1 T he head religious leader asked Stephen, “Are these things true?”

The high priest said, “Are these things so?”

2 S tephen said, “My brothers and fathers, listen to me. The great God showed Himself to our early father Abraham while he lived in the country of Mesopotamia. This was before he moved to the country of Haran.

And he said, “Hear me, brethren and fathers! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran,

3 G od said to him, ‘Leave your family and this land where you were born. Go to a land that I will show you.’

and said to him, ‘ Leave your country and your relatives, and come into the land that I will show you.’

4 H e went from the land of the Chaldeans and lived in Haran. After his father died, he came to this country where you now live.

Then he left the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. From there, after his father died, God had him move to this country in which you are now living.

5 G od did not give him any land to own, not even enough to put his feet on. But He promised that the land would be his and his children’s after him. At that time he had no children.

But He gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot of ground, and yet, even when he had no child, He promised that He would give it to him as a possession, and to his descendants after him.

6 T his is what God said, ‘Your children’s children will be living in a strange land. They will live there 400 years. They will be made to work without pay and will suffer many hard things.

But God spoke to this effect, that his descendants would be aliens in a foreign land, and that they would be enslaved and mistreated for four hundred years.

7 I will say to that nation that it is guilty for holding them and making them work without pay. After that they will go free. They will leave that country and worship Me in this place.’

‘ And whatever nation to which they will be in bondage I Myself will judge,’ said God, ‘ and after that they will come out and serve Me in this place.’

8 “ He made a promise with Abraham. It was kept by a religious act of becoming a Jew. Abraham had a son, Isaac. On the eighth day Abraham took Isaac and had this religious act done to him. Isaac was the father of Jacob. Jacob was the father of our twelve early fathers.

And He gave him the covenant of circumcision; and so Abraham became the father of Isaac, and circumcised him on the eighth day; and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs.

9 “ The sons of Jacob sold Joseph to people from the country of Egypt because they were jealous of him. But God was with Joseph.

“The patriarchs became jealous of Joseph and sold him into Egypt. Yet God was with him,

10 H e helped him in all his troubles. He gave him wisdom and favor with Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. This king made Joseph leader over Egypt and over all the king’s house.

and rescued him from all his afflictions, and granted him favor and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he made him governor over Egypt and all his household.

11 “ The time came when there was no food to eat in all the land of Egypt and Canaan. The people suffered much. Our early fathers were not able to get food.

“Now a famine came over all Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction with it, and our fathers could find no food.

12 T hen Jacob heard there was food in Egypt. He sent our early fathers there the first time.

But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers there the first time.

13 “ The second time they went to the country of Egypt, Joseph made himself known to his brothers. The family of Joseph became known to Pharaoh.

On the second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family was disclosed to Pharaoh.

14 J oseph asked his father Jacob and all his family to come. There were seventy-five people in the family.

Then Joseph sent word and invited Jacob his father and all his relatives to come to him, seventy-five persons in all.

15 J acob moved down to Egypt and died there. Our early fathers died there also.

And Jacob went down to Egypt and there he and our fathers died.

16 T hey were brought back to the city of Shechem where they were buried. Abraham paid money for the grave from the sons of Hamor in Shechem. Stephen Speaks about the God of Moses

From there they were removed to Shechem and laid in the tomb which Abraham had purchased for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.

17 “ The promise God had given Abraham was about to happen. At this time many more of our people were in the country of Egypt.

“But as the time of the promise was approaching which God had assured to Abraham, the people increased and multiplied in Egypt,

18 T hen another man became king in Egypt. He was a king who did not know Joseph.

until there arose another king over Egypt who knew nothing about Joseph.

19 H e was hard on our people and nation. He worked against our early fathers. He made them put their babies outside so they would die.

It was he who took shrewd advantage of our race and mistreated our fathers so that they would expose their infants and they would not survive.

20 “ At that time Moses was born. He was beautiful in God’s sight. He was fed in his father’s house for three months.

It was at this time that Moses was born; and he was lovely in the sight of God, and he was nurtured three months in his father’s home.

21 T hen he was put outside. Pharaoh’s daughter took him and cared for him as her own son.

And after he had been set outside, Pharaoh’s daughter took him away and nurtured him as her own son.

22 M oses was taught in all the wisdom of the Egyptians. He became a powerful man in words and in the things he did.

Moses was educated in all the learning of the Egyptians, and he was a man of power in words and deeds.

23 W hen he was forty years old, he thought he should visit his brothers, the Jews.

But when he was approaching the age of forty, it entered his mind to visit his brethren, the sons of Israel.

24 H e saw one of the Jews being hurt. Moses helped the Jew and killed the man from Egypt.

And when he saw one of them being treated unjustly, he defended him and took vengeance for the oppressed by striking down the Egyptian.

25 H e thought his people would understand. He thought they knew God would let them go free by his help. But the people did not understand.

And he supposed that his brethren understood that God was granting them deliverance through him, but they did not understand.

26 “ The next day Moses came to some Jews who were fighting. He tried to get them to stop. Moses said to the Jews, ‘Sirs, you are brothers. Why do you hurt each other?’

On the following day he appeared to them as they were fighting together, and he tried to reconcile them in peace, saying, ‘Men, you are brethren, why do you injure one another?’

27 O ne was beating his neighbor. He pushed Moses away and said, ‘Who made you a leader over us? Who said you could say who is guilty?

But the one who was injuring his neighbor pushed him away, saying, ‘ Who made you a ruler and judge over us ?

28 D o you want to kill me as you killed the man from Egypt yesterday?’

You do not mean to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday, do you ?’

29 W hen Moses heard that, he went as fast as he could to the country of Midian where he was a stranger. While he was there, he became the father of two sons.

At this remark, Moses fled and became an alien in the land of Midian, where he became the father of two sons.

30 F orty years passed and Moses was near Mount Sinai where no people live. There he saw an angel in the fire of a burning bush.

“After forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in the flame of a burning thorn bush.

31 H e was surprised and wondered when he saw it. He went up close to see it better. Then he heard the voice of the Lord speak to him.

When Moses saw it, he marveled at the sight; and as he approached to look more closely, there came the voice of the Lord:

32 ‘ I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob.’ Moses shook! He was so afraid he did not look at the bush.

‘ I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob.’ Moses shook with fear and would not venture to look.

33 “ Then the Lord said to him, ‘Take your shoes off your feet! The place where you are standing is holy ground.

But the Lord said to him, ‘ Take off the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.

34 I have seen My people suffer in the country of Egypt and I have heard their cries. I have come down to let them go free. So come now, I will send you back to Egypt.’

I have certainly seen the oppression of My people in Egypt and have heard their groans, and I have come down to rescue them; come now, and I will send you to Egypt.’

35 “ The people had put Moses aside. They said, ‘Who made you a leader over us? Who said you are the one to say what is right or wrong?’ But God made this man a leader. Moses was the one who brought them out of the country of Egypt. This was done by the help of the angel who was in the burning bush.

“This Moses whom they disowned, saying, ‘ Who made you a ruler and a judge ?’ is the one whom God sent to be both a ruler and a deliverer with the help of the angel who appeared to him in the thorn bush.

36 T his man led them. He did powerful works in Egypt and at the Red Sea. For forty years he led them in the desert.

This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in the land of Egypt and in the Red Sea and in the wilderness for forty years.

37 “ Moses said to the Jews, ‘God will give you one who speaks for Him like me from among your brothers.’

This is the Moses who said to the sons of Israel, ‘ God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brethren.’

38 T his is the man who was with the Jewish nation in the desert. The angel talked to him on Mount Sinai. Moses told it to our early fathers. He also received the living Words of God to give to us.

This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness together with the angel who was speaking to him on Mount Sinai, and who was with our fathers; and he received living oracles to pass on to you.

39 “ Our early fathers would not listen to him. They did not obey him. In their hearts they wanted to go back to the country of Egypt.

Our fathers were unwilling to be obedient to him, but repudiated him and in their hearts turned back to Egypt,

40 T hey said to Aaron, ‘Make us gods to go before us. We do not know what has happened to this Moses who led us out of Egypt.’

saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods who will go before us; for this Moses who led us out of the land of Egypt — we do not know what happened to him.’

41 “ In those days they made a calf of gold. They put gifts down in front of their god in worship. They were happy with what they had made with their hands.

At that time they made a calf and brought a sacrifice to the idol, and were rejoicing in the works of their hands.

42 B ut God turned from them and let them worship the stars of heaven. This is written in the book of the early preachers, ‘Nation of Jews, was it to Me you gave gifts of sheep and cattle on the altar for forty years in the desert?

But God turned away and delivered them up to serve the host of heaven; as it is written in the book of the prophets, ‘ It was not to Me that you offered victims and sacrifices forty years in the wilderness, was it, O house of Israel ?

43 N o, you set up the tent to worship the god of Molock and the star of your god Rompha. You made gods to worship them. I will carry you away to the other side of the country of Babylon.’ The Place of Worship and the House of God

You also took along the tabernacle of Moloch and the star of the god Rompha, the images which you made to worship. I also will remove you beyond Babylon.’

44 “ Our early fathers had the tent to worship in. They used it in the desert. God told Moses to make it like the plan which he had seen.

“Our fathers had the tabernacle of testimony in the wilderness, just as He who spoke to Moses directed him to make it according to the pattern which he had seen.

45 T his was received by our early fathers. They brought it here when they won the wars with the people who were not Jews. It was when Joshua was our leader. God made those people leave as our early fathers took the land. The tent was here until the time of David.

And having received it in their turn, our fathers brought it in with Joshua upon dispossessing the nations whom God drove out before our fathers, until the time of David.

46 D avid pleased God and wanted to build a house for worship for the God of Jacob.

David found favor in God’s sight, and asked that he might find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.

47 B ut Solomon was the one who built the house of God for Him.

But it was Solomon who built a house for Him.

48 B ut the Most High does not live in buildings made by hands. The early preacher said,

However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands; as the prophet says:

49 ’ Heaven is the place where I sit and the earth is the place where I rest My feet. What house will you build Me?’ says the Lord. ‘Or what is My place of rest?

‘ Heaven is My throne, And earth is the footstool of My feet; What kind of house will you build for Me ?’ says the Lord, ‘ Or what place is there for My repose ?

50 D id not My hands make all these things?’ The Jews Are Hurt

‘ Was it not My hand which made all these things ?’

51 “ You have hard hearts and ears that will not listen to me! You are always working against the Holy Spirit. Your early fathers did. You do too.

“You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did.

52 W hich of the early preachers was not beaten and hurt by your early fathers? They killed those who told of the coming of the One Right with God. Now you have handed Him over and killed Him.

Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become;

53 Y ou had the Law given to you by angels. Yet you have not kept it.” Stephen Is Killed

you who received the law as ordained by angels, and yet did not keep it.” Stephen Put to Death

54 T he Jews and religious leaders listened to Stephen. Then they became angry and began to grind their teeth at him.

Now when they heard this, they were cut to the quick, and they began gnashing their teeth at him.

55 H e was filled with the Holy Spirit. As he looked up to heaven, he saw the shining-greatness of God and Jesus standing at the right side of God.

But being full of the Holy Spirit, he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God;

56 H e said, “See! I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right side of God!”

and he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”

57 T hey cried out with loud voices. They put their hands over their ears and they all pushed on him.

But they cried out with a loud voice, and covered their ears and rushed at him with one impulse.

58 T hen they took him out of the city and threw stones at him. The men who were throwing the stones laid their coats down in front of a young man named Saul.

When they had driven him out of the city, they began stoning him; and the witnesses laid aside their robes at the feet of a young man named Saul.

59 W hile they threw stones at Stephen, he prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”

They went on stoning Stephen as he called on the Lord and said, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!”

60 A fter that he fell on his knees and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he died.

Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them!” Having said this, he fell asleep.