We don’t know the exact numbers involved but there were three thousand added one day, five thousand added another day, the Lord adding daily and here it says “the number of disciples in Jerusalem was increasing greatly, and a large number of priests began obeying* the faith”. The Church faces a need for administration, and then, opposition rises up. Here begins the response of Stephen, who in Acts 6:10 “they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking”.
The Number of Disciples Was Increasing Greatly
Acts 6:1–7
While we don’t know the exact numbers involved, there were 3,000 added one day Acts 2:41, 5,000 added another day Acts 4:4, the Lord adding daily Acts 2:47, and here in this section Acts 6:7 says “the number of disciples in Jerusalem was increasing greatly, and a large number of priests began obeying* the faith”.
Then there was this other complication of language. Some spoke Greek and some spoke Hebrew, and I expect there were a few other that didn’t speak either of these as their native tongue in the mix as well (see Acts 2:8-11).
It takes work to organize large groups of people, and, left to themselves, people will naturally group together with others of like background or interest. That is what is happening here. So why did the apostles ask the people to select seven men? If we assume there were 10,000 believers and in our population about seven percent widowed so, even though this is a very rough estimation, I think they may have easily had 700 widows to care for. When the apostles were with Jesus he taught them in Mark 6:39-42 “to recline in groups, by hundreds and by fifties” so seven men seems like a good number.
Full of Grace and Power
Acts 6:8–15
In Acts 6:8 (LEB) Now Stephen, full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and signs among the people. Then in Acts 6:10 (LEB) And they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking. So, using the same tactics that had been used against Jesus, in Acts 6:11-13 they “secretly instigated” (see Mark 14:10-11), “incited the people” (see Mark 15:11), and “put forward false witnesses” (see Mark 14:56-57).
Stephens face was, in Acts 6:15 “like the face of an angel”. As the face of Moses was when he came from the presence of God. His face shone so brightly that he had to cover it.
Listen, The God of Glory Appeared
Acts 7:1–10
They asked if the accusations were true, knowing they weren’t. In reply, in Acts 7:2 (LEB) So he said, “Men—brothers and fathers—listen: The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham while he* was in Mesopotamia, … and begins to rehearse their history. This is a long account, and it is seldom that we have a word for word transcription, but there are a few places where the words are especially significant and are recorded as spoken.
Look at the wisdom of this response, remember that Stephen is filled with the Holy Spirit as he speaks. If we were to reply, we would likely respond in anger, defending our position, denying what they had said. Instead, His first words are inclusive, “Men and Brothers” then he says “Listen”. He quiets everyone and brings their attention to his words. Then he makes a statement that all of them accept as true, “the God of glory appeared to our father Abraham”. Stephen continues to build one truth upon another leading them into Egypt with Joseph second only to Pharoah.
The People Increased and Multiplied in Egypt
Acts 7:11–19
Their history as a people continues to unfold as Jacob sends his son’s to Egypt and they find Joseph alive in Acts 7:13. Stephen then reminds them in Acts 7:17 (LEB) “But as the time of the promise that God had made to Abraham was drawing near, the people increased and multiplied in Egypt” and goes on in vs 18-19 to talk about how “this man deceitfully took advantage”, “causing them to abandon their children”.
God cares about children (*study this).
Who Appointed You a Ruler and a Judge?
Acts 7:20–29
Stephen moves on to the birth of Moses, “at the time”, when the children of Israel were being killed. And in Acts 7:20 (LEB) At this time Moses was born, and he was beautiful to God. ⌊He⌋ was brought up for three months in his* father’s house … But the children had to be abandoned, as Moses was.
Then, he was taken and raised as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter and in Acts 7:22 (LEB) And Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was powerful in his words and deeds. But he also received instruction from his mother and knew his heritage. These two identities were warring in him and he gets ahead of God’s plan trying in Acts 7:26 to “reconcile them in peace”. This time separated him from his status as a leader in Egypt, and it humbled him as a man as he fled and became a foreigner. From this point, we don’t see him as described in vs 22, “powerful in his words and deeds”.
God Will Raise Up For You a Prophet
Acts 7:30–38
Stephen continues, telling them everything they know and believe about their history. How, in Acts 7:30 (LEB) “And when* forty years had been completed, an angel appeared to him in the desert of Mount Sinai in the flame of a burning bush.”
When Moses responded, he asked for one to speak for him, … get Exodus ref … , no longer the powerful Egyptian son of Pharaoh’s daughter.
Stephen is still reciting fact, the basis of their faith, the truth’s of their history, and now he makes three statements. First, that God did set, in Acts 7:35 (LEB) This Moses whom they had repudiated, saying, ‘Who appointed you a ruler and a judge?’—this man God sent as both ruler and redeemer with ⌊the help⌋ of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. and last, in Acts 7:38 (LEB) This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and who with our fathers received living oracles to give to us, these two that they would easily accept, but in the middle, comes revelation about the Messiah as he recounts in Acts 7:37 (LEB) “This is the Moses who said to the sons of Israel, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers.’
The Tabernacle of Testimony Belonged to Our Fathers
Acts 7:39–47
The truth now gets heavy because God, who delivered them was rejected. These people that had seen great signs and wonders were still holding on to Egypt, and the gods of Egypt. They refused to have faith in God (see Numbers 14:11, 20). But, in Acts 7:44–45 (LEB) The tabernacle of the testimony ⌊belonged⌋ to our fathers in the wilderness, just as the one who spoke to Moses directed him* to make it according to the design that he had seen, 45 and which, after* receiving it* in turn, our fathers brought in with Joshua ⌊when they dispossessed the⌋ nations that God drove out from the presence of our fathers, until the days of David, we find that God was with them still.
Amos 5:25 asks, “Did you bring to me sacrifices and offerings those forty years in the desert, O house of Israel?”
Study Verses
- Acts 6:1–7
- Acts 6:8–15
- Acts 7:30–38
Today’s Reading
- Acts 6:1-15
- Acts 7:1-47