Holy Bible
(King James Version)
Acts: Chapter 7
1. THEN
said the high priest, Are these things so?
2. And he said, Men, brethren, and fathers, hearken; The God of glory
appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mes-o-po-ta-mi-a, before he
dwelt in Char-ran,
3. And said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred,
and come into the land which I shall shew thee.
4. Then came he out of the land of the Chal-dae-ans, and dwelt in
Char-ran: and from thence, when his father was dead, he removed him into
this land, wherein ye now dwell.
5. And he gave him none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his
foot on: yet he promised that he would give it to him for a possession,
and to his seed after him, when as yet he had no child.
6. And God spake on this wise, That his seed should sojourn in a strange
land; and that they should bring them into bondage, and entreat them
evil four hundred years.
7. And the nation to whom they shall be in bondage will I judge,
said God: and after that shall they come forth, and serve me in this
place.
8. And he gave him the covenant of circumcision: and so Abraham begat
Isaac, and circumcised him the eight day; and Isaac begat Jacob; and
Jacob begat the twelve patriarchs.
9. And the patriarchs, moved with envy, sold Joseph into Egypt: but God
was with him,
10. And delivered him out of all his afflictions, and gave him favour
and wisdom in the sight of Phar-aoh king of Egypt; and he made him
governor over Egypt and all his house.
11. Now there came a dearth over all the land of Egypt and Cha-na-an, and
great affliction: and our fathers found no sustenance.
12. But when Jacob heard that there was corn in Egypt, he sent out our
fathers first.
13. And at the second time Joseph was made known to his brethren; and
Joseph's kindred was made known unto Phar-aoh.
14. Then sent Joseph, and called his father to him, and all his kindred,
threescore and fifteen souls.
15. So Jacob went down into Egypt, and died, he, and our fathers,
16. And were carried over into Sy-chem, and laid in the sepulchre that
Abraham bought for a sum of money of the sons of Emmor the father of
Sychem.
17. But when the time of the promise drew nigh, which God had sworn to
Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt,
18. Till another king arose, which knew not Joseph.
19. That same dealt subtilly with our kindred, and evil entreated our
fathers, so that they cast out their young children, to the end they
might not live.
20. In which time Moses was born, and was exceeding fair, and nourished
up in his father's house three months:
21. And when he was cast out, Phar-aoh's daughter took him up, and
nourished him for her own son.
22. And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was
mighty in words and in deeds.
23. And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to
visit his brethren the children of Israel.
24. And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged
him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian:
25. For he supposed his brethren would have understood how that God by
his hand would deliver them: but they understood not.
26. And the next day he shewed himself unto them as they strove, and
would have set them at one again, saying, Sirs, ye are brethren; why do
ye wrong one to another?
27. But he that did his neighbour wrong thrust him away, saying, Who
made thee a ruler and a judge over us?
28. Wilt thou kill me, as thou diddest the Egyptian yesterday?
29. Then fled Moses at this saying, and was a stranger in the land of
Madian, where he begat two sons.
30. And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the
wilderness of mount Sina an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a
bush.
31. When Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to
behold it, the voice of the Lord came unto him,
32. Saying, I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abraham, and the God
of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Then Moses trembled, and durst not
behold.
33. Then said the Lord to him, Put off thy shoes from thy feet: for the
place where thou standest is holy ground.
34. I have seen, I have seen the affliction of my people which is in
Egypt, and I have heard their groaning, and am come down to deliver
them. And now come, I will send thee into Egypt.
35. This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and
a judge? the same did God send to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand
of the angel which appeared to him in the bush.
36. He brought them out, after that he had shewed wonders and signs in
the land of Egypt, and in the Red sea, and in the wilderness forty
years.
37. This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A
prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like
unto me; him shall ye hear.
38. This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel
which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received
the lively oracles to give unto us:
39. To whom our fathers would not obey, but thrust him from them, and in
their hearts turned back again into Egypt,
40. Saying unto Aaron, Make us gods to go before us: for as for this
Moses, which brought us out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is
become of him.
41. And they made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice unto the
idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands.
42. Then God turned, and gave them up to worship the host of heaven; as
it is written in the book of the prophets, O ye house of Israel, have ye
offered to me slain beasts and sacrifices by the space of forty years in
the wilderness?
43. Yea, ye took up the tabernacle of Mo-loch, and the star of your god
Remphan, figures which ye made to worship them: and I will carry you
away beyond Babylon.
44. Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as he
had appointed, speaking unto Moses, that he should make it according to
the fashion that he had seen.
45. Which also our fathers that came after brought in with Jesus into
the possession of the Gentiles, whom God drave out before the face of
our fathers, unto the days of David;
46. Who found favour before God, and desired to find a tabernacle
for the God of Jacob.
47. But Solomon built him an house.
48. Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; as
saith the prophet,
49. Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool: what house
will ye build me? saith the Lord: or what is the place of my rest?
50. Hath not my hand made all these things?
51. Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always
resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.
52. Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they
have slain them which shewed before the coming of the Just One; of whom
ye have been now the betrayers and murderers:
53 Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not
kept it.
54. When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they
gnashed on him with their teeth.
55. But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into
heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand
of God,
56. And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man
standing on the right hand of God.
57. Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and
ran upon him with one accord,
58. And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid
down their clothes at a young man's feet, whose name was Saul.
59. And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus,
receive my spirit.
60. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this
sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
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