Bible Strands
Acts 7:2
And Stephen declared: “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 Haran,
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Stephen addresses the Sanhedrin council immediately after the high priest demands to know if the accusations against him are true. He opens his formal defense by calling the assembly "brothers and fathers" and demanding their attention before recounting Israel's history.
The words — ἀκούσατε (akousate) functions as an aorist imperative meaning "do listen" or "pay attention," commanding immediate auditory engagement. ἔφη (ephē) translates as "he was speaking" or "he declared," marking the textual transition from the high priest's interrogation to Stephen's extended testimony.
The thread — The phrase "God of glory" echoes the divine title found in Psalms 29:3, where the Lord's voice thunders over the waters. The formal address "Brothers and fathers, listen" structurally parallels Paul's courtroom greeting in Acts 22:1, though Paul delivers that line rather than Stephen.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to recognize that divine revelation precedes human settlement, as God appears to Abraham in Mesopotamia before Terah's family relocates to Haran. It demands attention to the sequence of divine initiative followed by human movement, without embellishing the historical timeline.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
And he said, Men, brethren, and fathers, hearken; The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran,
Cross-references
- Acts 22:1 “Brothers and fathers, listen now to my defense before you.”
- Genesis 11:31 And Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai the wife of Abram, and they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans for the land of Canaan. But when they arrived in Haran, they settled there.
- Psalms 29:3 The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders; the LORD is heard over many waters.
- Nehemiah 9:7 You are the LORD, the God who chose Abram, who brought him out of Ur of the Chaldeans and gave him the name Abraham.
- John 1:14 The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
- Hebrews 1:3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His nature, upholding all things by His powerful word. After He had provided purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.
- Genesis 15:7 The LORD also told him, “I am the LORD, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess.”
- Genesis 12:1 Then the LORD said to Abram, “Leave your country, your kindred, and your father’s household, and go to the land I will show you.
- Genesis 12:5 And Abram took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all the possessions and people they had acquired in Haran, and set out for the land of Canaan. When they came to the land of Canaan,
- Genesis 29:4 “My brothers,” Jacob asked the shepherds, “where are you from?” “We are from Haran,” they answered.