| New Living Translation | NET Bible |
| 1Then the high priest asked Stephen, “Are these accusations true?” | 1Then the high priest said, "Are these things true?" |
| 2This was Stephen’s reply: “Brothers and fathers, listen to me. Our glorious God appeared to our ancestor Abraham in Mesopotamia before he settled in Haran. | 2So he replied, "Brothers and fathers, listen to me. The God of glory appeared to our forefather Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he settled in Haran, |
| 3God told him, ‘Leave your native land and your relatives, and come into the land that I will show you.’ | 3and said to him, 'Go out from your country and from your relatives, and come to the land I will show you.' |
| 4So Abraham left the land of the Chaldeans and lived in Haran until his father died. Then God brought him here to the land where you now live. | 4Then he went out from the country of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. After his father died, God made him move to this country where you now live. |
| 5“But God gave him no inheritance here, not even one square foot of land. God did promise, however, that eventually the whole land would belong to Abraham and his descendants—even though he had no children yet. | 5He did not give any of it to him for an inheritance, not even a foot of ground, yet God promised to give it to him as his possession, and to his descendants after him, even though Abraham as yet had no child. |
| 6God also told him that his descendants would live in a foreign land, where they would be oppressed as slaves for 400 years. | 6But God spoke as follows: 'Your descendants will be foreigners in a foreign country, whose citizens will enslave them and mistreat them for four hundred years. |
| 7‘But I will punish the nation that enslaves them,’ God said, ‘and in the end they will come out and worship me here in this place.’ | 7But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves,' said God, 'and after these things they will come out of there and worship me in this place.' |
| 8“God also gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision at that time. So when Abraham became the father of Isaac, he circumcised him on the eighth day. And the practice was continued when Isaac became the father of Jacob, and when Jacob became the father of the twelve patriarchs of the Israelite nation. | 8Then God gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision, and so he became the father of Isaac and circumcised him when he was eight days old, and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs. |
| 9“These patriarchs were jealous of their brother Joseph, and they sold him to be a slave in Egypt. But God was with him | 9The patriarchs, because they were jealous of Joseph, sold him into Egypt. But God was with him, |
| 10and rescued him from all his troubles. And God gave him favor before Pharaoh, king of Egypt. God also gave Joseph unusual wisdom, so that Pharaoh appointed him governor over all of Egypt and put him in charge of the palace. | 10and rescued him from all his troubles, and granted him favor and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made him ruler over Egypt and over all his household. |
| 11“But a famine came upon Egypt and Canaan. There was great misery, and our ancestors ran out of food. | 11Then a famine occurred throughout Egypt and Canaan, causing great suffering, and our ancestors could not find food. |
| 12Jacob heard that there was still grain in Egypt, so he sent his sons—our ancestors—to buy some. | 12So when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our ancestors there the first time. |
| 13The second time they went, Joseph revealed his identity to his brothers, and they were introduced to Pharaoh. | 13On their second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers again, and Joseph's family became known to Pharaoh. |
| 14Then Joseph sent for his father, Jacob, and all his relatives to come to Egypt, seventy-five persons in all. | 14So Joseph sent a message and invited his father Jacob and all his relatives to come, seventy-five people in all. |
| 15So Jacob went to Egypt. He died there, as did our ancestors. | 15So Jacob went down to Egypt and died there, along with our ancestors, |
| 16Their bodies were taken to Shechem and buried in the tomb Abraham had bought for a certain price from Hamor’s sons in Shechem. | 16and their bones were later moved to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a certain sum of money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem. |
| 17“As the time drew near when God would fulfill his promise to Abraham, the number of our people in Egypt greatly increased. | 17"But as the time drew near for God to fulfill the promise he had declared to Abraham, the people increased greatly in number in Egypt, |
| 18But then a new king came to the throne of Egypt who knew nothing about Joseph. | 18until another king who did not know about Joseph ruled over Egypt. |
| 19This king exploited our people and oppressed them, forcing parents to abandon their newborn babies so they would die. | 19This was the one who exploited our people and was cruel to our ancestors, forcing them to abandon their infants so they would die. |
| 20“At that time Moses was born—a beautiful child in God’s eyes. His parents cared for him at home for three months. | 20At that time Moses was born, and he was beautiful to God. For three months he was brought up in his father's house, |
| 21When they had to abandon him, Pharaoh’s daughter adopted him and raised him as her own son. | 21and when he had been abandoned, Pharaoh's daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son. |
| 22Moses was taught all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and he was powerful in both speech and action. | 22So Moses was trained in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in his words and deeds. |
| 23“One day when Moses was forty years old, he decided to visit his relatives, the people of Israel. | 23But when he was about forty years old, it entered his mind to visit his fellow countrymen the Israelites. |
| 24He saw an Egyptian mistreating an Israelite. So Moses came to the man’s defense and avenged him, killing the Egyptian. | 24When he saw one of them being hurt unfairly, Moses came to his defense and avenged the person who was mistreated by striking down the Egyptian. |
| 25Moses assumed his fellow Israelites would realize that God had sent him to rescue them, but they didn’t. | 25He thought his own people would understand that God was delivering them through him, but they did not understand. |
| 26“The next day he visited them again and saw two men of Israel fighting. He tried to be a peacemaker. ‘Men,’ he said, ‘you are brothers. Why are you fighting each other?’ | 26The next day Moses saw two men fighting, and tried to make peace between them, saying, 'Men, you are brothers; why are you hurting one another?' |
| 27“But the man in the wrong pushed Moses aside. ‘Who made you a ruler and judge over us?’ he asked. | 27But the man who was unfairly hurting his neighbor pushed Moses aside, saying, 'Who made you a ruler and judge over us? |
| 28‘Are you going to kill me as you killed that Egyptian yesterday?’ | 28You don't want to kill me the way you killed the Egyptian yesterday, do you?' |
| 29When Moses heard that, he fled the country and lived as a foreigner in the land of Midian. There his two sons were born. | 29When the man said this, Moses fled and became a foreigner in the land of Midian, where he became the father of two sons. |
| 30“Forty years later, in the desert near Mount Sinai, an angel appeared to Moses in the flame of a burning bush. | 30"After forty years had passed, an angel appeared to him in the desert of Mount Sinai, in the flame of a burning bush. |
| 31When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight. As he went to take a closer look, the voice of the LORD called out to him, | 31When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight, and when he approached to investigate, there came the voice of the Lord, |
| 32‘I am the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.’ Moses shook with terror and did not dare to look. | 32I am the God of your forefathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.' Moses began to tremble and did not dare to look more closely. |
| 33“Then the LORD said to him, ‘Take off your sandals, for you are standing on holy ground. | 33But the Lord said to him, 'Take the sandals off your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. |
| 34I have certainly seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their groans and have come down to rescue them. Now go, for I am sending you back to Egypt.’ | 34I have certainly seen the suffering of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to rescue them. Now come, I will send you to Egypt.' |
| 35“So God sent back the same man his people had previously rejected when they demanded, ‘Who made you a ruler and judge over us?’ Through the angel who appeared to him in the burning bush, God sent Moses to be their ruler and savior. | 35This same Moses they had rejected, saying, 'Who made you a ruler and judge?' God sent as both ruler and deliverer through the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. |
| 36And by means of many wonders and miraculous signs, he led them out of Egypt, through the Red Sea, and through the wilderness for forty years. | 36This man led them out, performing wonders and miraculous signs in the land of Egypt, at the Red Sea, and in the wilderness for forty years. |
| 37“Moses himself told the people of Israel, ‘God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from among your own people.’ | 37This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, 'God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers.' |
| 38Moses was with our ancestors, the assembly of God’s people in the wilderness, when the angel spoke to him at Mount Sinai. And there Moses received life-giving words to pass on to us. | 38This is the man who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our ancestors, and he received living oracles to give to you. |
| 39“But our ancestors refused to listen to Moses. They rejected him and wanted to return to Egypt. | 39Our ancestors were unwilling to obey him, but pushed him aside and turned back to Egypt in their hearts, |
| 40They told Aaron, ‘Make us some gods who can lead us, for we don’t know what has become of this Moses, who brought us out of Egypt.’ | 40saying to Aaron, 'Make us gods who will go in front of us, for this Moses, who led us out of the land of Egypt--we do not know what has happened to him!' |
| 41So they made an idol shaped like a calf, and they sacrificed to it and celebrated over this thing they had made. | 41At that time they made an idol in the form of a calf, brought a sacrifice to the idol, and began rejoicing in the works of their hands. |
| 42Then God turned away from them and abandoned them to serve the stars of heaven as their gods! In the book of the prophets it is written, ‘Was it to me you were bringing sacrifices and offerings during those forty years in the wilderness, Israel? | 42But God turned away from them and gave them over to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets: 'It was not to me that you offered slain animals and sacrifices forty years in the wilderness, was it, house of Israel? |
| 43No, you carried your pagan gods— the shrine of Molech, the star of your god Rephan, and the images you made to worship them. So I will send you into exile as far away as Babylon.’ | 43But you took along the tabernacle of Moloch and the star of the god Rephan, the images you made to worship, but I will deport you beyond Babylon.' |
| 44“Our ancestors carried the Tabernacle with them through the wilderness. It was constructed according to the plan God had shown to Moses. | 44Our ancestors had the tabernacle of testimony in the wilderness, just as God who spoke to Moses ordered him to make it according to the design he had seen. |
| 45Years later, when Joshua led our ancestors in battle against the nations that God drove out of this land, the Tabernacle was taken with them into their new territory. And it stayed there until the time of King David. | 45Our ancestors received possession of it and brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations that God drove out before our ancestors, until the time of David. |
| 46“David found favor with God and asked for the privilege of building a permanent Temple for the God of Jacob. | 46He found favor with God and asked that he could find a dwelling place for the house of Jacob. |
| 47But it was Solomon who actually built it. | 47But Solomon built a house for him. |
| 48However, the Most High doesn’t live in temples made by human hands. As the prophet says, | 48Yet the Most High does not live in houses made by human hands, as the prophet says, |
| 49‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Could you build me a temple as good as that?’ asks the LORD. ‘Could you build me such a resting place? | 49Heaven is my throne, and earth is the footstool for my feet. What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord, or what is my resting place? |
| 50Didn’t my hands make both heaven and earth?’ | 50Did my hand not make all these things?' |
| 51“You stubborn people! You are heathen at heart and deaf to the truth. Must you forever resist the Holy Spirit? That’s what your ancestors did, and so do you! | 51"You stubborn people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are always resisting the Holy Spirit, like your ancestors did! |
| 52Name one prophet your ancestors didn’t persecute! They even killed the ones who predicted the coming of the Righteous One—the Messiah whom you betrayed and murdered. | 52Which of the prophets did your ancestors not persecute? They killed those who foretold long ago the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become! |
| 53You deliberately disobeyed God’s law, even though you received it from the hands of angels.” | 53You received the law by decrees given by angels, but you did not obey it." |
| 54The Jewish leaders were infuriated by Stephen’s accusation, and they shook their fists at him in rage. | 54When they heard these things, they became furious and ground their teeth at him. |
| 55But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed steadily into heaven and saw the glory of God, and he saw Jesus standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand. | 55But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked intently toward heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. |
| 56And he told them, “Look, I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing in the place of honor at God’s right hand!” | 56"Look!" he said. "I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!" |
| 57Then they put their hands over their ears and began shouting. They rushed at him | 57But they covered their ears, shouting out with a loud voice, and rushed at him with one intent. |
| 58and dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. His accusers took off their coats and laid them at the feet of a young man named Saul. | 58When they had driven him out of the city, they began to stone him, and the witnesses laid their cloaks at the feet of a young man named Saul. |
| 59As they stoned him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” | 59They continued to stone Stephen while he prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!" |
| 60He fell to his knees, shouting, “Lord, don’t charge them with this sin!” And with that, he died. | 60Then he fell to his knees and cried out with a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them!" When he had said this, he died. |
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