Stephen gives a speech before the Jewish council defending himself against charges of blasphemy. He recounts the history of God's dealings with Abraham, Joseph, and Moses to argue that God is not confined to any physical location. He says the Jewish leaders have resisted God's messengers throughout history, just as their ancestors rejected Joseph and Moses. Stephen's face is described as looking like an angel's as he speaks. The high priest asks Stephen if his claims are true.

1. The Acts of the Apostles
Acts 6:8-7:8

2. • 8 And Stephen, full of grace and power, was
performing great wonders and signs among the
people.

3. • Ephesians 1:19-20 and what is the surpassing
greatness of His power toward us who believe.
These are in accordance with the working of the
strength of His might 20 which He brought about
in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and
seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly
places,

4. • 9 But some men from what was called the
Synagogue of the Freedmen, including both
Cyrenians and Alexandrians, and some from Cilicia
and Asia, rose up and argued with Stephen.

5. • 9 But some men from what was called the
Synagogue of the Freedmen, including both
Cyrenians and Alexandrians, and some from Cilicia
and Asia, rose up and argued with Stephen.

7. • 10 But they were unable to cope with the wisdom
and the Spirit with which he was speaking.

8. • 10 But they were unable to cope with the wisdom
and the Spirit with which he was speaking.
• 11 Then they secretly induced men to say, "We
have heard him speak blasphemous words against
Moses and against God."

9. • Leviticus 24:16 'Moreover, the one who
blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be
put to death; all the congregation shall certainly
stone him. The alien as well as the native, when he
blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death.

10. • 12 And they stirred up the people, the elders and
the scribes, and they came up to him and dragged
him away and brought him before the Council.

11. • 12 And they stirred up the people, the elders and
the scribes, and they came up to him and dragged
him away and brought him before the Council.
• 13 They put forward false witnesses who said,
"This man incessantly speaks against this holy
place and the Law; 14 for we have heard him say
that this Nazarene, Jesus, will destroy this place
and alter the customs which Moses handed down
to us."

12. • “They are called “false witnesses,” as those who
brought similar testimony against Jesus are called
(Matt. 26:59–61; Mark 14:55–59). But in both
cases the falseness of their testimony consisted
not in wholesale fabrication but in subtle and
deadly misrepresentation of words actually
spoken.” FF Bruce

13. • John 2:19 Jesus answered them, "Destroy this
temple, and in three days I will raise it up."

14. • John 2:19 Jesus answered them, "Destroy this
temple, and in three days I will raise it up."
• John 2:20-21 The Jews then said, "It took forty-six
years to build this temple, and will You raise it up
in three days?" 21 But He was speaking of the
temple of His body.

15. • 15 And fixing their gaze on him, all who were
sitting in the Council saw his face like the face of
an angel.

16. • 15 And fixing their gaze on him, all who were
sitting in the Council saw his face like the face of
an angel.
• 7:1 The high priest said, "Are these things so?"

17. • “A major theme of the speech is its insistence that
the presence of God is not restricted to any one
land or to any material building. God revealed
himself to Abraham long before Abraham settled
in the holy land; he was with Joseph in Egypt; he
gave his law to the people of Israel through Moses
when they were wanderers in a wilderness.

18. • The people of God similarly should not be
restricted to any one locality; a movable tent such
as they had in the wilderness and in the earlier
years of their settlement in Canaan was a more
fitting shrine for the divine presence in their midst
than the fixed structure of stone that King
Solomon built.

19. • Another theme of the speech is the insistence that
the Jewish people’s refusal to acknowledge Jesus
as Messiah was all of a piece with their attitude to
God’s messengers from the beginning of their
national history. Joseph’s brothers hated him,
although he was God’s predestined deliverer for
them; Moses, another divinely ordained deliverer,
was repudiated by his people more than once.

20. • The prophets too were persecuted and killed by
those to whom they brought the word of God, and
at last the one to whom the prophets bore witness
in advance had been handed over to death by
those to whom his saving message was first
proclaimed.” FF Bruce

21. • 2 And he said, "Hear me, brethren and fathers!
The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham
when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in
Haran, 3 and said to him, 'LEAVE YOUR COUNTRY
AND YOUR RELATIVES, AND COME INTO THE LAND
THAT I WILL SHOW YOU.'

23. • 4 "Then he left the land of the Chaldeans and
settled in Haran. From there, after his father died,
God had him move to this country in which you are
now living. 5 "But He gave him no inheritance in
it, not even a foot of ground, and yet, even when
he had no child, He promised that HE WOULD GIVE
IT TO HIM AS A POSSESSION, AND TO HIS
DESCENDANTS AFTER HIM.

24. • 6 "But God spoke to this effect, that his
DESCENDANTS WOULD BE ALIENS IN A FOREIGN
LAND, AND THAT THEY WOULD BE ENSLAVED AND
MISTREATED FOR FOUR HUNDRED YEARS. 7 "
'AND WHATEVER NATION TO WHICH THEY WILL BE
IN BONDAGE I MYSELF WILL JUDGE,' said God,
'AND AFTER THAT THEY WILL COME OUT AND
SERVE ME IN THIS PLACE.'

25. • 8 "And He gave him the covenant of circumcision;
and so Abraham became the father of Isaac, and
circumcised him on the eighth day; and Isaac
became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the
twelve patriarchs.