Stephen,
full of faith and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people. But some of those who were of the synagogue called “The Libertines”, and of the Cyrenians, of the Alexandrians, and of those of Cilicia and Asia arose, disputing with Stephen. They weren’t able to withstand the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spoke. Then they secretly induced men to say, “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.” They stirred up the people, the elders, and the scribes, and came against him and seized him, and brought him in to the council, and set up false witnesses who said, “This man never stops speaking blasphemous words against this holy place and the law. For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place, and will change the customs which Moses delivered to us.” All who sat in the council, fastening their eyes on him, saw his face like it was the face of an angel.
Acts 6:8-15
Acts 6 [5.] These words pleased the whole multitude. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch; whom they set before the apostles. When they had prayed, they laid their hands on them. The word of God increased and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem exceedingly. A great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.
Acts 6 [8.] Stephen, full of faith and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people. But some of those who were of the synagogue called “The Libertines”, and of the Cyrenians, of the Alexandrians, and of those of Cilicia and Asia arose, disputing with Stephen. They weren’t able to withstand the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spoke. Then they secretly induced men to say, “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.” They stirred up the people, the elders, and the scribes, and came against him and seized him, and brought him in to the council, and set up false witnesses who said, “This man never stops speaking blasphemous words against this holy place and the law. For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place, and will change the customs which Moses delivered to us.” All who sat in the council, fastening their eyes on him, saw his face like it was the face of an angel.
Acts 7 [1.] The high priest said, “Are these things so?”
Meaning:
Stephen had been chosen to help oversee the care of widows (Acts 6:5), but his ministry quickly went further. This passage introduces him as a powerful witness, describes the opposition he met in the Greek-speaking synagogues of Jerusalem, and tells how he was brought before the council on false charges. It sets the scene for his long speech in Acts 7.
- “Stephen, full of faith and power”
Luke has already described Stephen as “full of faith and of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 6:5). Now he adds power, shown in “great wonders and signs among the people.” Until now such signs had been done through the apostles (Acts 5:12); now the Spirit works through Stephen too.
- The synagogue of “The Libertines”
The Libertines, or “Freedmen,” were probably Jews who had once been slaves or prisoners, or their descendants, many of them from Rome. Others came from North Africa and from Cilicia and Asia in what is now Turkey, all Greek-speaking Jews like Stephen. Cilicia is worth noting: its chief city was Tarsus, the home of Saul (Acts 22:3). Saul was present at Stephen’s death (Acts 7:58), and many think he may have been among those who debated with him.
- “They weren’t able to withstand the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spoke”
Jesus had promised his disciples, “I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to withstand or to contradict” (Luke 21:15). Stephen’s experience fulfilled that promise.
- “they secretly induced men to say”
They persuaded men to bring false accusations, stirred up the people, the elders and the scribes, seized Stephen and brought him to the council, the Sanhedrin. This is the third time in Acts that believers have stood before this court (Acts 4:5-7; Acts 5:27). For the first time the people are turned against the church.
- “blasphemous words against this holy place and the law”
The charges were serious. To speak against the temple and the law of Moses was to attack the heart of Jewish life. The accusation echoes the false testimony at Jesus’ trial: “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another made without hands.’” (Mark 14:58). Jesus had said, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up” (John 2:19), speaking of his body. The witnesses were false because they twisted what Stephen taught. He probably did teach that Jesus was greater than the temple and that God’s presence was not limited to one building, as his speech will show (Acts 7:48). But he did not blaspheme Moses or God.
- “his face like it was the face of an angel”
As the council stared at him, they saw something unusual: a calm, radiant face. Many readers recall Moses coming down from Sinai, when “the skin of his face shone” (Exodus 34:29). The man accused of speaking against Moses bore a likeness to Moses himself.
The Significance of Acts 6:8-15
- Faithfulness may bring opposition
Stephen did good among the people and spoke with wisdom, yet he was falsely accused. Jesus warned his followers that they would be treated as he was.
- God gives grace for the hour of testing
Stephen did not need to fear his accusers. The Spirit gave him wisdom to speak and peace in the face of danger. Jesus promised, “it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you” (Matthew 10:20).
Cross-References:
Luke 21:15: "for I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to withstand or to contradict." Jesus’ promise fulfilled in Stephen.
Mark 14:58: "I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another made without hands." Similar false testimony against Jesus.
Exodus 34:29: "the skin of his face shone by reason of his speaking with him." The shining face of Moses.
Conclusion: Stephen, full of faith, power and the Spirit, did great signs and spoke with a wisdom his opponents could not answer. Unable to refute him, they used false witnesses to accuse him of blasphemy against the temple and the law, just as Jesus had been accused. Yet as he stood before the council, his face shone like an angel’s, a sign that God was with his faithful witness.
PIB Scriptures are derived from the World English Bible