I will pour out My Spirit on all people: In Israel, the empowering gift of God’s Spirit had previously been given only to select individuals such as:
judges (Judges 3:10; 15:14),
priests (2 Chronicles 24:20),
kings (1 Samuel 10:10), and
prophets (Isaiah 61:1).
A time was coming when the Holy Spirit would be given to everyone among God’s people, regardless of gender, age, or social status. This fulfilled what Moses wanted, that every Israelite might be a prophet (Numbers 11:29), allowing all to prophesy and see visions.
In Acts 2:1–47, Peter expanded this promise to include people from all over the known world who were gathered in Jerusalem, regardless of their ethnicity (Acts 2:39; see also Galatians 3:28).