Peter could not miss its applicability to Pentecost. Joel began his prophecy by saying “and afterward.” Peter’s version refers more specifically to “in the last days,” reflecting his conviction that the messianic age had already dawned in the resurrection of Christ, that we are indeed already living in the final days of God’s saving history. Peter’s conviction was very much in keeping with the rabbinic consensus that the Spirit no longer rested on all Israel but would return as a universal gift at the end time. For Peter the universal pouring out of the Spirit on the whole Christian group was demonstration that the end time had come. Perhaps the clearest indication that the entire 120 received the Spirit at Pentecost is Joel’s inclusion of daughters as well as sons—all were prophesying. Joel undoubtedly had seen the Spirit’s outpouring only as a gift to Israel, and perhaps many of those Jewish-Christians at Pentecost saw it the same way. The remainder of Acts clarifies that the promise applies to the Gentiles as well: it is indeed poured out on “all people.” The Acts of the Apostles, A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary by Ben Witherington, III. Pg. 141
And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions [just as the OT prophets when the Spirit came upon them]: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit [no one will be excluded]. And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.* And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call. Joel 2:28-32
Peter made a significant change in Joel’s prophecy as he quoted it from the Septuagint, and this change supports the view that he was not claiming complete fulfillment. First, he changed “after this” (Joe. 2:28) to “in the last days” (Act. 2:17). In the context of Joel’s prophecy the time in view is the day of the Lord: the Tribulation (Joe. 2:30-31) and the Millennium (Joe. 2:28-29). Peter interpreted this time as the last days. Many modern interpreters believe that when Peter said “the last days” he meant the days in which he lived. However, he was not in the Tribulation or the Millennium. Thus he looked forward to the last days as being future. The “last days” is a phrase that some New Testament writers used to describe the age in which we live (2Tim. 3:1; Heb. 1:2; Jam. 5:3; 1Pet. 1:5; 1Pet. 1:20; 2Pet. 3:3; 1John. 2:18; Jude 1:18), but in view of what Joel wrote that must not be its meaning here. In the Old Testament “the last days” refers to the days before the age to come, namely, the age of Messiah’s earthly reign. That is what it means here.
And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions [just as the OT prophets when the Spirit came upon them]: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit [no one will be excluded]. And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.* And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call. Joel 2:28-32
Peter made a significant change in Joel’s prophecy as he quoted it from the Septuagint, and this change supports the view that he was not claiming complete fulfillment. First, he changed “after this” (Joel 2:28) to “in the last days” (Act. 2:17). In the context of Joel’s prophecy the time in view is the day of the Lord: the Tribulation (Joel 2:30-31) and the Millennium (Joel 2:28-29). Peter interpreted this time as the last days. Many modern interpreters believe that when Peter said “the last days” he meant the days in which he lived. However, he was not in the Tribulation or the Millennium. Thus he looked forward to the last days as being future. The “last days” is a phrase that some New Testament writers used to describe the age in which we live (2Ti. 3:1; Heb. 1:2; Jam. 5:3; 1Pe. 1:5; 1Pe. 1:20; 2Pe. 3:3; 1Jn. 2:18; Jud. 1:18), but in view of what Joel wrote that must not be its meaning here. In the Old Testament “the last days” refers to the days before the age to come, namely, the age of Messiah’s earthly reign. That is what it means here.
There are some similarities between what Joel prophesied would come “after this” (Joel 2:28) and what happened on Pentecost. The similarities are why Peter quoted Joel. Yet the differences are what enable us to see that this prophecy was not completely fulfilled then. For example, God had not poured out His Spirit on “all mankind” (Act. 2:17), as He will in the future. He had only poured out His Spirit on some believers in Jesus. Joel referred to deliverance in the Tribulation (Joel 2:32), but Peter applied this offer to those who needed salvation in his audience. Joel referred to Yahweh as the LORD, but Peter probably referred to Jesus as the Lord (cf. Act. 1:24).
Many dispensationalists understand Peter as saying that Joel’s prophecy was fulfilled initially or partially on Pentecost (view two above). Progressive dispensationalists believe that the eschatological kingdom age of which Joel spoke had begun. Therefore the kingdom had come in its first phase, which they view as the church. The New Covenant had begun, and the Holy Spirit’s indwelling was a sign of that, but that does not mean the messianic reign had begun. The Old Covenant went into effect some 500 years before any king reigned over Israel, and the New Covenant went into effect at least 2,000 years before Messiah will reign over Israel and the world. The beginning of these covenants did not signal the beginning of a king’s reign. One progressive dispensationalist wrote, “. . . the new covenant is correlative to the kingdom of God . . .” [Note: Saucy, The Case . . ., p. 134.] I disagree with this.
not only Joel but other Old Testament prophets prophesied that God would give His Spirit to individual believers in the future (Isa. 32:15; Isa. 44:3; Ezek. 36:27; Ezek. 37:14; Ezek. 39:29; Zec. 12:10). Moreover John the Baptist also predicted the pouring out of God’s Spirit on believers (Matt. 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16; John 1:33).
*The Lord also promised awesome displays of celestial phenomena before this great and terrible day of the Lord arrived. Awe-inspiring miracles would occur in the sky as well as on the earth. The appearance of blood, fire, and columns of smoke suggests warfare, with God’s hand at work behind the scenes (cf. Exo. 19:9; Exo. 19:16-18; Rev. 6:12-17). The sun would become dark and the moon would turn red. These are probably descriptions of how these heavenly bodies will look (language of appearance), not what will become of them, in view of other similar descriptions (e.g., Joel 2:2; Joel 2:10; Joel 3:15; Jer. 4:23-24; Ezek. 32:6-8; Amo. 5:18-20; Amo. 8:9; Zeph. 1:15; Rev. 6:12-13). These signs will precede the great and awesome day of the Lord still future (cf. Matt. 24:29-31; Mark 13:24-27; Luke 21:25-28).