¹³ Choose for each of your tribes individuals who are wise, discerning, and reputable, and I will make them your leaders.’^(A)

²¹ You should also look for able men among all the people, men who fear God, are trustworthy, and hate dishonest gain; set them as officers over thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens.^(A)

²¹ “So one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, ²² beginning from the baptism of John until the day when he was taken up from us—one of these must become a witness with us to his resurrection.”^{(A) 23} So they proposed two, Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also known as Justus, and Matthias.

The Seventy Elders

¹⁶ So the Lord said to Moses, “Gather for me seventy of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them; bring them to the tent of meeting and have them take their place there with you.^{(A) 17} I will come down and speak with you there, and I will take some of the spirit that is on you and put it on them, and they shall bear the burden of the people along with you so that you will not bear it all by yourself.^(B)

² And the twelve called together the whole community of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables.^{[a] 3} Therefore, brothers and sisters, select from among yourselves seven men of good standing, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this task,^{(A) 4} while we, for our part, will devote ourselves to prayer and to serving the word.” ⁵ What they said pleased the whole community, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, together with Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch.^{(B) 6} They had these men stand before the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.^(C)