Acts 7
1 Then the high priest asked Stephen, “Are the things that [these people are saying about you(sg)] true?”
And the high priest asked him: Are these things so?
2 Stephen replied, “Fellow Jews and respected leaders, [please] listen to me! The glorious God [whom we(inc) worship] appeared to our ancestor Abraham while he was still [living] in Mesopotamia [region], before he moved to Haran [town].
And he said: Men, brethren, and our fathers, hear ye. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham, when he was between the rivers, before he came to reside in Charran;
3 God said to him, ‘Leave this land where you [(sg)] and your relatives [are living], and go into the land to which I will lead you.’
and he said to him: Depart from thy country, and from thy kindred, and go to a land which I will show to thee.
4 So Abraham left that land, [which was also called] Chaldea, and he arrived in Haran and lived there. After his father died, God told him to move to this land in which you [and I] are now living.”
And then Abraham departed from the land of the Chaldeans, and came and dwelt in Charran. And from there, after his father had died, God removed him to this land, in which ye this day dwell.
5 “[At that time] God did not give Abraham any [land here], not even a small plot of [this] land that would belong to him. God promised that he would [later] give this land to him and his descendants, and that it would [always] belong [to them. However], at that time Abraham did not have any children [who would] ([inherit it/receive it after he died]).”
And he did not give him an inheritance in it, not even a foot-track: but he promised that he would give it him, as an inheritance to him and to his seed, when as yet he had no son.
6 “[Later] God told Abraham, ‘Your descendants will go and live in a foreign country. They [will live there] for 400 years, and [during that time their leaders] will mistreat your descendants and force them to work as slaves.’
And God conversed with him, and said to him: Thy seed will be a sojourner in a foreign land; and they will reduce it to servitude, and will treat it ill, during four hundred years.
7 But God [also] said, ‘I will punish the people who make them work as slaves. Then, after that, your descendants will leave [that land] and they will [come and] worship me in this land.’”
And the nation, to whom they perform bondservice, I will judge saith God. And afterwards, they will go out, and will worship me in this land.
8 “Then God commanded Abraham that [every male in his household and all of his male descendants] should be circumcised [to show that they all belonged to God] and that they would obey what he had told Abraham to do. Later Abraham’s son, Isaac, was born, and when Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him. [Later] Isaac’s son, Jacob, was born, and Isaac [similarly circumcised] him. And Jacob [similarly circumcised] his twelve sons. They are the twelve men [from whom we(inc) Jews have all descended].”
And he gave them the covenant of circumcision. And then he begat Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day. And Isaac begat Jacob: and Jacob begat our twelve fathers.
9 “[You know that] Jacob’s [older] sons became jealous [because their father favored their younger brother] Joseph. So they sold him [to merchants/traders who took him] [MTY] to Egypt. There he became a slave [of an official who lived there]. But God [helped] Joseph.
And those our fathers envied Joseph, and sold him into Egypt: but God was with him,
10 He protected him whenever people caused him to suffer. He enabled Joseph to be wise; and he caused Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, to think well of Joseph. So Pharaoh appointed him to rule [over] Egypt and to look after all of Pharaoh’s property [MTY].”
and delivered: him from all his afflictions; and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he made him chief over Egypt, and over all his house.
11 “[While Joseph was doing that work], there was a time (when there was very little food/of famine) throughout Egypt and also throughout Canaan. People did not have enough food to eat. People were suffering. [At that time] Jacob and his sons [in Canaan] also could not find [enough] food.
And there was a famine and great distress in all Egypt, and in the land of Canaan, and our fathers lacked food.
12 When Jacob heard [people report that] there was grain/food [that people could buy] in Egypt, he sent Joseph’s older brothers [to go there to buy grain. They went and bought grain from Joseph, but they did not recognize him. Then they returned home].
And when Jacob heard that there was bread-stuff in Egypt, he sent our fathers a first time.
13 When Joseph’s brothers went to Egypt the second time, [they again bought grain from Joseph]. But this time [he] told them who he was. [And] people told Pharaoh that Joseph’s people were Hebrews [and that those men who had come from Canaan were his brothers].
And when they went the second time, Joseph made himself known to his brethren; and the kindred of Joseph was known to Pharaoh.
14 Then after Joseph sent [his brothers back home, they] told their father Jacob [that Joseph wanted] him and his entire family to come [to Egypt. At that time] ([Jacob’s family consisted of] 75 people/there were 75 people in Jacob’s family) [SYN].
And Joseph sent and brought is father Jacob, and all his family; and they were in number seventy and five souls.
15 [So when] Jacob [heard that, he and all his family] went to [live in] Egypt.” Acts 7:15b-16 “[Later on], Jacob died [there], and our [other] ancestors, [his sons, also died there].
And Jacob went down into Egypt; and he died there, he and our fathers.
16 [But] the bodies [of Jacob and Joseph] were brought {[they] brought the bodies [of Jacob and Joseph]} [back to our land], and [Jacob’s body] was buried {they buried [Jacob’s body]} [in the tomb that Abraham had bought, and they buried Joseph’s body] in Shechem in the ground that [Jacob] had bought from Hamor’s sons.”
And he was transported to Sychem, and was deposited in the sepulchre which Abraham bought with money of the sons of Emmor.
17 “Our ancestors had become very numerous when it was almost time for [God to rescue them] from Egypt, [as] he had promised Abraham that he would do.
And when the time arrived for that which God had promised to Abraham with an oath, the people had multiplied and become strong, in Egypt:
18 Another king had begun to rule in Egypt. He did not know that Joseph, [long before that time, had greatly helped the people of Egypt] [MTY].
until there arose another king over Egypt, who knew not Joseph.
19 That king cruelly tried to get rid of our ancestors. He oppressed them and caused them to suffer greatly. He [even commanded] them to leave their baby [boys] outside [their homes] so that they would die.”
And he dealt craftily with our kindred, and ill-treated our fathers, and gave orders that their infants should be cast away, and should not live.
20 “During that time Moses was born, and he was a very beautiful [LIT] [child]. So his parents [secretly] cared for him in their house for three months.
At that time was Moses born; and he was lovely to God: and he was nursed three months in his father's house.
21 Then they had to put him outside [the house, but] Pharaoh’s daughter [found him and] adopted him and cared for him as [though he were] her own son.
And when he was cast out, by his people, the daughter of Pharaoh found him, and brought him up for her own son.
22 Moses was taught {[The Egyptian teachers] taught Moses} many kinds of wise things [HYP] that the people in Egypt knew, and [when he grew up], he spoke powerfully and did things powerfully.”
And Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians; and he was eminent in his words, and also in his deeds.
23 “[One day] when Moses was about 40 years old, he decided that he would [go and] see his fellow Israelis. [So he went to the place where they worked].
And when he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the children of Israel.
24 He saw an Egyptian beating one of the Israelis. So he went over to help [MTY] the Israeli man who was being hurt/beat {whom [the Egyptian] was hurting/beating}, and he (got revenge on/paid back) the Israeli man by killing the Egyptian [who was hurting/beating him].
And he saw one of the race of his kindred treated with violence; and he avenged him, and did him justice, and killed the Egyptian who had abused him.
25 Moses was thinking that his fellow Israelis would understand that God had sent him to free them [from being slaves]. But they did not understand that.
And he supposed that his brethren the sons of Israel would have understood, that by his hand God would give them deliverance; but they understood not.
26 The next day, Moses saw two Israeli men fighting [each other]. He tried to make them stop fighting by saying to them, ‘Men, you two are fellow [Israelis! So] (stop hurting each other!/why are you hurting each other?) [RHQ]’
And on another day, he appeared to them, as they were quarrelling one with another. And he exhorted them to become reconciled, saying: Men, ye are brethren; why do ye seek to harm each other?
27 But the man who was injuring the other man pushed Moses away and said to him, ‘(No one appointed you [(sg)] to rule and judge us [(exc)]!/Do you [(sg)] think someone appointed you [(sg)] to rule and judge us [(exc)]?) [RHQ]
But he who did the wrong to his fellow, repulsed him from him, and said to him: Who constituted thee a ruler and a judge over us?
28 Do you want to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’
Dost thou seek to kill me, as thou killedst the Egyptian yesterday?
29 When Moses heard that, [he thought to himself, ‘Obviously, people know what I have done, and someone will kill me.’ He was afraid, so] he fled [from Egypt] to Midian land. He lived there [for some years]. He [got married, and he and his wife] had two sons.”
And Moses fled at that speech, and became a sojourner in the land of Midian. And he had two sons.
30 “[One day] 40 years later, [the Lord God appeared as] an angel to Moses. He appeared in a bush that was burning in the desert near Sinai Mountain.
And when forty years had been passed by him there, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sinai, in a fire that burned in a bush.
31 When Moses saw that, he was greatly surprised, [because the bush was not burning up]. As he went over to look more closely, he heard the Lord [God] say [to him],
And when Moses saw it, he admired the sight: and as he drew near to behold it, the Lord said to him, audibly:
32 ‘I [am] the God [whom] your ancestors [worshipped]. I [am] the God that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob [worship].’ Moses [was so afraid that he] began to shake. He was afraid to look [at the bush any longer].
I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob. And Moses trembled, and dared not to gaze at the sight.
33 Then the Lord [God] said to him, ‘Take your sandals off [to show that you(sg) revere me]. Because I [am here], the place where you are standing is holy/sacred.
And the Lord said to him: Loose thy shoes from thy feet; for the ground on which thou standest is holy.
34 I have surely seen how the people of Egypt are continually causing my people to suffer. I have heard my people when they groan [because those people continually oppress them]. So I have come down to rescue them [from Egypt]. Now get ready, because I am going to send you [back] to Egypt [to do that].’”
I have attentively seen the affliction of my people, who are in Egypt; and I have heard their groans, and have come down to deliver them. And now, come, I will send thee to Egypt.
35 “This Moses [is the one who had tried to help our Israeli people, but] whom they rejected [by saying], ‘No one [RHQ] appointed you to rule and judge [us!’] Moses [is the one whom] God [himself] sent to rule them and to free them [from being slaves. He is the one whom] an angel in the bush [commanded to do that].
This Moses, whom they rejected, saying, Who constituted thee a ruler and judge over us? this same did God, by the hand of the angel that appeared to him in the bush, send to them to be their captain and deliverer.
36 Moses [is the one who] led our ancestors out [from Egypt]. He did many kinds of miracles in Egypt, at the Red Sea, and during the 40 years [that the Israelite people lived] in the desert.
He it was that brought them out, working signs and wonders and prodigies in the land of Egypt, and at the sea of rushes, and in the desert, forty years.
37 This Moses is the one who said to the Israelite people, ‘God will appoint a prophet for you from among your own people. [He will speak words from God], just like I [speak his words to you].’
This Moses is the man who said to the children of Israel: A prophet, like me, will the Lord God raise up to you from among your brethren; to him give ear.
38 This man [Moses] was [our people’s leader] when they gathered together in the desert. It is Moses to whom [God sent] the angel on Sinai Mountain to [give him our laws], and [he was the one who told] our [other] ancestors [what the angel had said]. He was the one who received [from God] words that tell us how to live [eternally, and Moses] passed [them] on to us.”
He it was, who was in the congregation in the wilderness, with the angel that conversed with him and with our fathers at mount Sinai; and he it was, received the living words to give them to us.
39 “[However], our ancestors did not want to obey [Moses]. Instead, [while he was still on the mountain], they rejected him [as their leader] and decided that they wanted to return to Egypt.
And our fathers would not hearken to him, but forsook him, and in their hearts returned again to Egypt;
40 So they told [his older brother] Aaron, ‘Make idols for us who will be our gods to lead us [back to Egypt]! As for that fellow Moses who led us out of Egypt we [(exc)] do not know what has happened to him!’
when they said to Aaron: Make us gods who may go before us; because, as for this Moses who brought us from the land of Egypt, we know not what hath become of him.
41 So, they made [out of gold] an image [that looked like] a calf. Then they sacrificed [animals and offered other things] to [honor] that idol, and they sang and danced to honor the idol that they themselves had made.
And he made them a calf in those days; and they offered sacrifices to idols, and were voluptuous with the work of their hands.
42 So God rejected them. He abandoned them to worship the sun, moon and stars in the sky. This agrees with the words that one of the prophets wrote that God said, You Israelite [people] [MTY], when you [repeatedly] killed animals and offered them as sacrifices during those 40 years [that you were] in the desert, (you [most certainly] were not offering them to me!/what makes you think that you were offering them to me?) [RHQ]
And God turned away, and gave them up to worship the hosts of heaven: as it is written in the book of the prophets: Did ye, for forty years, in the wilderness, present to me a slain animal or a sacrifice, ye sons of Israel?
43 [On the contrary], you carried [with you from place to place] the tent [that contained the idol] representing [the god] Molech [that you worshipped]. You also [carried with you] the image of the star [called] Rephan. [Those] were idols that you had made, [and you] worshipped [them instead of me]. So I will [cause you to] be taken away {[people to] take you} [from your own country. You will be taken] {[They will take you]} [far from your homes to regions] even farther than Babylon [Country].”
But ye bore the tabernacle of Malchum, and the star of the god Rephon, images which ye had made, that ye might bow down to them. I will transport you beyond Babylon.
44 “While our ancestors were in the desert, they worshipped God at the tent that showed [that he was there with them]. They had made the tent exactly like God had commanded Moses [to make it. It was] exactly like the model that Moses had seen [when he was up on the mountain].
Lo, the tabernacle of the testimony of our fathers, was in the wilderness; as he who talked with Moses, commanded to make it after the form which he showed him.
45 [Later on], other ancestors of ours carried that tent with them when Joshua led them [into this land]. That was during the time that they took this land for themselves, when God forced the people [who previously lived here] to leave. So the Israelis were able to possess this land. [The tent remained in this land and was still here] when [King] David ruled.
And this same tabernacle, our fathers, with Joshua, actually brought into the land which God gave to them for an inheritance from those nations which he drove out before them; and it was borne about, until the days of David.
46 David pleased God, and he asked God to let him build a house where [he and] all of our Israeli people could worship God.
He found favor before God; and he requested, that he might find a residence for the God of Jacob.
47 But [instead, God let David’s son] Solomon build a house [where people could worship] God.”
But Solomon built the house.
48 “However, [we(inc) know that] God is greater than everything, and he does not live in [houses that] people [SYN] have made. It is like the prophet [Isaiah] wrote. He wrote [these words that God had spoken: ]
Yet the most High lodgeth not in a work of human hands; as saith the prophet:
49 Heaven is (my throne/the place from which I rule the entire universe), and the earth is (my footstool/[merely like] a stool on which I may rest my feet). I myself [SYN] have made everything [both in heaven and on the earth]. So you [human beings], ([you] really cannot build a house that would be [adequate] for me!/do you think you can build a house that would be [appropriate] for me?) [RHQ] You cannot [RHQ] make a place good enough for me [to live in]!”
Heaven is my throne, and earth the footstool under my feet. What is the house, ye will build for me? saith the Lord: or, what is the place of my repose?
Lo, hath not my hand made all these things?
51 “You people are extremely stubborn [MET], not wanting to obey God or listen [MTY] [to him!] You are exactly like your ancestors! You always resist the Holy Spirit [as they did]!
O ye stiff of neck, and uncircumcised in their heart, and in their hearing; ye do always set yourselves against the Holy Spirit; as your fathers, so also ye.
52 Your ancestors caused [RHQ] every prophet to suffer, [including Moses]. They even killed those who long ago announced [that the Messiah] would come, the one who always did what pleased God. [And the Messiah has come! He is the one whom] you [recently] turned over [to his enemies] and [insisted that] they kill him!
For, which of the prophets did not your fathers persecute and kill, even them, who foretold the coming of the Just One, whom ye delivered up and slew?
53 You [are the people] who have received God’s laws. [Those were laws] that God caused angels to give [to our ancestors]. However, [incredibly], you have not obeyed them!”
And ye have received the law by the ordination of angels, and have not kept it.
54 When the Jewish Council members [and others there] heard all that [Stephen said], they became very angry. They were grinding their teeth [together because they were so angry] at him!
And when they heard these things, they were filled with rage in their souls; and they gnashed their teeth against him.
55 But the Holy Spirit completely controlled Stephen. He looked up into heaven and saw a dazzling light from God, and [he saw] Jesus standing at God’s right side.
And he, as he was full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, looked towards 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 I [see] the one who came from heaven standing at God’s right side!”
And he said: Lo, I see heaven open, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.
57 [When the Jewish Council members and others heard that], they shouted loudly. They put their hands over their ears [so that they could not hear Stephen, and immediately] they all rushed at him.
And they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and all rushed upon him.
58 They dragged him outside the city [of Jerusalem] and started to throw stones at him. The people who were accusing him [took off] their outer garments [in order to throw stones more easily, and] they put their clothes [on the ground] next to a young man whose name was Saul, [so that he could guard them].
And they seized him, and hurried him out of the city, and stoned him. And they who testified against him, laid their clothes at the feet of a certain young man who was called Saul.
59 While they continued to throw stones at Stephen, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!”
And they stoned Stephen, while he prayed and said: Our Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.
60 Then Stephen fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not punish them (OR, forgive them) [LIT] for this sin!” After he had said that, he died.
And when he had kneeled down, he cried with a loud voice, and said: Our Lord, establish not this sin against them. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
