In those days I will pour out my Spirit even on servants—men and women alike.
Parallel translations
- WEB And also on the servants and on the handmaids in those days, I will pour out my Spirit.
- KJV And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.
- BSB Even on My menservants and maidservants, I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
- NKJV And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
- NASB “And even on the male and female servants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God will pour out His Spirit even on male and female servants. The Spirit's outpouring crosses every social barrier.
Overview
Joel extends the promise to servants and handmaids, the lowest in social standing, showing that the Spirit will be given without regard to class or status. This inclusion underscores the breadth of the new covenant blessing fulfilled at Pentecost. In Christ, the gift of the Spirit reaches all who believe, for there is no distinction in the grace God pours out (Galatians 3:28).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- 1 Cor 12:13For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether bond or free; and were all given to drink into one Spirit.
- Gal 3:28There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
- Col 3:11where there can’t be Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, barbarian, Scythian, bondservant, freeman; but Christ is all, and in all.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The promised outpouring of the Spirit on all flesh and the call to 'everyone who calls on the name of the LORD' are fulfilled at Pentecost in the name of Jesus.
How Joel 2:29 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.