{"book":"Acts","slug":"acts","ch":7,"genre":"prose","sub":"The Acts of the Apostles","prev":"acts/6","next":"acts/8","verses":[{"v":1,"t":"Then the high priest asked [Stephen],“ Are these [charges] true?”","f":[],"h":"Stephen’s Address: The Call of Abraham","style":"reg"},{"v":2,"t":"And [Stephen] declared:“ Brothers and fathers, listen [to me]! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was [still] in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran,","f":[],"style":"reg"},{"v":3,"t":"and told him,‘ Leave your country and your kindred and go to the land I will show you.’","f":["Genesis 12:1"]},{"v":4,"t":"[So] [Abraham] left [the] land of the Chaldeans [and] settled in Haran. After his father died, [God] brought him out of that place [and] into this land where you {are} now living.","f":[]},{"v":5,"t":"He gave him no inheritance [here], not even a foot of ground. [But] [God] promised to give possession of [the land] to [Abraham] and his descendants, [even though] he did not yet have a child.","f":[],"style":"reg"},{"v":6,"t":"God told [him] that his descendants would be foreigners in a strange land, and [that] they would be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years.","f":[]},{"v":7,"t":"‘ [But] I will punish the nation [that] enslaves them,’ God said,‘ and afterward they will come forth and worship Me in this place.’","f":["Genesis 15:13–14; Exodus 3:12"]},{"v":8,"t":"Then [God] gave [Abraham] [the] covenant of circumcision, and [Abraham] became the father of Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth day. And Isaac [became the father of] Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs.","f":[],"style":"reg"},{"v":9,"t":"[Because] the patriarchs were jealous of Joseph, they sold him as a slave into Egypt. But God was with him","f":[],"h":"Joseph Sold into Egypt","style":"reg"},{"v":10,"t":"and rescued him from all his troubles. [He] granted [Joseph] favor and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh king of Egypt, [who] appointed him ruler over Egypt and all his household.","f":[]},{"v":11,"t":"Then famine and great suffering swept across Egypt and Canaan, and our fathers could not find food.","f":[],"style":"reg"},{"v":12,"t":"[When] Jacob heard that [there] was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers [on their] first [visit].","f":[]},{"v":13,"t":"On [their] second [visit], Joseph revealed his identity to his brothers, and [his] family became known to Pharaoh.","f":["Or Joseph was made known to or Joseph was recognized by"]},{"v":14,"t":"Then Joseph sent for his father Jacob and all [his] relatives, seventy-five in all.","f":[]},{"v":15,"t":"[So] Jacob went down to Egypt, [where] he and our fathers died.","f":[],"h":"Israel Oppressed in Egypt","style":"reg"},{"v":16,"t":"[Their bones] were carried back to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought from the sons of Hamor at Shechem for a price he paid in silver.","f":["Literally And they were carried back"]},{"v":17,"t":"As the time drew near for God [to fulfill] His promise to Abraham, [our] people in Egypt increased greatly in number.","f":[],"style":"reg"},{"v":18,"t":"Then another king, who knew nothing of Joseph, arose over Egypt.","f":[]},{"v":19,"t":"He exploited our people [and] oppressed our fathers, forcing [them] to abandon their infants so they would die.","f":[]},{"v":20,"t":"At that time Moses was born, and he was beautiful in the sight of God. [For] three months [he] was nurtured in [his] father’s house.","f":["Or he was of great status in God’s eyes or he was no ordinary child"],"h":"The Birth and Adoption of Moses","style":"reg"},{"v":21,"t":"[When] he was set outside, Pharaoh’s daughter took him and brought him up as her own son.","f":[]},{"v":22,"t":"So Moses was educated in all [the] wisdom of [the] Egyptians and was powerful in speech and action.","f":[]},{"v":23,"t":"When [Moses] [was] forty years [old], he decided to visit his brothers, the children of Israel.","f":[],"h":"The Rejection and Flight of Moses","style":"reg"},{"v":24,"t":"And when he saw one [of them] being mistreated, [Moses] went to his defense and avenged [him] by striking down the Egyptian who was oppressing [him].","f":[]},{"v":25,"t":"He assumed his brothers would understand that God was using him to deliver them, but [they did not].","f":[]},{"v":26,"t":"The next day he came upon [two Israelites who] were fighting, and he tried to reconcile them, saying,‘ Men, you are brothers. Why are you mistreating each other?’","f":[],"style":"reg"},{"v":27,"t":"But the [man who] was abusing [his] neighbor pushed [Moses] aside [and] said,‘ Who made you ruler and judge over us?","f":[],"style":"reg"},{"v":28,"t":"{Do} you want to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’","f":["Exodus 2:13–14 (see also LXX)"]},{"v":29,"t":"At this remark, Moses fled to [the] land of Midian, where he lived as a foreigner [and] had two sons.","f":[]},{"v":30,"t":"[After] forty years had passed, an angel appeared to [Moses] in [the] flames of a burning bush in the desert near Mount Sinai.","f":[],"h":"The Call of Moses","style":"reg"},{"v":31,"t":"[When] Moses saw [it], he marveled at the sight. [As] he approached to look [more closely], [the] voice of [the] Lord came [to him]:","f":[]},{"v":32,"t":"‘ I [am] the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.’ Moses trembled with fear [and] did not dare to look.","f":["Exodus 3:6"]},{"v":33,"t":"Then the Lord said to him,‘ Take off [your] sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.","f":[],"style":"reg"},{"v":34,"t":"I have indeed seen the oppression of My people in Egypt. I have heard their groaning and have come down to deliver them. Now come, I will send you back to Egypt.’","f":["Exodus 3:5–10"]},{"v":35,"t":"This Moses, whom they had rejected with the words,‘ Who made you ruler and judge?’ [is] the one whom God sent to be [their] ruler and redeemer through [the] angel who appeared to him in the bush.","f":["Exodus 2:14","Or Angel; also in verse 38"],"style":"reg"},{"v":36,"t":"[He] led them out [and] performed wonders and signs in [the] land of Egypt, at [the] Red Sea, and [for] forty years in the wilderness.","f":[]},{"v":37,"t":"This is the [same] Moses who told the Israelites,‘ God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers.’","f":["Deuteronomy 18:15"],"style":"reg"},{"v":38,"t":"[He] was in the assembly in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and [with] our fathers. [And] he received living words to pass on to us.","f":["NE and WH to you"]},{"v":39,"t":"[But] our fathers refused to obey [him]. Instead, they rejected [him] and in their hearts turned back to Egypt.","f":[],"h":"The Rebellion of Israel","style":"reg"},{"v":40,"t":"They said to Aaron,‘ Make us gods who will go before us! As for this Moses who led us out of [the] land of Egypt, we do not know what has happened to him.’","f":["Exodus 32:1"]},{"v":41,"t":"At that time they made a calf and offered a sacrifice to the idol, rejoicing in the works of their hands.","f":[],"style":"reg"},{"v":42,"t":"But God turned away [from them] and gave them over to the worship of the host of heaven, as it is written in [the] book of the prophets:‘ Did you bring Me sacrifices and offerings forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?","f":[],"lines":[{"style":"","t":"But God turned away [from them] and gave them over to the worship of the host of heaven, as it is written in [the] book of the prophets:"},{"style":"indent1stline","t":"‘ Did you bring Me sacrifices and offerings"},{"style":"indent2","t":"forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?"}],"style":"indent1stline"},{"v":43,"t":"You have taken along the tabernacle of Molech and the star of your god Rephan, the idols you made to worship. [Therefore] I will send you into exile beyond Babylon.’","f":["Amos 5:25–27 (see also LXX)"],"lines":[{"style":"indent1","t":"You have taken along the tabernacle of Molech"},{"style":"indent2","t":"and the star of your god Rephan,"},{"style":"indent2","t":"the idols you made to worship."},{"style":"indent1","t":"[Therefore] I will send you into exile"},{"style":"indent2","t":"beyond Babylon.’"}],"style":"indent1"},{"v":44,"t":"Our fathers [had] the tabernacle of the Testimony with [them] in the wilderness. [It was] constructed exactly as [God] had directed Moses, according to the pattern he had seen.","f":[],"h":"The Tabernacle of the Testimony","style":"reg"},{"v":45,"t":"And our fathers who received it brought [it in] with Joshua [when] they dispossessed the nations God drove out before [them]. [It remained] until the time of David,","f":[]},{"v":46,"t":"who found favor in the sight of God and asked to provide a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.","f":["SBL, WH, BYZ, and TR; see also LXX for Psalm 132:5; ECM and NE a dwelling place for the house of Jacob."]},{"v":47,"t":"But [it was] Solomon [who] built [the] house for Him.","f":[]},{"v":48,"t":"However, the Most High {does} not dwell in [houses] made by human hands. As the prophet says:","f":[],"style":"reg"},{"v":49,"t":"‘ Heaven [is] My throne and the earth [is] My footstool. What kind of house will you build for Me, says [the] Lord, or where [will] My place of repose [be]?","f":[],"lines":[{"style":"indent1stline","t":"‘ Heaven [is] My throne"},{"style":"indent2","t":"and the earth [is] My footstool."},{"style":"indent1","t":"What kind of house will you build for Me, says [the] Lord,"},{"style":"indent2","t":"or where [will] My place of repose [be]?"}],"style":"indent1stline"},{"v":50,"t":"{Has} not My hand made all these things?’","f":["Isaiah 66:1–2"],"style":"indent1"},{"v":51,"t":"[You] stiff-necked [people] [with] uncircumcised hearts and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit, just as your fathers [did].","f":[],"style":"reg"},{"v":52,"t":"Which of the prophets {did} your fathers fail to persecute? They even killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One. And now you are [His] betrayers and murderers —","f":[]},{"v":53,"t":"[you] who received the law ordained by angels, yet have not kept [it].”","f":[]},{"v":54,"t":"On hearing this, [the members of the Sanhedrin] were enraged, and they gnashed [their] teeth at him.","f":["Literally On hearing these things, they were cut in their hearts,"],"h":"The Stoning of Stephen","style":"reg"},{"v":55,"t":"But [Stephen], full of [the] Holy Spirit, looked intently into heaven [and] saw [the] glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.","f":[]},{"v":56,"t":"“ Look,” he said,“ I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right [hand] of God.”","f":[]},{"v":57,"t":"At this they covered their ears, cried out in a loud voice, and rushed together at him.","f":[],"style":"reg"},{"v":58,"t":"They dragged [him] out of the city [and] began to stone [him]. Meanwhile the witnesses laid their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.","f":[]},{"v":59,"t":"[While] they were stoning [him], Stephen appealed,“ Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”","f":[],"style":"reg"},{"v":60,"t":"Falling on [his] knees, he cried out in a loud voice,“ Lord, {do} not hold this sin against them.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.","f":[]}]}