Acts7

Stephen, in his defense, recounts the history of Israel from Abraham to Moses, highlighting God's faithfulness and the people's repeated rebellion and rejection of His chosen leaders. He then directly accuses his audience of being "stiffnecked" and resisting the Holy Ghost, persecuting prophets, and murdering the Just One. Enraged by his words and vision of Jesus, they stone Stephen, who prays for their forgiveness as he dies.

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Stephen Begins His Defense

And the high priest said, Are these things so?

God's Covenant with Abraham

And he said, Brethren and fathers, hearken: The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran,

and said unto him, Get thee out of thy land, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall show thee.

Then came he out of the land of the Chaldæans, and dwelt in Haran: and from thence, when his father was dead, God removed him into this land, wherein ye now dwell:

and he gave him none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on: and he promised that he would give it to him in possession, and to his seed after him, when as yet he had no child.

And God spake on this wise, that his seed should sojourn in a strange land, and that they should bring them into bondage, and treat them ill, four hundred years.

And the nation to which they shall be in bondage will I judge, said God: and after that shall they come forth, and serve me in this place.

And he gave him the covenant of circumcision: and so Abraham begat Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day; and Isaac begat Jacob, and Jacob the twelve patriarchs.

The Betrayal of Joseph

And the patriarchs, moved with jealousy against Joseph, sold him into Egypt: and God was with him,

and delivered him out of all his afflictions, and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh king of Egypt; and he made him governor over Egypt and all his house.

Now there came a famine over all Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction: and our fathers found no sustenance.

But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent forth our fathers the first time.

And at the second time Joseph was made known to his brethren; and Joseph’s race became manifest unto Pharaoh.

And Joseph sent, and called to him Jacob his father, and all his kindred, threescore and fifteen souls.

And Jacob went down into Egypt; and he died, himself and our fathers;

and they were carried over unto Shechem, and laid in the tomb that Abraham bought for a price in silver of the sons of Hamor in Shechem.

The Birth and Calling of Moses

But as the time of the promise drew nigh which God vouchsafed unto Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt,

till there arose another king over Egypt, who knew not Joseph.

The same dealt craftily with our race, and ill-treated our fathers, that they should cast out their babes to the end they might not live.

At which season Moses was born, and was exceeding fair; and he was nourished three months in his father’s house:

and when he was cast out, Pharaoh’s daughter took him up, and nourished him for her own son.

And Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians; and he was mighty in his words and works.

But when he was well-nigh forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel.

And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, smiting the Egyptian:

and he supposed that his brethren understood that God by his hand was giving them deliverance; but they understood not.

And the day following he appeared unto them as they strove, and would have set them at one again, saying, Sirs, ye are brethren; why do ye wrong one to another?

But he that did his neighbor wrong thrust him away, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge over us?

Wouldest thou kill me, as thou killedst the Egyptian yesterday?

And Moses fled at this saying, and became a sojourner in the land of Midian, where he begat two sons.

Moses at the Burning Bush

And when forty years were fulfilled, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush.

And when Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to behold, there came a voice of the Lord,

I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob. And Moses trembled, and durst not behold.

And the Lord said unto him, Loose the shoes from thy feet: for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.

I have surely seen the affliction of my people that is in Egypt, and have heard their groaning, and I am come down to deliver them: and now come, I will send thee into Egypt.

This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge? him hath God sent to be both a ruler and a deliverer with the hand of the angel that appeared to him in the bush.

This man led them forth, having wrought wonders and signs in Egypt, and in the Red sea, and in the wilderness forty years.

Israel Rejects God's Prophets

This is that Moses, who said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall God raise up unto you from among your brethren, like unto me.

This is he that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel that spake to him in the mount Sinai, and with our fathers: who received living oracles to give unto us:

to whom our fathers would not be obedient, but thrust him from them, and turned back in their hearts unto Egypt,

saying unto Aaron, Make us gods that shall go before us: for as for this Moses, who led us forth out of the land of Egypt, we know not what is become of him.

And they made a calf in those days, and brought a sacrifice unto the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their hands.

But God turned, and gave them up to serve the host of heaven; as it is written in the book of the prophets, Did ye offer unto me slain beasts and sacrifices Forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?

And ye took up the tabernacle of Moloch, And the star of the god Rephan, The figures which ye made to worship them: And I will carry you away beyond Babylon.

The True Tabernacle vs. the Temple

Our fathers had the tabernacle of the testimony in the wilderness, even as he appointed who spake unto Moses, that he should make it according to the figure that he had seen.

Which also our fathers, in their turn, brought in with Joshua when they entered on the possession of the nations, that God thrust out before the face of our fathers, unto the days of David;

who found favor in the sight of God, and asked to find a habitation for the God of Jacob.

But Solomon built him a house.

Howbeit the Most High dwelleth not in houses made with hands; as saith the prophet,

The heaven is my throne, And the earth the footstool of my feet: What manner of house will ye build me? saith the Lord: Or what is the place of my rest?

Did not my hand make all these things?

Stephen Accuses the Council

Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Spirit: as your fathers did, so do ye.

Which of the prophets did not your fathers persecute? and they killed them that showed before of the coming of the Righteous One; of whom ye have now become betrayers and murderers;

ye who received the law as it was ordained by angels, and kept it not.

The Stoning of Stephen

Now when they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth.

But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,

and said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.

But they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and rushed upon him with one accord;

and they cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.

And they stoned Stephen, calling upon the Lord, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.

And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

Study Notes for Acts 7

Verse 1

The high priest asks Stephen to respond to the charges of blasphemy against the Law and the Temple (Acts 6:13-14). Stephen responds not with a defense of himself, but with a sweeping historical review of Israel’s relationship with God.

Verse 2

By starting with Abraham in Mesopotamia, Stephen establishes that God’s presence and work are not limited to the Promised Land or the Jerusalem Temple. The 'God of glory' initiates the relationship outside of Israel’s traditional holy sites.

Verse 4

Stephen’s chronology follows the Septuagint (the Greek Old Testament), which implies Abraham left Haran only after his father Terah had died, emphasizing Abraham’s complete obedience to the divine command.

Verse 5

God gave Abraham no physical inheritance immediately, highlighting that the promise was based solely on God's sovereign word and faithfulness, not on human possession or effort.

Verse 8

The covenant of circumcision provided the physical sign of the promise. By citing this, Stephen shows his respect for the Law and tradition while demonstrating continuity from Abraham to the present.

Verse 9

Stephen introduces the theme of rejection and betrayal: even the patriarchs, the founders of Israel, rejected God’s chosen servant (Joseph). This sets up the critical parallel with Jesus.

Verse 14

The number 'threescore and fifteen souls' (75) is taken from the Septuagint (Greek translation) of Genesis 46:27, which was the common text used by the early church, rather than the 70 found in the Masoretic Text (Hebrew).

Verse 16

This verse contains a historical summary that conflates different burial traditions (Jacob was buried in Machpelah, Abraham bought Machpelah, but Jacob also bought a plot in Shechem). Stephen uses a summary tradition familiar to his audience.

Verse 22

Moses was highly trained in Egyptian learning and power; yet, God did not use him until he had spent forty years in the wilderness, illustrating that divine calling is not dependent on worldly credentials.

Verse 25

This verse reinforces the central theme of Stephen’s argument: Israel consistently failed to understand or recognize God’s appointed deliverers, whether Moses in the past or Jesus in the present.

Verse 30

Stephen structures Moses’ life into three forty-year periods (in Egypt, in Midian, and in the wilderness), showing the long preparation necessary for God’s work.

Verse 35

Stephen explicitly draws the parallel: Moses, whom Israel refused and rejected, was the very one God sent as 'ruler and a deliverer.' This is the central analogy for Christ, the rejected Messiah.

Verse 37

Quoting Deuteronomy 18:15, Stephen identifies Jesus as the ultimate 'Prophet like Moses.' The rejection of Moses in the wilderness mirrors the Sanhedrin’s rejection of Jesus.

Verse 38

The 'church in the wilderness' (*ekklēsia*) refers to the assembly of Israel gathered at Sinai. They received 'lively oracles' (the Law), yet they immediately disobeyed the giver of the Law.

Verse 42

Quoting Amos 5:25–27 (following the LXX), Stephen argues that God, in judgment, 'gave them up' to their idolatry. Their rebellion was not an isolated incident but a pervasive, long-term pattern of turning away from the true God.

Verse 44

Stephen contrasts the Tabernacle—the mobile 'tent of witness'—with the fixed Temple. The Tabernacle symbolized God’s presence accompanying His people, not confined to a single location.

Verse 45

The name 'Jesus' here is the Greek form of 'Joshua,' who led the people into the Promised Land. The Tabernacle remained God’s dwelling place until the time of David.

Verse 47

Solomon’s building of the Temple is acknowledged, but it serves as a transition to Stephen’s ultimate theological critique against the idea that God can be contained or limited by human structures.

Verse 48

Stephen directly addresses the charge against him (Acts 6:13) by citing Isaiah 66:1-2. God is transcendent and cannot be confined to a 'house made with hands,' challenging the Sanhedrin's rigid focus on the physical Temple.

Verse 51

Stephen abruptly shifts from historical review to direct, scathing accusation. 'Stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears' is terminology reserved for willful disobedience, identifying the council as perpetually rebellious against the Holy Spirit.

Verse 52

Stephen brings his historical narrative to its climax: the current council has followed the pattern of their fathers, persecuting the prophets and ultimately murdering 'the Just One' (a messianic title for Jesus).

Verse 53

The Law was given with great solemnity (by 'disposition of angels'), increasing the guilt of the council, who claimed fidelity to the Law yet failed to keep its core requirement: obedience to God’s Spirit.

Verse 54

The crowd’s violent, uncontrollable reaction indicates that Stephen’s theological critique and personal accusation successfully exposed their hypocrisy, leading to immediate rage.

Verse 55

Stephen’s vision confirms his witness. Jesus is typically described as *seated* at the right hand of God; here, He is *standing*, perhaps symbolizing that He has risen to advocate for Stephen or welcome him into glory.

Verse 56

Calling Jesus 'the Son of man' (a title from Daniel 7:13-14) explicitly claims divine authority and judicial power. This statement, delivered during his trial, confirms the Sanhedrin’s charge of blasphemy.

Verse 58

The witnesses laying their clothes at the feet of 'Saul' is the first mention of the future Apostle Paul. His active participation highlights the official sanction and approval of Stephen’s execution by the Jewish authorities.

Verse 60

Stephen echoes the forgiveness prayer of Jesus on the cross (Luke 23:34), demonstrating profound Christ-like love and grace in his final moments. His death marks the beginning of widespread persecution.

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