Bible Strands
Acts 7:24
And when he saw one of them being mistreated, Moses went to his defense and avenged him by striking down the Egyptian who was oppressing him.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Stephen addresses the Sanhedrin, recounting Israel’s history to explain their rejection of Jesus. He describes Moses at age forty intervening when he witnessed an Israelite being wronged by an Egyptian.
The words — The Greek ἠμύνατο (ēmunato) means he defended, and ἐκδίκησιν (ekdikēsin) means vengeance, describing Moses’ violent intervention to avenge the oppressed man.
The thread — Stephen later reminds his listeners that Moses’ act echoes in his own fate when he asks, “Do you want to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?” (Acts 7:28). The parallel extends to Peter’s independent use of violence in John 18:10.
Why it lands — The verse states Moses defended a wronged Israelite by striking down an Egyptian, describing a human act of vengeance that occurs before God’s planned deliverance. It requires the reader to observe how human initiative operates independently of divine timing.
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 seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian:
Cross-references
- John 18:10 Then Simon Peter drew his sword and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his right ear. The servant’s name was Malchus.
- John 18:25 Simon Peter was still standing and warming himself. So they asked him, “Aren’t you also one of His disciples?” He denied it and said, “I am not.”
- Acts 7:28 Do you want to kill me as you killed the Egyptian yesterday?’