7 And the high priest asked [Stephen], Are these charges true?

² And he answered, Brethren and fathers, listen to me! The God of glory appeared to our forefather Abraham when he was still in Mesopotamia, before he [went to] live in Haran,^(A)

³ And He said to him, Leave your own country and your relatives and come into the land (region) that I will point out to you.^(B)

⁴ So then he went forth from the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. And from there, after his father died, [God] transferred him to this country in which you are now dwelling.^(C)

⁵ Yet He gave him no inheritable property in it, [no] not even enough ground to set his foot on; but He promised that He would give it to Him for a ^[a]permanent possession and to his descendants after him, even though [as yet] he had no child.^(D)

⁶ And this is [in effect] what God told him: That his descendants would be aliens (strangers) in a land belonging to other people, who would bring them into bondage and ill-treat them 400 years.

⁷ But I will judge the nation to whom they will be slaves, said God, and after that they will escape and come forth and worship Me in this [very] place.^(E)

⁸ And [God] made with Abraham a covenant (an agreement to be religiously observed) ^[b]of which circumcision was the seal. And under these circumstances [Abraham] became the father of Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth day; and Isaac [did so] when he became the father of Jacob, and Jacob [when each of his sons was born], the twelve patriarchs.^(F)

⁹ And the patriarchs [Jacob’s sons], boiling with envy and hatred and anger, sold Joseph into slavery in Egypt; but God was with him,^(G)

¹⁰ And delivered him from all his distressing afflictions and won him goodwill and favor and wisdom and understanding in the sight of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him governor over Egypt and all his house.^(H)

¹¹ Then there came a famine over all of Egypt and Canaan, with great distress, and our forefathers could find no fodder [for the cattle] or vegetable sustenance [for their households].^(I)

¹² But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent forth our forefathers [to go there on their] first trip.^(J)

¹³ And on their second visit Joseph revealed himself to his brothers, and the family of Joseph became known to Pharaoh and his origin and race.^(K)

¹⁴ And Joseph sent an invitation calling to himself Jacob his father and all his kindred, seventy-five persons in all.^(L)

¹⁵ And Jacob went down into Egypt, where he himself died, as did [also] our forefathers;^(M)

¹⁶ And their ^[c]bodies [Jacob’s and Joseph’s] were taken back to Shechem and laid in the tomb which Abraham had purchased for a sum of [silver] money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.^(N)

¹⁷ But as the time for the fulfillment of the promise drew near which God had made to Abraham, the [Hebrew] people increased and multiplied in Egypt,

¹⁸ Until [the time when] there arose over Egypt another and a different king who did not know Joseph [neither knowing his history and services nor recognizing his merits].^(O)

¹⁹ He dealt treacherously with and defrauded our race; he abused and oppressed our forefathers, forcing them to expose their babies so that they might not be kept alive.^(P)

²⁰ At this juncture Moses was born, and was exceedingly beautiful in God’s sight. For three months he was nurtured in his father’s house;^(Q)

²¹ Then when he was exposed [to perish], the daughter of Pharaoh rescued him and took him and reared him as her own son.^(R)

²² So Moses was educated in all the wisdom and culture of the Egyptians, and he was mighty (powerful) in his speech and deeds.

²³ And when he was in his fortieth year, it came into his heart to visit his kinsmen the children of Israel [^[d]to help them and to care for them].

²⁴ And on seeing one of them being unjustly treated, he defended the oppressed man and avenged him by striking down the Egyptian and slaying [him].

²⁵ He expected his brethren to understand that God was granting them deliverance by his hand [taking it for granted that they would accept him]; but they did not understand.

²⁶ Then on the next day he ^[e]suddenly appeared to some who were quarreling and fighting among themselves, and he urged them to make peace and become reconciled, saying, Men, you are brethren; why do you abuse and wrong one another?

²⁷ Whereupon the man who was abusing his neighbor pushed [Moses] aside, saying, Who appointed you a ruler (umpire) and a judge over us?

²⁸ Do you intend to slay me as you slew the Egyptian yesterday?

²⁹ At that reply Moses sought safety by flight and he was an exile and an alien in the country of Midian, where he became the father of two sons.^(S)

³⁰ And when forty years had gone by, there appeared to him in the wilderness (desert) of Mount Sinai an angel, in the flame of a burning bramblebush.

³¹ When Moses saw it, he was astonished and marveled at the sight; but when he went close to investigate, there came to him the voice of the Lord, saying,

³² I am the God of your forefathers, the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob. And Moses trembled and was so terrified that he did not venture to look.

³³ Then the Lord said to him, Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground and worthy of veneration.

³⁴ Because I have most assuredly seen the abuse and oppression of My people in Egypt and have heard their sighing and groaning, I have come down to rescue them. So, now come! I will send you back to Egypt [as My messenger].^(T)

³⁵ It was this very Moses whom they had denied (disowned and rejected), saying, Who made you our ruler (referee) and judge? whom God sent to be a ruler and deliverer and redeemer, by and with the [protecting and helping] hand of the Angel that appeared to him in the bramblebush.^(U)

³⁶ He it was who led them forth, having worked wonders and signs in Egypt and at the Red Sea and during the forty years in the wilderness (desert).^(V)

³⁷ It was this [very] Moses who said to the children of Israel, God will raise up for you a Prophet from among your brethren as He raised me up.^(W)

³⁸ This is he who in the assembly in the wilderness (desert) was the go-between for the Angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai and our forefathers, and he received living oracles (words that still live) to be handed down to us.^(X)

³⁹ [And yet] our forefathers determined not to be subject to him [refusing to listen to or obey him]; but thrusting him aside they rejected him, and in their hearts yearned for and turned back to Egypt.^(Y)

⁴⁰ And they said to Aaron, Make us gods who shall [be our leaders and] go before us; as for this Moses who led us forth from the land of Egypt—we have no knowledge of what has happened to him.^(Z)

⁴¹ And they [even] made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice to the idol and made merry and exulted in the work of their [own] hands.^(AA)

⁴² But God turned [away from them] and delivered them up to worship and serve the host (stars) of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets: Did you [really] offer to Me slain beasts and sacrifices for forty years in the wilderness (desert), O house of Israel?^(AB)

⁴³ [No!] You took up the tent (the portable temple) of Moloch and carried it [with you], and the star of the god Rephan, the images which you [yourselves] made that you might worship them; and I will remove you [carrying you away into exile] beyond Babylon.^(AC)

⁴⁴ Our forefathers had the tent (tabernacle) of witness in the wilderness, even as He Who directed Moses to make it had ordered, according to the pattern and model he had seen.^(AD)

⁴⁵ Our forefathers in turn brought it [this tent of witness] in [with them into the land] with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations which God drove out before the face of our forefathers. [So it remained here] until the time of David,^(AE)

⁴⁶ Who found grace (favor and spiritual blessing) in the sight of God and prayed that he might be allowed to find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.^(AF)

⁴⁷ But it was Solomon who built a house for Him.^(AG)

⁴⁸ However, the Most High does not dwell in houses and temples made with hands; as the prophet says,^(AH)

⁴⁹ Heaven [is] My throne, and earth the footstool for My feet. What [kind of] house can you build for Me, says the Lord, or what is the place in which I can rest?

⁵⁰ Was it not My hand that made all these things?^(AI)

⁵¹ You stubborn and stiff-necked people, still heathen and uncircumcised in heart and ears, you are always ^[f]actively resisting the Holy Spirit. As your forefathers [were], so you [are and so you do]!^(AJ)

⁵² Which of the prophets did your forefathers not persecute? And they slew those who proclaimed beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, Whom you now have betrayed and murdered—

⁵³ You who received the Law as it was ordained and set in order and delivered by angels, and [yet] you did not obey it!

⁵⁴ Now upon hearing these things, they [the Jews] were cut to the heart and infuriated, and they ground their teeth against [Stephen].

⁵⁵ But he, full of the Holy Spirit and controlled by Him, gazed into heaven and saw the glory (the splendor and majesty) of God, and Jesus standing at God’s right hand;

⁵⁶ And he said, Look! I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing at God’s right hand!

⁵⁷ But they raised a great shout and put their hands over their ears and rushed together upon him.

⁵⁸ Then they dragged him out of the city and began to stone him, and the witnesses placed their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.^(AK)

⁵⁹ And while they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, Lord Jesus, receive and accept and welcome my spirit!

⁶⁰ And falling on his knees, he cried out loudly, Lord, fix not this sin upon them [lay it not to their charge]! And when he had said this, he fell asleep ^[g][in death].

8 And Saul was [not only] consenting to [Stephen’s] death [he was ^[a]pleased and ^[b]entirely approving]. On that day a great and severe persecution broke out against the church which was in Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles (special messengers).

² [A party of] devout men ^[c]with others helped to carry out and bury Stephen and made great lamentation over him.

³ But Saul shamefully treated and laid waste the church continuously [with cruelty and violence]; and entering house after house, he dragged out men and women and committed them to prison.

⁴ Now those who were scattered abroad went about [through the land from place to place] preaching the glad tidings, the Word [^[d]the doctrine concerning the attainment through Christ of salvation in the kingdom of God].

⁵ Philip [the deacon, not the apostle] went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed the Christ (the Messiah) to them [the people];^(A)

⁶ And great crowds of people with one accord listened to and heeded what was said by Philip, as they heard him and watched the miracles and wonders which he kept performing [from time to time].

⁷ For foul spirits came out of many who were possessed by them, screaming and shouting with a loud voice, and many who were suffering from palsy or were crippled were restored to health.

⁸ And there was great rejoicing in that city.

⁹ But there was a man named Simon, who had formerly practiced magic arts in the city to the utter amazement of the Samaritan nation, claiming that he himself was an extraordinary and distinguished person.

¹⁰ They all paid earnest attention to him, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is that exhibition of the power of God which is called great (intense).

¹¹ And they were attentive and made much of him, because for a long time he had amazed and bewildered and dazzled them with his skill in magic arts.

¹² But when they believed the good news (the Gospel) about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ (the Messiah) as Philip preached it, they were baptized, both men and women.

¹³ Even Simon himself believed [he adhered to, trusted in, and relied on the teaching of Philip], and after being baptized, devoted himself constantly to him. And seeing signs and miracles of great power which were being performed, he was utterly amazed.

¹⁴ Now when the apostles (special messengers) at Jerusalem heard that [the country of] Samaria had accepted and welcomed the Word of God, they sent Peter and John to them,

¹⁵ And they came down and prayed for them that the Samaritans might receive the Holy Spirit;

¹⁶ For He had not yet fallen upon any of them, but they had only been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus.

¹⁷ Then [the apostles] laid their hands on them one by one, and they received the Holy Spirit.

¹⁸ However, when Simon saw that the [Holy] Spirit was imparted through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he brought money and offered it to them,

¹⁹ Saying, Grant me also this power and authority, in order that anyone on whom I place my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.

²⁰ But Peter said to him, Destruction overtake your money and you, because you imagined you could obtain the [free] gift of God with money!

²¹ You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is all wrong in God’s sight [it is not straightforward or right or true before God].^(B)

²² So repent of this depravity and wickedness of yours and pray to the Lord that, if possible, this ^[e]contriving thought and purpose of your heart may be removed and disregarded and forgiven you.

²³ For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in ^[f]a bond forged by iniquity [to fetter souls].^(C)

²⁴ And Simon answered, Pray for me [beseech the Lord, both of you], that nothing of what you have said may befall me!

²⁵ Now when [the apostles] had borne their testimony and preached the message of the Lord, they went back to Jerusalem, proclaiming the glad tidings (Gospel) to many villages of the Samaritans [on the way].

²⁶ But an angel of the Lord said to Philip, Rise and proceed southward or at midday on the road that runs from Jerusalem down to Gaza. This is the desert [^[g]route].

²⁷ So he got up and went. And behold, an Ethiopian, a eunuch of great authority under Candace the queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure, had come to Jerusalem to worship.

²⁸ And he was [now] returning, and sitting in his chariot he was reading the book of the prophet Isaiah.

²⁹ Then the [Holy] Spirit said to Philip, Go forward and join yourself to this chariot.

³⁰ Accordingly Philip, running up to him, heard [the man] reading the prophet Isaiah and asked, Do you really understand what you are reading?

³¹ And he said, How is it possible for me to do so unless someone explains it to me and guides me [in the right way]? And he earnestly requested Philip to come up and sit beside him.

³² Now this was the passage of Scripture which he was reading: Like a sheep He was led to the slaughter, and as a lamb before its shearer is dumb, so He opens not His mouth.

³³ In His humiliation ^[h] He was taken away by distressing and oppressive judgment and justice was denied Him [caused to cease]. Who can describe or relate in full ^[i]the wickedness of His contemporaries (generation)? For His life is taken from the earth and ^[j]a bloody death inflicted upon Him.^(D)

³⁴ And the eunuch said to Philip, I beg of you, tell me about whom does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?

³⁵ Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this portion of Scripture he announced to him the glad tidings (Gospel) of Jesus and about Him.

³⁶ And as they continued along on the way, they came to some water, and the eunuch exclaimed, See, [here is] water! What is to hinder my being baptized?

^37 [k]And Philip said, If you believe with all your heart [if you have ^[l]a conviction, full of joyful trust, that Jesus is the Messiah and accept Him as the Author of your salvation in the kingdom of God, giving Him your obedience, then] you may. And he replied, I do believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

³⁸ And he ordered that the chariot be stopped; and both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and [Philip] baptized him.

³⁹ And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord [^[m]suddenly] caught away Philip; and the eunuch saw him no more, and he went on his way rejoicing.

⁴⁰ But Philip was found at Azotus, and passing on he preached the good news (Gospel) to all the towns until he reached Caesarea.

31 Now when all this was finished, all Israel present there went out to the cities of Judah and broke in pieces the pillars or obelisks, cut down the Asherim, and threw down the high places [of idolatry] and the altars in all Judah and Benjamin, in Ephraim and Manasseh, until they had utterly destroyed them all. Then all the Israelites returned to their own cities, every man to his possession.

² And Hezekiah appointed the priests and the Levites after their divisions, each man according to his service, the priests and Levites for burnt offerings and for peace offerings, to minister, to give thanks, and to praise in the gates of the camp of the Lord.

³ King Hezekiah’s personal contribution was for the burnt offerings: [those] of morning and evening, for the Sabbaths, for the New Moons, and for the appointed feasts, as written in the Law of the Lord.

⁴ He commanded the people living in Jerusalem to give the portion due the priests and Levites, that they might [be free to] give themselves to the Law of the Lord.

⁵ As soon as the command went abroad, the Israelites gave in abundance the firstfruits of grain, vintage fruit, oil, honey, and of all the produce of the field; and they brought in abundantly the tithe of everything.

⁶ The people of Israel and Judah who lived in Judah’s cities also brought the tithe of cattle and sheep and of the dedicated things which were consecrated to the Lord their God, and they laid them in heaps.

⁷ In the third month [at the end of wheat harvest] they began to lay the foundation or beginning of the heaps and finished them in the seventh month.

⁸ When Hezekiah and the princes came and saw the heaps, they blessed the Lord and His people Israel.

⁹ Then Hezekiah questioned the priests and Levites about the heaps.

¹⁰ Azariah the high priest, of the house of Zadok, answered him, Since the people began to bring the offerings into the Lord’s house, we have eaten and have plenty left, for the Lord has blessed His people, and what is left is this great store.

¹¹ Then Hezekiah commanded them to prepare chambers [for storage] in the house of the Lord, and they prepared them

¹² And brought in the offerings, tithes, and dedicated things faithfully. Conaniah the Levite was in charge of them, and Shimei his brother came next.

¹³ And Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismachiah, Mahath, and Benaiah were overseers directed by Conaniah and Shimei his brother, at the appointment of King Hezekiah and Azariah the chief officer of the house of God.

¹⁴ Kore son of Imnah the Levite, keeper of the East Gate, was over the freewill offerings to God, to apportion the contributions of the Lord and the most holy things.

¹⁵ Under him were Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah, in the priests’ cities, in their office of trust faithfully to give to their brethren by divisions, to great and small alike,

¹⁶ Except those [Levites] registered as males from three years old and upward—who were consecrated to the temple service [in Jerusalem, for their daily portion] as the duty of every day required, for their service according to their offices by their divisions.

¹⁷ The registration of the priests was according to their fathers’ houses; that of the Levites from twenty years old and upward was according to their offices by their divisions;

¹⁸ Also there was the registration of all their little ones, their wives, and their older sons and daughters through all the congregation. For in their office of trust they cleansed themselves and set themselves apart in holiness.

¹⁹ Also for the sons of Aaron the priests, who were in the fields of the suburbs of their cities or in every city, there were men who were mentioned by name to give portions to all the males among the priests and to all who were registered among the Levites.

²⁰ Hezekiah did this throughout all Judah, and he did what was good, right, and faithful before the Lord his God.

²¹ And every work that he began in the service of the house of God, in keeping with the law and the commandments to seek his God [inquiring of and yearning for Him], he did with all his heart, and he prospered.

32 After these things and this loyalty, Sennacherib king of Assyria came, invaded Judah, and encamped against the fortified cities, thinking to take them.

² When Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and intended to fight against Jerusalem,

³ He decided with his officers and his mighty men to stop up the waters of the fountains which were outside the city [by enclosing them with masonry and concealing them], and they helped him.

⁴ So many people gathered, and they stopped up all the springs and the brook which flowed through the land, saying, Why should the kings of Assyria come and find much water?

⁵ Also Hezekiah took courage and built up all the wall that was broken, and raised towers upon it, and he built another wall outside and strengthened the Millo in the City of David and made weapons and shields in abundance.

⁶ And he set captains of war over the people and gathered them together to him in the street of the gate of the city and spoke encouragingly to them, saying,

⁷ Be strong and courageous. Be not afraid or dismayed before the king of Assyria and all the horde that is with him, for there is Another with us greater than [all those] with him.

⁸ With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles. And the people relied on the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.

⁹ And this Sennacherib king of Assyria, while he himself with all his forces was before Lachish, sent his servants to Jerusalem, to Hezekiah king of Judah, and to all Judah who were at Jerusalem, saying,

¹⁰ Thus says Sennacherib king of Assyria: On what do you trust, that you remain in the strongholds in Jerusalem?

¹¹ Is not Hezekiah leading you on in order to let you die by famine and thirst, saying, The Lord our God will deliver us out of the hand of the king of Assyria?

¹² Has not the same Hezekiah taken away his high places and his altars, and commanded Judah and Jerusalem, You shall worship before one altar and burn incense upon it?

¹³ Do you not know what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of other lands? Were the gods of the nations of those lands in any way able to deliver their lands out of my hand?

¹⁴ Who among all the gods of those nations that my fathers utterly destroyed was able to deliver his people out of my hand, that your God should be able to deliver you out of my hand?

¹⁵ So now, do not let Hezekiah deceive or mislead you in this way, and do not believe him, for no god of any nation or kingdom was able to deliver his people out of my hand or the hand of my fathers. How much less will your God deliver you out of my hand!

¹⁶ And his servants said still more against the Lord God and against His servant Hezekiah.

¹⁷ The Assyrian king also wrote letters insulting the Lord, the God of Israel, and speaking against Him, saying, As the gods of the nations of other lands have not delivered their people out of my hand, so shall not the God of Hezekiah deliver His people out of my hand.

¹⁸ And they shouted it loudly in the Jewish language to the people of Jerusalem who were on the wall, to frighten and terrify them, that they might take the city.

¹⁹ And they spoke of the God of Jerusalem as they spoke of the gods of the peoples of the earth, which are the work of the hands of men.

²⁰ For this cause Hezekiah the king and the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz prayed and cried to heaven.

²¹ And the Lord sent an angel, who cut off all the mighty warriors and commanders and officers in the camp of the king of Assyria. So the Assyrian king returned with shamed face to his own land. And when he came into the house of his god, they who were his own offspring slew him there with the sword.^(A)

²² Thus the Lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib the king of Assyria and from the hand of all his enemies, and He guided them on every side.

²³ And many brought gifts to Jerusalem to the Lord and presents to Hezekiah king of Judah; so from then on he was magnified in the sight of all nations.

²⁴ In those days Hezekiah was sick to the point of death; and he prayed to the Lord and He answered him and gave him a sign.

²⁵ But Hezekiah did not make return [to the Lord] according to the benefit done to him, for his heart became proud [at such a spectacular response to his prayer]; therefore there was wrath upon him and upon Judah and Jerusalem.

²⁶ But Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart, both he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of the Lord came not upon them in the days of Hezekiah.

²⁷ And Hezekiah had very great wealth and honor, and he made for himself treasuries for silver, gold, precious stones, spices, shields, and all kinds of attractive vessels,

²⁸ Storehouses also for the increase of grain, vintage fruits, and oil, and stalls for all kinds of cattle, and sheepfolds.

²⁹ Moreover, he provided for himself cities and flocks and herds in abundance, for God had given him very great possessions.

³⁰ This same Hezekiah also closed the upper springs of Gihon and directed the waters down to the west side of the City of David. And Hezekiah prospered in all his works.

³¹ And so in the matter of the ambassadors of the princes of Babylon who were sent to him to inquire about the wonder that was done in the land, God left him to himself to try him, that He might know all that was in his heart.^(B)

³² Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah and his good deeds, behold, they are written in the vision of Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, and in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel.

³³ And Hezekiah slept with his fathers and was buried in the ascent of the tombs of the descendants of David; and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem did him honor at his death. Manasseh his son reigned in his stead.