1 Stephen pleading his cause, showeth that God chose the Fathers,  20 before Moses was born, 42 and before the Temple was built: 44 And that all outward ceremonies were ordained according to the heavenly Pattern. 54 The Jews gnashing their teeth, 59 stone him.

Then [a]said the chief Priest, Are these things so?

[b]And he said, Ye men, brethren, and Fathers, hearken, (A)That God of [c]glory appeared unto our father Abraham, while he was in [d]Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran,

And said unto him, Come out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall show thee.

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Footnotes

  1. Acts 7:1 Stephen is admitted to plead his cause, but to this end and purpose, that under a cloak, and color of Law, he might be condemned.
  2. Acts 7:2 Stephen witnesseth unto the Jews, that he acknowledgeth the true fathers, and the only true God: and showeth moreover, that they are more ancient than the Temple, with all that service appointed by the Law, and therefore they ought to lay another foundation of true religion, that is to say, the free covenant that God made with the fathers.
  3. Acts 7:2 That mighty God full of glory and majesty.
  4. Acts 7:2 When he saith afterward, verse 4, that Abraham came out of Chaldea, it is evident that Mesopotamia contained Chaldea which was near unto it, and bordering upon it, and so writeth Plinius, book 6, chap. 27.

Stephen’s Speech to the Sanhedrin

Then the high priest asked Stephen, “Are these charges true?”

To this he replied: “Brothers and fathers,(A) listen to me! The God of glory(B) appeared to our father Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Harran.(C) ‘Leave your country and your people,’ God said, ‘and go to the land I will show you.’[a](D)

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Footnotes

  1. Acts 7:3 Gen. 12:1