Acts 7
1 And the high-priest said, Are then these things so?
“Are these allegations true?” the high priest asked.
2 And he said, Brethren and fathers, hearken. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran,
“Brothers and fathers, listen to me!” Stephen replied. “God in his glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was living in Mesopotamia, before he moved to Haran.
3 and said to him, “Go forth from thy country and thy kindred, and come into the land which I will show thee.”
God told him, ‘Leave your country and your relatives, and go to the country that I'm going to show you.’
4 Then came he out of the land of the Chaldaeans, and dwelt in Haran; and from thence, after his father was dead, he caused him to remove into this land wherein ye now dwell;
So he left the country of the Chaldeans and lived in Haran. After his father's death, God sent him here to this country where you now live.
5 and he gave him no inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on; and he promised to give it to him for a possession, and to his posterity after him, when as yet he had no child.
God didn't give Abraham an inheritance here, not even one square foot. But God did promise Abraham that he would give him and his descendants possession of the land, even though he had no children.
6 And God spoke in this manner: “That his posterity should sojourn in a foreign land, and that they would bring them into bondage, and ill-treat them four hundred years;
God also told him that his descendants would live in a foreign country, and that they would be enslaved there, and would be mistreated for four hundred years.
7 and the nation to which they shall be in bondage will I judge,” said God; “and after that they shall come forth, and shall worship me in this place.”
God said, ‘I will punish the nation that enslaves them. Eventually they will leave and come here to worship me.’
8 And he gave him the covenant of circumcision; and so he begat Isaac, and circumcised him on the eighth day; and Isaac begat Jacob, and Jacob the twelve patriarchs.
God also gave Abraham the agreement regarding circumcision, and so when Isaac was born, Abraham circumcised him on the eighth day. Isaac was the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of the twelve patriarchs.
9 And the patriarchs, moved with envy, sold Joseph into Egypt; and God was with him,
The patriarchs, who were jealous of Joseph, sold him into slavery in Egypt. But God was with him,
10 and delivered him out of all his afflictions, and gave him favor and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and he made him governor over Egypt, and all his house.
and rescued him from all his troubles. He gave him wisdom and helped him gain the favor of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him governor over Egypt and the royal household.
11 Now there came a famine over all the land of Egypt and Canaan, and great distress; and our fathers found no Sustenance.
Now a famine occurred throughout Egypt and Canaan. It caused terrible misery, and our forefathers had no food.
12 But Jacob, hearing that there was grain in Egypt, sent out our fathers first.
When Jacob heard there was grain in Egypt he sent our forefathers down on their first visit.
13 And at the second time Joseph was recognized by his brothers, and the kindred of Joseph became known to Pharaoh.
During their second visit, Joseph revealed to his brothers who he was, and Pharaoh discovered Joseph's family background.
14 Then Joseph sent and called his father Jacob to him, and all his kindred, seventy five souls.
Joseph sent for his father and all his relatives—seventy-five in total.
15 And Jacob went down [[into Egypt]], and died, he and our fathers.
Jacob traveled to Egypt, and died there—as did our forefathers.
16 And they were removed to Shechem, and laid in the tomb that Abraham bought for a sum of money of the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem.
Their bodies were brought back to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought with silver from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.
17 But as the time of the promise drew near, which God solemnly made to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt,
As the time approached regarding the promise that God had made to Abraham, the number of our people in Egypt increased.
18 until another king arose, who knew not Joseph.
A new king came to the throne in Egypt who knew nothing about Joseph.
19 The same dealt subtly with our race, and ill-treated our fathers, so that they should cast out their infants, that they might not be preserved alive.
He took advantage of our people and treated our ancestors badly, forcing them to abandon their babies so they would die.
20 In which time Moses was born, and was exceedingly fair; who was nourished in his father's house three months.
It was at this time that Moses was born. He was a handsome child, and for three months he was looked after in his father's home.
21 And when he was cast out, Pharaoh's daughter took him up, and nourished him for herself as a son.
When he had to be abandoned, Pharaoh's daughter rescued him and took care of him as her own son.
22 And Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in his worlds and deeds.
Moses received instruction in all areas of Egyptian knowledge, and he became a powerful speaker and leader.
23 And when he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the sons of Israel.
However, when he was forty years old, he decided to visit his relatives, the Israelites.
24 And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed by smiting the Egyptian.
He saw one of them being mistreated, so he intervened to defend him. On behalf of the man he took revenge and killed the Egyptian.
25 For he supposed his brethren would understand that God through his hand would give them salvation; but they understood not.
Moses thought his fellow Israelites would see that God was rescuing them through him, but they didn't.
26 And the next day he showed himself to them as they were contending, and urged them to peace, saying, Ye are brethren; why do ye wrong one another?
The next day when he arrived, two Israelites were fighting one another. He tried to reconcile them and stop the fight. ‘Men! You are brothers!’ he told them. ‘Why are you attacking each other?’
27 But he who was wronging his neighbor thrust him away, saying, “Who made thee a ruler and a judge over us?
But the man who had started the fight pushed Moses away. ‘Who put you in charge over us? Are you our judge now?’ he asked.
28 Dost thou mean to kill me, as thou didst kill the Egyptian yesterday?”
‘Are you going to kill me like you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’
29 And Moses fled at this saying, and became a sojourner in the land of Midian, where he begat two sons.
When he heard this, Moses ran away. He went and lived in exile in the land of Midian, where two sons were born to him.
30 And when forty years were completed, there appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai an angel in the flaming fire of a bush.
Forty years later, in the desert of Mount Sinai, an angel appeared to him in the flames of a burning bush.
31 And Moses seeing it wondered at the sight; and as he drew near to behold it, the voice of the Lord came [[to him]],
When Moses saw this, he was amazed at the sight, and went over to take a closer look. The voice of the Lord spoke to him:
32 saying, “I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob.” And Moses trembled and durst not behold.
‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob.’ Moses shook with fear and didn't dare look up.
33 And the Lord said to him, “Loose the sandals from thy feet; for the place where thou standest is holy ground.
The Lord told him, ‘Take off your sandals, because where you are standing is holy ground.
34 I have surely seen the oppression of my people in Egypt, and I have heard their groaning, and am come down to deliver them; and now, come, I will send thee into Egypt.”
I have closely observed the suffering of my people in Egypt, and I have heard their groans. I have come down to rescue them. Now come over here, for I'm sending you to Egypt.’
35 This Moses, whom they denied, saying, “Who made thee a ruler and a judge?” this very man did God send both as a ruler and a redeemer with the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush.
This was the same Moses that the people had rejected when they said, ‘Who made you a ruler and judge over us?’ God sent him to be both a ruler and a liberator, by means of the angel who appeared to him in the bush.
36 This very man brought them out, working wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red Sea, and in the wilderness forty years.
Moses led them out after performing miraculous signs in Egypt, and in the Red Sea, and continued to do so in the desert for forty years.
37 This is the Moses who said to the sons of Israel, “A prophet will God raise up to you from among your brethren, as he raised up me.”
This is the same Moses who promised the Israelites, ‘God will send you a prophet like me from among your people.’
38 This is he that was in the assembly in the wilderness with the anger who spake to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers; who received the living oracles to give to us;
Moses was with God's assembled people in the desert when the angel spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and there with our forefathers he received God's living word to give to us.
39 to whom our fathers would not be obedient, but thrust him from them, and in their hearts turned back into Egypt,
He was the one our fathers wouldn't listen to. They rejected him and decided to return to Egypt.
40 saying to Aaron, “Make us gods who shall go before us; for as for this Moses, who brought us out of the land of Egypt, we know not what is become of him.”
They told Aaron, ‘Make gods for us to lead us, because we don't know what's happened to this Moses who led us out of the land of Egypt.’
41 And they made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice to the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands.
Then they made an idol in the shape of a calf, sacrificed to it, and celebrated what they themselves had made!
42 But God turned away, and gave them up to worship the host of heaven; as it is written in the book of the Prophets, “Did ye offer to me slain beasts and sacrifices for forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?
So God gave up on them. He left them to their worship of the stars in the sky. This is what the prophets wrote, ‘Were you giving offerings or making sacrifices to me during the forty years in the desert, you Israelites?
43 And ye took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of the god Rephan, the figures which ye made to worship them; and I will carry you away beyond Babylon.”
No, you carried the Tabernacle of the god Moloch and the image of the god Rephan's star, images that you made so you could worship them. So I will banish you in exile beyond Babylon.’
44 Our fathers had the tabernacle of the testimony in the wilderness, as he that spoke to Moses commanded that he should make it according to the pattern that he had seen;
Our ancestors had the Tabernacle of Testimony in the desert. God had told Moses how he should make it following the blueprint he had seen.
45 which also our fathers received and brought in with Joshua, at their taking possession of the gentiles whom God drove out from before our fathers, until the days of David;
Later on, our forefathers carried it with them when they went in with Joshua to occupy the land taken from the nations the Lord drove out before them. It stayed there until the time of David.
46 who found favor before God, and asked that he might find a habitation for the God of Jacob.
David found favor with God and asked to make a more permanent home for the God of Jacob.
47 But Solomon built him a house.
But it was Solomon who built a Temple for him.
48 Yet the Most High dwelleth not in [[temples]] made with hands; as saith the prophet,
Of course the Almighty doesn't live in temples we make. As the prophet said,
49 “Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What house will ye build for me? saith the Lord; or what is the place of my rest?
‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth the place I put my feet. What kind of dwelling could you build for me?’ the Lord asks. ‘What bed could you make for me to rest in?
50 Did not my hands make all these things?”
Didn't I make everything?’
51 Stiffnecked, and uncircumcised in heart and ears! ye do always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do ye.
You arrogant, hard-hearted people! You never listen! You always fight against the Holy Spirit! You act just like your fathers did!
52 Which of the prophets did not your fathers persecute? And they slew those who foretold the coming of the righteous one, of whom ye have now become the betrayers and murderers;
Was there ever a prophet your fathers didn't persecute? They killed those who prophesied about the coming of the one who is truly good and right. He is the one you betrayed and murdered—
53 ye who received the Law as ordained through angels, and did not keep it.
you who received the law by means of the angels, but refused to keep it.”
54 But when they heard these things, their hearts were filled with rage, and they gnashed their teeth at him.
When they heard this, the council members became mad with rage, and snarled at him, grinding their teeth.
55 But, being full of the Holy Spirit, he looked up earnestly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,
But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed up into heaven and saw God's glory, with Jesus standing at God's right hand.
56 and said, Lo, I behold the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.
“Look,” he said, “I see heaven open, and the Son of Man standing at God's right hand.”
57 And they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and rushed upon him with one accord;
But they held their hands over their ears and shouted as loudly as they could. They rushed together at him,
58 and having cast him out of the city, they stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul;
dragged him out of the city, and began to stone him. His accusers laid their coats down beside a young man called Saul.
59 and they stoned Stephen, making supplication, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.
As they went on stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
60 And kneeling down he cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And saying this, he fell asleep.
He kneeled down, calling out, “Lord, please don't hold this sin against them!” And after he said this, he died.
