Acts 7:44-60

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Acts 7:44 tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”
2. Acts 7:44 tn Or “tent.”sn The tabernacle was the tent used to house the ark of the covenant before the construction of Solomon’s temple. This is where God was believed to reside, yet the people were still unfaithful.
3. Acts 7:44 tn Or “desert.”
4. Acts 7:44 tn Grk “the one”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
5. Acts 7:44 tn The word “him” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context, but must be supplied for the modern English reader.
6. Acts 7:45 tn Grk “And.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.
7. Acts 7:45 tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”
8. Acts 7:45 tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”sn Before our ancestors. Stephen has backtracked here to point out how faithful God had been before the constant move to idolatry just noted.
9. Acts 7:45 tn Grk “In those days.”
10. Acts 7:46 tn Grk “David, who” The relative pronoun was replaced by the pronoun “he” and a new sentence was begun in the translation at this point to improve the English style.
11. Acts 7:46 tn Or “grace.”
12. Acts 7:46 tn Grk “before,” “in the presence of.”
13. Acts 7:46 tn The words “that he could” are not in the Greek text, but are implied as the (understood) subject of the infinitive εὑρεῖν (heurein). This understands David’s request as asking that he might find the dwelling place. The other possibility would be to supply “that God” as the subject of the infinitive: “and asked that God find a dwelling place.” Unfortunately this problem is complicated by the extremely difficult problem with the Greek text in the following phrase (“house of Jacob” vs. “God of Jacob”).
14. Acts 7:46 tn On this term see BDAG 929 s.v. σκήνωμα a (Ps 132:5).
15. Acts 7:46 tc Some mss read θεῷ (theō, “God”) here, a variant much easier to understand in the context. The reading “God” is supported by א² A C E Ψ 33 1739 M lat sy co. The more difficult οἴκῳ (oikō, “house”) is supported by P⁷⁴ א* B D H 049. Thus the second reading is preferred both externally because of better ms evidence and internally because it is hard to see how a copyist finding the reading “God” would change it to “house,” while it is easy to see how (given the LXX of Ps 132:5) a copyist might assimilate the reading and change “house” to “God.” However, some scholars think the reading “house” is so difficult as to be unacceptable. Others (like Lachmann and Hort) resorted to conjectural emendation at this point. Others (Ropes) sought an answer in an underlying Aramaic expression. Not everyone thinks the reading “house” is too difficult to be accepted as original (see Lake and Cadbury). A. F. J. Klijn, “Stephen’s Speech—Acts vii.2-53, ” NTS 4 (1957): 25-31, compared the idea of a “house within the house of Israel” with the Manual of Discipline from Qumran, a possible parallel that seems to support the reading “house” as authentic. (For the more detailed discussion from which this note was derived, see TCGNT 308-9.)
16. Acts 7:47 sn See 1 Kgs 8:1-21.
17. Acts 7:48 sn The title the Most High points to God’s majesty (Heb 7:1; Luke 1:32, 35; Acts 16:7).
18. Acts 7:48 sn The phrase made by human hands is negative in the NT: Mark 14:58; Acts 17:24; Eph 2:11; Heb 9:11, 24. It suggests “man-made” or “impermanent.” The rebuke is like parts of the Hebrew scripture where the rebuke is not of the temple, but for making too much of it (1 Kgs 8:27; Isa 57:15; 1 Chr 6:8; Jer 7:1-34).
19. Acts 7:49 sn What kind…resting place? The rhetorical questions suggest mere human beings cannot build a house to contain God.
20. Acts 7:50 tn Or “Did I.” The phrase “my hand” is ultimately a metaphor for God himself.
21. Acts 7:50 tn The question in Greek introduced with οὐχί (ouchi) expects a positive reply.sn A quotation from Isa 66:1-2. If God made the heavens, how can a human building contain him?
22. Acts 7:51 sn Traditionally, “stiff-necked people.” Now the critique begins in earnest.
23. Acts 7:51 tn The term ἀπερίτμητοι (aperitmētoi, “uncircumcised”) is a NT hapax legomenon (occurs only once). See BDAG 101-2 s.v. ἀπερίτμητος and Isa 52:1.
24. Acts 7:51 tn Or “You stubborn and obstinate people!” (The phrase “uncircumcised hearts and ears” is another figure for stubbornness.)
25. Acts 7:51 tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”
26. Acts 7:52 tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”
27. Acts 7:52 sn Which…persecute. The rhetorical question suggests they persecuted them all.
28. Acts 7:52 tn Grk “And they.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.
29. Acts 7:52 sn The Righteous One is a reference to Jesus Christ.
30. Acts 7:52 sn Whose betrayers and murderers you have now become. The harsh critique has OT precedent (1 Kgs 19:10-14; Neh 9:26; 2 Chr 36:16).
31. Acts 7:53 tn Grk “whose betrayers and murderers you have now become, who received the law” The two consecutive relative clauses make for awkward English style, so the second was begun as a new sentence with the pronoun “You” supplied in place of the Greek relative pronoun to make a complete sentence in English.
32. Acts 7:53 tn Traditionally, “as ordained by angels,” but εἰς (eis) with the accusative here should be understood as instrumental (a substitute for ἐν [en]); so BDAG 291 s.v. εἰς 9, BDF §206. Thus the phrase literally means “received the law by the decrees [orders] of angels” with the genitive understood as a subjective genitive, that is, the angels gave the decrees.sn Decrees given by angels. According to Jewish traditions in the first century, the law of Moses was mediated through angels. See also the note on “angel” in 7:35.
33. Acts 7:53 tn The Greek word φυλάσσω (phulassō, traditionally translated “keep”) in this context connotes preservation of and devotion to an object as well as obedience.
34. Acts 7:54 tn This verb, which also occurs in Acts 5:33, means “cut to the quick” or “deeply infuriated” (BDAG 235 s.v. διαπρίω).
35. Acts 7:54 tn Or “they gnashed their teeth.” This idiom is a picture of violent rage (BDAG 184 s.v. βρύχω). See also Ps 35:16.
36. Acts 7:55 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Stephen) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
37. Acts 7:55 tn Grk “being full,” but the participle ὑπάρχων (huparchōn) has not been translated since it would be redundant in English.
38. Acts 7:55 tn Grk “looking intently toward heaven, saw.” The participle ἀτενίσας (atenisas) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
39. Acts 7:55 sn The picture of Jesus standing (rather than seated) probably indicates his rising to receive his child. By announcing his vision, Stephen thoroughly offended his audience, who believed no one could share God’s place in heaven. The phrase is a variation on Ps 110:1.
40. Acts 7:56 tn Grk “And he said, ‘Look!’” Because of the length of the Greek sentence and the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences, καί (kai) has not been translated here; a new sentence is begun instead.
41. Acts 7:57 sn They covered their ears to avoid hearing what they considered to be blasphemy.
42. Acts 7:58 tn Grk “And when.” Because of the length of the Greek sentence and the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences, καί (kai) has not been translated here; a new sentence is begun instead.
43. Acts 7:58 sn They began to stone him. The irony of the scene is that the people do exactly what the speech complains about in v. 52.
44. Acts 7:58 tn Or “outer garments.”sn Laid their cloaks. The outer garment, or cloak, was taken off and laid aside to leave the arms free (in this case for throwing stones).
45. Acts 7:59 tn Grk “And they.” Because of the length of the Greek sentence and the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences, καί (kai) has not been translated here; a new sentence is begun instead.
46. Acts 7:60 tn Grk “Then falling to his knees he cried out.” The participle θείς (theis) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
47. Acts 7:60 sn The remarks Lord Jesus, receive my spirit and Lord, do not hold this sin against them recall statements Jesus made on the cross (Luke 23:34, 46).
48. Acts 7:60 tn Grk “And when.” Because of the length of the Greek sentence and the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences, καί (kai) has not been translated here; a new sentence is begun instead.
49. Acts 7:60 tn The verb κοιμάω (koimaō) literally means “sleep,” but it is often used in the Bible as a euphemism for the death of a believer.