temple or at a Private Upper Room?

What is the latest? How do you judge the scholarly debate?

** you do not have permission to see this link **

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Stephen
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September 1, 2026 - 6:04 pm

None of this actually happened.  It’s literature not reportage. Theological fiction, not history.

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Steefen
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September 1, 2026 - 10:41 pm

Stephen said
None of this actually happened.  It’s literature not reportage. Theological fiction, not history.
  

Off topic. It sheds no light on the scholarly debate mentioned.

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Steefen
8097 Posts
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September 5, 2026 - 5:08 pm

Comment 2

Bart:

In Acts 2 the event takes place in Jerusalem outdoors. That’s why there so many Jews who hear the followers of Jesus preaching the Gospel in their own languages. (Thousands convert: that’s not possible in a private room….)

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