Actschapter 7
60 verses · Luke · about AD 62 · Acts
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,
Introduction
Luke, Acts, Acts Overview.
Luke wrote this chapter for Theophilus, and most of it is one speech. Stephen stands accused of speaking against the temple and the Law, and he answers with the history of his own people. The speech moves from Abraham to Solomon and covers ground every member of the council knew by heart. Listen for where each part of the story takes place and how few of those places are the land itself. Notice the word he uses for the people's fathers. The chapter closes with a young man named Saul, who is standing by.
Context
- Who
- Theophilus and Gentile readers, watching the movement's break with the temple establishment become fatal.
- What
- Stephen's speech before the council on the history of Israel, and his death by stoning.
- Where
- Jerusalem, in the council chamber and then outside the city wall.
- When
- The early years of the Jerusalem church, about AD 32 to 35.
- Why
- To answer the charge against the temple and the Law and to show that Israel had always resisted the messengers God sent.
Historical context
Stephen's long speech is a retelling of Israel's own history, and every episode he picks happens outside the promised land: Abraham called in Mesopotamia, Joseph in Egypt, Moses in Midian, the tabernacle in the wilderness. He is dismantling the assumption that God is tied to one building on one hill.
Show the rest of the historical context, 2 more paragraphs
Stoning was the biblical penalty for blasphemy, and the Law required the witnesses to throw the first stones. That is why they strip off their outer cloaks, the heavy garment worn over the tunic, and pile them at the feet of a young man named Saul, who is minding them.
Whether the council had legal authority to execute anyone is doubtful; Roman governors normally reserved capital punishment. Scholars still debate whether this was a formal sentence or a lynching that the authorities allowed. Luke describes a rush and a shout, which reads more like the second.
Significance
To early readers this was the hinge. Stephen dies praying almost exactly what Jesus prayed, receive my spirit, do not hold this sin against them, and the parallel says that following this Lord may mean sharing his death.
Show the rest of the significance, 1 more paragraph
His speech also gave the church its answer to the deepest charge against it. The God of Abraham had never lived in a house made by hands; a movement that met in homes and travelled the roads was not abandoning Israel's God but following him.
The heads below are this chapter's scenes. The numbered points under each are its verses.
Stephen's Defense Begins: Abraham, Joseph, and the Promise
Acts 7:1-2
Accused of blasphemy against Moses and the temple, Stephen answers from Israel's history, beginning with the God of glory appearing to Abraham in Mesopotamia. A man accused of despising Moses and the fathers speaks of nothing else.
Acts 7:1
“Then said the high priest - See the notes on Mat 2:4. In this case the high priest seems to have presided in the council. Are these things so? - To wit, the charge alleged against him of blasphemy against Moses and the temple, Act 6:13-14.”
The God of glory appeared: Stephen calls God the God of glory, and Oecumenius reads the title as placing all glory in God, apart from the temple and the nation. Henry adds that Stephen answers the charge of blasphemy by claiming Abraham as his own father. Genesis 15:7 implies this first call in Mesopotamia.
Acts 7:2
“Secondly, But let us see what this is to Stephen's case. They had charged him as a blasphemer of God, and an apostate from the church; therefore he shows that he is a son of Abraham, and values himself upon his being able to say, Our father Abraham, and that he is a faithful worshipper of the God of Abraham, whom therefore he here calls the God of glory.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 7:2
“It is the glory of absolutely free grace. appeared unto our father Abraham before he dwelt in Charran, and said, &c.--Though this first call is not expressly recorded in Genesis, it is clearly implied in Ge 15:7 and Ne 9:7; and the Jewish writers speak the same language.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Acts 7:2
“Men, brethren, and fathers - Rather, brethren and fathers, for ανδρες should not be translated separately from αδελφοι. Literally it is men-brethren, a very usual form in Greek; for every person knows that ανδρες Αθηναιοι and ανδρες Περσαι should not be translated men-Athenians and men-Persians, but simply Athenians and Persians. See Act 17:22. So, in Luk 2:15, ανθρωποι ποιμενες should be translated shepherds, not men-shepherds. And ανθρωπος βασιλευς Mat 18:23, should not be translated man-king, but king, simply.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Acts 7:3-4
and told him: Stephen places God's call before the move to Haran, and says Abraham left Haran after his father died. The speech's concern is a promise held by a landless sojourner.
Cross references
Acts 7:3
- QuotingGenesis 12:1“Then the LORD said to Abram, “Leave your country, your kindred, and your father’s household, and go to the land I will show you.”
'Get thee out of thy country', Stephen's speech (call of Abraham)
After his father died: Barnes sets out a known difficulty from Genesis 11:26 and 12:4. Terah was only 145 when Abraham left Haran, though Stephen says his father had already died. Jamieson, Fausset & Brown answer that Stephen dates the settlement in Canaan from a dealing between God and Abraham alone.
Acts 7:4
“Land of the Chaldeans - From Ur of the Chaldees, Gen 11:31. When his father was dead - This passage has given rise to no small difficulty in the interpretation. The difficulty is this: From Gen 11:26, it would seem that Abraham was born when Terah was 70 years of age. “And Terah lived seventy years, and begat Abram, Nahor, and Haran.” From Gen 12:4, it seems that Abraham was 75 years of age when he departed from Haran to Canaan. The age of Terah was therefore but 145 years.”
He gave him no inheritance here: God gave Abraham no foot of ground yet promised the land to him and his descendants while he had no child. The promise outran every visible evidence, and Hebrews 11 reads the whole life of Abraham this way.
Acts 7:5
“Thus, then, the promise of God, which He gave to Abraham, remains stedfast. For thus He said: "Lift up thine eyes, and look from this place where now thou art, towards the north and south, and east and west.”
Irenaeus · written before 202 · Against Heresies 5.32.2patristic
Acts 7:6-7
God told him that his descendants: Stephen quotes Genesis 15:13 to 14, where Abraham's descendants are enslaved four hundred years. The round four hundred sits beside the four hundred thirty of Exodus 12:40, a rounding of the longer span.
Acts 7:6
“That his seed should sojourn in a strange land - See Gen 15:13, Gen 15:14. Four hundred years - Moses says, Exo 12:40, that the sojourning of the children of Israel in Egypt - was 430 years. See the note there. St. Paul has the same number, Gal 3:17; and so has Josephus, Ant. lib. ii. cap. 1, sect. 9; in Bell. lib. v. cap. 9, sect.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Cross references
Acts 7:6
- QuotingGenesis 15:13“Then the LORD said to Abram, “Know for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated four hundred years.”
'thy seed shall sojourn in a strange land' (400 years, Stephen)
I will punish the nation: The Greek verb means to judge, and Clarke and Barnes read it as to punish. They see it fulfilled in the plagues and the overthrow at the Red Sea. Jamieson, Fausset & Brown note that Stephen joins God's promise to Abraham with His word to Moses at Exodus 3:12.
Acts 7:7
“And the nation ... - Referring particularly to the Egyptians. Will I judge - The word “judge,” in the Bible, often means to “execute judgment” as well as to pronounce it; that is, “to punish.” See Joh 18:31; Joh 3:17; Joh 8:50; Joh 12:47; Act 24:6; 1Co 5:13, etc. It has this meaning here. God regarded their oppressive acts as deserving His indignation, and He evinced it in the plagues with which He visited upon them, and in their overthrow at the Red Sea. Shall serve me - Shall worship me, or be regarded as my people.”
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 7:7
"But I," said God, "will judge that nation which they shall serve..." Those who afflicted them did not do so with impunity, because the Jews endured bitter and harsh slavery, since the Egyptians regarded them not as slaves, but as enemies and adversaries.
Theophylact of Ohrid · written before 1107 · Commentary on Actspatristic
the covenant of circumcision: God gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision, and the line runs through Isaac and Jacob to the twelve patriarchs in one verse. The covenant sign is the visible mark of the promise verse 5 calls still unseen.
Acts 7:9-10
they sold him as a slave: Joseph is the speech's first figure of its pattern, a man his own brothers rejected whom God raised up to save them. The patriarchs sold him into Egypt out of jealousy, yet God made him ruler over Egypt.
Acts 7:9
“Secondly, Joseph, the darling and blessing of his father's house, was abused by his brethren; they envied him because of his dreams, and sold him into Egypt. Thus early did the children of Israel begin to grudge those among them that were eminent and outshone others, of which their enmity to Christ, who, like Joseph, was a Nazarite among his brethren, was a great instance.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
granted Joseph favor and wisdom: Joseph's favor with Pharaoh grew out of his wisdom. Barnes ties that wisdom to the interpreting of Pharaoh's dreams in Genesis 41. Chrysostom draws out Stephen's point that the brothers sold Joseph while a foreign king made him ruler, as Christ now reigns where He was sold.
Acts 7:10
“Gave him favor and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh - God gave him much wisdom, in consequence of which he had favor with the king of Egypt. See the whole of this remarkable history explained at large, Genesis 41:1-45:28 (note).”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 7:10
"And God was with him"-this also is for them-"and delivered him out of all his afflictions." He shows that unknowingly they helped to fulfil the prophecy, and that they were themselves the cause, and that the evils recoiled on their own selves. "And gave him favor and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh king of Egypt, Gave him favor," in the eyes of a barbarian, to him, the slave, the captive: his brethren sold him, this (barbarian) honored him.
John Chrysostom · written before 407 · Homily on Acts 16patristic
Acts 7:10
“And delivered him ... - That is, restored him to liberty from his servitude and humiliation, and raised him up to high honors and offices in Egypt. Favour and wisdom - The favor was the result of his wisdom. His wisdom was particularly evinced in interpreting the dreams of Pharaoh, Gen. 41. And he made him governor ... - Gen 41:40. All his house - All the family, or all the court and government of the nation.”
Acts 7:11-14
Then famine and great suffering: Stephen counts Jacob's relatives as seventy-five in all, where the Hebrew of Genesis 46:27 counts seventy. The Greek Septuagint, which Stephen and his hearers knew, counts seventy-five, so the number shows which text Stephen is using.
Acts 7:11
"Now there came a dearth over all the land of Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction: and our fathers found no sustenance. But when Jacob heard that there was corn in Egypt, he sent out our fathers first. And at the second time Joseph was made known to his brethren." They came down to buy, and had to depend upon him for everything. What then did he? "He made himself known to his brethren:" not to this point only did he carry his friendliness; he also made them known to Pharaoh, and brought them down into the land.
John Chrysostom · written before 407 · Homily on Acts 16patristic
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 7:11
“Now there came a dearth - A famine, Gen 41:54. And Chanaan - Jacob was living at that time in Canaan. Found no sustenance - No food; no means of living.”
Acts 7:11
“Now there came a dearth over all the land of Egypt, and Canaan,.... This dearth, or famine, is said to be in all lands, Gen 41:54 though only Egypt and Canaan are mentioned here, because the history is concerned with no other. The Jewish writers (p) speak of three lands particularly, which were affected with it, Phenicia, Arabia, and Palestine; and this famine in the land of Israel, they say (q), which lasted seven years, was on account of the selling of Joseph into Egypt, as before observed.”
he sent our fathers: These fathers were Jacob's ten sons, all but Joseph and Benjamin. Albert Barnes observes that Stephen only touches the story of Genesis 42 without its details. By retelling it plainly, Stephen shows that he believes what Moses wrote and means him no disrespect.
Acts 7:12
“Was corn in Egypt - The word “corn” here rather denotes “wheat.” See the notes on Mat 12:1. Our fathers - His ten sons; all his sons except Joseph and Benjamin, Gen. 42: Stephen here “refers” only to the history, without entering into details. By this general reference he sufficiently showed that he believed what Moses had spoken, and did not intend to show him disrespect.”
Joseph revealed his identity: On the first visit his brothers did not recognize Joseph. Gill notes that Pharaoh already knew Joseph was a Hebrew and learned only now who his father and brothers were. Spurgeon sees the same with Jesus, who is often unknown to sinners at first and makes Himself known later.
Acts 7:13
“And at the second time Joseph was made known to his brethren,.... That is, when the brethren of Joseph went a second time down to Egypt for corn, Joseph made himself known unto them, Gen 45:1. And Joseph's kindred was made known unto Pharaoh; for though it was known before that he was an Hebrew, see Gen 39:17 yet it was not known of what family he was, who was his father, or his brethren, but now it was known, Gen 45:16.”
seventy-five in all: Genesis 46, Exodus 1:5 and Deuteronomy 10:22 count seventy people who went down to Egypt. Stephen follows the Septuagint, the Greek translation, which counts seventy-five by adding five children and grandchildren of Joseph's two sons. Bede and Adam Clarke both note the difference.
Acts 7:14
“Threescore and fifteen souls - There are several difficulties here, which it is hoped the reader will find satisfactorily removed in the note on Gen 46:20 (note). It is well known that in Gen 46:27, and in Deu 10:22, their number is said to be threescore and ten; but Stephen quotes from the Septuagint, which adds five persons to the account which are not in the Hebrew text, Machir, Gilead, Sutelaam, Taham, and Edem; but see the note referred to above.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Acts 7:15-16
So Jacob went down to Egypt: Stephen's single verse compresses two burials and two purchases into one. Genesis buries Jacob at Machpelah in a field Abraham bought from Ephron, and Joshua 24:32 buries Joseph at Shechem in ground Jacob bought from Hamor.
Their bones were carried back: Clarke sets out the difficulty: Genesis 50:13 buries Jacob at Machpelah, and Joshua 24:32 names Jacob buyer of the Shechem ground from Hamor's sons. John Wesley answers that Stephen runs quickly through events his hearers knew well. He had no need to recite each one.
Acts 7:16
“And were carried over to Sychem - “It is said, Gen 50:13, that Jacob was buried in the cave of the field of Machpelah before Mamre. And in Jos 24:32, and Exo 13:19, it is said that the bones of Joseph were carried out of Egypt by the Israelites, and buried in Shechem, which Jacob bought from the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem. As for the eleven brethren of Joseph, we are told by Josephus, Ant. lib. ii. cap. 8. sect. 2, that they were buried in Hebron, where their father had been buried.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 7:16
“And were carried over to Shechem - It seems that St. Stephen, rapidly running over so many circumstances of history, has not leisure (nor was it needful where they were so well known) to recite them all distinctly.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Moses, the Exodus, and a People Who Would Not Obey
Acts 7:17-19
As the time drew near: As God's promise drew near, Israel increased in Egypt, until a king who knew nothing of Joseph turned favor to fear. The growth that was blessing under Joseph's honor is now read as a threat.
Acts 7:17
“The expression "as the time of the promise drew near" indicates not that they multiplied over the course of four hundred years, but that the end had to draw near, since four hundred and more years had already passed in Egypt.”
Theophylact of Ohrid · written before 1107 · Commentary on Actspatristic
another king, who knew nothing: Clarke and Henry read "knew nothing of Joseph" as a refusal to honor him, and Henry calls it ingratitude for Joseph's service to Egypt. Albert Barnes notes that this king's name is not certainly known. Pharaoh was a title, as Caesar later was.
Acts 7:18
“Their base ingratitude: They were oppressed by another king that knew not Joseph, that is, did not consider the good service that Joseph had done to that nation; for, if he had, he would not have made so ill a requital to his relations and family. Those that injure good people are very ungrateful, for they are the blessings of the age and place they live in.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 7:18
“Which knew not Joseph - That is, did not approve of him, of his mode of governing the kingdom, nor of his people, nor of his God. See the note on Exo 1:8.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
forcing them to abandon their infants: The word rendered exploited means to deal craftily, and Clarke traces it to the Greek of Exodus 1:10, where Pharaoh plots against Israel. Chrysostom reads it as a hint that Pharaoh wished to destroy Israel without doing so openly, by having the infants cast out.
Acts 7:19
“Dealt subtilly - He acted deceitfully; he used fraud. The cunning or deceitful attempt which is referred to, is his endeavour to weaken and destroy the Jewish people by causing their male children to be put to death, Exo 1:22. Our kindred - Our nation, or our ancestors. And evil-entreated - Was unjust and cruel toward them. So that ... - For that purpose, or to “cause” them to cast them out.”
Acts 7:20-22
At that time Moses was born: Stephen adds that Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, beyond what Exodus states. Josephus and Philo record the tradition at greater length.
Acts 7:20
“In which time ... - During this period of oppression. See Exo 2:2, etc. Was exceeding fair - Greek: “was fair to God”; properly rendered, “was very handsome.” The word “God” in the Greek here in accordance with the Hebrew usage, by which anything that is “very handsome, lofty, or grand” is thus designated. Thus, Psa 36:7, “mountains of God,” mean lofty mountains; Psa 80:11, “cedars of God,” mean lofty, beautiful cedars. Thus, Nineveh is called “a great city to God” (Jon 3:3, Greek), meaning a very great city.”
Pharaoh’s daughter took him: John Wesley observes that the exposure meant to kill Moses brought him the education of a royal household. Chrysostom draws out Stephen's argument: God's care for Moses unfolds in a foreign palace, with no word of temple or sacrifice. Matthew Henry notes that Stephen's hearers prided themselves on the temple.
Acts 7:21
“Was cast out - When he was exposed on the banks of the Nile, Exo 2:3. And nourished him - Adopted him, and treated him as her own son, Exo 2:10. It is implied in this that he was educated by her. An adopted son in the family of Pharaoh would be favored with all the advantages which the land could furnish for an education.”
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 7:21
“And did he thus protect the child Moses? Much more will he secure the interests of his holy child Jesus (as he is called ch. iv. 27 ) from the enemies that are gathered together against him.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
all the wisdom of the Egyptians: Adam Clarke cites Philo, who says Moses learned arithmetic, geometry, music, medicine and hieroglyphics. Moses later calls himself slow of speech in Exodus 4:10. Jamieson, Fausset & Brown answer that his recorded speeches bear out Stephen's praise, and John Wesley calls his words weighty though slow in delivery.
Acts 7:22
“In all the wisdom of the Egyptians - Who were, at that time, the most intelligent and best instructed people in the universe. Philo says, Moses was taught arithmetic, geometry, poetry, music, medicine, and the knowledge of hieroglyphics. In Sohar Cadash, fol. 46, it is said, “that, of the ten portions of wisdom which came into the world, the Egyptians had nine, and that all the inhabitants of the earth had only the remaining portion.” Much of the same nature may be seen in the rabbins, though they apply the term wisdom here to magic.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 7:22
“In all the wisdom of the Egyptians - Which was then celebrated in all the world, and for many ages after. And mighty in words - Deep, solid, weighty, though not of a ready utterance.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Acts 7:22
“Josephus says, that when Moses had been brought up in the royal palaces, he was chosen as general against the Ethiopians; and having proved victorious, obtained in marriage the daughter of that king, since indeed, out of her affection for him, she delivered the city up to him.”
Irenaeus · written before 202 · Fragments from the Lost Writings of Irenaeus XXXIIpatristic
Acts 7:23-25
When Moses was forty years old: At forty Moses killed an Egyptian oppressor, an attempt at deliverance forty years before God's time. Stephen adds that Moses expected his brothers to understand that God was using him, but they did not, a failure to know a deliverer.
Acts 7:23
“Full forty years old - This is not recorded in the Old Testament; but it is a constant tradition of the Jews that Moses was 40 years of age when he undertook to deliver them. Thus, it is said, “Moses lived in the palace of Pharaoh forty years; he was forty years in Midian; and he ministered to Israel forty years” (Kuinoel). To visit ... - Probably with a view of delivering them from their oppressive bondage. Compare Act 7:25.”
went to his defense: Albert Barnes notes from Exodus 2:11-12 that Moses killed the Egyptian and buried him in the sand. Theophylact and Oecumenius trace the act to zeal for God, and Oecumenius compares it with the zeal of Phinehas. Chrysostom observes that Stephen's hearers are still listening at this point.
Acts 7:24
“If they had but understood the signs of the times, they might have taken this for the dawning of the day of their deliverance; but they understood not, they did not take this, as it was designed, for the setting up of a standard, and sounding of a trumpet, to proclaim Moses their deliverer.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
his brothers would understand: Albert Barnes points out that Exodus does not record this thought of Moses, though it fits the event. Adam Clarke suggests Moses already sensed God's call to deliver Israel and expected the act to show it. Chrysostom links their blindness to the brothers who sold Joseph.
Acts 7:25
“For he supposed - This is not mentioned by Moses; but it is not at all improbable. When they saw him “alone” contending with the Egyptian; when it was understood that he had come and taken vengeance on one of their oppressors, it might have been presumed that he regarded himself as directed by God to interpose, and save the people.”
Acts 7:26-29
two Israelites who were fighting: An Israelite rebuffs Moses's attempt to reconcile, asking who made him ruler and judge, and the rejection drives Moses to Midian. Moses is refused as the patriarchs sold Joseph, and as this council has delivered up Jesus.
Acts 7:26
“And the next day he showed himself to them, as they strove,.... To two men of the Hebrews, who were quarrelling and contending with one another: these are said by the Jews (w) to be Dathan and Abiram; who were disputing and litigating the point, and were very warm, and at high words.”
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 7:26
“And the next day - Exo 2:13. He showed himself - He appeared in a sudden and unexpected manner to them. Unto them - That is, to “two” of the Hebrews, Exo 2:13. As they strove - As they were engaged in a quarrel. Have set them at one - Greek: “would have urged them to peace.” This he did by remonstrating with the man that did the wrong. Saying - What follows is not quoted literally from the account which Moses gives, but it is substantially the same.”
Acts 7:26
“Moses, grieved at the spectacle, interposes as a mediator; but his interference, as unauthorized, is resented by the party in the wrong, whom Stephen identifies with the mass of the nation (Ac 7:35), just as Messiah's own interposition had been spurned.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Barnes observes that the man in the wrong is usually the one who refuses peace. Chrysostom and Theophylact hear in this challenge the same words later thrown at Christ. Bede reads the whole speech as proving that Israel resisted Moses from the start.
Acts 7:27
“But pay attention to the response: "Who made you a ruler and judge over us?" The very same words that were later said to Christ. To repay good with insult — that is in the spirit of the Jews.”
Theophylact of Ohrid · written before 1107 · Commentary on Actspatristic
Cross references
Acts 7:27
- QuotingExodus 2:14But the man replied, “Who made you ruler and judge over us? Are you planning to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?” Then Moses was afraid and thought, “This thing I have done has surely become known.”
'Who made thee a ruler and a judge over us?' (Moses rejected)
as you killed the Egyptian: Matthew Henry reads the question as a threat to report Moses for the killing. Albert Barnes suggests the deed became known through the Hebrew whom Moses had rescued. Chrysostom sees a benefactor repaid with betrayal.
Acts 7:28
“Wilt thou kill me as thou didst the Egyptian yesterday? That is, is it thy will? dost thou design to kill me? or, as in Exo 2:14 "intendest" thou to kill me?”
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 7:28
“Wilt thou kill me ... - How it was known that he had killed the Egyptian does not appear. It was probably communicated by the man who was rescued from the hands of the Egyptian, Exo 2:11-12.”
Acts 7:28
“Mark; the very words which they said to Christ: "Who made Thee ruler and judge over us?" So habitual a thing was it for Jews to wrong (their benefactors) when in the act of receiving benefits! And again, mark the atrocious baseness: "As thou didst the Egyptian yesterday! Then fled Moses at this saying, and was a stranger in the land of Midian, where he begat two sons." But neither did flight extinguish the plan of Providence, as neither did death (i.e. the death of Christ).”
John Chrysostom · written before 407 · Homily on Acts 16patristic
Moses fled to the land of Midian: Moses fled once he learned that the killing was known, and Albert Barnes notes from Exodus 2:15 that Pharaoh then sought his life. The word for foreigner means a sojourner with a temporary home. Chrysostom observes that flight could not stop God's plan, any more than Christ's death could.
Acts 7:29
“Then fled Moses ... - Moses fled because he now ascertained that what he had done was known. He supposed that it had been unobserved, Exo 2:12. But he now thought that the knowledge of it might reach Pharaoh, and that his life might thus be endangered. Nor did he judge incorrectly; for as soon as Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to take his life, Exo 2:15. Was a stranger - Or became a sojourner πάροικος paroikos, one who had a temporary abode in the land.”
Acts 7:30-34
After forty years had passed: An angel appeared to Moses in a burning bush near Mount Sinai, yet the voice names itself the God of his fathers. God calls the ground holy because of the presence that meets Moses there.
Acts 7:30
“And when forty years ... - At the age of 80 years. This, however, was known by tradition. It is not expressly mentioned by Moses. It is said, however, to have been after the king of Egypt had died Exo 2:23; and the tradition is not improbable. In the wilderness of mount Sina - In the desert adjacent to, or that surrounded Mount Sinai. In Exo 3:1, it is said that this occurred at Mount “Horeb.” But there is no contradiction; Horeb and Sinai are different peaks or elevations of the same mountain.”
ConnectionsExodus 3:2
he marveled at the sight: Albert Barnes explains from Exodus 3:2-3 that the wonder was a bush that burned without being consumed. Moses heard the Lord's voice but saw no form. Matthew Henry adds that Stephen, accused of blaspheming Moses, shows him here as a man subject to fear before the majesty of God.
the God of Abraham, Isaac: The one who appears in the bush is called an angel in verse 30, yet the voice names itself the God of the patriarchs. Chrysostom calls the speaker Christ, the Angel of the Great Counsel. Gill adds that Jesus uses these words in Matthew 22 to prove the resurrection.
is holy ground: Wesley and Gill agree that the ground was holy because God was present, and Gill adds that it stayed holy only while His presence remained. Matthew Henry reads this as Stephen's answer to pride in the temple. God met Moses in a remote wilderness.
Acts 7:33
“Then said the Lord, Loose thy shoes - An ancient token of reverence; for the place is holy ground - The holiness of places depends on the peculiar presence of God there.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 7:33
“It is upon us who continue in this quiet and peaceful course of life that the truth will shine, illuminating the eyes of our soul with its own rays. This truth, which was then manifested by the ineffable and mysterious illumination that came to Moses, is God. And if the flame by which the soul of the prophet was illuminated was kindled from a thorny bush, even this fact will not be useless for our inquiry.”
Gregory of Nyssa · written before 395 · Life of Moses 2.19-22patristic
Cross references
Acts 7:33
- QuotingExodus 3:5“Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”
'Put off thy shoes... holy ground' (burning bush)
have come down to deliver them: The BSB phrase "indeed seen" renders a doubled verb, which Albert Barnes explains as a Hebrew way of adding emphasis. Barnes reads "come down" as language fitted to human understanding, while Henry sees in it a picture of Christ coming down from heaven to save.
Acts 7:34
“I have seen ... - The repetition of this word is in accordance with the usage of the Hebrew writers when they wish to represent anything emphatically. Their groaning - Under their oppressions. Am come down - This is spoken in accordance with human conceptions. It means that God was about to deliver them. I will send thee ... - This is a mere summary of what is expressed at much greater length in Exo 3:7-10.”
Cross references
Acts 7:34
- QuotingExodus 3:7“The LORD said, “I have indeed seen the affliction of My people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their oppressors, and I am aware of their sufferings.”
'I have seen the affliction of my people' (the LORD's commission of Moses)
Acts 7:35-37
This Moses, whom they had rejected: God sent the Moses whom Israel rejected to be their ruler and redeemer. Stephen closes with Moses's promise of a prophet like him, which Peter had cited at 3:22 and which points to Christ. This council now refuses to hear that prophet.
Acts 7:35
“That Moses, who was in danger for his life, whom the Israelites counted as nothing and rejected, God raised up and "sent through the Angel who appeared to him in the burning bush." The one whom Stephen calls an Angel, Moses saw and called God.”
Theophylact of Ohrid · written before 1107 · Commentary on Actspatristic
3 more voices on this verse
Acts 7:35
“This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge, &c.--Here, again, "the stone which the builders refused is made the head of the corner" (Ps 118:22).”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Acts 7:35
“Him did God send to be a deliverer - Which is much more than a judge; by the hand of - That is, by means of the angel - This angel who spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai expressly called himself Jehovah, a name which cannot, without the highest presumption, be assumed by any created angel, since he whose name alone is Jehovah, is the Most High over all the earth, Psalm lxxxiii, 18.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Acts 7:35
“Whom they refused - That is, when he first presented himself to them, Exo 2:13-14. Stephen introduces and dwells upon this refusal in order, perhaps, to remind them that this had been the character of their nation, and to prepare the way for the charge which he intended to bring against those whom he addressed, as being stiff-necked and rebellious. See Act 7:51-52, etc. A ruler - A military leader, or a governor in civil matters. A deliverer - A Redeemer - λυτρωτὴν lutrōtēn.”
performed wonders and signs: Barnes lists the wonders: the ten plagues, the dividing of the Red Sea, and the manna, meat and water from the rock. Clarke draws out Stephen's argument that the man Israel rejected was the one through whom God redeemed them. Chrysostom sees Christ in that pattern.
Acts 7:36
“He brought them out, after that he had showed wonders, etc. - Thus the very person whom they had rejected, and, in effect, delivered up into the hands of Pharaoh that he might be slain, was the person alone by whom they were redeemed from their Egyptian bondage.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
a prophet like me: Stephen quotes Deuteronomy 18:15, a promise already cited in Acts 3:22. Matthew Henry argues that this answers the charge of blaspheming Moses, since Stephen honors Moses by showing his prophecy fulfilled in Jesus. Theophylact adds that the coming prophet would also be like Moses in being rejected.
Acts 7:38-41
the assembly in the wilderness: Stephen calls Israel at Sinai the assembly in the wilderness, using the Greek ekklesia, the word the New Testament uses for its own gathering. That assembly received living words, yet made a calf weeks after hearing God's voice.
Acts 7:38
“But Christ is the president and guide of a more excellent and glorious church than that in the wilderness was, and is more in it, as the life and soul of it, than Moses could be in that. That he was with the angel that spoke to him in the mount Sinai, and with our fathers --was with him in the holy mount twice forty days, with the angel of the covenant, Michael, our prince.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
3 more voices on this verse
Acts 7:38
“Luke also has recorded that Stephen, who was the first elected into the diaconate by the apostles, and who was the first slain for the testimony of Christ, spoke regarding Moses as follows: "This man did indeed receive the commandments of the living God to give to us, whom your fathers would not obey, but thrust Him from them, and in their hearts turned back again into Egypt, saying unto Aaron, Make us gods to go before us; for we do not know what has happened to this Moses, who led us from the land of Egypt.”
Irenaeus · written before 202 · Against Heresies Book 4patristic
Acts 7:38
“With the angel which spake to him - Stephen shows that Moses received the law by the ministry of angels; and that he was only a mediator between the angel of God and them. The lively oracles - Λογια ζωντα, The living oracles.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Acts 7:38
“With the angel, and with our fathers - As a mediator between them. Who received the living oracles - Every period beginning with, And the Lord said unto Moses, is properly an oracle. But the oracles here intended are chiefly the ten commandments.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
in their hearts turned back: Chrysostom notes that this refusal came after all the wonders just described. Barnes ties it to Exodus 32 and Numbers 11, where the people longed for what they had in Egypt. Clarke adds that they preferred Egypt's idols to the pure worship of God.
The request comes from Exodus 32:1, and Albert Barnes explains that the gods meant are idols. Chrysostom notices the contempt in "this Moses," and that the people credit Moses alone for bringing them out, with no mention of God. They would not wait for his return.
Acts 7:40
"And said unto Aaron, Make us gods which shall go before us." O the folly! "Make," say they; "that they may go before us." Whither? "Into Egypt." See how hard they were to tear away from the customs of Egypt! What sayest thou? What, not wait for him that brought thee out, but flee the benefit, and deny the Benefactor? And mark how insulting they are: "For as for this Moses," they say:-"which brought us out of the land of Egypt" nowhere the name of God: instead of that, they ascribed all to Moses.
John Chrysostom · written before 407 · Homily on Acts 17patristic
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 7:40
“Saying unto Aaron - Exo 32:1. Make us gods - That is, idols.”
Cross references
Acts 7:40
- QuotingExodus 32:1Now when the people saw that Moses was delayed in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has happened to him!”
'Make us gods to go before us' (golden calf)
they made a calf: Gill links the calf to Apis, the ox worshipped in Egypt, and Barnes notes it was cast from earrings brought out of Egypt. Chrysostom observes that Stephen's account first names sacrifice when it is offered to an idol. Stephen recalls it to show Israel's old habit of rejecting God.
Acts 7:41
“And they made a calf in those days,.... Whilst Moses was in the mount; this was done in imitation of the Egyptian idol Apis or Serapis, which was an ox or a bullock; and it was made of the golden earnings of the people, which were melted down, and cast into the form of a calf, and graved by Aaron with a graving tool, Exo 32:2 And so the Syriac version here reads in the singular number, "and he made them a calf"; this was a most shameful and scandalous piece of idolatry.”
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 7:41
“And they made a calf - This was made of the ear-rings and ornaments which they had brought from Egypt, Exo 32:2-4. Stephen introduces this to remind them how prone the nation had been to reject God, and to walk in the ways of sin.”
Acts 7:42-43
But God turned away from them: God gave them over to the worship of the host of heaven, as Stephen shows from Amos 5:25 to 27. He follows the Septuagint's star of your god Rephan where the Hebrew names Kaiwan, both pointing to star worship from Mesopotamia.
Acts 7:42
“Then God turned, and gave them up, etc. - He left them to themselves, and then they deified and worshipped the sun, moon, planets, and principal stars. In the book of the prophets - As this quotation is found in Amos, Amo 5:25, by the book of the prophets is meant the twelve minor prophets, which, in the ancient Jewish division of the sacred writings, formed only one book.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Cross references
Acts 7:42
- QuotingAmos 5:25“Did you bring Me sacrifices and offerings forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?”
'O ye house of Israel, have ye offered...', Stephen ('as it is written in the book of the prophets')
the star of your god Rephan: John Wesley explains the tabernacle as a small portable shrine holding an idol, and identifies Rephan with the planet Saturn. Amos 5:27 says beyond Damascus, and Jamieson, Fausset & Brown explain that Stephen names Babylon, the land of Judah's captivity. Chrysostom reads the exile itself as proof of their guilt.
Acts 7:43
“Yea, ye took up the tabernacle of Mo,.... Sometimes called Molech, and sometimes Milcorn; it was the god of the Ammonites, and the same with Baal: the one signifies king, and the other lord; and was, no doubt, the same with the Apis or Serapis of the Egyptians, and the calf of the Israelites. Frequent mention is made of giving seed to Molech, and causing the children to pass through fire to him.”
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 7:43
“Molech and Remphan being deities, representing apparently the divine powers ascribed to nature, under different aspects. carry you beyond Babylon--the well-known region of the captivity of Judah; while "Damascus" is used by the prophet (Am 5:27), whither the ten tribes were carried.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Acts 7:43
“The shrine - A small, portable chapel, in which was the image of their god. Moloch was the planet Mars, which they worshipped under a human shape. Remphan, that is, Saturn, they represented by a star.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Tabernacle, Temple, and Stiff-Necked Resistance
Acts 7:44-46
Our fathers had the tabernacle: The fathers had the tabernacle of the Testimony in the wilderness and brought it in with Joshua, whom the King James calls Jesus. It stood until David, who asked to provide a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.
Acts 7:44
“Our fathers had the tabernacle of the testimony - The testimony was properly the two tables of stone, on which the ten commandments were written. Hence the ark which contained them is frequently called the ark of the testimony; and the whole tabernacle in this place.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
brought it in with Joshua: The Greek text writes Joshua's name as Jesus. Chrysostom draws out Stephen's argument: Israel held the land from Joshua until David with only a tent, even after God drove out the nations. John Wesley concludes that living in the land never guaranteed God's favor.
Acts 7:45
“Our fathers that came after - None of the generation that came out of Egypt were permitted to enter into the and of Canaan except Caleb and Joshua, Num 14:22-24; Num 32:11-12. Hence, it is said that their fathers who “came after,” that is, after the generation when the tabernacle was built. The Greek, however, here means, properly, “which also our fathers, having “received,” brought,” etc. The sense is not materially different. Stephen means that it was not brought in by that generation, but by the next.”
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 7:45
“But Stephen's object in mentioning David is to hasten from the tabernacle which he set up, to the temple which his son built, in Jerusalem; and this only to show, from their own Scripture (Isa 66:1, 2), that even that temple, magnificent though it was, was not the proper resting-place of Jehovah upon earth; as his audience and the nations had all along been prone to imagine.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
for the God of Jacob: David's wish appears in 2 Samuel 7 and Psalm 132, and Clarke notes God approved it yet refused to let a man of war build. Chrysostom presses Stephen's point that even David, so great, built no temple. John Wesley notes that God had no temple until Solomon.
Acts 7:46
“Who petitioned to find a habitation for the God of Jacob - But he did not obtain his petition: for God remained without any temple till Solomon built him a house. Observe how wisely the word is chosen with respect to what follows.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 7:46
“Desired to find a tabernacle - This was in David’s heart, and it met with the Divine approbation: see 2Sa 7:2, etc., and see the purpose, Psa 132:2-5; but, as David had been a man of war, and had shed much blood, God would not permit him to build the temple; but he laid the plan and made provision for it, and Solomon executed the design.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Acts 7:47-50
But it was Solomon: Solomon built the house, yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands, as Isaiah 66:1 says. The temple's own prophet corrects any confidence that God's presence is confined inside it. The charge that Stephen spoke against the holy place is answered with Isaiah's words.
the Most High does not dwell: Clarke traces the thought to Solomon's own prayer at the temple's dedication in 1 Kings 8:27. Barnes explains how this answers the charge: Stephen honors the temple as built at God's command while holding that God does not need it. God would be worshipped by all nations.
Acts 7:48
“The Most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands - Here St. Stephen evidently refers to Solomon’s speech, 1Ki 8:27. But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, the heaven, and the heaven of heavens cannot contain thee, how much less this house that I have builded? Both Solomon and St. Stephen mean that the majesty of God could not be contained, not even in the whole vortex of nature; much less in any temple which human hands could erect.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Stephen quotes Isaiah 66:1. Bede explains that throne and footstool picture a God within and above all things. He points to the next line of Isaiah, where God rests on the humble who tremble at His word.
Acts 7:49
“Heaven is my throne - See the notes on Mat 5:34. Earth is my footstool - See the notes on Mat 5:35. What house ... - What house or temple can be large or magnificent enough for the dwelling of Him who made all things? The place of my rest - My home, my abode, my fixed seat or habitation. Compare Psa 95:11.”
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 7:49
“Or what is the place of my rest? Not a golden or marble earthly dwelling place, but as the Prophet follows: Upon whom does my Spirit rest, if not upon the humble and quiet one, who trembles at my words (Isaiah LXVI)?”
Bede · written before 735 · Commentary on Actspatristic
Cross references
Acts 7:49
- QuotingIsaiah 66:1“This is what the LORD says: “Heaven is My throne, and earth is My footstool. What kind of house will you build for Me? Or where will My place of repose be?”
'Heaven is my throne... what house will ye build me?' (Stephen on the temple)
Has not My hand made: Gill notes that Isaiah states a fact, which Stephen turns into a question: the Maker of all needs nothing made by human hands. Clarke thinks Stephen had not finished. The hearers likely saw his conclusion against the temple coming and raised an outcry, explaining the sharp turn in verse 51.
Acts 7:50
“Hath not my hand made all these things? The heaven, and the earth, and all that is in them; the Arabic version renders it, "all these creatures"; and therefore what can be made for God? or what house built for him? in Isaiah the words are read without an interrogation, and affirm that his hand had made all these things, and therefore nothing could be made for him suitable to him, by the hands of men.”
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 7:50
“His following this, occasions divers variations from the Hebrew original in this discourse, which the judges of the court did not correct, because they knew how he was led into them; nor is it any derogation to the authority of that Spirit by which he spoke, for the variations are not material.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Acts 7:51-53
You stiff-necked people: Stephen calls the council stiff-necked, with uncircumcised hearts and ears, language drawn from Moses's own rebukes in Exodus and Deuteronomy. It is a prophet's charge spoken from within Israel's story, and it falls on this council as betrayers and murderers.
Acts 7:51
“Ye stiff-necked - The discourse of Stephen has every appearance of having been interrupted by the clamors and opposition of the Sanhedrin. This verse has no immediate connection with what precedes, and appears to have been spoken in the midst of opposition and clamor. If we may conjecture in this case, it would seem that the Jews saw the drift of his argument; that they interrupted him; and that when the tumult had somewhat subsided, he addressed them in the language of this verse, showing them that they sustained a character precisely similar to their rebellious fathers.”
the coming of the Righteous One: The Righteous One is a prophetic title for the Messiah, drawn from Isaiah 53:11, as Jamieson, Fausset & Brown note. Adam Clarke reports the Jewish tradition that Isaiah himself was sawn in two under King Manasseh. Theophylact and Oecumenius hear Stephen expecting his own death.
Acts 7:52
“Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? - Ye have not only resisted the Holy Ghost, but ye have persecuted all those who have spoken to you in his name, and by his influence: thus ye prove your opposition to the Spirit himself, by your opposition to every thing that proceeds from him. They have slain them, etc. - Isaiah, who showed before of the coming of Christ, the Jews report, was sawn asunder at the command of Manasseh.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
the law ordained by angels: Barnes notes that the Greek word for ordained appears nowhere else in the New Testament and first described ranks in an army. Some read it as the law given amid ranks of angels. Its zealous defenders stand convicted of breaking it.
Acts 7:53
“Who have received the law by the disposition--"at the appointment" or "ordination," that is, by the ministry. of angels, and have not kept it--This closing word is designed to shut up those idolizers of the law under the guilt of high disobedience to it, aggravated by the august manner in which they had received it.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 7:53
“Who have received the law - The Law of Moses, given on Mount Sinai. By the disposition of angels - There has been much diversity of opinion in regard to this phrase, εἰς διαταγὰς ἀγγέλων eis diatagas angelōn. The word translated “disposition” does not occur elsewhere in the New Testament. It properly means the “constituting” or “arranging” of an army; disposing it into ranks and proper divisions. Hence, it has been supposed to mean that the Law was given “amidst” the various ranks of angels, being present to witness its promulgation.”
Stoned, He Sees the Son of Man Standing
gnashed their teeth at him: The members of the Sanhedrin were enraged, the word used of the council's rage at 5:33, and gnashed their teeth at him. The gnashing shows that argument has failed and only violence remains to a council that cannot answer Stephen's history. The text records no legal sentence before what follows.
Acts 7:54
“They were cut to the heart - Διεπριοντο, They were sawn through. See the note on Act 5:33. They gnashed on him with their teeth - They were determined to hear him no longer; were filled with rage against him, and evidently thirsted for his blood.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Acts 7:55-56
Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit: Stephen sees Jesus standing at the right hand of God, though elsewhere after the ascension Christ is seated. Jesus had used the title Son of Man of Himself before this council (Luke 22:69).
Acts 7:55
“As the sight was witnessed by Stephen alone, the opened heavens are to be viewed as revealed to his bright beaming spirit. and Jesus standing on the right hand of God--Why "standing," and not sitting, the posture in which the glorified Saviour is elsewhere represented?”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 7:55
“But he looking steadfastly up to heaven, saw the glory of God - Doubtless he saw such a glorious representation, God miraculously operating on his imagination, as on Ezekiel's, when he sat in his house at Babylon, and saw Jerusalem, and seemed to himself transported thither, chap. viii, 1-4.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Acts 7:55
“Full of the Holy Ghost - See the notes on Act 2:4. Looked up stedfastly - Fixed his eyes intently on heaven. Foreseeing his danger, and the effect his speech had produced; seeing that there was no safety in the Great Council of the nation, and no prospect of justice at their hands, he cast his eyes to heaven and sought protection there. When dangers threaten us, our hope of safety lies in heaven. When people threaten our persons, reputation, or lives, it becomes us to fix our eyes on the heavenly world; and we shall not look in vain.”
the Son of Man standing: Jamieson, Fausset & Brown observe this is the only time after the ascension that human lips call Jesus the Son of Man. Ambrose reads His standing as readiness to help and crown His martyr, while Theophylact takes it as a sign of firmness. Ambrose adds that Christ sits to judge.
Acts 7:56
“I see the heavens opened - A figurative expression, denoting that he was permitted to see “into” heaven, or to see what was there, as if the firmament was divided, and the eye was permitted to penetrate the eternal world. Compare Eze 1:1.”
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 7:56
“Jesus stood as a helpmate; he stood as if anxious to help Stephen, his athlete, in the struggle. He stood as though ready to crown his martyr. Let him then stand for you that you may not fear him sitting, for he sits when he judges.… He sits to judge, he stands to give judgment, and he judges the imperfect but gives judgment among the gods.”
Ambrose of Milan · written before 397 · Epistle 63patristic
Acts 7:57-58
At this they covered their ears: The council rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. The witnesses, who by the law cast the first stones, laid their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. It is the book's first mention of its central figure.
Acts 7:57
“Then they cried out - That is, probably, “the people,” not the members of the council It is evident he was put to death in a popular tumult. They had charged him with blasphemy; and they regarded what he had now said as full proof of it. And stopped their ears - That they might hear no more blasphemy. With one accord - In a tumult; unitedly.”
a young man named Saul: Clarke notes that no sentence preceded the stoning. The place of stoning lay outside the city, as Gill observes, and Bede links this with Christ, who suffered outside the gate. Gregory the Dialogist says Saul, by guarding their garments, stoned Stephen through every hand, yet later surpassed him in labors.
Acts 7:58
“Cast him out of the city, and stoned him - They did not however wait for any sentence to be pronounced upon him; it seems they were determined to stone him first, and then prove, after it had been done, that it was done justly. For the manner of stoning among the Jews, see the note on Lev 24:23. The witnesses laid down their clothes - To illustrate this whole transaction, see the observations at the end of this chapter.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
3 more voices on this verse
Acts 7:58
“Often one who is seen to come after us surpasses us through the swiftness of good work, and tomorrow we scarcely follow him whom today we seemed to precede. Certainly when Stephen was dying for the faith, Saul was guarding the garments of those who were stoning him. Therefore he himself stoned with the hands of all who were stoning, since he rendered them all free to stone, and yet in the holy Church he surpassed in labors that very one whom by persecuting he made a martyr.”
Gregory the Dialogist · written before 604 · Forty Gospel Homilies, Homily 19patristic
Acts 7:58
“And cast him out of the city,.... Of Jerusalem; for the place of stoning was without the city.”
Acts 7:58
“His dying prayer reached thee, as well as many others. And the martyr Stephen, and Saul the persecutor, (afterward his brother both in faith and martyrdom,) are now joined in everlasting friendship, and dwell together in the happy company of those who have made their robes white in the blood of the Lamb.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Acts 7:59-60
Stephen's two prayers, for his spirit and for his killers, echo Jesus' words from the cross in Luke 23:46 and 23:34. The first martyr dies in the pattern of his Lord. Luke's last words, he fell asleep, are the New Testament's name for a believer's death.
Acts 7:59
“Calling upon God - The word God is not in the original, and should not have been in the translation. It is in none of the ancient mss. or versions. It should have been rendered, “They stoned Stephen, invoking, or calling upon, and saying, Lord Jesus,” etc. That is, he was engaged “in prayer” to the Lord Jesus.”
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 7:59
“Christ being the Person directly invoked and addressed by name (compare Ac 9:14). Even GROTIUS, DE WETTE, MEYER, &c., admit this, adding several other examples of direct prayer to Christ; and PLINY, in his well-known letter to the Emperor Trajan (A.D. 110 or 111), says it was part of the regular Christian service to sing, in alternate strains, a hymn to Christ as God.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown note that the Lord addressed here is Jesus, and that the prayer nearly repeats Christ's own prayer from the cross. Bede observes that Luke writes fell asleep, in the hope of resurrection. That phrase is never used of Christ's death.
Acts 7:60
“Lord--that is, JESUS, beyond doubt, whom he had just before addressed as Lord. lay not this sin to their charge--Comparing this with nearly the same prayer of his dying Lord, it will be seen how very richly this martyr of Jesus had drunk into his Master's spirit, in its divinest form. he fell asleep--never said of the death of Christ.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
How this psalm is built
The form: A speech that retells Israel's history from Abraham to Solomon, then the death of the speaker, as 7 classes it.
The patterns in this chapter
| Device | What it does | Where to see it |
|---|---|---|
| This Moses | The speech gives its largest part to Moses, and from verse 35 on it points to him again and again. Verse 35 begins This Moses, whom they had rejected, verse 37 begins This is the same Moses, and verse 40 quotes the people saying As for this Moses. The question Who made you ruler and judge comes in verse 27 and again in verse 35, where God sends that same man to be their ruler and redeemer. John Chrysostom notices that the words spoken to Moses were the very words later spoken to Christ.Counted from the Berean Standard Bible text of Acts 7, The chapter's own text, verses 20 to 44. | Acts 7:27, Acts 7:35, Acts 7:37, Acts 7:40 |
| The glory at the start and the end | The speech opens in verse 2 with the words The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham. The chapter nears its close with Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looking into heaven in verse 55, where he saw the glory of God. The word glory appears in those two places only, so the God who appeared to Abraham at the start shows His glory to Stephen at the end.Counted from the Berean Standard Bible text of Acts 7, The chapter's own text, verses 2 to 56. | Acts 7:2, Acts 7:55, Acts 7:56 |
| The prophets and the house made by hands | Near its end the speech quotes two prophets. Verses 42 and 43 quote the book of the prophets on Israel's offerings in the wilderness, and Adam Clarke identifies the passage as Amos, from the twelve minor prophets that were counted as one book. Verse 48 then says the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands, and verses 49 and 50 quote the prophet on heaven as God's throne and the earth as His footstool. Verses 51 to 53 turn the history into a charge against the council.Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible. | Acts 7:42, Acts 7:43, Acts 7:48, Acts 7:49, Acts 7:51 |
How this chapter is built
1 more paragraph on the patterns
Acts 7 is one long speech followed by a short account of a death. The speech in verses 2 to 53 answers the charge of chapter 6 by telling Israel's story in order. It runs from Abraham and the patriarchs to Joseph, then Moses, then the tabernacle and the house Solomon built. Moses takes the largest part, and the speaker keeps pointing back to him. In verse 51 the speech turns from history to charge and ends on the law ordained by angels. Verses 54 to 60 tell how the council answered, with Stephen's vision, his two prayers and his death.
Keep studying
Studies39
- Son of Man
- Abraham
- Brit milah: circumcision on the eighth day
- Chaldea
- Circumcision of the Heart
- Egypt's Famine Years and the Land of Pharaoh
Show the next 6 titles
Show the next 6 titles
- Types of Christ: Joseph and Joshua
- Joseph and the Tale of Two Brothers
- Joshua son of Nun
- Amos and the Courts at the Gate
- Love Your Enemies
- Mesopotamia
Show the next 6 titles
Sources for this chapter
The summary
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory; John Calvin, Commentaries; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the New Testament and Matthew Henry, Complete Commentary.
The form and classifications
Counted from the Berean Standard Bible text of Acts 7, The chapter's own text, verses 1 to 60 and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
The exposition
Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes; Ambrose of Milan, Epistle 63; Bede; Charles Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 3096: “The Second Time” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition); Gregory the Dialogist, Forty Gospel Homilies, Homily 19; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Calvin, Commentary upon the Acts of the Apostles; John Chrysostom; John Gill; John Lightfoot, Horae Hebraicae et Talmudicae; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Oecumenius, Commentary on Acts and Theophylact of Ohrid, Commentary on Acts.