<p>13:52- see on Acts 8:8.</p><p><i>And the disciples were filled with joy, and with the Holy Spirit</i>- The Ethiopic text reads &quot;the apostles&quot;, as if Paul and Barnabas are in view. To be filled with implies external agency; the Lord filled them with joy, through the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit therefore here refers to an internal psychological power, which in this case gave joy. The Spirit gift is given to each believer at baptism, but there are clearly specific moments when believers are filled with it further. The allusion here is clearly to the Lord's command to rejoice under persecution (Mt. 5:12); that is an attitude and action which has to be consciously adopted. But this is confirmed and encouraged by the action of the Spirit within us to give joy. The spirit is effectively our mind and attitude; the Spirit /mind of the Lord Jesus is therefore being replicated in our minds. As &quot;Jesus was filled with joy by the Holy Spirit&quot; (Lk. 10:21), so are we &quot;filledwith all joy and peace by means of... the power of the Holy Spirit&quot; (Rom. 15:13). This is &quot;the joy that comes from the Holy Spirit&quot; (1 Thess. 1:6); &quot;For God's Kingdom is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of the righteousness, peace, and joy which the Holy Spirit gives&quot; (Rom. 14:17).</p><p><em><br clear=all /></em></p><p><em>&nbsp;</em></p>