Book of Common Prayer

¹⁵ And all who sat in the council looked steadfastly on him, and saw his face, as it were the face of an angel.

Stephen makes answer to his accusation, rebukes the hard-necked Jews, and is stoned to death.

7 Then the chief priest said, Is it really so?

² And Stephen said, Men, brethren and fathers, hearken to: The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was yet in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran, ³ and said to him, Come out of the country and away from your kindred, and come into the land that I will show you.

⁴ Then he came out of the land of Chaldea, and dwelt in Haran. And after that, as soon as his father was dead, God brought him into this land, in which you now dwell. ⁵ And he gave him no inheritance in it, no not the breadth of a foot, but promised that he would give it to him to possess, and to his seed after him, when as yet he had no child.

⁶ God spoke in this way: that his seed would be a dweller in a strange land, and that they would keep them in bondage and ill-treat them for four hundred years. ⁷ But the nation to whom they will be in bondage, I will judge, said God. And after that, they will come forth and serve me in this place. ⁸ And he gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision. And Abraham begat Isaac, and circumcised him the eighth day. And Isaac begat Jacob, and Jacob the twelve patriarchs.

⁹ And the patriarchs, having indignation, sold Joseph into Egypt. But God was with him, ¹⁰ and delivered him out of all his adversities, and gave him favour and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him governor over Egypt and over all his household.

¹¹ Then there came a dearth over all the land of Egypt and Canaan, and great affliction, and our fathers found no sustenance. ¹² But when Jacob heard that there was wheat in Egypt, he sent our fathers a first time, ¹³ and then a second time, when Joseph made himself known to his brethren, and Joseph’s kindred was made known to Pharaoh. ¹⁴ Then Joseph sent and caused his father to be brought, and all his kin: seventy-five souls. ¹⁵ And Jacob descended into Egypt. And he died, both he and our fathers, ¹⁶ and were carried back into Shechem, and were put in the sepulchre that Abraham bought for money from the sons of Hamor at Shechem.

²⁷ And at that point his disciples came, and were surprised that he talked with the woman. Yet no one said to him, What are you asking? or, Why are you talking with her? ²⁸ The woman then left her water-pot, and went her way into the village and said to the people, ²⁹ Come see a man who told me all that I ever did. Is he not the Christ? ³⁰ Then they went out of the village and came to him.

³¹ And in the meanwhile his disciples urged him, saying, Rabbi, eat! ³² He said to them, I have food to eat that you know not of. ³³ Then the disciples said between themselves, Has anyone brought him food?

³⁴ Jesus said to them, My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to finish his work. ³⁵ Do you not say, There are yet four months and then comes the harvest? Behold, I say to you: lift up your eyes and look on the fields, for they are already white for harvest. ³⁶ And he who reaps receives reward, and gathers fruit unto life eternal, so that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. ³⁷ And this saying is true, that one sows and another reaps. ³⁸ I sent you to reap that whereon you bestowed no labour. Other men laboured, and you have entered into their labours.

³⁹ Many of the Samaritans of that village believed on him because of the word of the woman who testified, He told me all that I ever did. ⁴⁰ Then when the Samaritans had come to him, they besought him to stay with them. And he stayed there two days. ⁴¹ And many more believed because of his own words, ⁴² and said to the woman, Now we believe, not because of what you said, but because we have heard him ourselves and know that this is even indeed Christ, the Saviour of the world.