READ | ACTS CHAPTER 7
Stephen’s Speech to the Sanhedrin
1 Then the high priest asked Stephen, “Are these charges true?”
2 To this he replied: “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 Harran. 3 ‘Leave your country and your people,’ God said, ‘and go to the land I will show you.’
4 “So he left the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Harran. After the death of his father, God sent him to this land where you are now living. 5 He gave him no inheritance here, not even enough ground to set his foot on. But God promised him that he and his descendants after him would possess the land, even though at that time Abraham had no child. 6 God spoke to him in this way: ‘For four hundred years your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated. 7 But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves,’ God said, ‘and afterward they will come out of that country and worship me in this place.’ 8 Then he gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision. And Abraham became the father of Isaac and circumcised him eight days after his birth. Later Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob became the father of the twelve patriarchs.
9 “Because the patriarchs were jealous of Joseph, they sold him as a slave into Egypt. But God was with him 10 and rescued him from all his troubles. He gave Joseph wisdom and enabled him to gain the goodwill of Pharaoh king of Egypt. So Pharaoh made him ruler over Egypt and all his palace.
11 “Then a famine struck all Egypt and Canaan, bringing great suffering, and our ancestors could not find food. 12 When Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our forefathers on their first visit. 13 On their second visit, Joseph told his brothers who he was, and Pharaoh learned about Joseph’s family. 14 After this, Joseph sent for his father Jacob and his whole family, seventy-five in all. 15 Then Jacob went down to Egypt, where he and our ancestors died. 16 Their bodies were brought back to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought from the sons of Hamor at Shechem for a certain sum of money.
17 “As the time drew near for God to fulfill his promise to Abraham, the number of our people in Egypt had greatly increased. 18 Then ‘a new king, to whom Joseph meant nothing, came to power in Egypt.’[c] 19 He dealt treacherously with our people and oppressed our ancestors by forcing them to throw out their newborn babies so that they would die.
20 “At that time Moses was born, and he was no ordinary child. For three months he was cared for by his family. 21 When he was placed outside, Pharaoh’s daughter took him and brought him up as her own son. 22 Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in speech and action.
23 “When Moses was forty years old, he decided to visit his own people, the Israelites. 24 He saw one of them being mistreated by an Egyptian, so he went to his defense and avenged him by killing the Egyptian. 25 Moses thought that his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them, but they did not. 26 The next day Moses came upon two Israelites who were fighting. He tried to reconcile them by saying, ‘Men, you are brothers; why do you want to hurt each other?’
27 “But the man who was mistreating the other pushed Moses aside and said, ‘Who made you ruler and judge over us? 28 Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’[e] 29 When Moses heard this, he fled to Midian, where he settled as a foreigner and had two sons.
30 “After forty years had passed, an angel appeared to Moses in the flames of a burning bush in the desert near Mount Sinai. 31 When he saw this, he was amazed at the sight. As he went over to get a closer look, he heard the Lord say: 32 ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.’[f] Moses trembled with fear and did not dare to look.
33 “Then the Lord said to him, ‘Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. 34 I have indeed seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their groaning and have come down to set them free. Now come, I will send you back to Egypt.’[g]
35 “This is the same Moses they had rejected with the words, ‘Who made you ruler and judge?’ He was sent to be their ruler and deliverer by God himself, through the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 He led them out of Egypt and performed wonders and signs in Egypt, at the Red Sea and for forty years in the wilderness.
37 “This is the Moses who told the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your own people.’[h] 38 He was in the assembly in the wilderness, with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our ancestors; and he received living words to pass on to us.
39 “But our ancestors refused to obey him. Instead, they rejected him and in their hearts turned back to Egypt. 40 They told Aaron, ‘Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who led us out of Egypt—we don’t know what has happened to him!’[i] 41 That was the time they made an idol in the form of a calf. They brought sacrifices to it and reveled in what their own hands had made. 42 But God turned away from them and gave them over to the worship of the sun, moon and stars. This agrees with what is written in the book of the prophets:
“‘Did you bring me sacrifices and offerings
forty years in the wilderness, people of Israel?
43 You have taken up the tabernacle of Molek
and the star of your god Rephan,
the idols you made to worship.
Therefore I will send you into exile’[j] beyond Babylon.
44 “Our ancestors had the tabernacle of the covenant law with them in the wilderness. It had been made as God directed Moses, according to the pattern he had seen. 45 After receiving the tabernacle, our ancestors under Joshua brought it with them when they took the land from the nations God drove out before them. It remained in the land until the time of David, 46 who enjoyed God’s favor and asked that he might provide a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.[k] 47 But it was Solomon who built a house for him.
48 “However, the Most High does not live in houses made by human hands. As the prophet says:
49 “‘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 resting place be?
50 Has not my hand made all these things?’[l]
51 “You stiff-necked people! Your hearts and ears are still uncircumcised. You are just like your ancestors: You always resist the Holy Spirit! 52 Was there ever a prophet your ancestors did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and murdered him— 53 you who have received the law that was given through angels but have not obeyed it.”
The Stoning of Stephen
54 When the members of the Sanhedrin heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. 55 But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
57 At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, 58 dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul.
59 While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
1 Then the high priest asked Stephen, “Are these charges true?”
2 To this he replied: “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 Harran. 3 ‘Leave your country and your people,’ God said, ‘and go to the land I will show you.’
4 “So he left the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Harran. After the death of his father, God sent him to this land where you are now living. 5 He gave him no inheritance here, not even enough ground to set his foot on. But God promised him that he and his descendants after him would possess the land, even though at that time Abraham had no child. 6 God spoke to him in this way: ‘For four hundred years your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated. 7 But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves,’ God said, ‘and afterward they will come out of that country and worship me in this place.’ 8 Then he gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision. And Abraham became the father of Isaac and circumcised him eight days after his birth. Later Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob became the father of the twelve patriarchs.
9 “Because the patriarchs were jealous of Joseph, they sold him as a slave into Egypt. But God was with him 10 and rescued him from all his troubles. He gave Joseph wisdom and enabled him to gain the goodwill of Pharaoh king of Egypt. So Pharaoh made him ruler over Egypt and all his palace.
11 “Then a famine struck all Egypt and Canaan, bringing great suffering, and our ancestors could not find food. 12 When Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our forefathers on their first visit. 13 On their second visit, Joseph told his brothers who he was, and Pharaoh learned about Joseph’s family. 14 After this, Joseph sent for his father Jacob and his whole family, seventy-five in all. 15 Then Jacob went down to Egypt, where he and our ancestors died. 16 Their bodies were brought back to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought from the sons of Hamor at Shechem for a certain sum of money.
17 “As the time drew near for God to fulfill his promise to Abraham, the number of our people in Egypt had greatly increased. 18 Then ‘a new king, to whom Joseph meant nothing, came to power in Egypt.’[c] 19 He dealt treacherously with our people and oppressed our ancestors by forcing them to throw out their newborn babies so that they would die.
20 “At that time Moses was born, and he was no ordinary child. For three months he was cared for by his family. 21 When he was placed outside, Pharaoh’s daughter took him and brought him up as her own son. 22 Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in speech and action.
23 “When Moses was forty years old, he decided to visit his own people, the Israelites. 24 He saw one of them being mistreated by an Egyptian, so he went to his defense and avenged him by killing the Egyptian. 25 Moses thought that his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them, but they did not. 26 The next day Moses came upon two Israelites who were fighting. He tried to reconcile them by saying, ‘Men, you are brothers; why do you want to hurt each other?’
27 “But the man who was mistreating the other pushed Moses aside and said, ‘Who made you ruler and judge over us? 28 Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’[e] 29 When Moses heard this, he fled to Midian, where he settled as a foreigner and had two sons.
30 “After forty years had passed, an angel appeared to Moses in the flames of a burning bush in the desert near Mount Sinai. 31 When he saw this, he was amazed at the sight. As he went over to get a closer look, he heard the Lord say: 32 ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.’[f] Moses trembled with fear and did not dare to look.
33 “Then the Lord said to him, ‘Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. 34 I have indeed seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their groaning and have come down to set them free. Now come, I will send you back to Egypt.’[g]
35 “This is the same Moses they had rejected with the words, ‘Who made you ruler and judge?’ He was sent to be their ruler and deliverer by God himself, through the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 He led them out of Egypt and performed wonders and signs in Egypt, at the Red Sea and for forty years in the wilderness.
37 “This is the Moses who told the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your own people.’[h] 38 He was in the assembly in the wilderness, with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our ancestors; and he received living words to pass on to us.
39 “But our ancestors refused to obey him. Instead, they rejected him and in their hearts turned back to Egypt. 40 They told Aaron, ‘Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who led us out of Egypt—we don’t know what has happened to him!’[i] 41 That was the time they made an idol in the form of a calf. They brought sacrifices to it and reveled in what their own hands had made. 42 But God turned away from them and gave them over to the worship of the sun, moon and stars. This agrees with what is written in the book of the prophets:
“‘Did you bring me sacrifices and offerings
forty years in the wilderness, people of Israel?
43 You have taken up the tabernacle of Molek
and the star of your god Rephan,
the idols you made to worship.
Therefore I will send you into exile’[j] beyond Babylon.
44 “Our ancestors had the tabernacle of the covenant law with them in the wilderness. It had been made as God directed Moses, according to the pattern he had seen. 45 After receiving the tabernacle, our ancestors under Joshua brought it with them when they took the land from the nations God drove out before them. It remained in the land until the time of David, 46 who enjoyed God’s favor and asked that he might provide a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.[k] 47 But it was Solomon who built a house for him.
48 “However, the Most High does not live in houses made by human hands. As the prophet says:
49 “‘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 resting place be?
50 Has not my hand made all these things?’[l]
51 “You stiff-necked people! Your hearts and ears are still uncircumcised. You are just like your ancestors: You always resist the Holy Spirit! 52 Was there ever a prophet your ancestors did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and murdered him— 53 you who have received the law that was given through angels but have not obeyed it.”
The Stoning of Stephen
54 When the members of the Sanhedrin heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. 55 But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
57 At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, 58 dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul.
59 While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
DEVOTIONAL
Stephen was the first martyr; the first to die within the early church in the name of Jesus. But he would not be the last. Reliable church history tells us how many more of those most bold and fervent in their faith would each die horrible deaths in the name of Jesus.
Matthew was beheaded with a sword.
Mark died in Alexandria after being dragged through
the rocky streets of the city.
Luke was hanged on an olive tree in Greece.
John died a natural death, but they unsuccessfully tried to boil him in oil.
Peter was crucified upside-down in Rome.
James the brother of Jesus was thrown from a height then stoned and beaten with clubs until he died.
James the brother of John was beheaded with a sword in Jerusalem.
Philip was hanged.
Bartholomew was whipped and beaten until he died.
Andrew was crucified and preached at the top of his voice to his persecutors until he died.
Thomas was run through with a spear.
Jude was killed by being shot with arrows
Matthias was stoned and then beheaded – as was Barnabas.
Paul was beheaded in Rome.
It is interesting to read in scripture as well as in church history that sometimes God delivers people from death by a miracle, and sometimes He does not. Eventually, we will all die, but, like those listed above, death is not something to be feared or run away from. Instead, death can be seen as a part of life, and the final step before they were reunited with their savior for all of eternity. Death can also be a final vivid picture of a life lived with faith and trust in God. Perhaps Stephen sensed that his end was drawing near, and instead of cowering in fear, he chose to boldly proclaim the good news of Jesus one last time. Stephen’s defense before the Sanhedrin was not a defense at all, but a simplified retelling of the story of God’s covenant; Something the Sanhedrin would have been well-versed in yet blinded to at the same time. Stephen declared how God doesn’t need a temple built by human hands. He is everywhere and deserves to be worshipped everywhere. He also rebuked the Jewish leaders for their guilt in continuing to reject the messengers of God. Twenty times in the Old Testament, God calls Israel stiff-necked. These religious leaders listening to Stephen’s final speech were acting just as their forefathers acted and were guilty of what they had often been guilty of: rejecting God’s messengers. Israel prided itself on obedience to God and the sign of circumcision because it separated them from the Gentiles. Stephen essentially challenged this idea, telling them that they were, “Just like the Gentiles in your disobedience and rejection of the Lord.” Members of the Sanhedrin were cut to the heart by Stephen’s words. He had proclaimed a truth that was difficult to hear, and they wouldn’t stand for it. Instead of listening to what Stephan had to say and repenting of their exposed sin, the religious leaders doubled down and reacted with rage instead of submission to the Holy Spirit. It is remarkable to think of this extreme response from men who were dignified, respected, religious leaders in Israel. The idea that they gnashed their teeth at Stephen can’t help but remind us of the imagery of Hell. Seven different times, Jesus described Hell as a place of weeping and gnashing of teeth. These men were prominent, successful, and appeared to be religious; yet they were rejecting God and associating themselves with hell, not heaven.
At the end of Chapter 7, we read that Stephen was filled with the Holy Spirit in those last moments, even more so than he already had been. He also looked up and saw a vision of the glory of God; the heavens opening up before him and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. In the midst of what should have been extreme fear and pain, Stephen was filled with joy, peace, and hope. The difference was where Stephen chose to fix his eyes. He could have watched those gathering around him, picking up stones with angry looks on their faces. He may have even seen Saul among the crowd. But instead, Stephen chose to look up. He chose to fix his eyes heavenward and to be eternally minded, even in the midst of what he was experiencing. The same can be true of us today. No matter what we are facing in life, whether it be tragedy, pain, or loss, where we choose to fix our eyes matters. What a testament to the power of God that we would look to him in the darkest moments of life. Those who watch our lives will see what or who we turn to in the midst of pain. Stephen’s final moments of life inspired others to look up as well, both figuratively and literally. Our lives can do something similar. What we choose to do in the painful moments of life can be one of the greatest evangelical tools we have to point others to Jesus.
Matthew was beheaded with a sword.
Mark died in Alexandria after being dragged through
the rocky streets of the city.
Luke was hanged on an olive tree in Greece.
John died a natural death, but they unsuccessfully tried to boil him in oil.
Peter was crucified upside-down in Rome.
James the brother of Jesus was thrown from a height then stoned and beaten with clubs until he died.
James the brother of John was beheaded with a sword in Jerusalem.
Philip was hanged.
Bartholomew was whipped and beaten until he died.
Andrew was crucified and preached at the top of his voice to his persecutors until he died.
Thomas was run through with a spear.
Jude was killed by being shot with arrows
Matthias was stoned and then beheaded – as was Barnabas.
Paul was beheaded in Rome.
It is interesting to read in scripture as well as in church history that sometimes God delivers people from death by a miracle, and sometimes He does not. Eventually, we will all die, but, like those listed above, death is not something to be feared or run away from. Instead, death can be seen as a part of life, and the final step before they were reunited with their savior for all of eternity. Death can also be a final vivid picture of a life lived with faith and trust in God. Perhaps Stephen sensed that his end was drawing near, and instead of cowering in fear, he chose to boldly proclaim the good news of Jesus one last time. Stephen’s defense before the Sanhedrin was not a defense at all, but a simplified retelling of the story of God’s covenant; Something the Sanhedrin would have been well-versed in yet blinded to at the same time. Stephen declared how God doesn’t need a temple built by human hands. He is everywhere and deserves to be worshipped everywhere. He also rebuked the Jewish leaders for their guilt in continuing to reject the messengers of God. Twenty times in the Old Testament, God calls Israel stiff-necked. These religious leaders listening to Stephen’s final speech were acting just as their forefathers acted and were guilty of what they had often been guilty of: rejecting God’s messengers. Israel prided itself on obedience to God and the sign of circumcision because it separated them from the Gentiles. Stephen essentially challenged this idea, telling them that they were, “Just like the Gentiles in your disobedience and rejection of the Lord.” Members of the Sanhedrin were cut to the heart by Stephen’s words. He had proclaimed a truth that was difficult to hear, and they wouldn’t stand for it. Instead of listening to what Stephan had to say and repenting of their exposed sin, the religious leaders doubled down and reacted with rage instead of submission to the Holy Spirit. It is remarkable to think of this extreme response from men who were dignified, respected, religious leaders in Israel. The idea that they gnashed their teeth at Stephen can’t help but remind us of the imagery of Hell. Seven different times, Jesus described Hell as a place of weeping and gnashing of teeth. These men were prominent, successful, and appeared to be religious; yet they were rejecting God and associating themselves with hell, not heaven.
At the end of Chapter 7, we read that Stephen was filled with the Holy Spirit in those last moments, even more so than he already had been. He also looked up and saw a vision of the glory of God; the heavens opening up before him and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. In the midst of what should have been extreme fear and pain, Stephen was filled with joy, peace, and hope. The difference was where Stephen chose to fix his eyes. He could have watched those gathering around him, picking up stones with angry looks on their faces. He may have even seen Saul among the crowd. But instead, Stephen chose to look up. He chose to fix his eyes heavenward and to be eternally minded, even in the midst of what he was experiencing. The same can be true of us today. No matter what we are facing in life, whether it be tragedy, pain, or loss, where we choose to fix our eyes matters. What a testament to the power of God that we would look to him in the darkest moments of life. Those who watch our lives will see what or who we turn to in the midst of pain. Stephen’s final moments of life inspired others to look up as well, both figuratively and literally. Our lives can do something similar. What we choose to do in the painful moments of life can be one of the greatest evangelical tools we have to point others to Jesus.
