The Ember Saturday within the Octave of the Feast of Pentecost
Posted on May 30, 2026 by under
Scripture: Joel 2:28-32 (NKJV)
2:28 “And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.
29 “And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
30 “And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: Blood and fire and pillars of smoke.
31 “The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.
32 “And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be deliverance, as the Lord has said, among the remnant whom the Lord calls.”
Devotion
After promising physical restoration in the previous verses, the Lord declares an even greater wonder: the pouring out of His Holy Spirit upon all flesh. The Spirit comes upon sons and daughters, old and young, free and slave alike. This is not earned by status or merit, but given freely by the gracious God who restores what locusts have devoured.
The apostle Peter, filled with that same Spirit on Pentecost, declares: “This is what was uttered by the prophet Joel” (Acts 2:16). The last days have begun. The crucified and risen Jesus, exalted at the Father’s right hand, has poured out this promised gift. Wonders in heaven and signs on earth point to the great and awesome day of the Lord, yet the comfort remains: “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
This promise is ours in Holy Baptism. There the Spirit is poured out upon us—regardless of age, gender, or station—creating faith, forgiving sins, and uniting us to Christ. The same Spirit who fell on Cornelius and the Gentiles now rests upon us, enabling us to confess Jesus as Lord and to live as His people. When darkness seems to cover the earth or judgment looms, cling to this: the Lord has poured out His Spirit for you. Call upon His name. He saves. He is in your midst.
Collect: O Lord, we beseech Thee, deign to pour forth into our minds the Holy Ghost, by Whose wisdom we were created, and by Whose providence we are guided; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the same Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Collect for the Feast of Pentecost (Whitsunday)
O God, Who didst teach the hearts of Thy faithful people, by sending to them the light of Thy Holy Spirit: Grant us by the same Spirit to have a right judgment in all things, and evermore to rejoice in His holy comfort; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
