Acts 7

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Acts 7 is Stephen's defense before the Sanhedrin, the longest speech in Acts, and the story of the first Christian martyr. Accused of speaking against the temple and the law, Stephen retells Israel's history from Abraham through Joseph and Moses to David and Solomon, showing that God has always met his people outside the land and outside any building, and that Israel has always resisted the deliverers God sent. He ends by charging the council with betraying and murdering the Righteous One. Enraged, they stone him while he sees Jesus standing at God's right hand and prays for their forgiveness. A young man named Saul watches.

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Acts 7 is a history lesson that ends in a stoning. Stephen, accused of speaking against the temple and the law, does not deny the charges directly. He tells Israel's story, and the way he tells it is the defense. God appeared to Abraham in Mesopotamia, long before there was a land or a temple, and gave him a promise rather than a foot of ground. Joseph was rejected by his brothers and became the ruler who saved them. Moses was rejected by his people twice, once in Egypt and once in the wilderness, and met God on holy ground in the desert near Sinai, far from Jerusalem. The people who received the tabernacle, built to a heavenly pattern, turned to a calf and to the stars. Solomon built a house, but the Most High does not dwell in houses made by hands; heaven is his throne. Then Stephen turns on his judges. You always resist the Holy Spirit, as your fathers did; they killed the prophets who foretold the Righteous One, and you have betrayed and murdered him. The council's rage is immediate. But Stephen is looking elsewhere. He sees heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God, and he says so. They drag him out and stone him, laying their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul. Stephen's last words are prayers: receive my spirit, and do not hold this sin against them. Luke says he fell asleep.

Passages clés

Acts 7:2-8 Acts 7:30-38 Acts 7:44-53 Acts 7:54-60 Isaiah 66:1-2

Historical and literary context

Stephen was one of seven men chosen in chapter 6 to serve the Greek-speaking widows, and his preaching in the Hellenistic synagogues drew the charge that he spoke against Moses and the temple. The Sanhedrin was the same council that had condemned Jesus. Stephen's speech draws on Genesis, Exodus, Amos, and Isaiah, and reflects a reading of Israel's story in which the tabernacle, made to a heavenly pattern, stands over against the temple, and in which God's presence was never confined to Jerusalem. His death, apparently a mob action rather than a formal execution, scattered the church and, Luke notes, was approved by Saul of Tarsus.

How the chapter unfolds

Verses 1 to 8 cover Abraham, called in Mesopotamia and given no land but a promise. Verses 9 to 16 cover Joseph, rejected by his brothers and made a ruler in Egypt. Verses 17 to 43 cover Moses at length: his birth, his rejection by his own people, the burning bush on holy ground far from the land, the exodus, the promise of a prophet like him, and the golden calf, with Amos quoted on Israel's idolatry. Verses 44 to 50 move from the tabernacle to Solomon's temple and Isaiah's word that the Most High does not dwell in houses made by hands. Verses 51 to 53 are the indictment. Verses 54 to 60 are the vision, the stoning, Saul at the edge, and Stephen's two prayers.

Why this chapter matters

Stephen's speech is the New Testament's most sustained reading of the Old Testament as a story of rejected deliverers, Joseph and Moses foreshadowing Jesus, and of a God who is not bound to one place. It laid the foundation for the church's move beyond Jerusalem and the temple. His death models Christian martyrdom on the pattern of Christ: he commits his spirit to the Lord Jesus, as Jesus committed his to the Father, and prays for his killers' forgiveness, as Jesus did. His vision of the Son of Man standing, rather than seated, at God's right hand has been read as Jesus rising to receive him. And the presence of Saul at the stoning is Luke's quiet introduction of the man whose conversion the death helped prepare.

Interpretive tension to watch

Stephen's history contains details that differ from Genesis and Exodus as usually read, seventy-five people going down to Egypt, a tomb at Shechem bought by Abraham, which reflect the Greek Old Testament and the traditions of his day. And his tone shifts from careful narration to fierce accusation in verse 51. Was the speech a defense at all, or a prophetic indictment that made his death certain? The chapter invites readers to hear it as both.

Questions pour ce chapitre

Stephen shows that God met Abraham, Joseph, and Moses outside the promised land. What does that pattern say about where God can be found?
Joseph and Moses were both rejected by the people they were sent to save. How does that pattern prepare the council to hear about Jesus?
Stephen dies praying for his killers, with Saul watching. What might it have meant for Paul to remember that day after his conversion?

Study with context

Use this as a chapter guide, then press deeper into the text itself. The goal is to slow down observation, notice structure, and ask better questions before jumping to conclusions.

Ajouter aux notes

1 大祭司就说：「这些事果然有吗？」 2 司提反说：「诸位父兄请听！当日我们的祖宗亚伯拉罕在美索不达米亚还未住哈兰的时候，荣耀的　神向他显现， 3 对他说：『你要离开本地和亲族，往我所要指示你的地方去。』 4 他就离开迦勒底人之地，住在哈兰。他父亲死了以后，　[神]使他从那里搬到你们现在所住之地。 5 在这地方，　神并没有给他产业，连立足之地也没有给他；但应许要将这地赐给他和他的后裔为业；那时他还没有儿子。 6 神说：『他的后裔必寄居外邦，那里的人要叫他们作奴仆，苦待他们四百年。』 7 神又说：『使他们作奴仆的那国，我要惩罚。以后他们要出来，在这地方事奉我。』 8 神又赐他割礼的约。于是[亚伯拉罕]生了以撒，第八日给他行了割礼。以撒生雅各；雅各生十二位先祖。 9 「先祖嫉妒约瑟，把他卖到埃及去；　神却与他同在， 10 救他脱离一切苦难，又使他在埃及王法老面前得恩典，有智慧。法老就派他作埃及国的宰相兼管全家。 11 后来埃及和迦南全地遭遇饥荒，大受艰难，我们的祖宗就绝了粮。 12 雅各听见在埃及有粮，就打发我们的祖宗初次往那里去。 13 第二次约瑟与弟兄们相认，他的亲族也被法老知道了。 14 约瑟就打发弟兄请父亲雅各和全家七十五个人都来。 15 于是雅各下了埃及，后来他和我们的祖宗都死在那里； 16 又被带到示剑，葬于亚伯拉罕在示剑用银子从哈抹子孙买来的坟墓里。 17 「及至　神应许亚伯拉罕的日期将到，以色列民在埃及兴盛众多， 18 直到有不晓得约瑟的新王兴起。 19 他用诡计待我们的宗族，苦害我们的祖宗，叫他们丢弃婴孩，使婴孩不能存活。 20 那时，摩西生下来，俊美非凡，在他父亲家里抚养了三个月。 21 他被丢弃的时候，法老的女儿拾了去，养为自己的儿子。 22 摩西学了埃及人一切的学问，说话行事都有才能。 23 「他将到四十岁，心中起意去看望他的弟兄以色列人； 24 [到了那里]，见他们一个人受冤屈，就护庇他，为那受欺压的人报仇，打死了那埃及人。 25 他以为弟兄必明白　神是借他的手搭救他们；他们却不明白。 26 第二天，遇见两个[以色列]人争斗，就劝他们和睦，说：『你们二位是弟兄，为什么彼此欺负呢？』 27 那欺负邻舍的把他推开，说：『谁立你作我们的首领和审判官呢？ 28 难道你要杀我，像昨天杀那埃及人吗？』 29 摩西听见这话就逃走了，寄居于米甸；在那里生了两个儿子。 30 「过了四十年，在西奈山的旷野，有一位天使从荆棘火焰中向摩西显现。 31 摩西见了那异象，便觉希奇，正进前观看的时候，有主的声音说： 32 『我是你列祖的　神，就是亚伯拉罕的　神，以撒的　神，雅各的　神。』摩西战战兢兢，不敢观看。 33 主对他说：『把你脚上的鞋脱下来，因为你所站之地是圣地。 34 我的百姓在埃及所受的困苦，我实在看见了，他们悲叹的声音，我也听见了。我下来要救他们。你来！我要差你往埃及去。』 35 这摩西就是百姓弃绝说『谁立你作我们的首领和审判官』的；　神却借那在荆棘中显现之使者的手差派他作首领、作救赎的。 36 这人领百姓出来，在埃及，在红海，在旷野，四十年间行了奇事神迹。 37 那曾对以色列人说『　神要从你们弟兄中间给你们兴起一位先知像我』的，就是这位摩西。 38 这人曾在旷野会中和西奈山上，与那对他说话的天使同在，又与我们的祖宗同在，并且领受活泼的圣言传给我们。 39 我们的祖宗不肯听从，反弃绝他，心里归向埃及， 40 对亚伦说：『你且为我们造些神像，在我们前面引路；因为领我们出埃及地的那个摩西，我们不知道他遭了什么事。』 41 那时，他们造了一个牛犊，又拿祭物献给那像，欢喜自己手中的工作。 42 神就转脸不顾，任凭他们事奉天上的日月星辰，正如先知书上所写的说：以色列家啊，你们四十年间在旷野，岂是将牺牲和祭物献给我吗？ 43 你们抬着摩洛的帐幕和理番神的星，就是你们所造为要敬拜的像。 [因此]，我要把你们迁到巴比伦外去。 44 「我们的祖宗在旷野，有法柜的帐幕，是　[神]吩咐摩西叫他照所看见的样式做的。 45 这帐幕，我们的祖宗相继承受。当　神在他们面前赶出外邦人去的时候，他们同约书亚把帐幕搬进承受为业之地，直存到大卫的日子。 46 大卫在　神面前蒙恩，祈求为雅各的　神预备居所； 47 却是所罗门为　神造成殿宇。 48 其实，至高者并不住人手所造的，就如先知所言： 49 主说：天是我的座位，地是我的脚凳；你们要为我造何等的殿宇？哪里是我安息的地方呢？ 50 这一切不都是我手所造的吗？ 51 「你们这硬着颈项、心与耳未受割礼的人，常时抗拒圣灵！你们的祖宗怎样，你们也怎样。 52 哪一个先知不是你们祖宗逼迫呢？他们也把预先传说那义者要来的人杀了；如今你们又把那义者卖了，杀了。 53 你们受了天使所传的律法，竟不遵守。」 54 众人听见这话就极其恼怒，向司提反咬牙切齿。 55 但司提反被圣灵充满，定睛望天，看见　神的荣耀，又看见耶稣站在　神的右边， 56 就说：「我看见天开了，人子站在　神的右边。」 57 众人大声喊叫，捂着耳朵，齐心拥上前去， 58 把他推到城外，用石头打他。作见证的人把衣裳放在一个少年人名叫扫罗的脚前。 59 他们正用石头打的时候，司提反呼吁[主]说：「求主耶稣接收我的灵魂！」 60 又跪下大声喊着说：「主啊，不要将这罪归于他们！」说了这话，就睡了。扫罗也喜悦他被害。

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