The Acts of the Apostles

⭑ Literal Standard Version :: World English Bible Catholic ⭑

- Chapter 7 -

(Genesis 12:1–9)

And the chief priest said, “Are then these things so?”

And he said, “Men, brothers, and fathers, listen! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham, being in Mesopotamia, before his dwelling in Haran,

and He said to him, Go forth out of your land, and out of your relatives, and come to a land that I will show you.

Then having come forth out of the land of the Chaldeans, he dwelt in Haran, and from there, after the death of his father, He removed him to this land wherein you now dwell,

and He gave him no inheritance in it, not even a footstep, and promised to give it to him for a possession, and to his seed after him—he having no child.

And God spoke thus, that his seed will be sojourning in a strange land, and they will cause it to serve, and will do it evil [for] four hundred years.

And the nation whom they will serve I will judge, said God; And after these things they will come forth and will do Me service in this place.

And He gave to him a covenant of circumcision, and so he begot Isaac, and circumcised him on the eighth day, and Isaac [begot] Jacob, and Jacob—the twelve patriarchs;

Joseph Sold into Egypt

(Genesis 37:12–30)

and the patriarchs, having been moved with jealousy, sold Joseph to Egypt, and God was with him,

and delivered him out of all his tribulations, and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he set him—governor over Egypt and all his house.

And there came a scarcity on all the land of Egypt and Canaan, and great tribulation, and our fathers were not finding sustenance,

and Jacob having heard that there was grain in Egypt, sent forth our fathers a first time;

and at the second time was Joseph made known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family became disclosed to Pharaoh,

and Joseph having sent, called for his father Jacob, and all his relatives—with seventy-five souls—

Israel Oppressed in Egypt

(Exodus 1:8–22)

and Jacob went down to Egypt, and died, himself and our fathers,

and they were carried over into Shechem, and were laid in the tomb that Abraham bought for a price in money from the sons of Emmor, of Shechem.

And according as the time of the promise was drawing near, which God swore to Abraham, the people increased and multiplied in Egypt,

until another king rose, who had not known Joseph;

this one, having dealt subtly with our family, did evil to our fathers, causing to expose their babies, that they might not live;

The Birth and Adoption of Moses

(Exodus 2:1–10; Hebrews 11:23–29)

in which time Moses was born, and he was fair to God, and he was brought up [for] three months in the house of his father;

and he having been set outside, the daughter of Pharaoh took him up, and reared him to herself for a son;

and Moses was taught in all wisdom of the Egyptians, and he was powerful in words and in works.

The Rejection and Flight of Moses

(Exodus 2:11–22)

And when forty years were fulfilled to him, it came on his heart to look after his brothers, the sons of Israel;

and having seen a certain one suffering injustice, he defended, and did justice to the oppressed, having struck the Egyptian;

and he was supposing his brothers to understand that God gives salvation through his hand; and they did not understand.

On the succeeding day, also, he showed himself to them as they are striving, and urged them to peace, saying, Men, you are brothers, why do you do injustice to one another?

And he who is doing injustice to the neighbor, thrusted him away, saying, Who set you a ruler and a judge over us?

Do you wish to kill me, as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?

And Moses fled at this word, and became a sojourner in the land of Midian, where he begot two sons,

The Call of Moses

(Exodus 3:1–22)

and forty years having been fulfilled, there appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai [the] Messenger of the LORD, in a flame of fire of a bush,

and Moses having seen, wondered at the sight; and he drawing near to behold, there came a voice of the LORD to him,

I [am] the God of your fathers; the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses having become terrified, did not dare behold,

and the LORD said to him, Loose the sandal of your feet, for the place in which you have stood is holy ground;

seeing I have seen the affliction of My people that [is] in Egypt, and I heard their groaning, and came down to deliver them; and now come, I will send you to Egypt.

This Moses, whom they refused, saying, Who set you a ruler and a judge? This one God sent [as] a ruler and a redeemer, by the hand of [the] Messenger who appeared to him in the bush;

this one brought them forth, having done wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red Sea, and in the wilderness forty years;

this is the Moses who said to the sons of Israel: The LORD your God will raise up to you a Prophet out of your brothers, like to me, Him will you hear.

This is he who was in the assembly in the wilderness, with the Messenger who is speaking to him in Mount Sinai, and with our fathers who received the living oracles to give to us;

The Rebellion of Israel

(Exodus 32:1–35; Deuteronomy 9:7–29; Amos 5:16–27)

to whom our fathers did not wish to become obedient, but thrusted away, and turned back in their hearts to Egypt,

saying to Aaron, Make to us gods who will go on before us, for this Moses, who brought us forth out of the land of Egypt, we have not known what has happened to him.

And they made a calf in those days, and brought a sacrifice to the idol, and were rejoicing in the works of their hands,

and God turned, and gave them up to do service to the host of Heaven, according as it has been written in the scroll of the Prophets: Did you offer slain beasts and sacrifices to Me forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?

And you took up the dwelling place of Moloch, and the star of your god Remphan—the figures that you made to worship them, and I will remove your dwelling beyond Babylon.

The Tabernacle of the Testimony

(Exodus 40:1–33; Hebrews 9:1–10)

The Dwelling Place of the Testimony was among our fathers in the wilderness, according as He directed, who is speaking to Moses, to make it according to the figure that he had seen;

which also our fathers having in succession received, brought in with Joshua, into the possession of the nations whom God drove out from the presence of our fathers, until the days of David,

who found favor before God, and requested to find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob;

and Solomon built Him a house.

But the Most High does not dwell in sanctuaries made with hands, according as the prophet says:

Heaven [is] My throne, || And the earth My footstool, || What house will you build to Me? Says the LORD; Or what [is] the place of My rest?

Has My hand not made all these things?

You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and in ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers—also you;

which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who declared before about the coming of the Righteous One, of whom you have now become betrayers and murderers,

who received the Law by arrangement of messengers, and did not keep [it].”

The Stoning of Stephen

And hearing these things, they were cut to the hearts, and gnashed the teeth at him;

and being full of the Holy Spirit, having looked steadfastly to the sky, he saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,

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

And they, having cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and rushed with one accord on him,

and having cast him forth outside of the city, they were stoning [him]—and the witnesses put down their garments at the feet of a young man called Saul—

and they were stoning Stephen, [as he was] calling and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit”;

and having bowed the knees, he cried with a loud voice, “LORD, may You not lay to them this sin”; and having said this, he fell asleep.

(Genesis 12:1–9)

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

He said, “Brothers and fathers, listen. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran,

and said to him, ‘Get out of your land and away from your relatives, and come into a land which I will show you.’(a)

Then he came out of the land of the Chaldaeans and lived in Haran. From there, when his father was dead, God moved him into this land where you are now living.

He gave him no inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on. He promised that he would give it to him for a possession, and to his offspring after him, when he still had no child.

God spoke in this way: that his offspring would live as aliens in a strange land, and that they would be enslaved and mistreated for four hundred years.

‘I will judge the nation to which they will be in bondage,’ said God, ‘and after that they will come out and serve me in this place.’(b)

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

Joseph Sold into Egypt

(Genesis 37:12–30)

“The patriarchs, moved with jealousy against Joseph, sold him into Egypt. God was with him

and delivered him out of all his afflictions, and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, king of Egypt. He made him governor over Egypt and all his house.

Now a famine came over all the land of Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction. Our fathers found no food.

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

On the second time Joseph was made known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family was revealed to Pharaoh.

Joseph sent and summoned Jacob his father and all his relatives, seventy-five souls.

Israel Oppressed in Egypt

(Exodus 1:8–22)

Jacob went down into Egypt and he died, himself and our fathers;

and they were brought back to Shechem and laid in the tomb that Abraham bought for a price in silver from the children of Hamor of Shechem.

“But as the time of the promise came close which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt,

until there arose a different king who didn’t know Joseph.

The same took advantage of our race and mistreated our fathers, and forced them to abandon their babies, so that they wouldn’t stay alive.

The Birth and Adoption of Moses

(Exodus 2:1–10; Hebrews 11:23–29)

At that time Moses was born, and was exceedingly handsome to God. He was nourished three months in his father’s house.

When he was abandoned, Pharaoh’s daughter took him up and reared him as her own son.

Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians. He was mighty in his words and works.

The Rejection and Flight of Moses

(Exodus 2:11–22)

But when he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brothers,(c) the children of Israel.

Seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him and avenged him who was oppressed, striking the Egyptian.

He supposed that his brothers understood that God, by his hand, was giving them deliverance; but they didn’t understand.

“The day following, he appeared to them as they fought, and urged them to be at peace again, saying, ‘Sirs, you are brothers. Why do you wrong one another?’

But he who did his neighbor wrong pushed him away, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge over us?

Do you want to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’(d)

Moses fled at this saying, and became a stranger in the land of Midian, where he became the father of two sons.

The Call of Moses

(Exodus 3:1–22)

“When forty years were fulfilled, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush.

When Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight. As he came close to see, the voice of the Lord came to him,

‘I am the God of your fathers: the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’(e) Moses trembled and dared not look.

The Lord said to him, ‘Take off your sandals, for the place where you stand is holy ground.

I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their groaning. I have come down to deliver them. Now come, I will send you into Egypt.’(f)

“This Moses whom they refused, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’—God has sent him as both a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush.

This man led them out, having worked wonders and signs in Egypt, in the Red Sea, and in the wilderness for forty years.

This is that Moses who said to the children of Israel, ‘The Lord our God will raise up a prophet for you from among your brothers, like me.’(g)

(h)

This is he who was in the assembly in the wilderness with the angel that spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers, who received living revelations to give to us,

The Rebellion of Israel

(Exodus 32:1–35; Deuteronomy 9:7–29; Amos 5:16–27)

to whom our fathers wouldn’t be obedient, but rejected him and turned back in their hearts to Egypt,

saying to Aaron, ‘Make us gods that will go before us, for as for this Moses who led us out of the land of Egypt, we don’t know what has become of him.’(i)

They made a calf in those days, and brought a sacrifice to the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their hands.

But God turned away and gave them up to serve the army of the sky,(j) as it is written in the book of the prophets, ‘Did you offer to me slain animals and sacrifices forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?

You took up the tabernacle of Moloch, the star of your god Rephan, the figures which you made to worship, so I will carry you away

(k)

beyond Babylon.’

The Tabernacle of the Testimony

(Exodus 40:1–33; Hebrews 9:1–10)

“Our fathers had the tabernacle of the testimony in the wilderness, even as he who spoke to Moses commanded him to make it according to the pattern that he had seen;

which also our fathers, in their turn, brought in with Joshua when they entered into the possession of the nations whom God drove out before the face of our fathers to the days of David,

who found favor in the sight of God, and asked to find a habitation for the God of Jacob.

But Solomon built him a house.

However, the Most High doesn’t dwell in temples made with hands, as the prophet says,

‘heaven is my throne, and the earth a footstool for my feet. What kind of house will you build me?’ says the Lord. ‘Or what is the place of my rest?

Didn’t my hand make all these things?’(l)

“You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit! As your fathers did, so you do.

Which of the prophets didn’t your fathers persecute? They killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One, of whom you have now become betrayers and murderers.

You received the law as it was ordained by angels, and didn’t keep it!”

The Stoning of Stephen

Now when they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth.

But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, looked up steadfastly into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,

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

But they cried out with a loud voice and stopped their ears, then rushed at him with one accord.

They threw him out of the city and stoned him. The witnesses placed their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.

They stoned Stephen as he called out, saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!”

He kneeled down and cried with a loud voice, “Lord, don’t hold this sin against them!” When he had said this, he fell asleep.

Footnotes

(a)7:3 ℘ Genesis 12:1

(b)7:7 ℘ Genesis 15:13-14

(c)7:23 The word for “brothers” here and where the context allows may be also correctly translated “brothers and sisters” or “siblings.”

(d)7:28 ℘ Exodus 2:14

(e)7:32 ℘ Exodus 3:6

(f)7:34 ℘ Exodus 3:5,7-8,10

(g)7:37 TR adds “You shall listen to him.”

(h)7:37 ℘ Deuteronomy 18:15

(i)7:40 ℘ Exodus 32:1

(j)7:42 This idiom could also be translated “host of heaven”, or “angelic beings”, or “heavenly bodies.”

(k)7:43 ℘ Amos 5:25-27

(l)7:50 ℘ Isaiah 66:1-2