| New King James Version | New International Version |
| 1Then the high priest said, “Are these things so?” | 1Then the high priest asked Stephen, "Are these charges true?" |
| 2And he said, “Brethren and fathers, listen: The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran, | 2To this he replied: "Brothers and fathers, listen to me! The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Harran. |
| 3and said to him, ‘Get out of your country and from your relatives, and come to a land that I will show you.’ | 3Leave your country and your people,' God said, 'and go to the land I will show you.' |
| 4Then he came out of the land of the Chaldeans and dwelt in Haran. And from there, when his father was dead, He moved him to this land in which you now dwell. | 4"So he left the land of the Chaldeans and settled in Harran. After the death of his father, God sent him to this land where you are now living. |
| 5And God gave him no inheritance in it, not even enough to set his foot on. But even when Abraham had no child, He promised to give it to him for a possession, and to his descendants after him. | 5He gave him no inheritance here, not even enough ground to set his foot on. But God promised him that he and his descendants after him would possess the land, even though at that time Abraham had no child. |
| 6But God spoke in this way: that his descendants would dwell in a foreign land, and that they would bring them into bondage and oppress them four hundred years. | 6God spoke to him in this way: 'For four hundred years your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own, and they will be enslaved and mistreated. |
| 7‘And the nation to whom they will be in bondage I will judge,’ said God, ‘and after that they shall come out and serve Me in this place.’ | 7But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves,' God said, 'and afterward they will come out of that country and worship me in this place.' |
| 8Then He gave him the covenant of circumcision; and so Abraham begot Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth day; and Isaac begot Jacob, and Jacob begot the twelve patriarchs. | 8Then he gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision. And Abraham became the father of Isaac and circumcised him eight days after his birth. Later Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob became the father of the twelve patriarchs. |
| 9“And the patriarchs, becoming envious, sold Joseph into Egypt. But God was with him | 9"Because the patriarchs were jealous of Joseph, they sold him as a slave into Egypt. But God was with him |
| 10and delivered him out of all his troubles, and gave him favor and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt; and he made him governor over Egypt and all his house. | 10and rescued him from all his troubles. He gave Joseph wisdom and enabled him to gain the goodwill of Pharaoh king of Egypt. So Pharaoh made him ruler over Egypt and all his palace. |
| 11Now a famine and great trouble came over all the land of Egypt and Canaan, and our fathers found no sustenance. | 11"Then a famine struck all Egypt and Canaan, bringing great suffering, and our ancestors could not find food. |
| 12But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent out our fathers first. | 12When Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our forefathers on their first visit. |
| 13And the second time Joseph was made known to his brothers, and Joseph’s family became known to the Pharaoh. | 13On their second visit, Joseph told his brothers who he was, and Pharaoh learned about Joseph's family. |
| 14Then Joseph sent and called his father Jacob and all his relatives to him, seventy-five people. | 14After this, Joseph sent for his father Jacob and his whole family, seventy-five in all. |
| 15So Jacob went down to Egypt; and he died, he and our fathers. | 15Then Jacob went down to Egypt, where he and our ancestors died. |
| 16And they were carried back to Shechem and laid in the tomb that Abraham bought for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem. | 16Their bodies were brought back to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought from the sons of Hamor at Shechem for a certain sum of money. |
| 17“But when the time of the promise drew near which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt | 17"As the time drew near for God to fulfill his promise to Abraham, the number of our people in Egypt had greatly increased. |
| 18till another king arose who did not know Joseph. | 18Then 'a new king, to whom Joseph meant nothing, came to power in Egypt.' |
| 19This man dealt treacherously with our people, and oppressed our forefathers, making them expose their babies, so that they might not live. | 19He dealt treacherously with our people and oppressed our ancestors by forcing them to throw out their newborn babies so that they would die. |
| 20At this time Moses was born, and was well pleasing to God; and he was brought up in his father’s house for three months. | 20"At that time Moses was born, and he was no ordinary child. For three months he was cared for by his family. |
| 21But when he was set out, Pharaoh’s daughter took him away and brought him up as her own son. | 21When he was placed outside, Pharaoh's daughter took him and brought him up as her own son. |
| 22And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and deeds. | 22Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in speech and action. |
| 23“Now when he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the children of Israel. | 23"When Moses was forty years old, he decided to visit his own people, the Israelites. |
| 24And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended and avenged him who was oppressed, and struck down the Egyptian. | 24He saw one of them being mistreated by an Egyptian, so he went to his defense and avenged him by killing the Egyptian. |
| 25For he supposed that his brethren would have understood that God would deliver them by his hand, but they did not understand. | 25Moses thought that his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them, but they did not. |
| 26And the next day he appeared to two of them as they were fighting, and tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brethren; why do you wrong one another?’ | 26The next day Moses came upon two Israelites who were fighting. He tried to reconcile them by saying, 'Men, you are brothers; why do you want to hurt each other?' |
| 27But he who did his neighbor wrong pushed him away, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge over us? | 27"But the man who was mistreating the other pushed Moses aside and said, 'Who made you ruler and judge over us? |
| 28Do you want to kill me as you did the Egyptian yesterday?’ | 28Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?' |
| 29Then, at this saying, Moses fled and became a dweller in the land of Midian, where he had two sons. | 29When Moses heard this, he fled to Midian, where he settled as a foreigner and had two sons. |
| 30“And when forty years had passed, an Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire in a bush, in the wilderness of Mount Sinai. | 30"After forty years had passed, an angel appeared to Moses in the flames of a burning bush in the desert near Mount Sinai. |
| 31When Moses saw it, he marveled at the sight; and as he drew near to observe, the voice of the Lord came to him, | 31When he saw this, he was amazed at the sight. As he went over to get a closer look, he heard the Lord say: |
| 32saying, ‘I am the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ And Moses trembled and dared not look. | 32I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.' Moses trembled with fear and did not dare to look. |
| 33‘Then the LORD said to him, “Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground. | 33"Then the Lord said to him, 'Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground. |
| 34I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt; I have heard their groaning and have come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send you to Egypt.” ’ | 34I have indeed seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I have heard their groaning and have come down to set them free. Now come, I will send you back to Egypt.' |
| 35“This Moses whom they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’ is the one God sent to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the Angel who appeared to him in the bush. | 35"This is the same Moses they had rejected with the words, 'Who made you ruler and judge?' He was sent to be their ruler and deliverer by God himself, through the angel who appeared to him in the bush. |
| 36He brought them out, after he had shown wonders and signs in the land of Egypt, and in the Red Sea, and in the wilderness forty years. | 36He led them out of Egypt and performed wonders and signs in Egypt, at the Red Sea and for forty years in the wilderness. |
| 37“This is that Moses who said to the children of Israel, ‘The LORD your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear.’ | 37"This is the Moses who told the Israelites, 'God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your own people.' |
| 38“This is he who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the Angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers, the one who received the living oracles to give to us, | 38He was in the assembly in the wilderness, with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our ancestors; and he received living words to pass on to us. |
| 39whom our fathers would not obey, but rejected. And in their hearts they turned back to Egypt, | 39"But our ancestors refused to obey him. Instead, they rejected him and in their hearts turned back to Egypt. |
| 40saying to Aaron, ‘Make us gods to go before us; as for this Moses who brought us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.’ | 40They told Aaron, 'Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who led us out of Egypt--we don't know what has happened to him!' |
| 41And they made a calf in those days, offered sacrifices to the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands. | 41That was the time they made an idol in the form of a calf. They brought sacrifices to it and reveled in what their own hands had made. |
| 42Then God turned and gave them up to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the Prophets: ‘Did you offer Me slaughtered animals and sacrifices during forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel? | 42But God turned away from them and gave them over to the worship of the sun, moon and stars. This agrees with what is written in the book of the prophets: "'Did you bring me sacrifices and offerings forty years in the wilderness, people of Israel? |
| 43You also took up the tabernacle of Moloch, And the star of your god Remphan, Images which you made to worship; And I will carry you away beyond Babylon.’ | 43You have taken up the tabernacle of Molek and the star of your god Rephan, the idols you made to worship. Therefore I will send you into exile' beyond Babylon. |
| 44“Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as He appointed, instructing Moses to make it according to the pattern that he had seen, | 44"Our ancestors had the tabernacle of the covenant law with them in the wilderness. It had been made as God directed Moses, according to the pattern he had seen. |
| 45which our fathers, having received it in turn, also brought with Joshua into the land possessed by the Gentiles, whom God drove out before the face of our fathers until the days of David, | 45After receiving the tabernacle, our ancestors under Joshua brought it with them when they took the land from the nations God drove out before them. It remained in the land until the time of David, |
| 46who found favor before God and asked to find a dwelling for the God of Jacob. | 46who enjoyed God's favor and asked that he might provide a dwelling place for the God of Jacob. |
| 47But Solomon built Him a house. | 47But it was Solomon who built a house for him. |
| 48“However, the Most High does not dwell in temples made with hands, as the prophet says: | 48"However, the Most High does not live in houses made by human hands. As the prophet says: |
| 49‘Heaven is My throne, And earth is My footstool. What house will you build for Me? says the LORD, Or what is the place of My rest? | 49"'Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What kind of house will you build for me? says the Lord. Or where will my resting place be? |
| 50Has My hand not made all these things?’ | 50Has not my hand made all these things?' |
| 51“You stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit; as your fathers did, so do you. | 51"You stiff-necked people! Your hearts and ears are still uncircumcised. You are just like your ancestors: You always resist the Holy Spirit! |
| 52Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who foretold the coming of the Just One, of whom you now have become the betrayers and murderers, | 52Was there ever a prophet your ancestors did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and murdered him-- |
| 53who have received the law by the direction of angels and have not kept it.” | 53you who have received the law that was given through angels but have not obeyed it." |
| 54When they heard these things they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed at him with their teeth. | 54When the members of the Sanhedrin heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. |
| 55But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, | 55But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. |
| 56and said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” | 56"Look," he said, "I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God." |
| 57Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord; | 57At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, |
| 58and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. | 58dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul. |
| 59And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” | 59While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." |
| 60Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep. | 60Then he fell on his knees and cried out, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." When he had said this, he fell asleep. |
| The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved. | New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. |
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