Acts 7:8

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 7:8-19

Israel and Egypt: Divine providence. The connection of the people of God with the land of Egypt is profoundly interesting, and suggests valuable lessons for all time. We are reminded by the text of— I. THE UNDULATORY CHARACTER OF OUR HUMAN LIFE . This in the eventful experiences of Joseph ( Acts 7:9 , Acts 7:10 ). First rejoicing in his father's peculiar favor, then sold into Egyptian slavery, then rising to a position of trust in the house of his master, then cast... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Acts 7:8

And he gave him - That is, God appointed or commanded this, Genesis 17:9-13.The covenant - The word “covenant” denotes properly “a compact or agreement between two or more persons,” usually attended with seals, pledges, or sanctions. In Genesis 17:7, and elsewhere, it is said that God would establish his “covenant” with Abraham; that is, he made him certain definite promises, attended with pledges and seals, etc. The idea of a strict “compact” or “agreement” between God and man, as between... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Acts 7:6-8

Acts 7:6-8. And God spake, that his seed should sojourn in a strange land When God had brought Abraham into this country, he did not keep him and his posterity here till the time when they were to enter upon the possession of it, in consequence of this divine grant; but, on the contrary, God informed him in a vision that his seed should be strangers in a foreign land, and that they among whom they sojourned should bring them into bondage Should make them slaves; and entreat them evil Use... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Acts 7:1-60

Stephen before the Sanhedrin (7:1-60)The defence that Stephen made before the Sanhedrin was not designed to win its approval. He outlined Israel’s history to demonstrate two main points. First, God had never shown himself to be limited to one dwelling place, or even one locality (therefore the Jews were mistaken in attaching such importance to the temple in Jerusalem). Second, the people of Israel had always rejected the messengers of God (therefore their rejection of the Messiah Jesus was not... read more

E.W. Bullinger

E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes - Acts 7:8

covenant. Greek. diatheke. See note on Matthew 26:28 . patriarchs. See note on Acts 2:29 . read more

Thomas Coke

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Acts 7:8

Acts 7:8. And he gave him the covenant of circumcision:— St. Stephen, the reader may observe, draws no inferences. If he had denied the charge laid against him, as there were two witnesses who swore against him, he had been condemned immediately. If he had owned the charge, he would likewise thereupon have fallen under immediate condemnation. If he had gone about directly to have defended the truth of what the witnesses had alleged, the Sanhedrim would not have had the patience to have heard... read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Acts 7:8

8. the covenant of circumcision—that is, the covenant of which circumcision was the token. and so—that is, according to the terms of this covenant, on which Paul reasons ( :-). the twelve patriarchs—so called as the founders of the twelve tribes of Israel. read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Acts 7:2-8

The Abrahamic Covenant 7:2-8Stephen began his defense by going back to Abraham, the father of the Jewish nation, and to the Abrahamic Covenant, God’s foundational promises to the Jews. read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Acts 7:2-16

Stephen’s view of God 7:2-16The false witnesses had accused Stephen of blaspheming God (Acts 6:11). He proceeded to show the Sanhedrin that his view of God was absolutely orthodox. However in relating Israel’s history during the patriarchal period, he mentioned things about God and the patriarchs that his hearers needed to reconsider. read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Acts 7:2-53

2. Stephen’s address 7:2-53As a Hellenistic Jew, Stephen possessed a clearer vision of the universal implications of the gospel than did most of the Hebraic Jews. It was this breadth of vision that drew attack from the more temple-bound Jews in Jerusalem and led to his arrest. His address was not a personal defense designed to secure his acquittal by the Sanhedrin. It was instead an apologetic for the new way of worship that Jesus taught and His followers embraced."On the surface it appears to... read more

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