Acts 8:2
in Acts 8God-fearing men buried Stephen and mourned deeply over him.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And devout men buried Stephen, and made great lamentation over him.
KJV
And devout men carried Stephen to his burial, and made great lamentation over him.
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This verse in Acts 8
Commentary
11 notes on this verse"And devout men buried Stephen." If they were "devout," then how did they "make great lamentation?" This is because they were not yet perfect. On the other hand, who would not have wept, being deprived of such teaching, such defense, and such miracles, and seeing …
This site's exposition
was consenting unto his death
on Acts 8:1-3
Saul was consenting unto his death names him at Stephen's murder before the narrative turns to follow him, and the persecution that breaks out that day scatters the Jerusalem church throughout Judea and Samaria, the first literal steps of the program verse's own itinerary. Saul's own zeal is described in the harshest terms available, entering into every house and committing men and women to prison, the same violence Paul will later confess with shame in his own letters. Devout men bury Stephen with lamentation even as the wider church runs for its life, grief and courage sitting side by side in the same verses.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers3 voices
"And devout men," it says, "carried Stephen to his burial, and made great lamentation over him." If they were "devout," why did they "make great lamentation over him?" They were not yet perfect. The man was gracious and amiable: this also shows that they were men - not their fear alone, but their grief and lamentation. Who would not have wept to see that mild, that lamb-like person stoned, and lying dead? Fit eulogy to be spoken over his grave has the Evangelist recorded, in this one speech, "Lay not this sin to their charge." "And made," he says, "great lamentation over him."
If those who buried Stephen were devout, how did they become despairing? Is it because they were not yet perfect, or because they were deprived of such protection, such teaching, such signs, and because they saw him gentle and kind as dead and crushed by …
And yet it was the body only which was deemed proper for burial, while the soul was not buried together with the body; nevertheless the body alone was spoken of by the common name. Similarly the blessed Jacob said to his sons, "Bury me with …
The Medieval Church1 voice
Godly men cared for Stephen, and made great lamentation over him. This lamentation and the martyrdom of blessed Stephen is well remembered in the book of the revelation of his relics, which we have made mention of before, in which it is recounted that Gamaliel …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
(2.) To show the great value and esteem they had for this faithful servant of Jesus Christ, this first martyr for the gospel, whose memory shall always be precious to them, notwithstanding the ignominy of his death. They study to do honour to him upon whom God put honour. (3.) To testify their belief and hope of the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.
4 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Here is the church spreading by the ministry of Philip and others that were dispersed upon that occasion. The gospel brought to Samaria, preached there (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
And devout men carried Stephen to his burial,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
Devout men carried Stephen to his burial - The Greek word, συνεκομισαν, signifies not only to carry, or rather to gather up, but also to do every thing necessary for the interment of the dead. Among the Jews, and indeed among most nations of the earth, it was esteemed a work of piety, charity, and mercy, to bury the dead.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
And devout men - Religious men. The word used here does not imply of necessity that they were Christians. There might have been Jews who did not approve of the popular tumult, and the murder of Stephen, who gave him a decent burial. Joseph of Arimathea, and Nicodemus, both Jews, thus gave to the Lord Jesus a decent burial, Joh 19:38-39. Carried Stephen - The word translated “carried” means properly to “collect,” as fruits, etc. Then it is applied to all the preparations necessary for fitting a dead body for burial, as “collecting,” or confining it by bandages, with spices, etc. And made great lamentation - This was usual among the Jews at a funeral. See the notes on Mat 9:23.
The words behind it
12 Greek wordsEvery Greek word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Greek | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| συνεκόμισαν | sunekomisan | Buried | G4792 → | |
| δὲ | de | now | G1161 → | 2765 times |
| τὸν | ton | <the> | G3588 → | 19766 times |
| Στέφανον | stephanon | Stephen | G4736 → | 7 times |
| ἄνδρες | andres | men | G435 → | 216 times |
| εὐλαβεῖς | eulabeis | devout | G2126 → | 4 times |
| καὶ | kai | and | G2532 → | 9120 times |
| ἐποίησαν | epoiesan | they made | G4160 → | 569 times |
| κοπετὸν | kopeton | lamentation | G2870 → | |
| μέγαν | megan | great | G3173 → | 243 times |
| ἐπ᾽ | ep᾽ | over | G1909 → | 883 times |
| αὐτῷ.¶ | auto | him. | G846 → | 5565 times |
συνεκόμισανBuried
sunekomisanG4792 →
δὲnow
deG1161 →2765 times
τὸν<the>
tonG3588 →19766 times
ΣτέφανονStephen
stephanonG4736 →7 times
ἄνδρεςmen
andresG435 →216 times
εὐλαβεῖςdevout
eulabeisG2126 →4 times
καὶand
kaiG2532 →9120 times
ἐποίησανthey made
epoiesanG4160 →569 times
κοπετὸνlamentation
kopetonG2870 →
μέγανgreat
meganG3173 →243 times
ἐπ᾽over
ep᾽G1909 →883 times
αὐτῷ.¶him.
autoG846 →5565 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Jeremiah 22:10Do not weep for the dead king; do not mourn his loss. Weep bitterly for the one who is exiled, for he will never return to see his native land.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 22:11
For this is what the LORD says concerning Shallum son of Josiah, king of Judah, who succeeded his father Josiah but has gone forth from this place: “He will never return,
- Ecclesiastes 4:2
So I admired the dead, who had already died, above the living, who are still alive.
- Isaiah 57:1
The righteous perish, and no one takes it to heart; devout men are swept away, while no one considers that the righteous are guided from the presence of evil.
- Lamentations 4:9
Those slain by the sword are better off than those who die of hunger, who waste away, pierced with pain because the fields lack produce.
- Jeremiah 22:11
Through
1 Samuel 28:3Now by this time Samuel had died, and all Israel had mourned for him and buried him in Ramah, his own city. And Saul had removed the mediums and spiritists from the land.
it leads to
- Leviticus 19:31
You must not turn to mediums or spiritists; do not seek them out, or you will be defiled by them. I am the LORD your God.
- 1 Samuel 25:1
When Samuel died, all Israel gathered to mourn for him; and they buried him at his home in Ramah. Then David set out and went down to the Wilderness of Paran.
- Leviticus 20:27
A man or a woman who is a medium or spiritist must surely be put to death. They shall be stoned; their blood is upon them.’”
- Leviticus 19:31
Through
Genesis 23:2She died in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went out to mourn and to weep for her.
it leads to
- Genesis 23:19
After this, Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave of the field at Machpelah near Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan.
- Genesis 23:19
Where this verse is studied
About Acts
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on 10 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Bede, Retractions on Acts; John Chrysostom, Homilies on the Acts of the Apostles; John Chrysostom, Homily on Acts 18; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Oecumenius, Commentary on Acts; Theodoret of Cyrus, LETTER 144 and Theophylact of Ohrid, Commentary on Acts.