John Calvin Commentary Acts 2:33

"Being therefore by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he hath poured forth this, which ye see and hear." — Acts 2:33 (ASV)

He being therefore exalted by the right hand of God—the “right hand” here is understood to mean power, just as it is elsewhere in Scripture. For His point is to declare that it was a wonderful work of God that He exalted His Christ (whom people thought was completely destroyed by death) to such great glory.

The promise of the Spirit refers to the Spirit who was promised. For He had often promised the Spirit to His apostles before. Therefore, Peter signifies that Christ had obtained power from God the Father to fulfill this promise. And he mentions the promise in plain words so that the Jews may know that this did not happen suddenly, but that the words of the prophet, which long preceded the event itself, were now fulfilled.

Furthermore, when it is said that He obtained it from the Father, this applies to the person of the Mediator. For both of these statements are true: that Christ sent the Spirit from Himself and from the Father. He sent Him from Himself, because He is eternal God; He sent Him from the Father, because, insofar as He is man, He receives from the Father what He gives to us.

And Peter speaks wisely, according to the understanding of the uninformed, lest anyone should raise an untimely question about Christ’s power. Indeed, since it is Christ’s role to direct us to His Father, this is a very fitting way of speaking for the purpose of godliness: Christ, being placed, as it were, in the middle between God and us, delivers to us with His own hand those gifts He has received from His Father.

Furthermore, we must note the order he describes: that the Spirit was sent by Christ after He was exalted. This agrees with these statements:

“The Spirit was not yet given,
because Christ was not yet glorified,”
(John 7:39).

And again,

“Unless I go hence, the Spirit will not come,”
(John 16:7).

This is not because the Spirit only then began to be given (with which the holy fathers were endowed from the beginning of the world), but because God deferred this more plentiful abundance of grace until He had placed Christ on His princely seat. This is signified by the term poured out, as we saw a little earlier. For by this means the power and fruit of Christ’s death and resurrection are sealed; and we also know by this that we have lost nothing by Christ’s departing from the world. Because, though He is absent in body, He is yet present with us in a better way, namely, by the grace of His Holy Spirit.