Stephen's
Speech To The Sanhedrin
Then
the High Priest asked him,
'ARE
THESE CHARGES TRUE?'
2
To this he replied”
'Brothers
and fathers, listen to me!
The
God of Glory appeared to our father Abraham
While
he was still in Mesopotamia,
Before
he lived in Haran.
3
'LEAVE YOUR COUNTRY AND YOUR PEOPLE,' GOD SAID,
AND GO
TO THE LAND I WILL SHOW YOU.'
4
So he left the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran.
After
the death of his father,
God
sent him to this land where you are now living.
5
He gave him no Inheritance here,
Not
even a foot of ground.
But
God Promised him
That
he wand his Descendants after him
Would
possess the land,
Even
though at the time Abraham had no child.
6
God spoke to him in this way;
'YOUR
DECENDANTS WILL BE STRANGERS
IN
A COUNTRY NOT THEIR OWN,
AND
THEY WILL BE ENSLAVED
AND
MISTREATED FOUR HUNDRED YEARS.
7
But I will Punish the Nation they serve as slaves,'
God
said,
And
afterward they will come out of that country
And
worship me in this place.'
8
THEN HE GAVE ABRAHM THE COVENANT OF CIRCUMCISION.
And
Abraham became the father of Isaac
And
circumcised him eight days after his birth.
Later
Isaac became the father of Jacob,
And
Jacob became the father of the Twelve Patriarchs.
9
Because the Patriarchs were Jealous of Joseph,
They
Sold him as a Slave into Egypt.
But
God was with him
10
And Rescued him from all his Troubles.
He
gave Joseph wisdom
And
enabled him to gain the good will of Pharaoh
King
of Egypt;
So
he made him Ruler over Egypt and all his Palace.
11
Then a Famine struck all Egypt and Canaan,
Bringing
Great Suffering,
And
our fathers could not find food.
12
When Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt,
He
sent our fathers on their first Visit,
Joseph
told his brother who he was,
And
Pharaoh learned about Joseph's family.
14
After this, Joseph sent for his father Jacob and his whole family,
Seventy-five
in all.
15
Then Jacob went down to Egypt,
Where
he and our fathers died.
16
Their bodies were brought back to Shechem
And
placed in the Tomb the sons of Hamor
At
Shechem for a certain sum of money.
17
As the time drew near
For
God to Fulfill His Promise to Abraham,
The
number of our people on Egypt greatly increased.
18
Then another king,
Who
knew nothing about Joseph,
Became
Ruler of Egypt.
19
He dealt Treacherously with our people
And
Oppressed our forefathers
By
forcing them to throw out their new born babies
So
that they would die.
20
At that time Moses was born,
And
he was no Ordinary Child.
For
three months he was cared for in his father's house.
21
When he was placed outside,
Pharaoh's
Daughter took him
And
brought him up as her own son.
22
Moses was Educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians
And
was Powerful in Speech and Action.
23
When Moses was forty years old,
He
decided to visit his fellow Israelites.
24
He saw one of them being mistreated by and Egyptian,
So
he went to his Defense
And
Avenged him by Killing the Egyptian.
25
Moses thought that his own people
Would
realize that God was using him to Rescue them,
But
they did not.
26
The next day Moses came upon two Israelites
Who
were fighting.
He
tried to reconcile them by saying,
'Men,
you are brothers;
Why
do you want to hurt each other?'
But
the man who was Mistreating the other
Pushed
Moses aside and said,
'Who
made you Ruler and Judge over us?
28
Do you want to Kill me
As
you Killed the Egyptian yesterday?'
29
When Moses heard this,
He
Fled to Midian,
Where
he settled as a Foreigner and had two sons.
30
After Forty years had passed,
AN
ANGEL APPEARED TO MOSES
IN
THE FLAMES OF A BURNING BUSH
IN
THE DESERT NEAR MOUNT SINAI.
WHEN
HE SAW THIS HE WAS AMAZED AT THE SIGHT.
Ashe
went over to look more closely,
He
heard the Lord's Voice:
32
'I AM THE GOD OF YOUR FATHERS,
THE
GOD OF ABRAHAM, ISAAC AND JACOB.'
MOSES
TREMBLED WITH FEAR
AND
DID NOT DARE TO LOOK.
33
Then the Lord said to him,
'TAKE
OFF YOUR SANDALS;
THE
PLACE WHERE YOU ARE STANDING
IS
HOLY GROUND.
34
I HAVE INDEED SEEN THE OPPRESSION
OF
MY PEOPLE IN EGYPT.
I
HAVE HEARD THEIR GROANING
AND
HAVE COME DOWN TO SET THEM FREE.
NOW
COME, I WILL SEND YOU BACK TO EGYPT.'
35
This same Moses
Whom
they had Rejected with the words,
'WHO
MADE YOU RULER AND JUDGE?'
He
was sent to be their ruler and Deliverer
By
God Himself,
Through
the Angel
Who
appeared to him in the Bush.
36
He led them out of Egypt
And
did Wonders and Miraculous Signs in Egypt,
At
the Red Sea
And
for forty years in the desert.
37
This is that Moses who told the Israelites,
'GO
WILL SEND YOU A PROPHET LIKE ME
FROM
YOUR OWN PEOPLE.'
38
He was in the Assembly in the Desert,
With
our fathers and with the Angel
Who
spoke to him on Mount Sinai;
AND
HE RECEIVED LIVING WORDS
TO
PASS ON TO US.
39
BUT OUR FATHERS REFUSED TO OBEY HIM.
INSTEAD
THEY REJECTED HIM
AND
IN THEIR HEARTS TURNED BACK TO EGYPT.
40
They told Aaron,
'MAKE
US GODS WHO WILL GO BEFORE US.
As
for this fellow Moses
Who
led us out of Egypt--
We
don't know what has happened to him!'
41
That was the time they made an Idol
In
the form of a Calf.
They
brought Sacrifices to it
AND
HELD A CELEBRATION IN HONOR
OF
WHAT THEIR HANDS HAD MADE.
42
BUT GOD TURNED AWAY
AND
GAVE THEM OVER TO THE WORSHIP
OF
THE HEAVENLY BODIES.
This
agrees with what is written
In
the book of the Prophets:
'Did
you bring Me Sacrifices and Offerings
Forty
years in the Desert, O House of Israel?
43
You have lifted up the Shrine of Moloch
and
the Star of your god Rephan,
the
Idols you made to worship.
THEREFORE
I WILL SEND YOU INTO EXILE
BEYOND
BABYLON.
44
Our forefathers
Had
the Tabernacle of Testimony with them in the Desert.
I
had been made as God directed Moses,
According
to the Pattern he had seen.
45
Having received the Tabernacle,
Our
fathers under Joshua
Brought
it with them when they took the land
From
the Nations God Drove Out before them.
It
remained in the land until the time of David,
Who
enjoyed God's Favor
And
asked that he might provide a Dwelling Place
For
the God of Jacob.
But
it was Solomon who built the House for him.
48
However, the Most High does not live
In
Houses made by men.
As
the Prophet says:
49
Heaven is My Throne
And
Earth is My Footstool.
What
kind of House will you build for Me?
Says
the Lord.
Or
where will My Resting Place be?
50
Has not My Hand made all these things?
51
YOU STIFF-NECKED PEOPLE,
WITH
UNCIRCUMCISED HEARTS AND EARS!
YOU
ARE JUST LIKE YOUR FATHERS:
YOU
ALWAYS RESIST THE HOLY SPIRIT!
52
WAS THERE EVER A PROPHET
YOUR
FATHERS DID NOT PERSECUTE?
THEY
EVEN KILLED THOSE WHO PREDICTED
THE
COMING OF THE RIGHTEOUS ONE.
AND
NOW YOU HAVE BETRAYED AND MURDERED HIM--
53
YOU WHO HAVE RECEIVED THE LAW
THAT
WAS PUT INTO EFFECT TRHOUGH ANGELS
BUT
HAVE NOT OBEYED IT.
The
Stoning Of Stephen
54
WHEN THEY HEARD THIS,
THEY
WERE FURIOUS
AND
GNASHED THEIR TEETH AT HIM.
BUT
STEPHEN, FULL OW THE HOLY SPIRIT,
LOOKED
UP TO HEAVEN
AND
SAW THE GLORY OF GOD,
AND
JESUS STANDING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD.
56
'LOOK,' he said,
'I
SEE HEAVEN OPEN
AND
THE SON OF MAN STANDING
AT
THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD.'
57
At this they Covered their ears and,
Yelling
at the top of their voices
They
all rushed at him,
58
Dragged him out of the City
And
began to Stone him.
Meanwhile,
the Witnesses
Laid
their clothes at the feet
Of
a young man named Saul.
While
they were Stoning him,
Stephen
prayed,
'LORD
JESUS, RECEIVE MY SPIRIT.'
60
THEN HE FELL ON HIS KNEES
AND
CRIED OUT,
'LORD
DO NOT HOLD THIS SIN AGAINST THEM.'
When
he had said this, he fell asleep.
(Acts
7)
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