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Saturday, July 26th, 2025
the Week of Proper 11 / Ordinary 16
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Read the Bible

THE MESSAGE

Acts 7:15

This verse is not available in the MSG!

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Court;   Government;   Jacob;   Readings, Select;   Scofield Reference Index - Holy Spirit;   Thompson Chain Reference - Stephen;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Gospel;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Old Testament in the New Testament, the;   Persecution;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Future State;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Stephen;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Acts;   Jacob;   Preaching in the Bible;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Mark, Gospel According to;   Stephen;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Inspiration and Revelation;   Tradition;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Egypt;   Jacob;   Stephen;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Joseph;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Jacob (1);   Persecution;   Stephen;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Christianity in Its Relation to Judaism;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
and Jacob went down to Egypt. He and our ancestors died there,
King James Version (1611)
So Iacob went downe into Egypt, and died, he and our fathers,
King James Version
So Jacob went down into Egypt, and died, he, and our fathers,
English Standard Version
And Jacob went down into Egypt, and he died, he and our fathers,
New American Standard Bible
"And Jacob went down to Egypt, and he and our fathers died there.
New Century Version
So Jacob went down to Egypt, where he and his sons died.
Amplified Bible
"And Jacob (Israel) went down into Egypt, and there he died, as did our fathers;
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"And Jacob went down to Egypt and there he and our fathers died.
Legacy Standard Bible
And Jacob went down to Egypt and there he and our fathers died.
Berean Standard Bible
So Jacob went down to Egypt, where he and our fathers died.
Contemporary English Version
His father went to Egypt and died there, just as our ancestors did.
Complete Jewish Bible
And Ya‘akov went down to Egypt; there he died, as did our other ancestors.
Darby Translation
And Jacob went down into Egypt and died, he and our fathers,
Easy-to-Read Version
So Jacob went down to Egypt. He and our other ancestors lived there until they died.
Geneva Bible (1587)
So Iacob went downe into Egypt, and he dyed, and our fathers,
George Lamsa Translation
So Jacob went down to Egypt where he and our forefathers died.
Good News Translation
Then Jacob went to Egypt, where he and his sons died.
Lexham English Bible
And Jacob went down to Egypt and died, he and our fathers.
Literal Translation
And Jacob went down into Egypt and expired, he and our fathers.
American Standard Version
And Jacob went down into Egypt; and he died, himself and our fathers;
Bible in Basic English
And Jacob went down to Egypt, and came to his end there, and so did our fathers;
Hebrew Names Version
Ya`akov went down into Mitzrayim, and he died, himself and our fathers,
International Standard Version
So Jacob went down to Egypt. Then he and our ancestors died.Genesis 46:5; 49:33; Exodus 1:6;">[xr]
Etheridge Translation
And Jakub went down into Mitsreen and died there; he and our fathers.
Murdock Translation
And Jacob went down into Egypt; and he died there, he and our fathers.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And Iacob descended into Egypt, and dyed, both he and our fathers,
English Revised Version
And Jacob went down into Egypt; and he died, himself, and our fathers;
World English Bible
Jacob went down into Egypt, and he died, himself and our fathers,
Wesley's New Testament (1755)
So Jacob went down into Egypt, and died, he and our fathers,
Weymouth's New Testament
and Jacob went down into Egypt. There he died, and so did our forefathers,
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And Jacob cam doun in to Egipt, and was deed, he and oure fadris;
Update Bible Version
And Jacob went down into Egypt; and he died, himself and our fathers;
Webster's Bible Translation
So Jacob went down into Egypt, and died, he, and our fathers,
New English Translation
So Jacob went down to Egypt and died there, along with our ancestors,
New King James Version
So Jacob went down to Egypt; and he died, he and our fathers.
New Living Translation
So Jacob went to Egypt. He died there, as did our ancestors.
New Life Bible
Jacob moved down to Egypt and died there. Our early fathers died there also.
New Revised Standard
so Jacob went down to Egypt. He himself died there as well as our ancestors,
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And Jacob went down into Egypt. And he died, he, and our fathers;
Douay-Rheims Bible
So Jacob went down into Egypt. And he died, and our fathers.
Revised Standard Version
and Jacob went down into Egypt. And he died, himself and our fathers,
Tyndale New Testament (1525)
And Iacob descended into Egipte and dyed bothe he and oure fathers
Young's Literal Translation
and Jacob went down to Egypt, and died, himself and our fathers,
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And Iacob wente downe in to Egipte, and dyed, both he and oure fathers
Mace New Testament (1729)
so Jacob went down into Egypt, and died, he and our fathers,
Simplified Cowboy Version
Jake made the journey to Egypt and ended up staying there until he and the rest of our ancestors died.

Contextual Overview

1 Then the Chief Priest said, "What do you have to say for yourself?" 2Stephen replied, "Friends, fathers, and brothers, the God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was still in Mesopotamia, before the move to Haran, and told him, ‘Leave your country and family and go to the land I'll show you.' 4"So he left the country of the Chaldees and moved to Haran. After the death of his father, he immigrated to this country where you now live, but God gave him nothing, not so much as a foothold. He did promise to give the country to him and his son later on, even though Abraham had no son at the time. God let him know that his offspring would move to an alien country where they would be enslaved and brutalized for four hundred years. ‘But,' God said, ‘I will step in and take care of those slaveholders and bring my people out so they can worship me in this place.' 8 "Then he made a covenant with him and signed it in Abraham's flesh by circumcision. When Abraham had his son Isaac, within eight days he reproduced the sign of circumcision in him. Isaac became father of Jacob, and Jacob father of twelve ‘fathers,' each faithfully passing on the covenant sign. 9"But then those ‘fathers,' burning up with jealousy, sent Joseph off to Egypt as a slave. God was right there with him, though—he not only rescued him from all his troubles but brought him to the attention of Pharaoh, king of Egypt. He was so impressed with Joseph that he put him in charge of the whole country, including his own personal affairs. 11"Later a famine descended on that entire region, stretching from Egypt to Canaan, bringing terrific hardship. Our hungry fathers looked high and low for food, but the cupboard was bare. Jacob heard there was food in Egypt and sent our fathers to scout it out. Having confirmed the report, they went back to Egypt a second time to get food. On that visit, Joseph revealed his true identity to his brothers and introduced the Jacob family to Pharaoh. Then Joseph sent for his father, Jacob, and everyone else in the family, seventy-five in all. That's how the Jacob family got to Egypt. "Jacob died, and our fathers after him. They were taken to Shechem and buried in the tomb for which Abraham paid a good price to the sons of Hamor. "When the four hundred years were nearly up, the time God promised Abraham for deliverance, the population of our people in Egypt had become very large. And there was now a king over Egypt who had never heard of Joseph. He exploited our race mercilessly. He went so far as forcing us to abandon our newborn infants, exposing them to the elements to die a cruel death. "In just such a time Moses was born, a most beautiful baby. He was hidden at home for three months. When he could be hidden no longer, he was put outside—and immediately rescued by Pharaoh's daughter, who mothered him as her own son. Moses was educated in the best schools in Egypt. He was equally impressive as a thinker and an athlete. "When he was forty years old, he wondered how everything was going with his Hebrew kin and went out to look things over. He saw an Egyptian abusing one of them and stepped in, avenging his underdog brother by knocking the Egyptian flat. He thought his brothers would be glad that he was on their side, and even see him as an instrument of God to deliver them. But they didn't see it that way. The next day two of them were fighting and he tried to break it up, told them to shake hands and get along with each other: ‘Friends, you are brothers, why are you beating up on each other?' "The one who had started the fight said, ‘Who put you in charge of us? Are you going to kill me like you killed that Egyptian yesterday?' When Moses heard that, realizing that the word was out, he ran for his life and lived in exile over in Midian. During the years of exile, two sons were born to him. "Forty years later, in the wilderness of Mount Sinai, an angel appeared to him in the guise of flames of a burning bush. Moses, not believing his eyes, went up to take a closer look. He heard God's voice: ‘I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.' Frightened nearly out of his skin, Moses shut his eyes and turned away. "God said, ‘Kneel and pray. You are in a holy place, on holy ground. I've seen the agony of my people in Egypt. I've heard their groans. I've come to help them. So get yourself ready; I'm sending you back to Egypt.' "This is the same Moses whom they earlier rejected, saying, ‘Who put you in charge of us?' This is the Moses that God, using the angel flaming in the burning bush, sent back as ruler and redeemer. He led them out of their slavery. He did wonderful things, setting up God-signs all through Egypt, down at the Red Sea, and out in the wilderness for forty years. This is the Moses who said to his congregation, ‘God will raise up a prophet just like me from your descendants.' This is the Moses who stood between the angel speaking at Sinai and your fathers assembled in the wilderness and took the life-giving words given to him and handed them over to us, words our fathers would have nothing to do with. "They craved the old Egyptian ways, whining to Aaron, ‘Make us gods we can see and follow. This Moses who got us out here miles from nowhere—who knows what's happened to him!' That was the time when they made a calf-idol, brought sacrifices to it, and congratulated each other on the wonderful religious program they had put together. "God wasn't at all pleased; but he let them do it their way, worship every new god that came down the pike—and live with the consequences, consequences described by the prophet Amos: Did you bring me offerings of animals and grains those forty wilderness years, O Israel? Hardly. You were too busy building shrines to war gods, to sex goddesses, Worshiping them with all your might. That's why I put you in exile in Babylon. "And all this time our ancestors had a tent shrine for true worship, made to the exact specifications God provided Moses. They had it with them as they followed Joshua, when God cleared the land of pagans, and still had it right down to the time of David. David asked God for a permanent place for worship. But Solomon built it. "Yet that doesn't mean that Most High God lives in a building made by carpenters and masons. The prophet Isaiah put it well when he wrote, "Heaven is my throne room; I rest my feet on earth. So what kind of house will you build me?" says God. "Where I can get away and relax? It's already built, and I built it." "And you continue, so bullheaded! Calluses on your hearts, flaps on your ears! Deliberately ignoring the Holy Spirit, you're just like your ancestors. Was there ever a prophet who didn't get the same treatment? Your ancestors killed anyone who dared talk about the coming of the Just One. And you've kept up the family tradition—traitors and murderers, all of you. You had God's Law handed to you by angels—gift-wrapped!—and you squandered it!" At that point they went wild, a rioting mob of catcalls and whistles and invective. But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, hardly noticed—he only had eyes for God, whom he saw in all his glory with Jesus standing at his side. He said, "Oh! I see heaven wide open and the Son of Man standing at God's side!" Yelling and hissing, the mob drowned him out. Now in full stampede, they dragged him out of town and pelted him with rocks. The ringleaders took off their coats and asked a young man named Saul to watch them. As the rocks rained down, Stephen prayed, "Master Jesus, take my life." Then he knelt down, praying loud enough for everyone to hear, "Master, don't blame them for this sin"—his last words. Then he died. 16Stephen, Full of the Holy Spirit Then the Chief Priest said, "What do you have to say for yourself?" Stephen replied, "Friends, fathers, and brothers, the God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was still in Mesopotamia, before the move to Haran, and told him, ‘Leave your country and family and go to the land I'll show you.' "So he left the country of the Chaldees and moved to Haran. After the death of his father, he immigrated to this country where you now live, but God gave him nothing, not so much as a foothold. He did promise to give the country to him and his son later on, even though Abraham had no son at the time. God let him know that his offspring would move to an alien country where they would be enslaved and brutalized for four hundred years. ‘But,' God said, ‘I will step in and take care of those slaveholders and bring my people out so they can worship me in this place.' "Then he made a covenant with him and signed it in Abraham's flesh by circumcision. When Abraham had his son Isaac, within eight days he reproduced the sign of circumcision in him. Isaac became father of Jacob, and Jacob father of twelve ‘fathers,' each faithfully passing on the covenant sign. "But then those ‘fathers,' burning up with jealousy, sent Joseph off to Egypt as a slave. God was right there with him, though—he not only rescued him from all his troubles but brought him to the attention of Pharaoh, king of Egypt. He was so impressed with Joseph that he put him in charge of the whole country, including his own personal affairs. "Later a famine descended on that entire region, stretching from Egypt to Canaan, bringing terrific hardship. Our hungry fathers looked high and low for food, but the cupboard was bare. Jacob heard there was food in Egypt and sent our fathers to scout it out. Having confirmed the report, they went back to Egypt a second time to get food. On that visit, Joseph revealed his true identity to his brothers and introduced the Jacob family to Pharaoh. Then Joseph sent for his father, Jacob, and everyone else in the family, seventy-five in all. That's how the Jacob family got to Egypt. "Jacob died, and our fathers after him. They were taken to Shechem and buried in the tomb for which Abraham paid a good price to the sons of Hamor.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Jacob: Genesis 46:3-7, Numbers 20:15, Deuteronomy 10:22, Deuteronomy 26:5, Joshua 24:4

died: Genesis 49:33, Exodus 1:6, Hebrews 11:21, Hebrews 11:22

Reciprocal: Genesis 46:5 - Jacob Genesis 46:6 - into Egypt Genesis 47:29 - bury me not 1 Samuel 12:8 - Jacob Isaiah 52:4 - My people

Cross-References

Isaiah 11:6
The wolf will romp with the lamb, the leopard sleep with the kid. Calf and lion will eat from the same trough, and a little child will tend them. Cow and bear will graze the same pasture, their calves and cubs grow up together, and the lion eat straw like the ox. The nursing child will crawl over rattlesnake dens, the toddler stick his hand down the hole of a serpent. Neither animal nor human will hurt or kill on my holy mountain. The whole earth will be brimming with knowing God-Alive, a living knowledge of God ocean-deep, ocean-wide.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

So Jacob went down into Egypt,.... At the invitation of his son Joseph:

and died, he, and our fathers; both Jacob and his twelve sons died in Egypt, though we have no account of the death of any of them, but Jacob and Joseph, particularly; only in general, that Joseph died, and all his brethren, and all that generation, Genesis 49:33 Exodus 1:6 the Syriac version adds "there", that is, in Egypt.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And died - Genesis 49:33.

He and our fathers - The time which the Israelites remained in Egypt was 215 years, so that all the sons of Jacob were deceased before the Jews went out to go to the land of Canaan.

And were carried over - Jacob himself was buried in the field of Macpelah by Joseph and his brethren, Genesis 1:13. It is expressly said that the bones of Joseph were carried by the Israelites when they went into the land of Canaan, and buried in Shechem, Joshua 24:32; compare Genesis 50:25. No mention is made in the Old Testament of their carrying the bones of any of the other patriarchs, but the thing is highly probable in itself. If the descendants of Joseph carried his bones, it would naturally occur to them to take also the bones of each of the patriarchs, and give them an honorable sepulchre together in the land of promise. Josephus (Antiq., book 2, chapter 8, section 2) says that “the posterity and sons of these men (of the brethren of Joseph), after some time, carried their bodies and buried them in Hebron; but as to the bones of Joseph, they carried them into the land of Canaan afterward, when the Hebrews went out of Egypt.” This is in accordance with the common opinion of the Jewish writers, that they were buried in Hebron. Yet the tradition is not uniform. Some of the Jews affirm that they were buried in Sychem (Kuinoel). As the Scriptures do not anywhere deny that the patriarchs were buried in Sychem, it cannot be proved that Stephen was in error. There is one circumstance of strong probability to show that he was correct. At the time when this defense was delivered, “Sychem” was in the hands of the Samaritans, between whom and the Jews there was a violent hostility. Of course, the Jews would not be willing to concede that the Samaritans had the bones of their ancestors, and hence, perhaps the opinion had been maintained that they were buried in Hebron.

Into Sychem - This was a town or village near to Samaria. It was called Sichar (see the notes on John 4:5), “Shechem,” and “Sychem.” It is now called “Naplous” or “Napolose,” and is ten miles from Shiloh, and about forty from Jerusalem, toward the north.

That Abraham bought - The word “Abraham” here has given rise to considerable perplexity, and it is now pretty generally conceded that it is a mistake. It is certain, from Genesis 33:19 and Joshua 24:32, that this piece of land was bought, not by Abraham, but by “Jacob,” of the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem. The land which “Abraham” purchased was the cave of Macpelah, of the sons of Heth, in Hebron, Genesis 23:0. Various solutions have been proposed of this difficulty, which it is not necessary to detail. It may be remarked, however:

  1. That as the text now stands, it is an evident error. This is clear from the passages cited from the Old Testament above.

(2)It is not at all probable that either Stephen or Luke would have committed such an error. Every consideration must lead us to the conclusion that they were too well acquainted with such prominent points of the Jewish history to commit an error like this.

(3)The “probability,” therefore, is, that the error has arisen since; but how, is not known, nor is there any way of ascertaining. All the ancient versions agree in reading “Abraham.” Only one manuscript reads “Abraham our father.” Some have supposed, therefore, that it was written “which our father bought,” and that some early transcriber inserted the name of Abraham. Others, that the name was omitted entirely by Stephen; and then the antecedent to the verb “bought” will be “Jacob,” in verse 15, according with the fact. Other modes have been proposed also, but none are entirely satisfactory. If there was positive proof of Stephen’s inspiration, or if it were necessary to make that out, the difficulty would be much greater. But it has already been remarked that there is no decisive evidence of that, and it is not necessary to make out that point to defend the Scriptures. All that can be demanded of the historian is, that he should give a fair account of the defense as it was delivered; and though the probability is that Stephen would not commit Such an error, yet, admitting that he did, it by no means proves that “Luke” was not inspired, or that Luke has committed any error in recording “what was actually said.”

Of the sons of Emmor - In the Hebrew Genesis 33:19, “the children of Hamor” - but different ways of rendering the same word.


 
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