Stephen's Speech before the Sanhedrin
Acts 7:1-53
Acts.7.1 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- Ειπεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- δε: CONJ
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- αρχιερευς·Ει: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- ταυτα: PRON,acc,pl,n
- ουτως: ADV
- εχει: VERB,pres,act,ind,3,sg
Parallels
- John 18:19 (verbal): The high priest himself questions the accused (Jesus) about his teaching and disciples—parallel instance of a religious authority interrogating a defendant.
- Matthew 26:62-63 (verbal): The high priest addresses Jesus and demands an answer about the charges—similar courtroom setting and the presiding officer's question to the accused.
- Mark 14:60-61 (structural): The high priest repeatedly questions the accused and seeks a confession; parallels Acts 7:1 as the opening of an official interrogation scene.
- Luke 23:3 (thematic): An authority (Pilate) asks a pointed question of the accused ('Are you the King of the Jews?'), reflecting the broader theme of judicial questioning of defendants in Gospel/Acts narratives.
Alternative generated candidates
- Then the high priest said, “Are these things so?”
- Then the high priest said, "Are these things so?"
Acts.7.2 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- δε: CONJ
- εφη·Ανδρες: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,sg
- αδελφοι: NOUN,nom,pl,m
- και: CONJ
- πατερες: NOUN,nom,pl,m
- ακουσατε·Ο: VERB,aor,act,imp,2,pl
- θεος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- της: ART,gen,sg,f
- δοξης: NOUN,gen,sg,f
- ωφθη: VERB,aor,pass,ind,3,sg
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- πατρι: NOUN,dat,sg,m
- ημων: PRON,gen,pl,1
- Αβρααμ: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- οντι: PRON,dat,sg,m
- εν: PREP
- τη: ART,dat,sg,f
- Μεσοποταμια: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- πριν: ADV
- η: ART,nom,sg,f
- κατοικησαι: VERB,aor,act,inf
- αυτον: PRON,acc,sg,m
- εν: PREP
- Χαρραν: NOUN,dat,sg,f
Parallels
- Genesis 12:1-5 (allusion): Stephen's mention of Abraham in Mesopotamia before dwelling in Haran alludes to the call narrative where Abram is summoned to leave Ur/Harān and go to the land God will show him.
- Genesis 12:7 (verbal): Genesis 12:7 says 'the LORD appeared to Abram,' paralleling Stephen's language that 'God... appeared to our father Abraham'—a close verbal echo of divine appearance to Abram.
- Genesis 17:1 (thematic): God's repeated 'appearance' to Abraham (e.g., Gen 17:1) reinforces the motif Stephen invokes of God manifesting himself to the patriarch at various stages of his life.
- Hebrews 11:8 (thematic): Hebrews highlights Abraham's obedient response to God's call to leave his country; thematically this connects to Stephen's account of Abraham's beginnings in Mesopotamia and God's call that set his journey in motion.
Alternative generated candidates
- And he replied, “Brothers and fathers, hear me. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran,
- And Stephen replied, "Brothers and fathers, listen: The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was in Mesopotamia before he lived in Haran,
Acts.7.3 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- ειπεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- προς: PREP
- αυτον·Εξελθε: PRON,acc,sg,m + VERB,aor,act,imp,2,sg
- εκ: PREP
- της: ART,gen,sg,f
- γης: NOUN,gen,sg,f
- σου: PRON,gen,sg,2
- και: CONJ
- εκ: PREP
- της: ART,gen,sg,f
- συγγενειας: NOUN,gen,sg,f
- σου: PRON,gen,sg,2
- και: CONJ
- δευρο: ADV
- εις: PREP
- την: ART,acc,sg,f
- γην: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- ην: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,sg
- αν: PART
- σοι: PRON,dat,sg,2
- δειξω: VERB,aor,act,subj,1,sg
Parallels
- Genesis 12:1 (quotation): Direct citation of God's command to Abram to leave his country and go to the land God would show him—the same words Stephen attributes to God.
- Genesis 26:3 (allusion): God repeats the promise to Isaac—'to you and your offspring I will give this land'—echoing the patriarchal call and land promise originally given to Abraham.
- Hebrews 11:8 (thematic): Summarizes Abraham's obedient response to God's call—'By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance'—paralleling the theme of departure in Acts 7:3.
- Acts 7:2 (structural): Immediate context in Stephen's speech: the preceding verse introduces the appearance of God to Abraham and sets up the quotation in 7:3, linking the narrative framework.
Alternative generated candidates
- and said to him, ‘Go out from your land and from your kindred and come into the land that I will show you.’
- and said to him, 'Go out from your land and from your kindred and come into the land that I will show you.'
Acts.7.4 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- τοτε: ADV
- εξελθων: VERB,aor,act,ptc,nom,sg,m
- εκ: PREP
- γης: NOUN,gen,sg,f
- Χαλδαιων: NOUN,gen,pl,m
- κατωκησεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- εν: PREP
- Χαρραν: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- κακειθεν: ADV
- μετα: PREP
- το: ART,acc,sg,n
- αποθανειν: VERB,aor,act,inf
- τον: ART,acc,sg,m
- πατερα: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- αυτου: PRON,gen,sg,m
- μετωκισεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- αυτον: PRON,acc,sg,m
- εις: PREP
- την: ART,acc,sg,f
- γην: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- ταυτην: PRON,acc,sg,f
- εις: PREP
- ην: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,sg
- υμεις: PRON,nom,pl,2
- νυν: ADV
- κατοικειτε: VERB,pres,act,ind,2,pl
Parallels
- Genesis 11:31 (verbal): Reports that Terah took Abram from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to Haran (Abram 'went out' from the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran), matching Stephen's opening clause about leaving the Chaldean land and dwelling in Haran.
- Genesis 11:32 (structural): States that Terah died in Haran, providing the background for Stephen's claim that after his father's death Abram moved on to the land of Canaan.
- Genesis 12:1-5 (verbal): Describes God's call to Abram to leave Haran for the land of Canaan and Abram's subsequent departure with his household—paralleling Stephen's statement that Abram moved to the land where the listeners now live.
- Hebrews 11:8-9 (thematic): Summarizes Abraham's obedient pilgrimage by faith, living as a sojourner in the promised land—echoing Stephen's portrayal of Abraham's migration from Haran to the land promised to his descendants.
- Joshua 24:2 (allusion): Joshua recounts that Terah the father of Abraham lived 'beyond the Euphrates' (with reference to the family origin in Mesopotamia), similar to Stephen's locating Abraham's origin in the Chaldean/Haran region.
Alternative generated candidates
- Then he went out from the land of the Chaldeans and lived in Haran; and after his father died, God removed him from there into this land in which you now dwell.
- So he went out from the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran; after his father died, God moved him from there into this land in which you now dwell.
Acts.7.5 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- ουκ: PART,neg
- εδωκεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- αυτω: PRON,dat,sg,m
- κληρονομιαν: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- εν: PREP
- αυτη: PRON,dat,sg,f
- ουδε: CONJ,neg
- βημα: NOUN,acc,sg,n
- ποδος: NOUN,gen,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- επηγγειλατο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,sg
- δουναι: VERB,aor,act,inf
- αυτω: PRON,dat,sg,m
- εις: PREP
- κατασχεσιν: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- αυτην: PRON,acc,sg,f
- και: CONJ
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- σπερματι: NOUN,dat,sg,n
- αυτου: PRON,gen,sg,m
- μετ᾽αυτον: PREP+PRON,acc,sg,m
- ουκ: PART,neg
- οντος: PART,pres,act,gen,sg,m
- αυτω: PRON,dat,sg,m
- τεκνου: NOUN,gen,sg,n
Parallels
- Genesis 12:7 (quotation): God promises to give the land to Abram's offspring ('To your offspring I will give this land'), directly paralleling Stephen's citation of the divine promise of possession.
- Genesis 15:18-21 (quotation): The covenantal grant of the land to Abram's descendants ('I give to you...the land')—a formalization of the promise Stephen refers to about possession for Abram's seed.
- Genesis 17:8 (quotation): God's promise that the land of Canaan will be an everlasting possession for Abram and his offspring, echoing Stephen's claim that the land was promised despite Abraham having no child then.
- Hebrews 11:9-10 (thematic): Speaks of Abraham living as a sojourner in the promised land and looking forward to the heavenly city—reflects the theme that Abraham did not receive full earthly possession immediately.
- Galatians 3:16 (verbal): Uses the concept of 'seed' (singular) and the promise to Abraham's seed to explain inheritance through promise, relating to Acts' emphasis on the promise to Abraham and his offspring.
Alternative generated candidates
- He gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot of ground, yet he promised to give it to him as an inheritance and to his offspring after him, while he had no child.
- Yet he gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot of ground, but promised to give it to him as a possession and to his offspring after him, though he had no child.
Acts.7.6 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ελαλησεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- δε: CONJ
- ουτως: ADV
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- θεος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- οτι: CONJ
- εσται: VERB,fut,mid,ind,3,sg
- το: ART,acc,sg,n
- σπερμα: NOUN,acc,sg,n
- αυτου: PRON,gen,sg,m
- παροικον: ADJ,nom,sg,n
- εν: PREP
- γη: NOUN,nom,sg,f
- αλλοτρια: ADJ,nom,sg,f
- και: CONJ
- δουλωσουσιν: VERB,fut,act,ind,3,pl
- αυτο: PRON,acc,sg,neut
- και: CONJ
- κακωσουσιν: VERB,fut,act,ind,3,pl
- ετη: NOUN,acc,pl,n
- τετρακοσια·: NUM,acc,pl,n
Parallels
- Genesis 15:13 (quotation): Stephen is echoing God's promise to Abram that his offspring would be strangers in a land not theirs and would be enslaved and afflicted for four hundred years — the source of the line in Acts.
- Exodus 1:14 (verbal): Describes the Egyptians' harsh bondage and cruel treatment of the Israelites ('afflicted them with hard service'), paralleling Acts' language about being enslaved and mistreated.
- Exodus 12:40-41 (verbal): Gives the tradition of Israel's sojourn in Egypt (chronology often cited as 430 years) and the end of that period with the Exodus, relating to Acts' reference to the long period of sojourning and servitude.
- Galatians 3:17 (allusion): Paul speaks of the interval of years between the promise to Abraham and the giving of the law (430 years), an interpretive tradition that parallels Acts' use of ancestral chronology and promise.
- Hebrews 11:13 (thematic): Portrays the patriarchs as strangers and pilgrims on the earth, echoing the theme of Abraham's seed living as sojourners in a foreign land found in Acts 7:6.
Alternative generated candidates
- God spoke thus, that his offspring would be sojourners in a foreign land, and that they would be enslaved and afflicted four hundred years.
- God spoke thus: 'Your offspring will be strangers in a land not their own, and they shall be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years.
Acts.7.7 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- το: ART,acc,sg,n
- εθνος: NOUN,nom,sg,n
- ω: PRON,dat,sg,m
- εαν: CONJ
- δουλευσουσιν: VERB,fut,act,ind,3,pl
- κρινω: VERB,pres,act,ind,1,sg
- εγω: PRON,nom,sg,1
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- θεος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- ειπεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- και: CONJ
- μετα: PREP
- ταυτα: PRON,acc,pl,n
- εξελευσονται: VERB,fut,mid,ind,3,pl
- και: CONJ
- λατρευσουσιν: VERB,fut,act,ind,3,pl
- μοι: PRON,dat,sg,1
- εν: PREP
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- τοπω: NOUN,dat,sg,m
- τουτω: DEM,dat,sg,m
Parallels
- Genesis 15:13-14 (quotation): Stephen is directly echoing God’s words to Abram: his offspring will be strangers and enslaved in a foreign land, and God will judge the nation that enslaves them and bring them out.
- Exodus 3:21-22 (allusion): God’s promise that the Egyptians will favor Israel and give them silver, gold and garments when they leave parallels the idea of Israel’s release and coming out with spoil.
- Exodus 12:35-36 (verbal): The account that Israel despoiled the Egyptians when they went out (Egyptians giving them valuables) corresponds to the promise they would come out and serve God in that place with possessions.
- Genesis 50:24-25 (thematic): Joseph’s declaration that God will surely visit and bring Israel out of Egypt to the promised land echoes the same expectation of future deliverance that Stephen attributes to the patriarchal promise.
Alternative generated candidates
- ‘And I will judge the nation that they serve,’ God said; ‘and after that they shall come out and worship me in this place.’
- But I will judge the nation that they serve,' said God; 'and afterward they shall come out and worship me in this place.'
Acts.7.8 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- εδωκεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- αυτω: PRON,dat,sg,m
- διαθηκην: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- περιτομης·και: NOUN,gen,sg,f
- ουτως: ADV
- εγεννησεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- τον: ART,acc,sg,m
- Ισαακ: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- περιετεμεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,pl
- αυτον: PRON,acc,sg,m
- τη: ART,dat,sg,f
- ημερα: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- τη: ART,dat,sg,f
- ογδοη: ADJ,dat,sg,f
- και: CONJ
- Ισαακ: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- τον: ART,acc,sg,m
- Ιακωβ: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- Ιακωβ: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- τους: ART,acc,pl,m
- δωδεκα: NUM,acc,pl,m
- πατριαρχας: NOUN,acc,pl,m
Parallels
- Genesis 17:10-14 (verbal): The institution of the covenant of circumcision is stated here (‘this is my covenant…every male among you shall be circumcised’), which Stephen summarizes in Acts 7:8 as God giving Abraham the covenant of circumcision.
- Genesis 21:3-4 (verbal): Records the birth of Isaac to Abraham and that Abraham circumcised him on the eighth day — the same elements Stephen links together in his brief genealogy.
- Genesis 25:26 (verbal): Describes the birth of Jacob as Isaac’s son (‘afterward his brother came forth… and he called his name Jacob’), paralleling Acts’ statement ‘Isaac begot Jacob.’
- Genesis 35:22-26 (structural): Gives the genealogy/listing of Jacob’s sons from whom the twelve patriarchs/tribes arise; Acts 7:8 summarizes this development by naming Jacob as the ancestor of the twelve patriarchs.
- Romans 4:11 (thematic): Paul interprets circumcision as the sign/seal of the Abrahamic covenant and righteousness; Acts 7:8’s linkage of covenant, circumcision, and lineage reflects the same theological connection between covenant sign and promised descendants.
Alternative generated candidates
- 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 the father of the twelve patriarchs.
- And he gave him the covenant of circumcision. Thus Abraham became the father of Isaac, and circumcised his son Isaac; and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs.
Acts.7.9 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- Και: CONJ
- οι: ART,nom,pl,m
- πατριαρχαι: NOUN,nom,pl,m
- ζηλωσαντες: VERB,aor,act,part,nom,pl,m
- τον: ART,acc,sg,m
- Ιωσηφ: NOUN,dat,sg,m
- απεδοντο: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,pl
- εις: PREP
- Αιγυπτον·και: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- ην: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,sg
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- θεος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- μετ᾽αυτου: PREP+PRON,gen,sg,m
Parallels
- Genesis 37:28 (thematic): Narrates the same core event: Joseph’s brothers sell him into Egypt (to traders/ Ishmaelites), which Acts 7 summarizes.
- Genesis 39:2 (verbal): Contains the formulaic phrase “the LORD was with Joseph,” directly paralleling Acts’ statement that God was with him.
- Psalm 105:17-19 (allusion): Retells Joseph’s sale into Egypt and adds that the LORD was with him, a close Old Testament account Stephen echoes in Acts 7.
- Genesis 50:20 (thematic): Presents the theological interpretation of Joseph’s suffering—what his brothers intended for evil, God used for good—resonating with Acts’ note of God’s presence amid betrayal.
Alternative generated candidates
- The patriarchs, jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egypt; but God was with him
- And the patriarchs, jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egypt; but God was with him,
Acts.7.10 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- εξειλατο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,sg
- αυτον: PRON,acc,sg,m
- εκ: PREP
- πασων: ADJ,gen,pl,f
- των: ART,gen,pl,m
- θλιψεων: NOUN,gen,pl,f
- αυτου: PRON,gen,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- εδωκεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- αυτω: PRON,dat,sg,m
- χαριν: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- και: CONJ
- σοφιαν: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- εναντιον: PREP,gen
- Φαραω: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- βασιλεως: NOUN,gen,sg,m
- Αιγυπτου: NOUN,gen,sg,f
- και: CONJ
- κατεστησεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- αυτον: PRON,acc,sg,m
- ηγουμενον: PART,pres,mid,acc,sg,m
- επ᾽Αιγυπτον: PREP+NOUN,acc,sg,f
- και: CONJ
- ολον: ADJ,acc,sg,m
- τον: ART,acc,sg,m
- οικον: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- αυτου: PRON,gen,sg,m
Parallels
- Genesis 39:21-23 (verbal): God is said to rescue Joseph from his afflictions and grant him favor (the LORD was with Joseph, showed him mercy and gave him favor), and Joseph is put in a position of responsibility—paralleling Acts’ language of deliverance and bestowed favor/wisdom.
- Genesis 41:38-44 (verbal): Pharaoh recognizes Joseph’s wisdom and spirit, then appoints him ruler over Egypt; this directly parallels Acts’ statement that God gave Joseph favor and wisdom before Pharaoh and made him governor over Egypt.
- Psalm 105:17-22 (thematic): A liturgical retelling of Joseph’s suffering, divine vindication, release by the king, and elevation to rule over Pharaoh’s house—echoing the themes of deliverance, favor, and elevation found in Acts 7:10.
- Acts 7:9 (structural): Immediate context in Stephen’s speech (the brothers’ envy and sale of Joseph) which sets up verse 7:10’s summary of God’s rescue and Joseph’s subsequent favor and promotion.
Alternative generated candidates
- and rescued him out of all his afflictions, and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him governor over Egypt and over all his household.
- and rescued him from all his afflictions, and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him ruler over Egypt and over all his house.
Acts.7.11 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ηλθεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- δε: CONJ
- λιμος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- εφ᾽ολην: PREP+ADJ,acc,sg,f
- την: ART,acc,sg,f
- Αιγυπτον: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- και: CONJ
- Χανααν: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- και: CONJ
- θλιψις: NOUN,nom,sg,f
- μεγαλη: ADJ,nom,sg,f
- και: CONJ
- ουχ: PART,neg
- ηυρισκον: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,pl
- χορτασματα: NOUN,acc,pl,n
- οι: ART,nom,pl,m
- πατερες: NOUN,nom,pl,m
- ημων·: PRON,gen,pl,1
Parallels
- Genesis 12:10 (thematic): Abram/Abraham goes down to Egypt because of a famine in the land—same theme of famine prompting movement into Egypt (verbal thematic parallel).
- Genesis 41:54-57 (structural): During Joseph’s time there was a famine in all lands and people came to Egypt to buy grain; Acts 7 alludes to this broad famine and the migration into Egypt that followed.
- Genesis 45:5-8 (allusion): Joseph explains that God sent him before his brothers to preserve life during the years of famine—Acts 7’s reference to famine presupposes this providential purpose behind the descent into Egypt.
- Genesis 47:13-21 (verbal): Explicit description of the severe famine in the land and Joseph’s distribution/sale of grain in Egypt; closely parallels Acts’ note that the fathers found no food and went into Egypt for sustenance.
Alternative generated candidates
- Now there came a famine over the whole land; and our fathers could find no food.
- Now there came a famine over the land, and our fathers could not find food.
Acts.7.12 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ακουσας: VERB,aor,act,part,nom,m,sg
- δε: CONJ
- Ιακωβ: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- οντα: PART,pres,act,acc,sg,m
- σιτια: NOUN,acc,pl,n
- εις: PREP
- Αιγυπτον: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- εξαπεστειλεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- τους: ART,acc,pl,m
- πατερας: NOUN,acc,pl,m
- ημων: PRON,gen,pl,1
- πρωτον·: ADV
Parallels
- Genesis 42:1-3 (verbal): Stephen's summary closely echoes Genesis 42: Jacob/Israel hears there is grain in Egypt and sends his sons there to buy food — the immediate narrative source for 'he sent our fathers.'
- Genesis 41:56-57 (thematic): Provides the wider context: a widespread famine and Egypt (under Joseph's administration) as the source of grain, explaining why Jacob's family went there.
- Genesis 45:9-11 (allusion): Joseph urges his brothers to bring their father and dwell in Egypt; Acts 7.12 anticipates this later resolution in which the family relocates because of Egypt's provision.
- Genesis 46:1-7 (structural): Records Jacob's eventual move to Egypt with his household after learning of provision and Joseph's survival — the fulfillment of the earlier sending described by Stephen.
Alternative generated candidates
- When Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers there the first time.
- When Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers first.
Acts.7.13 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- εν: PREP
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- δευτερω: ADJ,dat,sg,m
- ανεγνωρισθη: VERB,aor,pass,ind,3,sg
- Ιωσηφ: NOUN,dat,sg,m
- τοις: ART,dat,pl,n
- αδελφοις: NOUN,dat,pl,m
- αυτου: PRON,gen,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- φανερον: ADJ,acc,sg,n
- εγενετο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,sg
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- Φαραω: NOUN,dat,sg,m
- το: ART,acc,sg,n
- γενος: NOUN,nom,sg,n
- Ιωσηφ: NOUN,dat,sg,m
Parallels
- Genesis 42:7 (allusion): Joseph recognizes his brothers when they first come to Egypt but they do not recognize him—background to Stephen’s comment that Joseph was later revealed to them ('in the second').
- Genesis 45:1-3 (verbal): Joseph openly reveals himself to his brothers ('I am Joseph'), directly paralleling Stephen’s statement that Joseph was made known to his brethren.
- Genesis 45:16-20 (structural): Joseph sends wagons and instructs his brothers to bring Jacob to Egypt and to tell Pharaoh of Joseph’s position—this episode explains how Joseph’s family came to be known to Pharaoh.
- Genesis 47:1-6 (thematic): Joseph presents his father and kindred before Pharaoh and secures land for them in Goshen—fulfills the idea that Joseph’s family became known to Pharaoh and settled under his authority.
Alternative generated candidates
- On the second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family was disclosed to Pharaoh.
- On a second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers, and Joseph's family became known to Pharaoh.
Acts.7.14 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- αποστειλας: VERB,aor,act,ptc,nom,m,sg
- δε: CONJ
- Ιωσηφ: NOUN,dat,sg,m
- μετεκαλεσατο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,sg
- Ιακωβ: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- τον: ART,acc,sg,m
- πατερα: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- αυτου: PRON,gen,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- πασαν: ADJ,acc,sg,f
- την: ART,acc,sg,f
- συγγενειαν: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- εν: PREP
- ψυχαις: NOUN,dat,pl,f
- εβδομηκοντα: NUM,acc,pl,m
- πεντε: NUM,acc,pl,m
Parallels
- Genesis 46:27 (LXX) (quotation): LXX gives the same detail (seventy‑five souls) and the account of Joseph召召ing his father and kin to Egypt; Stephen echoes this LXX wording/number.
- Genesis 46:8-27 (structural): Broader LXX/Masoretic narrative listing Jacob’s household who went to Egypt; Acts 7.14 summarizes this section of Genesis.
- Exodus 1:5 (thematic): States the number of Jacob’s descendants who went to Egypt (traditionally 70); thematically parallels the report of the family’s migration and differing numerical tradition.
- Acts 7:15 (structural): Immediate continuation of Stephen’s narrative—Acts 7:15 follows 7:14 by noting Jacob’s descent into Egypt and the later burial of the patriarchs, linking the same event sequence.
Alternative generated candidates
- Then Joseph sent and invited his father Jacob and all his kindred, seventy-five persons in all.
- Then Joseph sent and summoned Jacob his father and all his kindred, seventy-five persons in all.
Acts.7.15 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- κατεβη: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- Ιακωβ: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- εις: PREP
- Αιγυπτον: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- και: CONJ
- ετελευτησεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- αυτος: PRON,nom,sg,3,m
- και: CONJ
- οι: ART,nom,pl,m
- πατερες: NOUN,nom,pl,m
- ημων: PRON,gen,pl,1
Parallels
- Genesis 46:6-7 (verbal): Narrative of Jacob (Israel) going down to Egypt with his household—directly parallels Stephen’s statement that Jacob went down into Egypt.
- Genesis 47:28 (verbal): States that Jacob lived in Egypt seventeen years and then died there, corresponding to Acts’ note that Jacob died in Egypt.
- Exodus 1:6 (verbal): “Joseph and all his brethren and all that generation died” — a near-verbatim theme of the fathers’ death in Egypt echoed by Stephen.
- Genesis 50:26 (thematic): Reports Joseph’s death in Egypt and embalming there, reinforcing the motif of the patriarchs’ deaths and burials occurring while in Egypt.
- Hebrews 11:22 (allusion): Refers to Joseph’s faith concerning his bones being carried out of Egypt to the promised land — connects the death-in-Egypt motif to faith in the patriarchal promise mentioned by Stephen.
Alternative generated candidates
- So Jacob went down into Egypt and died, he and our fathers,
- And Jacob went down into Egypt; he and our fathers, and they died there.
Acts.7.16 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- μετετεθησαν: VERB,aor,pass,ind,3,pl
- εις: PREP
- Συχεμ: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- ετεθησαν: VERB,aor,pass,ind,3,pl
- εν: PREP
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- μνηματι: NOUN,dat,sg,n
- ω: PRON,dat,sg,m
- ωνησατο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,sg
- Αβρααμ: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- τιμης: NOUN,gen,sg,f
- αργυριου: NOUN,gen,sg,n
- παρα: PREP
- των: ART,gen,pl,m
- υιων: NOUN,gen,pl,m
- Εμμωρ: NOUN,gen,sg,m
- εν: PREP
- Συχεμ: NOUN,dat,sg,m
Parallels
- Genesis 33:18-20 (verbal): Jacob buys a parcel of land at Shechem and plants an altar there; Stephen's language about a purchase 'from the sons of Hamor at Shechem' echoes this transaction (the association of Shechem, a purchase and the sons of Hamor).
- Genesis 34:2,25-30 (thematic): The story of Dinah, Shechem and the sons of Hamor provides the immediate narrative background for land transactions and the presence of Hamor's sons in Shechem that Stephen attributes to the patriarchal burial site.
- Joshua 24:32 (verbal): Joshua records that Joseph's bones were buried at Shechem in the field that Jacob bought; this directly parallels Stephen's claim that the patriarchs' remains were placed in the burial plot at Shechem.
- Genesis 50:24-26 (thematic): Joseph's dying request that his bones be carried from Egypt to Canaan anticipates the later transfer and burial in Shechem that Stephen describes as 'brought back' to the land.
- Genesis 23:3-20 (allusion): Abraham's purchase of a burial cave (Machpelah in Hebron) is the major ancestral purchase narrative; Stephen's phrasing (attributing a purchase at Shechem to Abraham) alludes to patriarchal land/burial purchases but differs from the Genesis account, creating a notable conflation/contrast.
Alternative generated candidates
- and they were carried back to Shechem and laid in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.
- Their bodies were carried back to Shechem and laid in the tomb that Abraham bought for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.
Acts.7.17 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- Καθως: CONJ
- δε: CONJ
- ηγγιζεν: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,sg
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- χρονος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- της: ART,gen,sg,f
- επαγγελιας: NOUN,gen,sg,f
- ης: PRON,gen,sg,f
- ωμολογησεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- θεος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- Αβρααμ: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- ηυξησεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- λαος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- επληθυνθη: VERB,aor,pass,ind,3,sg
- εν: PREP
- Αιγυπτω: NOUN,dat,sg,f
Parallels
- Exodus 1:7 (verbal): Direct verbal parallel: Exodus records Israel 'fruitful and increased greatly' in Egypt, echoing Stephen's statement that the people 'increased and multiplied in Egypt.'
- Genesis 15:13-14 (thematic): God's prophecy to Abraham that his descendants would be aliens in a foreign land and be afflicted, but later delivered — Stephen cites the fulfillment of the promise timetable that began with Abraham.
- Genesis 12:2 (allusion): God's promise to Abraham 'I will make you a great nation' underlies Acts 7:17's reference to the promise (ἐπαγγελία) and the subsequent multiplication of the people in Egypt.
- Genesis 15:5 (verbal): The imagery of numerous descendants ('as the stars of heaven') relates to the theme of multiplication of Abraham's seed mentioned in Acts 7:17.
- Psalm 105:24 (verbal): The psalm recounts Israel's increase in Egypt ('He increased his people greatly'), paralleling Stephen's claim about the people's growth during the sojourn.
Alternative generated candidates
- But as the time of the promise drew near that God had sworn to Abraham, the people increased and multiplied in Egypt,
- But as the time of the promise drew near that God had sworn to Abraham, the people increased and multiplied in Egypt,
Acts.7.18 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- αχρι: PREP
- ου: PART,neg
- ανεστη: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- βασιλευς: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- ετερος: ADJ,nom,sg,m
- επ᾽Αιγυπτον: PREP,acc
- ος: PRON,nom,sg,m
- ουκ: PART,neg
- ηδει: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,sg
- τον: ART,acc,sg,m
- Ιωσηφ: NOUN,dat,sg,m
Parallels
- Exodus 1:8 (quotation): Acts 7:18 directly echoes and essentially quotes Exodus 1:8 — 'A new king arose over Egypt, who knew not Joseph.'
- Exodus 1:9-11 (thematic): These verses develop the consequence of the new king's attitude: the Egyptians' plot to oppress Israel (appointing taskmasters and making them slaves), the immediate historical setting Stephen summarizes.
- Genesis 41:41-45 (thematic): Early Genesis account showing Pharaoh's elevation of Joseph and his favor before the Egyptian court; provides the contrast to the later 'king who did not know Joseph.'
- Psalm 105:17-22 (allusion): Psalm 105 retells Joseph's rise and bondage and notes that 'the king sent and loosed him,' recalling the royal recognition and later change in Israel's standing that Stephen compresses in Acts 7:18.
Alternative generated candidates
- until there arose over Egypt a new king who knew nothing of Joseph.
- until there arose over Egypt a new king who did not know Joseph.
Acts.7.19 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ουτος: PRON,nom,sg,m
- κατασοφισαμενος: VERB,aor,mid,ptc,nom,sg,m
- το: ART,acc,sg,n
- γενος: NOUN,nom,sg,n
- ημων: PRON,gen,pl,1
- εκακωσεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- τους: ART,acc,pl,m
- πατερας: NOUN,acc,pl,m
- του: ART,gen,sg,n
- ποιειν: VERB,pres,act,inf
- τα: ART,acc,pl,n
- βρεφη: NOUN,acc,pl,n
- εκθετα: VERB,aor,pass,ptc,acc,pl,n
- αυτων: PRON,gen,pl,m
- εις: PREP
- το: ART,acc,sg,n
- μη: PART
- ζωογονεισθαι: VERB,pres,mid/pass,inf
Parallels
- Exodus 1:22 (quotation): Stephen is echoing the Exodus account in which the king of Egypt commands that newborn Hebrew sons be 'thrown into the river' (exposed); the verb ἐκθέτα(ι) recalls the LXX wording of Exodus 1:22.
- Exodus 1:15-16 (quotation): Related earlier command in the Exodus narrative: Pharaoh instructs the Hebrew midwives to kill newborn boys—an immediately connected episode of infanticide/exposure in the same pericope Stephen summarizes.
- Matthew 2:16 (thematic): Herod's order to kill the boys in Bethlehem parallels Pharaoh's policy of eliminating male children to frustrate a prospective deliverer; both are royal attempts to prevent the rise of a liberator.
- Jeremiah 31:15 (allusion): The motif of weeping for slain children (later applied by Matthew to Herod's massacre) forms a prophetic/poetic counterpart to the theme of infant slaughter and communal mourning that Stephen invokes in recounting Egyptian infanticide.
Alternative generated candidates
- He dealt shrewdly with our race and forced our fathers to expose their infants so that they might not be kept alive.
- He dealt shrewdly with our race and oppressed our fathers by forcing them to expose their infants, so that they might not survive.
Acts.7.20 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- εν: PREP
- ω: PRON,dat,sg,m
- καιρω: NOUN,dat,sg,m
- εγεννηθη: VERB,aor,pass,ind,3,sg
- Μωυσης: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- ην: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,sg
- αστειος: ADJ,nom,sg,m
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- θεω·ος: NOUN,dat,sg,m
- ανετραφη: VERB,aor,pass,ind,3,sg
- μηνας: NOUN,acc,pl,m
- τρεις: NUM,acc,pl,f
- εν: PREP
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- οικω: NOUN,dat,sg,m
- του: ART,gen,sg,n
- πατρος·: NOUN,gen,sg,m
Parallels
- Exodus 2:2 (verbal): Direct narrative parallel: Exodus records Moses' birth and his being 'beautiful' (or well‑pleasing) and hidden by his mother—Acts 7.20 draws on the same detail.
- Exodus 2:1-10 (structural): Broader structural parallel: the infancy narrative of Moses (birth, concealment, placement in the river, discovery by Pharaoh’s daughter) which Stephen summarizes in Acts 7:20–22.
- Hebrews 11:23 (quotation): Explicit New Testament citation of the same tradition: Hebrews states that Moses was hidden by his parents for three months, echoing the detail Stephen gives in Acts 7:20.
- Acts 7:21 (structural): Immediate internal parallel/continuation within Stephen’s speech: verse 21 follows 7:20 by describing Moses being placed in the river and found by Pharaoh’s daughter, completing the infancy motif introduced in 7:20.
Alternative generated candidates
- At this time Moses was born; and he was beautiful in God’s sight. He was brought up for three months in his father’s house.
- In that time Moses was born. He was beautiful in God's sight; and for three months he was cared for in his father's house.
Acts.7.21 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- εκτεθεντος: VERB,aor,pass,ptc,gen,m,sg
- δε: CONJ
- αυτου: PRON,gen,sg,m
- ανειλατο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,sg
- αυτον: PRON,acc,sg,m
- η: ART,nom,sg,f
- θυγατηρ: NOUN,nom,sg,fem
- Φαραω: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- ανεθρεψατο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,sg
- αυτον: PRON,acc,sg,m
- εαυτη: PRON,dat,sg,f
- εις: PREP
- υιον: NOUN,acc,sg,m
Parallels
- Exodus 2:2-3 (verbal): Same episode of the infant Moses being exposed/placed in a basket by his mother; Acts echoes the language and circumstance of his being set aside on the Nile.
- Exodus 2:5-10 (verbal): Direct parallel to Pharaoh’s daughter finding, taking up, and raising Moses — Stephen’s summary compresses the same sequence found here, including the adoptive action.
- Hebrews 11:23 (thematic): Speaks of Moses being hidden by his parents and preserved, connecting to the infancy narrative that culminates with his being taken and raised by Pharaoh’s daughter.
- Hebrews 11:24 (allusion): Refers to Moses’ later refusal to be called ‘son of Pharaoh’s daughter,’ explicitly alluding to the adoptive status Stephen recounts in Acts 7:21.
Alternative generated candidates
- When he was exposed, the daughter of Pharaoh took him up and reared him as her own son.
- When he was set out, Pharaoh's daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son.
Acts.7.22 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- επαιδευθη: VERB,aor,pass,ind,3,sg
- Μωυσης: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- παση: ADJ,dat,sg,f
- σοφια: NOUN,nom,sg,f
- Αιγυπτιων: NOUN,gen,pl,m
- ην: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,sg
- δε: CONJ
- δυνατος: ADJ,nom,sg,m
- εν: PREP
- λογοις: NOUN,dat,pl,m
- και: CONJ
- εργοις: NOUN,dat,pl,n
- αυτου: PRON,gen,sg,m
Parallels
- Acts 7:20-23 (structural): Immediate context of Stephen's speech describing Moses' birth, upbringing in Pharaoh's house, and his early deeds—a direct continuation/expansion of v.22's claim about his Egyptian training and power in word and deed.
- Exodus 2:10 (allusion): Reports Moses being adopted and raised in Pharaoh's household—background for Acts' statement that he was educated in the wisdom of the Egyptians.
- Exodus 2:11-12 (thematic): Narrates Moses' killing of an Egyptian who mistreated a Hebrew—an example of decisive action that resonates with Paul/Stephen's claim about his effectiveness in 'deeds.'
- Hebrews 11:24-26 (thematic): Notes Moses' Egyptian upbringing and his later refusal of royal privileges in favor of solidarity with Israel—parallels the tension between his Egyptian education/skills and his eventual identification with God's people.
- Deuteronomy 34:10 (thematic): Affirms Moses' unique prophetic authority in Israel—echoes Acts' depiction of Moses as singularly powerful in word and deed.
Alternative generated candidates
- And Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and he was mighty in his words and deeds.
- Moses was instructed in all the learning of the Egyptians and was mighty in his words and deeds.
Acts.7.23 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- Ως: CONJ
- δε: CONJ
- επληρουτο: VERB,impf,mid/pass,ind,3,sg
- αυτω: PRON,dat,sg,m
- τεσσερακονταετης: ADJ,nom,sg,m
- χρονος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- ανεβη: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- επι: PREP
- την: ART,acc,sg,f
- καρδιαν: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- αυτου: PRON,gen,sg,m
- επισκεψασθαι: VERB,aor,mid,inf
- τους: ART,acc,pl,m
- αδελφους: NOUN,acc,pl,m
- αυτου: PRON,gen,sg,m
- τους: ART,acc,pl,m
- υιους: NOUN,acc,pl,m
- Ισραηλ: NOUN,voc,sg,m
Parallels
- Exodus 2:11 (verbal): Direct narrative parallel — Moses 'went out unto his brethren' (LXX/MT) mirrors Stephen’s wording about going to his brothers, the children of Israel.
- Exodus 2:12 (structural): Immediate narrative continuation in Exodus: Moses observes oppression and acts on behalf of an Israelite — explains the situation that follows his going out to his brethren.
- Exodus 2:15 (thematic): After the incident described when he went to his brethren, Moses flees to Midian — Acts’ account presumes the same sequence (visit → conflict → flight).
- Hebrews 11:24-26 (thematic): Later New Testament reflection on Moses’ choice to identify with Israel rather than Egyptian status echoes the motive behind his visiting and siding with his brethren.
Alternative generated candidates
- When he was forty years old it came into his heart to visit his brothers, the children of Israel.
- When he was forty years old, it entered his mind to visit his own people, the Israelites.
Acts.7.24 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- ιδων: VERB,aor,act,part,nom,sg,m
- τινα: PRON,acc,sg,m
- αδικουμενον: VERB,pres,pass,part,acc,sg,m
- ημυνατο: VERB,impf,mid,ind,3,sg
- και: CONJ
- εποιησεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- εκδικησιν: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- καταπονουμενω: VERB,pres,pass,part,dat,sg,m
- παταξας: VERB,aor,act,part,nom,sg,m
- τον: ART,acc,sg,m
- Αιγυπτιον: NOUN,acc,sg,m
Parallels
- Exodus 2:11-12 (quotation): Direct narrative source: Moses sees an Egyptian mistreating a Hebrew, intervenes and strikes the Egyptian—same incident Stephen cites.
- Exodus 2:13-15 (structural): Immediate sequel in Exodus: Moses conceals the body, a Hebrew challenges him, and Moses flees to Midian—provides the fuller narrative context for Acts 7:24.
- Acts 7:25 (structural): Stephen's own continuation of the episode—explains Moses' motive and expectation that his people would recognize God's deliverance, linking to the killing in v.24.
- Hebrews 11:24-26 (thematic): Portrays Moses' solidarity with his people and his willingness to suffer rather than enjoy Egyptian privilege—thematic background for his intervention on behalf of an oppressed Hebrew.
Alternative generated candidates
- Seeing one of them being wronged, he defended the oppressed and avenged the oppressed by striking down the Egyptian.
- Seeing one of them being wronged, he defended him and avenged the oppressed by striking down the Egyptian.
Acts.7.25 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ενομιζεν: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,sg
- δε: CONJ
- συνιεναι: VERB,pres,act,inf
- τους: ART,acc,pl,m
- αδελφους: NOUN,acc,pl,m
- οτι: CONJ
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- θεος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- δια: PREP
- χειρος: NOUN,gen,sg,f
- αυτου: PRON,gen,sg,m
- διδωσιν: VERB,pres,act,sub,3,pl
- σωτηριαν: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- αυτοις: PRO,dat,pl,3
- οι: ART,nom,pl,m
- δε: CONJ
- ου: PART,neg
- συνηκαν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,pl
Parallels
- Exodus 2:11-15 (quotation): Stephen is recounting the same episode in Exodus: Moses kills an Egyptian and ‘thought his brothers would understand that God would deliver them by his hand,’ but they did not—Acts 7:25 echoes Exodus' narrative and intent.
- John 1:11 (thematic): Echoes the motif of rejection by one’s own: 'He came to his own, and his own did not receive him,' paralleling Acts' note that Moses’ brothers did not accept his understanding of God’s action.
- Mark 6:4 (cf. Matthew 13:57) (thematic): The theme of a rejected agent/prophet in his own circle: 'A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown,' comparable to Moses’ expectation and subsequent rejection by his people.
- John 7:5 (allusion): Another instance where 'brothers' fail to accept or understand one sent by God—'For even his brothers did not believe in him'—paralleling the failure of Moses’ brothers to accept his perceived role.
Alternative generated candidates
- He thought that his brothers would understand that God was giving them deliverance by his hand; but they did not understand.
- He supposed that his brothers would understand that God would deliver them by his hand, but they did not understand.
Acts.7.26 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- τη: ART,dat,sg,f
- τε: CONJ
- επιουση: ADJ,dat,sg,f
- ημερα: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- ωφθη: VERB,aor,pass,ind,3,sg
- αυτοις: PRO,dat,pl,3
- μαχομενοις: PART,pres,mid,dat,pl,m
- και: CONJ
- συνηλλασσεν: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,sg
- αυτους: PRON,acc,pl,m
- εις: PREP
- ειρηνην: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- ειπων·Ανδρες: PART,pres,act,nom,sg,m
- αδελφοι: NOUN,nom,pl,m
- εστε·ινατι: VERB,pres,act,ind,2,pl
- αδικειτε: VERB,pres,act,ind,2,pl
- αλληλους: PRON,acc,pl,m
Parallels
- Exodus 2:11-15 (structural): The fuller Mosaic episode: Moses sees two Hebrews fighting, intervenes and later flees after his deed is discovered — Acts 7:26 summarizes this incident in Stephen’s retelling.
- Exodus 2:13-14 (LXX) (verbal): Acts 7:26 echoes the LXX wording and address used when Moses confronts the quarrel ('Who made you a ruler and judge over us?' / 'Why do you wrong your companion?'), making this a close verbal parallel.
- Acts 7:25 (structural): Immediate parallel in Stephen’s speech: the following verse explains Moses’ expectation that his people would recognize God’s hand through him and their failure to do so, continuing the same incident narrated in 7:26.
- Matthew 5:23-24 (thematic): Both passages stress the importance of reconciliation among brethren — Acts 7:26 portrays Moses reconciling fighting compatriots, Matthew enjoins reconciliation before worship.
- 1 Corinthians 6:7-8 (thematic): Paul’s rebuke of Christians wronging or suing fellow believers parallels Stephen’s concern about injustice and conflict among brethren in the community.
Alternative generated candidates
- And on the following day he appeared to them as they were quarreling and tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brothers; why do you wrong one another?’
- On the following day he appeared to them as they were quarreling and tried to reconcile them, saying, 'Men, you are brothers; why do you wrong one another?'
Acts.7.27 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- δε: CONJ
- αδικων: VERB,pres,act,part,nom,sg,m
- τον: ART,acc,sg,m
- πλησιον: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- απωσατο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,sg
- αυτον: PRON,acc,sg,m
- ειπων·Τις: VERB,aor,act,part,nom,sg,m+PRON,nom,sg,m
- σε: PRON,acc,sg,2
- κατεστησεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- αρχοντα: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- δικαστην: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- εφ᾽ημων: PREP+PRON,gen,pl,1
Parallels
- Exodus 2:13-14 (quotation): Acts 7:27 directly echoes/quotes the rebuke Moses receives in Exodus when a Hebrew asks, 'Who made you a prince and judge over us?,' matching wording and context.
- Exodus 2:11-12 (structural): Immediate narrative background: Moses intervenes in a fight and attacks the Egyptian, an action that precipitates the rebuke recorded in v.13–14 and recalled in Acts 7.
- Exodus 2:15 (structural): Follows the rebuke in Exodus: Moses flees to Midian after the confrontation—Stephen's account in Acts links the rebuke to Moses' subsequent departure.
- Hebrews 11:24-26 (thematic): Hebrews characterizes Moses' identification with Israel and his willingness to suffer rather than be called son of Pharaoh, resonating with Acts' portrayal of Moses' attempted intervention and rejection by his brethren.
Alternative generated candidates
- But the man who wronged his neighbor thrust him aside, saying, ‘Who made you a prince and a judge over us?
- But the man who was wronging his neighbor thrust him aside, saying, 'Who made you a ruler and a judge over us?'
Acts.7.28 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- μη: PART
- ανελειν: VERB,aor,act,inf
- με: PRON,acc,sg,1
- συ: PRON,nom,sg,2
- θελεις: VERB,pres,act,ind,2,sg
- ον: PART,pres,act,nom,sg,m
- τροπον: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- ανειλες: VERB,aor,act,ind,2,sg
- εχθες: ADV
- τον: ART,acc,sg,m
- Αιγυπτιον: NOUN,acc,sg,m
Parallels
- Exodus 2:12 (verbal): Narrative report of the same incident: Moses kills an Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew — the underlying event Stephen is recounting in Acts 7:28.
- Exodus 2:14 (quotation): The Egyptian’s or bystanders’ challenge to Moses — the LXX wording closely parallels Acts 7:28’s question, 'Do you intend to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?'
- Acts 22:20 (allusion): Paul’s autobiographical speech likewise refers to the episode in which he (or Moses in Paul’s recounting) struck and killed an Egyptian — a direct New Testament parallel to Stephen’s retelling.
- Hebrews 11:24-27 (thematic): The author reflects on Moses’ motives and actions (faithful defense of his people, rejection of Egyptian honors), thematically connecting to the episode of Moses’ violent defense recorded in Acts.
Alternative generated candidates
- Do you intend to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’
- When Moses heard this, he fled and became a sojourner in the land of Midian, where he became father of two sons.
Acts.7.29 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- εφυγεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- δε: CONJ
- Μωυσης: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- εν: PREP
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- λογω: NOUN,dat,sg,m
- τουτω: DEM,dat,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- εγενετο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,sg
- παροικος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- εν: PREP
- γη: NOUN,nom,sg,f
- Μαδιαμ: NOUN,dat,sg,m
- ου: PART,neg
- εγεννησεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- υιους: NOUN,acc,pl,m
- δυο: NUM,acc,pl,m
Parallels
- Exodus 2:15-22 (quotation): Direct parallel in the Pentateuch: Moses flees Egypt to Midian, sits by the well, marries Zipporah and becomes the father of two sons (Gershom and Eliezer).
- Exodus 18:2-4 (verbal): Later reference that names and affirms Moses' two sons (Gershom and Eliezer) when Jethro brings them to Moses, corroborating the detail of his offspring in Midian.
- Hebrews 11:24-29 (thematic): Summarizes Moses' life decisions and faith, including his departure from Egypt and life as an exile/stranger, thematically linking his Midian sojourn to his faith and vocation.
- Acts 7:23-28 (structural): Immediate context within Stephen's speech: the preceding verses recount why Moses fled and set up the same narrative frame that is concluded in 7:29 about his sojourn in Midian and fathering two sons.
Alternative generated candidates
- At this remark Moses fled and went away to Midian, where he became the father of two sons.
- After forty years had passed, there appeared to him an angel in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire in a bush.
Acts.7.30 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- Και: CONJ
- πληρωθεντων: VERB,aor,pass,ptc,gen,pl,n
- ετων: NOUN,gen,pl,n
- τεσσερακοντα: NUM,acc,pl
- ωφθη: VERB,aor,pass,ind,3,sg
- αυτω: PRON,dat,sg,m
- εν: PREP
- τη: ART,dat,sg,f
- ερημω: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- του: ART,gen,sg,n
- ορους: NOUN,gen,sg,neut
- Σινα: NOUN,gen,sg,n
- αγγελος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- εν: PREP
- φλογι: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- πυρος: NOUN,gen,sg,n
- βατου·: NOUN,gen,sg,m
Parallels
- Exodus 3:2 (quotation): Direct parallel/quotation: Moses encounters 'the angel of the LORD' in a flame of fire in the burning bush—same theophany Stephen recounts.
- Exodus 3:1-6 (structural): Same narrative setting (Mount Sinai/Horeb, Moses tending sheep) and the broader burning‑bush theophany that Stephen is summarizing.
- Judges 13:20 (verbal): The angel of the LORD is associated with flame/fire (the angel ascends in the flame of the altar), a parallel use of angel + fire imagery in divine appearances.
- Hebrews 1:7 (verbal): Echoes the motif of angels as 'a flame of fire' (cf. Ps 104:4), providing a verbal/thematic link between angelic activity and fire imagery found in Acts 7:30.
Alternative generated candidates
- When forty years had passed, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, in a flame of fire out of a bush.
- When Moses saw it, he marveled at the sight. As he drew near to look, the voice of the Lord came to him:
Acts.7.31 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- δε: CONJ
- Μωυσης: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- ιδων: VERB,aor,act,part,nom,sg,m
- εθαυμασεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- το: ART,acc,sg,n
- οραμα: NOUN,acc,sg,n
- προσερχομενου: PART,pres,mid,gen,sg,m
- δε: CONJ
- αυτου: PRON,gen,sg,m
- κατανοησαι: VERB,aor,act,inf
- εγενετο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,sg
- φωνη: NOUN,nom,sg,f
- κυριου·: NOUN,gen,sg,m
Parallels
- Exodus 3:2-4 (quotation): Stephen recounts Moses’ burning‑bush episode; Exodus 3:2‑4 explicitly describes the bush that burned and God calling to Moses when he drew near—verbal and narrative source for Acts 7:31.
- Acts 7:30 (structural): Immediate context in Stephen’s speech: Acts 7:30 introduces the same appearance/vision to Moses (an angel/vision in the bush), providing the preceding structural element to v.31’s reaction and the Lord’s voice.
- Acts 9:4 (thematic): Saul’s encounter on the Damascus road where a divine voice speaks to a human parallels the phenomenon in Acts 7:31—an audible divine summons prompting confrontation/transformation.
- Isaiah 6:1-4 (thematic): Isaiah’s visionary encounter with the Lord includes awe at a heavenly vision and the sounding of divine voices; thematically similar as a prophetic theophany combining vision and voice.
- Hebrews 11:27 (allusion): Hebrews highlights Moses’ faith rooted in his encounter with the unseen God; this alludes to Moses’ theophany (as in Acts 7:31) as decisive for his faith and subsequent actions.
Alternative generated candidates
- Moses saw it and wondered at the sight. As he approached to look, the voice of the Lord came to him,
- 'I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.' Moses trembled and did not dare to look.
Acts.7.32 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- Εγω: PRON,nom,sg,1
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- θεος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- των: ART,gen,pl,m
- πατερων: NOUN,gen,pl,m
- σου: PRON,gen,sg,2
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- θεος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- Αβρααμ: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- Ισαακ: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- Ιακωβ: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- εντρομος: ADJ,nom,sg,m
- δε: CONJ
- γενομενος: VERB,aor,mid,ptc,nom,sg,m
- Μωυσης: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- ουκ: PART,neg
- ετολμα: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,sg
- κατανοησαι: VERB,aor,act,inf
Parallels
- Exodus 3:6 (quotation): Direct verbal parallel: God identifies himself as 'the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob' at the burning bush; Moses hides his face in fear (LXX/MT wording echoed in Acts 7:32).
- Exodus 3:2-6 (structural): The broader theophany context (burning bush) and Moses' reaction—fear and reluctance to look—are the narrative background Stephen summarizes here.
- Matthew 22:32 (quotation): Jesus cites the same formula 'I am the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob' (present tense) to argue for the patriarchs' life after death, echoing Exodus and the wording Stephen uses.
- Luke 20:37-38 (quotation): Parallel to Matthew 22:32—Jesus' citation of God's identification with the patriarchs to demonstrate that God is 'not the God of the dead but of the living,' drawing on the Exodus scene Stephen recounts.
- Romans 4:16-17 (thematic): Paul's affirmation of the God of Abraham as one who gives life and calls into being what does not exist connects the identity of God as patriarchal God in Acts 7:32 with the theological claim of God's life‑giving, present reality.
Alternative generated candidates
- ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob.’ Moses trembled and did not dare to look.
- Then the Lord said to him, 'Take off the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you stand is holy; I have surely seen the affliction of my people in Egypt and have heard their cry and have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.'
Acts.7.33 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ειπεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- δε: CONJ
- αυτω: PRON,dat,sg,m
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- κυριος·Λυσον: NOUN,nom,sg,m+VERB,aor,act,imp,2,sg
- το: ART,acc,sg,n
- υποδημα: NOUN,acc,sg,n
- των: ART,gen,pl,m
- ποδων: NOUN,gen,pl,m
- σου: PRON,gen,sg,2
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- γαρ: PART
- τοπος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- εφ᾽ω: PREP+PRON,acc,sg,n
- εστηκας: VERB,perf,act,ind,2,sg
- γη: NOUN,nom,sg,f
- αγια: ADJ,nom,sg,f
- εστιν: VERB,pres,act,ind,3,sg
Parallels
- Exodus 3:5 (quotation): Original command at the burning bush—God tells Moses to remove his sandals because the ground is holy. Acts 7:33 directly quotes and recounts this theophany.
- Joshua 5:15 (verbal): The commander of the LORD tells Joshua to take off his sandals because the place is holy—uses the same motif/wording of barefoot reverence in the presence of God.
- Hebrews 12:18-21 (thematic): Contrasts the terrifying, holy encounter at Sinai (theophanic holiness of place) with the believer’s approach to God—echoes the theme that God’s presence renders ground/place sacred and demands reverent response.
- Isaiah 6:1-5 (thematic): Isaiah’s vision of God’s holiness evokes awe and reverence before the divine presence; thematically parallels the idea that encounter with God makes a space holy and provokes a reverent human reaction.
Alternative generated candidates
- Then the Lord said to him, ‘Take off the sandals from your feet; for the place where you stand is holy ground.
- This Moses, whom they refused, saying, 'Who made you a ruler and a judge?' God sent as both ruler and deliverer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush.
Acts.7.34 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ιδων: VERB,aor,act,part,nom,sg,m
- ειδον: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,pl
- την: ART,acc,sg,f
- κακωσιν: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- του: ART,gen,sg,n
- λαου: NOUN,gen,sg,m
- μου: PRON,gen,sg,1
- του: ART,gen,sg,n
- εν: PREP
- Αιγυπτω: PROPN,dat,sg,f
- και: CONJ
- του: ART,gen,sg,n
- στεναγμου: NOUN,gen,sg,m
- αυτου: PRON,gen,sg,m
- ηκουσα: VERB,aor,act,ind,1,sg
- και: CONJ
- κατεβην: VERB,aor,act,ind,1,sg
- εξελεσθαι: VERB,aor,mid,inf
- αυτους·και: PRON,acc,pl,3
- νυν: ADV
- δευρο: ADV
- αποστειλω: VERB,fut,act,ind,1,sg
- σε: PRON,acc,sg,2
- εις: PREP
- Αιγυπτον: NOUN,acc,sg,f
Parallels
- Exodus 3:7-10 (quotation): Stephen is directly echoing God's words to Moses at the burning bush: God ‘saw the affliction,’ ‘heard their groaning,’ ‘came down to deliver them,’ and declared He would send Moses to Egypt.
- Exodus 2:24-25 (verbal): Early Exodus language: God ‘heard their groaning’ and ‘remembered his covenant’—the same motifs of hearing Israel’s distress and acting on their behalf that Stephen cites.
- Exodus 6:5 (verbal): Reiterates the phraseology found in Acts 7:34—God ‘has surely seen the oppression of the Egyptians’ and ‘has heard their groaning,’ linking Stephen’s wording to Mosaic tradition.
- Luke 1:68-71 (thematic): Zechariah’s hymn speaks of God ‘visiting and redeeming his people’ and raising a deliverer—a New Testament thematic parallel to God’s coming down to deliver Israel in Stephen’s summary.
Alternative generated candidates
- I have indeed seen the affliction of my people in Egypt, and I have heard their groaning, and I have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.’
- This man led them out, performing signs and wonders in Egypt and at the Red Sea and for forty years in the wilderness.
Acts.7.35 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- Τουτον: DEM,acc,sg,m
- τον: ART,acc,sg,m
- Μωυσην: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- ον: PART,pres,act,nom,sg,m
- ηρνησαντο: VERB,aor,mid/dep,ind,3,pl
- ειποντες·Τις: VERB,aor,act,ptcp,nom,pl,m
- σε: PRON,acc,sg,2
- κατεστησεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- αρχοντα: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- δικαστην: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- τουτον: PRON,acc,sg,m
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- θεος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- αρχοντα: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- λυτρωτην: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- απεσταλκεν: VERB,perf,pass,ind,3,sg
- συν: PREP
- χειρι: NOUN,dat,sg,fem
- αγγελου: NOUN,gen,sg,m
- του: ART,gen,sg,n
- οφθεντος: VERB,aor,pass,ptcp,gen,sg,m
- αυτω: PRON,dat,sg,m
- εν: PREP
- τη: ART,dat,sg,f
- βατω: NOUN,dat,sg,f
Parallels
- Exodus 2:14 (verbal): Stephen quotes/echoes the Israelites' rebuke to Moses—'Who made you ruler and judge?'—which appears in Exodus 2:14 (LXX/Rend.).
- Exodus 3:2-4 (quotation): The reference to the angel appearing 'in the bush' alludes directly to the burning‑bush theophany where the angel/Lord appears to Moses (Exod 3:2‑4).
- Exodus 3:10 (structural): Acts says God 'sent' Moses as ruler and deliverer; Exodus 3:10 records God's commissioning of Moses to go to Pharaoh and bring Israel out—paralleling the sending/mission motif.
- Exodus 4:10-16 (thematic): Exodus 4 records Moses' protest and God's continued commissioning (including the angel/commission and Aaron as spokesman), echoing Stephen's emphasis that God appointed and empowered Moses despite human refusal.
- Hebrews 11:24-27 (thematic): Hebrews presents Moses as God's chosen leader who rejected earthly honors and acted as Israel's deliverer—paralleling Stephen's portrayal of Moses as appointed by God and resisted by his people.
Alternative generated candidates
- This Moses whom they refused, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’—this one God sent to be both ruler and deliverer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush.
- This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, 'God will raise up for you a prophet from your brothers like me.'
Acts.7.36 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ουτος: PRON,nom,sg,m
- εξηγαγεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- αυτους: PRON,acc,pl,m
- ποιησας: VERB,aor,act,part,nom,m,sg
- τερατα: NOUN,acc,pl,n
- και: CONJ
- σημεια: NOUN,acc,pl,n
- εν: PREP
- γη: NOUN,nom,sg,f
- Αιγυπτω: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- και: CONJ
- εν: PREP
- Ερυθρα: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- Θαλασση: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- και: CONJ
- εν: PREP
- τη: ART,dat,sg,f
- ερημω: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- ετη: NOUN,acc,pl,n
- τεσσερακοντα: NUM,acc,pl
Parallels
- Exodus 7:3 (verbal): God will multiply signs and wonders in the land of Egypt — direct verbal parallel to Stephen’s 'wonders and signs in the land of Egypt.'
- Exodus 14:21-31 (thematic): Narrative of the parting of the Red Sea and Israel’s deliverance — the event behind Stephen’s reference to the Red (Reed) Sea rescue.
- Numbers 14:33-34 (verbal): The people are sentenced to wander forty years in the wilderness — explicit OT basis for 'forty years in the wilderness.'
- Deuteronomy 8:2 (thematic): Moses recalls God leading Israel forty years in the wilderness to humble and test them — thematic echo of the forty-year wilderness period.
- Hebrews 11:29 (thematic): By faith they passed through the Red Sea — New Testament parallel that recalls the Red Sea crossing and links it to Moses’ leadership and God’s saving signs.
Alternative generated candidates
- He led them out, performing wonders and signs in Egypt, at the Red Sea, and for forty years in the wilderness.
- He was in the assembly in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers; he received living oracles to give to us.
Acts.7.37 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ουτος: PRON,nom,sg,m
- εστιν: VERB,pres,act,ind,3,sg
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- Μωυσης: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- ειπας: VERB,aor,act,ptcp,nom,sg,m
- τοις: ART,dat,pl,n
- υιοις: NOUN,dat,pl,m
- Ισραηλ·Προφητην: NOUN,gen,sg,m
- υμιν: PRON,dat,pl,2
- αναστησει: VERB,fut,act,ind,3,sg
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- θεος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- εκ: PREP
- των: ART,gen,pl,m
- αδελφων: NOUN,gen,pl,m
- υμων: PRON,gen,pl,2
- ως: ADV
- εμε: PRON,acc,sg,1
Parallels
- Deuteronomy 18:15 (quotation): The original promise cited by Stephen: Moses says God will raise up 'a prophet like me' from among the people—Acts 7:37 directly echoes this wording.
- Deuteronomy 18:18 (verbal): Continues the Deuteronomic promise ('I will raise up a prophet... and put my words in his mouth'), which underlies the identification of Jesus as the promised prophet.
- Acts 3:22 (quotation): Peter's sermon in Acts also quotes Deut 18:15–19 to identify Jesus as the prophet like Moses, paralleling Stephen's use of the same text.
- John 7:40 (allusion): After Jesus' teaching some in the crowd say, 'This is the Prophet,' reflecting popular expectation of the Deuteronomic prophet like Moses that Stephen invokes.
- Hebrews 3:5-6 (thematic): Explicitly compares Moses and Christ (Moses as servant, Christ as son/house builder), engaging the same tradition about Moses and the greater figure who follows him.
Alternative generated candidates
- This is that Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet from your brothers like me.’
- Our fathers received the law through Moses; yet they would not obey it, and in their hearts they turned back to Egypt.
Acts.7.38 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ουτος: PRON,nom,sg,m
- εστιν: VERB,pres,act,ind,3,sg
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- γενομενος: VERB,aor,mid,ptc,nom,sg,m
- εν: PREP
- τη: ART,dat,sg,f
- εκκλησια: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- εν: PREP
- τη: ART,dat,sg,f
- ερημω: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- μετα: PREP
- του: ART,gen,sg,n
- αγγελου: NOUN,gen,sg,m
- του: ART,gen,sg,n
- λαλουντος: VERB,pres,act,part,gen,sg,masc
- αυτω: PRON,dat,sg,m
- εν: PREP
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- ορει: NOUN,dat,sg,n
- Σινα: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- και: CONJ
- των: ART,gen,pl,m
- πατερων: NOUN,gen,pl,m
- ημων: PRON,gen,pl,1
- ος: PRON,nom,sg,m
- εδεξατο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,sg
- λογια: NOUN,acc,pl,n
- ζωντα: ADJ,acc,sg,m
- δουναι: VERB,aor,act,inf
- ημιν: PRON,dat,pl,1
Parallels
- Exodus 3:2 (allusion): Mentions the 'angel of the LORD' appearing to Moses at the mountain/bush—Acts 7:38 refers to the angel who spoke to Moses on Sinai.
- Exodus 19:3-7 (structural): Describes Moses summoning the elders/assembly at Sinai and Israel encamped at the mountain—parallels Acts' picture of Israel as the 'ekklesia' (assembly) in the wilderness.
- Romans 3:2 (verbal): Paul states that 'to them were committed the oracles of God,' echoing Acts 7:38's language that Moses 'received living oracles to give to us' (near verbal parallel).
- 1 Corinthians 10:1-4 (thematic): Treats Israel's wilderness experience as a formative, corporate reality (cloud, sea, baptism into Moses), paralleling Stephen's use of the wilderness/assembly motif and the transmission of God's revelation to the people.
Alternative generated candidates
- He was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers; he received living oracles to give to us.
- They told Aaron to make for them a calf, and they worshiped an idol and offered sacrifices to the work of their hands.
Acts.7.39 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ω: PRON,dat,sg,m
- ουκ: PART,neg
- ηθελησαν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,pl
- υπηκοοι: ADJ,nom,pl,m
- γενεσθαι: VERB,aor,mid,inf
- οι: ART,nom,pl,m
- πατερες: NOUN,nom,pl,m
- ημων: PRON,gen,pl,1
- αλλα: CONJ
- απωσαντο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,pl
- και: CONJ
- εστραφησαν: VERB,aor,pass,ind,3,pl
- εν: PREP
- ταις: ART,dat,pl,f
- καρδιαις: NOUN,dat,pl,f
- αυτων: PRON,gen,pl,m
- εις: PREP
- Αιγυπτον: NOUN,acc,sg,f
Parallels
- Numbers 14:2-4 (verbal): After the spies' report the people grieved and said, 'Let us choose a leader and return to Egypt,' explicitly expressing the desire to turn back to Egypt—verbal parallel to Stephen's claim that the fathers turned back in their hearts.
- Deuteronomy 1:26-27 (verbal): Moses recounts Israel's unwillingness to go up and their rebellion, including their complaint about returning to Egypt—an earlier telling that Acts 7 echoes in wording and idea.
- Exodus 32:1-6 (thematic): While Moses delayed on Sinai the people 'turned' to make a golden calf; their rejection of God's appointed leader and lapse into idolatry thematically parallels Stephen's depiction of the fathers' turning away.
- Hebrews 3:16-19 (allusion): The author of Hebrews cites the same rebellion—those who heard God's voice yet disobeyed and were barred from entering God's rest—drawing the same theological lesson as Stephen about unbelief and turning back.
- Psalm 78:17-22 (thematic): This psalm recounts Israel's repeated testing of God, faithlessness, and desire to return, narrating the same pattern of disobedience and turning back that Stephen summarizes in Acts 7:39.
Alternative generated candidates
- Our fathers were unwilling to be obedient; they thrust him aside and in their hearts turned back to Egypt,
- But God turned and gave them up to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets:
Acts.7.40 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ειποντες: VERB,aor,act,part,nom,pl,m
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- Ααρων·Ποιησον: NOUN,dat,sg,m
- ημιν: PRON,dat,pl,1
- θεους: NOUN,acc,pl,m
- οι: ART,nom,pl,m
- προπορευσονται: VERB,pres,mid/pass,ind,3,pl
- ημων·ο: PRO,gen,pl,1
- γαρ: PART
- Μωυσης: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- ουτος: PRON,nom,sg,m
- ος: PRON,nom,sg,m
- εξηγαγεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- ημας: PRON,acc,pl,1
- εκ: PREP
- γης: NOUN,gen,sg,f
- Αιγυπτου: NOUN,gen,sg,f
- ουκ: PART,neg
- οιδαμεν: VERB,perf,act,ind,1,pl
- τι: PRON,int,nom,sg,n
- εγενετο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,sg
- αυτω: PRON,dat,sg,m
Parallels
- Exodus 32:1 (quotation): Direct narrative parallel — the people tell Aaron to 'make us gods' when Moses delays, matching Stephen's citation of their demand to Aaron.
- Exodus 32:8 (verbal): God's description of the incident — Israel 'made for themselves a calf' and attributed their deliverance from Egypt to it; echoes Stephen's report that they repudiated Moses and sought other gods.
- Deuteronomy 9:16–17 (quotation): Moses' retelling of the golden calf episode — recounts Israel's demand for a molten image and Moses' reaction, paralleling Stephen's retrospective account of the same rebellion.
- Psalm 106:19–20 (thematic): Liturgical/poetic memory of the golden calf — condemns Israel's exchange of God for a calf, thematically reinforcing Stephen's critique of idolatry and rejection of Moses.
- 1 Corinthians 10:7 (allusion): New Testament warning referencing Israel's idolatry — Paul cites the golden calf as an example to avoid, alluding to the same episode Stephen describes (apostasy and making gods).
Alternative generated candidates
- saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods to go before us; for as for this Moses who brought us out of the land of Egypt—we do not know what has become of him.’
- 'Did you bring to me slain beasts and sacrifices during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?'
Acts.7.41 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- εμοσχοποιησαν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,pl
- εν: PREP
- ταις: ART,dat,pl,f
- ημεραις: NOUN,dat,pl,f
- εκειναις: DEM,dat,pl,f
- και: CONJ
- ανηγαγον: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,pl
- θυσιαν: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- ειδωλω: NOUN,dat,sg,n
- και: CONJ
- ευφραινοντο: VERB,impf,mp,ind,3,pl
- εν: PREP
- τοις: ART,dat,pl,n
- εργοις: NOUN,dat,pl,n
- των: ART,gen,pl,m
- χειρων: NOUN,gen,pl,f
- αυτων: PRON,gen,pl,m
Parallels
- Exodus 32:4-6 (quotation): Stephen's depiction echoes the golden calf episode: the people made a calf, offered sacrifices to it and celebrated (cf. v.4 'made a molten calf', v.6 'they rose up to play').
- Deuteronomy 9:16 (allusion): Moses' report that Israel fashioned a molten image and worshiped it parallels Stephen's summary of the calf incident and its cultic rites.
- Psalm 106:19-20 (verbal): The psalm recounts Israel 'made a calf' and 'they exchanged their glory for the image of an ox', connecting idolatrous sacrifice with the people's adoption of a made object for worship—language mirrored in Acts 7:41.
- Romans 1:23 (thematic): Paul's critique that people 'exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images' parallels Stephen's charge about Israel sacrificing to a work of their hands—both condemn replacing divine worship with man-made idols.
- Psalm 115:4-8 (thematic): These verses portray idols as works of human hands that are powerless and those who make or trust them become like them—resonant with Acts 7:41's emphasis on rejoicing in the 'works of their hands' and worshiping an idol.
Alternative generated candidates
- And they made a calf and offered a sacrifice to the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their hands.
- You took up the tent of Moloch and the star of the god Rephan, the images that you made to worship; therefore I will remove you beyond Babylon.'
Acts.7.42 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- εστρεψεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- δε: CONJ
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- θεος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- παρεδωκεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- αυτους: PRON,acc,pl,m
- λατρευειν: VERB,pres,act,inf
- τη: ART,dat,sg,f
- στρατια: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- του: ART,gen,sg,n
- ουρανου: NOUN,gen,sg,masc
- καθως: CONJ
- γεγραπται: VERB,perf,pass,ind,3,sg
- εν: PREP
- βιβλω: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- των: ART,gen,pl,m
- προφητων·Μη: NOUN,gen,pl,m
- σφαγια: NOUN,acc,pl,n
- και: CONJ
- θυσιας: NOUN,acc,pl,f
- προσηνεγκατε: VERB,aor,act,ind,2,pl
- μοι: PRON,dat,sg,1
- ετη: NOUN,acc,pl,n
- τεσσερακοντα: NUM,acc,pl
- εν: PREP
- τη: ART,dat,sg,f
- ερημω: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- οικος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- Ισραηλ: NOUN,voc,sg,m
Parallels
- Amos 5:25–27 (quotation): Acts 7:42 directly quotes this passage (in the LXX form) — the prophet's rebuke about Israel bringing sacrifices in the wilderness and worshiping the 'host of heaven.'
- Amos 5:21–24 (thematic): Closely connected context in Amos condemning empty liturgy and festivals while justice is absent—background for Stephen's charge against hypocritical worship.
- Exodus 32:1–6 (thematic): The golden calf episode in the wilderness: Israel's idolatrous making of an image and offering sacrifices, the historical event to which Stephen alludes (worship in the desert).
- Jeremiah 7:21–23 (allusion): Yahweh disavows reliance on vain offerings and insists on obedience rather than ritual—echoes Stephen's point that God did not desire those wilderness sacrifices as Israel understood them.
Alternative generated candidates
- But God turned and gave them up to serve the host of heaven; as it is written in the book of the prophets, ‘Did you bring to me slain beasts and sacrifices for forty years, O house of Israel?
- Our fathers had the tabernacle of the testimony with them in the wilderness, as he who spoke to Moses directed him to make it according to the pattern he had shown him;
Acts.7.43 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- και: CONJ
- ανελαβετε: VERB,aor,act,ind,2,pl
- την: ART,acc,sg,f
- σκηνην: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- του: ART,gen,sg,n
- Μολοχ: NOUN,gen,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- το: ART,acc,sg,n
- αστρον: NOUN,acc,sg,n
- του: ART,gen,sg,n
- θεου: NOUN,gen,sg,m
- Ραιφαν: NOUN,gen,sg,m
- τους: ART,acc,pl,m
- τυπους: NOUN,acc,pl,m
- ους: PRON,acc,pl,m
- εποιησατε: VERB,aor,act,ind,2,pl
- προσκυνειν: VERB,pres,act,inf
- αυτοις: PRO,dat,pl,3
- και: CONJ
- μετοικιω: VERB,fut,act,ind,1,sg
- υμας: PRON,acc,pl,2
- επεκεινα: PRON,acc,pl,n
- Βαβυλωνος: NOUN,gen,sg,f
Parallels
- Amos 5:26 (LXX) (quotation): Acts 7:43 directly cites the Septuagint wording about 'the tent/shrine of Moloch and the star of your god Rephan' as an indictment of Israel's idolatry.
- Amos 5:26 (MT) (verbal): The Hebrew text reads 'Sakkuth' and 'Chiun' (variants of the deity names); Acts echoes Amos' charge against Israel's worship of foreign images using different name-forms.
- Exodus 32:4-8 (thematic): Both passages recount Israelites making and worshiping images (the golden calf) and provoke divine judgment—parallel example of communal idolatry.
- Leviticus 20:2-5 (allusion): The law forbids offering children to Molech; Acts' mention of 'Moloch' evokes these legal condemnations of Molech-worship among Israel.
- 1 Kings 11:7 (thematic): Solomon's building of a high place for Molech shows the acceptance/introduction of Molech-worship in Israel's history, paralleling Stephen's accusation of idolatry.
Alternative generated candidates
- You took up the tent of Moloch and the star of your god Rephan, the images you made to worship; therefore I will send you away beyond Babylon.’
- and after receiving it our fathers carried it with Joshua into the land, and in possession of the nations it remained until the days of David,
Acts.7.44 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- Η: ART,nom,sg,fem
- σκηνη: NOUN,nom,sg,f
- του: ART,gen,sg,n
- μαρτυριου: NOUN,gen,sg,n
- ην: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,sg
- τοις: ART,dat,pl,n
- πατρασιν: NOUN,dat,pl,m
- ημων: PRON,gen,pl,1
- εν: PREP
- τη: ART,dat,sg,f
- ερημω: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- καθως: CONJ
- διεταξατο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,sg
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- λαλων: VERB,pres,act,ptc,nom,sg,m
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- Μωυση: NOUN,dat,sg,m
- ποιησαι: VERB,aor,act,inf
- αυτην: PRON,acc,sg,f
- κατα: PREP
- τον: ART,acc,sg,m
- τυπον: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- ον: PART,pres,act,nom,sg,m
- εωρακει: VERB,perf,act,ind,3,sg
Parallels
- Exodus 25:8-9 (verbal): God commands the making of a sanctuary so He may dwell among the people and instructs Moses to make it 'according to the pattern'—the basic locus for the same phrasing in Acts 7:44.
- Exodus 25:40 (verbal): Explicit statement that Moses was shown a pattern on the mountain and must make the tabernacle accordingly—language and concept echoed in Stephen's summary in Acts 7:44.
- Exodus 26:30 (verbal): Command to 'make it after the pattern' given to Moses; reinforces Acts 7:44's claim that the tabernacle was built to a divinely revealed pattern.
- Hebrews 8:5 (quotation): Directly cites the tradition that Moses was shown a heavenly pattern for the tabernacle; the writer of Hebrews uses the same point to explain the tabernacle's typological role—paralleling Stephen's remark.
- Hebrews 9:1-5 (thematic): Description of the tabernacle's structure, furnishings, and its function as the place of the testimony/mercy seat—develops the same themes of sacred space and witness that Acts 7:44 summarizes.
Alternative generated candidates
- Our fathers had the tent of witness in the wilderness, just as he who spoke to Moses directed him to make it according to the pattern that he had seen.
- who found favor before God and asked to find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.
Acts.7.45 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ην: VERB,impf,act,ind,3,sg
- και: CONJ
- εισηγαγον: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,pl
- διαδεξαμενοι: VERB,aor,mid,ptc,nom,pl,m
- οι: ART,nom,pl,m
- πατερες: NOUN,nom,pl,m
- ημων: PRON,gen,pl,1
- μετα: PREP
- Ιησου: NOUN,gen,sg,m
- εν: PREP
- τη: ART,dat,sg,f
- κατασχεσει: NOUN,dat,sg,f
- των: ART,gen,pl,m
- εθνων: NOUN,gen,pl,n
- ων: PRON,gen,pl,m
- εξωσεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- θεος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- απο: PREP
- προσωπου: NOUN,gen,sg,n
- των: ART,gen,pl,m
- πατερων: NOUN,gen,pl,m
- ημων: PRON,gen,pl,1
- εως: CONJ
- των: ART,gen,pl,m
- ημερων: NOUN,gen,pl,f
- Δαυιδ·: NOUN,gen,sg,m
Parallels
- Joshua 21:43-45 (thematic): Narrative of God giving Israel the land and dispossessing the nations and granting them rest—same historical event Stephen summarizes (possession after conquest).
- Acts 13:19 (verbal): Paul’s summary of the conquest uses near-identical language about God giving the nations into their hands and allotting the land—closely parallels Stephen’s retelling within Acts.
- Psalm 78:54-55 (thematic): Psalmic retelling of God bringing Israel into a pleasant land and driving out the inhabitants echoes the motif of divine dispossession and settlement Stephen cites.
- Hebrews 4:8-9 (allusion): Discussion of Joshua’s giving (or failing to give ultimately) rest to Israel alludes to the conquest tradition Stephen invokes (possession under Joshua leading toward Davidic period).
- Deuteronomy 11:24 (verbal): Deuteronomy’s promise that every place where the sole of your foot treads will be yours provides the covenantal language of ‘possession’ that undergirds Stephen’s claim about entering and taking the land.
Alternative generated candidates
- Our fathers, having received it, brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations that God drove out before our fathers, until the days of David;
- But Solomon built a house for him.
Acts.7.46 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ος: PRON,nom,sg,m
- ευρεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- χαριν: NOUN,acc,sg,f
- ενωπιον: PREP
- του: ART,gen,sg,n
- θεου: NOUN,gen,sg,m
- και: CONJ
- ητησατο: VERB,aor,mid,ind,3,sg
- ευρειν: VERB,aor,act,inf
- σκηνωμα: NOUN,dat,sg,n
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- θεω: NOUN,dat,sg,m
- Ιακωβ: NOUN,nom,sg,m
Parallels
- Psalm 132:5 (quotation): Direct verbal parallel — Psalm 132:5 says David would not give sleep until he 'find a place for the LORD, a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob,' echoed in Acts 7:46's wording about seeking a dwelling for the God of Jacob.
- 1 Chronicles 28:2-3 (verbal): David expresses a personal desire to provide a house/temple for the LORD ('I had it in my heart to build a house for the name of the LORD'), paralleling Stephen's statement that David 'asked to find a dwelling' for God.
- 1 Chronicles 17:4-5 (allusion): God's reply to David (through Nathan) that David will not build the house but God will establish his house provides background to Acts 7:46's remark that David sought a dwelling yet did not complete it.
- 2 Samuel 7:1-13 (thematic): Narrative context: David's intention to build a temple and God's response (the Davidic covenant) explains the tension behind Stephen's claim that David sought a dwelling for God but God chose a different plan.
Alternative generated candidates
- who found favor before God and asked to find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.
- Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made with hands, as the prophet says,
Acts.7.47 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- Σολομων: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- δε: CONJ
- οικοδομησεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- αυτω: PRON,dat,sg,m
- οικον: NOUN,acc,sg,m
Parallels
- 1 Kings 6:14 (verbal): Reports directly that Solomon 'built the house' (the temple) and finished it—close verbal parallel to Stephen's summary that 'Solomon built him a house.'
- 1 Kings 6:38 (structural): States the completion of the temple in Solomon's eleventh year; provides the historical/structural context for Stephen's brief statement about Solomon building the house.
- 2 Chronicles 3:1 (verbal): Explicitly records that 'Solomon began to build the house of the LORD at Jerusalem,' echoing Stephen's assertion that Solomon was the builder of God's house.
- 1 Chronicles 28:2 (thematic): David declares he desired to build a house for the LORD but was told the task would pass to his son (Solomon)—thematic background to Stephen's contrast between David's desire and Solomon's actual construction.
Alternative generated candidates
- But Solomon built him a house.
- 'Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What house will you build me, says the Lord, or what is my resting place?'
Acts.7.48 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- αλλ᾽ουχ: CONJ,neg
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- υψιστος: ADJ,nom,sg,m
- εν: PREP
- χειροποιητοις: ADJ,dat,pl,m
- κατοικει·καθως: VERB,pres,act,ind,3,sg+CONJ
- ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- προφητης: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- λεγει·: VERB,pres,act,ind,3,sg
Parallels
- Isaiah 66:1-2 (quotation): Acts 7:48 introduces Stephen's direct citation of Isaiah 66:1–2 ('Heaven is my throne... What kind of house will you build for me...?'), affirming that the Most High does not dwell in houses made with hands.
- Acts 17:24 (verbal): Paul in Athens similarly states that God 'does not live in temples made with human hands,' echoing the same formula and theological point about God's transcendence over human-built shrines.
- 1 Kings 8:27 (thematic): Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the temple raises the question whether God could dwell on earth or be contained by a house, paralleling Stephen's assertion of God's transcendence relative to temples.
- Jeremiah 23:24 (allusion): Jeremiah's declaration that God 'fills heaven and earth' (and cannot be hidden) resonates with the same theme in Acts 7:48 — God's omnipresence beyond any physical dwelling.
- 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 (thematic): Paul's teaching that believers are God's temple ('Do you not know that you are God's temple?') presents a complementary theme: God's presence is not confined to buildings but is with/among his people.
Alternative generated candidates
- Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made with hands; as the prophet says,
- 'Has not my hand made all these things?'
Acts.7.49 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- Ο: ART,nom,sg,m
- ουρανος: NOUN,nom,pl,m
- μοι: PRON,dat,sg,1
- θρονος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- η: ART,nom,sg,f
- δε: CONJ
- γη: NOUN,nom,sg,f
- υποποδιον: NOUN,acc,sg,n
- των: ART,gen,pl,m
- ποδων: NOUN,gen,pl,m
- μου·ποιον: PRON,gen,1,sg;ADJ,acc,sg,m
- οικον: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- οικοδομησετε: VERB,fut,act,ind,2,pl
- μοι: PRON,dat,sg,1
- λεγει: VERB,pres,act,ind,3,sg
- κυριος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- η: ART,nom,sg,f
- τις: PRON,nom,sg,?
- τοπος: NOUN,nom,sg,m
- της: ART,gen,sg,f
- καταπαυσεως: NOUN,gen,sg,f
- μου: PRON,gen,sg,1
Parallels
- Isaiah 66:1 (quotation): Acts 7:49 directly quotes Isaiah 66:1 ('Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool...'), using the same language and rhetorical question about building a house for God.
- 1 Kings 8:27 (thematic): Solomon's dedication prayer: 'Will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you...'—the theme that God cannot be contained by a temple parallels Stephen's point.
- Jeremiah 23:24 (thematic): Jeremiah emphasizes God's omnipresence ('Do I not fill heaven and earth?'), supporting the same argument that God is not confined to a temple or specific place.
- Acts 17:24 (thematic): Paul's speech at Athens declares God 'does not live in temples made by hands'—an independent New Testament affirmation of the idea Stephen cites about God's transcendence over earthly shrines.
- Psalm 139:7-10 (thematic): Psalmist's reflection on God's inescapable presence ('Where shall I go from your Spirit?') resonates with the conviction that heaven is God's throne and earth his footstool.
Alternative generated candidates
- ‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What house will you build for me, says the Lord, or what is my resting place?
- You stubborn people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you.
Acts.7.50 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- ουχι: PART
- η: ART,nom,sg,f
- χειρ: NOUN,nom,sg,f
- μου: PRON,gen,sg,1
- εποιησεν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,sg
- ταυτα: PRON,acc,pl,n
- παντα: ADJ,nom,pl,n
Parallels
- Isaiah 66:1-2 (quotation): Stephen directly echoes Isaiah 66:1-2 (LXX), where God asks, 'Who has made all these things?' and declares that heaven is my throne and the earth my footstool — used to argue God does not dwell in man‑made temples.
- Acts 17:24 (thematic): Paul's declaration that 'the God who made the world... does not live in temples made by hands' parallels Stephen's point that God's hand made all things and thus he is not confined to a built temple.
- 1 Kings 8:27 (allusion): Solomon's prayer at the temple dedication—'Will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you; how much less this house?'—echoes the argument that God transcends human structures.
- Psalm 95:4 (94:5 LXX) (verbal): The psalmist's image that 'in his hand are the depths of the earth' uses 'hand' language about divine creation, paralleling Stephen's 'did not my hand make all these things?'."}]}}oreferrer.Serialized JSON complete. Please verify.
Alternative generated candidates
- Did not my hand make all these things?’
- Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who forewarned the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become.
Acts.7.51 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- Σκληροτραχηλοι: ADJ,voc,pl,m
- και: CONJ
- απεριτμητοι: ADJ,voc,pl,m
- καρδιαις: NOUN,dat,pl,f
- και: CONJ
- τοις: ART,dat,pl,n
- ωσιν: VERB,pres,act,subj,3,pl
- υμεις: PRON,nom,pl,2
- αει: ADV
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- πνευματι: NOUN,dat,sg,n
- τω: ART,dat,sg,m
- αγιω: ADJ,dat,sg,n
- αντιπιπτετε: VERB,pres,act,ind,2,pl
- ως: ADV
- οι: ART,nom,pl,m
- πατερες: NOUN,nom,pl,m
- υμων: PRON,gen,pl,2
- και: CONJ
- υμεις: PRON,nom,pl,2
Parallels
- Exodus 32:9 (verbal): God describes Israel as a "stiff‑necked" people (σκληροτράχηλος), the same epithet Stephen applies to his hearers.
- Deuteronomy 10:16 (verbal): God commands Israel to "circumcise... the foreskin of your heart," directly paralleling Stephen's charge of being "uncircumcised in heart."
- Jeremiah 4:4 (allusion): The prophetic call to "circumcise yourselves... and take away the foreskins of your heart" echoes Stephen’s moral/ritual critique of inward uncircumcision.
- Romans 2:28–29 (thematic): Paul’s distinction between outward circumcision and true, inward circumcision of the heart resonates with Stephen’s emphasis on internal spiritual condition (uncircumcised in heart).
- Hebrews 3:8 (cf. Psalm 95:8) (thematic): "Do not harden your hearts" (quoting Psalm 95) parallels Stephen’s accusation that his audience continually resist/harden themselves against the Holy Spirit, as their fathers did.
Alternative generated candidates
- You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you.
- You who received the law as ordained by angels and did not keep it.
Acts.7.52 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- τινα: PRON,acc,sg,m
- των: ART,gen,pl,m
- προφητων: NOUN,gen,pl,m
- ουκ: PART,neg
- εδιωξαν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,pl
- οι: ART,nom,pl,m
- πατερες: NOUN,nom,pl,m
- υμων: PRON,gen,pl,2
- και: CONJ
- απεκτειναν: VERB,aor,act,ind,3,pl
- τους: ART,acc,pl,m
- προκαταγγειλαντας: VERB,aor,act,ptc,acc,pl,m
- περι: PREP
- της: ART,gen,sg,f
- ελευσεως: NOUN,gen,sg,f
- του: ART,gen,sg,n
- δικαιου: ADJ,gen,sg,m
- ου: PART,neg
- νυν: ADV
- υμεις: PRON,nom,pl,2
- προδοται: NOUN,nom,pl,m
- και: CONJ
- φονεις: NOUN,nom,pl,m
- εγενεσθε: VERB,aor,pass,ind,2,pl
Parallels
- Matthew 23:29-37 (thematic): Jesus accuses the Jewish leaders of honoring prophets' tombs while being descendants of those who killed the prophets and laments their persecuting and killing of God’s messengers—closely parallels Stephen’s indictment.
- Luke 11:47-51 (verbal): Luke records Jesus charging the leaders as 'sons of those who murdered the prophets,' enumerating prophets slain from Abel to Zechariah; language and theme closely mirror Stephen’s accusation.
- 1 Thessalonians 2:14-15 (verbal): Paul charges certain Jewish opponents with persecuting the apostles and 'killing both the Lord Jesus and the prophets,' echoing the claim that God’s messengers were persecuted and slain.
- Hebrews 11:37 (thematic): In the hall of faith the writer lists prophets who were persecuted—stoned, sawn, killed—providing a theological summary of the same pattern of violence Stephen describes.
- Deuteronomy 18:15-19 (allusion): The Mosaic promise of a future prophet like Moses anticipates 'the coming of the Righteous One' Stephen cites; the verse is the Old Testament background for prophecies the fathers rejected.
Alternative generated candidates
- Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you now have become;
- Why do you now resist the Holy Spirit? That same Spirit spoke through the prophets to foretell the coming of the Righteous One. For you belong to those who murdered the Righteous and betrayed and murdered the prophets,
Acts.7.53 - Details
Translation
Original Text
Morphology
- οιτινες: PRO,rel,nom,pl,m
- ελαβετε: VERB,aor,act,ind,2,pl
- τον: ART,acc,sg,m
- νομον: NOUN,acc,sg,m
- εις: PREP
- διαταγας: NOUN,acc,pl,f
- αγγελων: NOUN,gen,pl,m
- και: CONJ
- ουκ: PART,neg
- εφυλαξατε: VERB,aor,act,ind,2,pl
Parallels
- Galatians 3:19 (verbal): Explicitly states the law was 'ordained through angels' (Greek διαταγαὶ ἀγγέλων), directly echoing Acts 7:53’s claim about the law's transmission via angels.
- Hebrews 2:2 (allusion): Speaks of 'the message declared by angels' and its authority, alluding to the Sinai tradition that the law was given/mediated by angels, a theme Stephen invokes.
- John 7:19 (thematic): Jesus’ challenge—'Did not Moses give you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law'—parallels Stephen’s accusation that the recipients received the law but failed to keep it.
- Acts 7:38 (structural): Earlier in Stephen’s speech Moses is said to have 'received living oracles' to give Israel; Acts 7:53 echoes and contrasts that reception with the people’s failure to keep the law.
Alternative generated candidates
- you who received the law as ordained by angels and yet did not keep it.
- who received the law as ordained by angels and did not keep it.
Then the high priest said, "Are these things so?" And he said, "Brothers and fathers, listen: The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran. And he said to him, 'Go out from your land and from your kindred and come into the land that I will show you.'
Then he went out from the land of the Chaldeans and lived in Haran; and from there, after his father died, God moved him into this land in which you now dwell.
Yet he gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot's breadth, but promised to give it to him as a possession and to his offspring after him, though he had no child. And God spoke thus: 'Your descendants will be sojourners in a land not their own; they shall be enslaved and oppressed for four hundred years. But I will judge the nation that enslaves them,' said God, 'and afterwards they shall come out and serve me in this place.' 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 became the father of the twelve patriarchs. And the patriarchs, moved with envy, sold Joseph into Egypt; but God was with him. And rescued him out of all his afflictions and gave him favor and wisdom before Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him governor over Egypt and over his whole household. Now there came a famine throughout all the land; and our fathers found no food. But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers there the first time.
On the second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers, and Joseph's kindred were made known to Pharaoh. And Joseph sent and summoned Jacob his father and all his kindred, seventy-five persons in all. So Jacob went down into Egypt and died, he and our fathers,
and they were carried back to Shechem and laid in the tomb that Abraham bought for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor at Shechem. But as the time of the promise drew near which God had sworn to Abraham, the people increased and multiplied in Egypt,
until another king arose who did not know Joseph.
He dealt craftily with our race and oppressed our fathers so that they cast out their infants, that they might not live.
At that time Moses was born, and he was beautiful in God's sight; and he was cared for three months in his father's house.
When he was put out, Pharaoh's daughter took him up and reared him as her own son. And Moses was instructed in all the learning of the Egyptians and was powerful in speech and action.
When he was forty years old, it entered his heart to visit his brothers, the children of Israel. And seeing one of them being wronged, he defended him and avenged the oppressed by striking down the Egyptian.
He supposed that his brothers would understand that God was granting them deliverance by his hand, but they did not.
On the next day he appeared to them as they were disputing and tried to reconcile them, saying, 'Men, you are brothers; why do you wrong one another?' But the one who did his neighbor wrong thrust him aside, saying, 'Who made you a ruler and a judge over us?'
Do you mean to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?'
When Moses heard it, he fled and became a resident of the land of Midian, where he became the father of two sons. And when forty years had passed, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire in a bush on Mount Sinai.
When Moses saw it, he marveled at the sight; and as he drew near to look, the voice of the Lord came to him,
saying, 'I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.' And Moses trembled and would not dare to look.
Then the Lord said to him, 'Take off the sandals from your feet; for the place on which you stand is holy ground. I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and I have heard their groaning, and I have come down to deliver them. Now come, I will send you to Egypt.'"
This Moses they refused, saying, 'Who made you a ruler and a judge?' and they turned back and sought to return to Egypt;
but Moses was entrusted with leadership and deliverance by God through the angel who appeared to him in the bush.
This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in Egypt and at the sea and in the wilderness for forty years.
This is the Moses who said to the people of Israel, 'The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers; you shall listen to him.'
This is he who was in the assembly in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers; he received living oracles to give to us.
Our fathers refused to obey him; they rejected him and in their hearts turned back to Egypt,
saying to Aaron, 'Make us gods to go before us; for as for this Moses who brought us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.' And they made a calf and brought a sacrifice to the idol and rejoiced in the works of their hands. But God turned and gave them up to worship the heavenly host, as it is written in the book of the prophets: 'Did you bring to me slain beasts and sacrifices forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?'
You took up the tent of Moloch and the star of the god Rephan, the images you made to worship. Therefore I will send you away beyond Babylon.'
Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as he who spoke to Moses directed him to make it, according to the pattern that he had seen.
This tabernacle our fathers carried with Joshua into the land when they dispossessed the nations, and it remained until the days of David;
who found favor before God and asked to find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob. But it was Solomon who built a house for him.
Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made with hands; as the prophet says,
'Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What house will you build for me, says the Lord, or what is the place of my rest?'
Has not my hand made all these things?'
You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you.
Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One, and now you have become betrayers and murderers of him.
You who received the law as ordained by angels and did not keep it."