Acts 7:7

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
I will judge the nation that they will serve as slaves, God said. After this, they will come out and worship me in this place.

King James Version (1611)
And the nation to whom they shal bee in bondage, will I iudge, saide God: And after that shall they come forth, and serue me in this place.

King James Version
And the nation to whom they shall be in bondage will I judge, said God: and after that shall they come forth, and serve me in this place.

English Standard Version
‘But I will judge the nation that they serve,' said God, ‘and after that they shall come out and worship me in this place.'

New American Standard Bible
"'AND WHATEVER NATION TO WHICH THEY ARE ENSLAVED I MYSELF WILL JUDGE,' said God, 'AND AFTER THAT THEY WILL COME OUT AND SERVE ME IN THIS PLACE.'

New Century Version
But I will punish the nation where they are slaves. Then your descendants will leave that land and will worship me in this place.'

Amplified Bible
"'AND I WILL JUDGE ANY NATION TO WHOM THEY WILL BE IN BONDAGE,' said God, 'AND AFTER THAT THEY WILL COME OUT AND SERVE ME [in worship] IN THIS PLACE.'

New American Standard Bible (1995)
" 'AND WHATEVER NATION TO WHICH THEY WILL BE IN BONDAGE I MYSELF WILL JUDGE,' said God, 'AND AFTER THAT THEY WILL COME OUT AND SERVE ME IN THIS PLACE.'

Legacy Standard Bible
‘And I Myself will judge the nation to which they will be enslaved,' said God, ‘and after that they will come out and serve Me in this place.'

Berean Standard Bible
'But I will punish the nation that enslaves them,' God said, 'and afterward they will come forth and worship Me in this place.'

Contemporary English Version
But he also said, "I will punish the nation that makes them slaves. Then later they will come and worship me in this place."

Complete Jewish Bible
But I will judge the nation that enslaves them,' God said, ‘and afterwards they will leave and worship me in this place.'

Darby Translation
and the nation to which they shall be in bondage will *I* judge, said God; and after these things they shall come forth and serve me in this place.

Easy-to-Read Version
But I will punish the nation that made them slaves.' And God also said, ‘After those things happen, your people will come out of that country. Then they will worship me here in this place.'

Geneva Bible (1587)
But the nation to whome they shall be in bondage, will I iudge, sayth God: and after that, they shall come forth and serue me in this place.

George Lamsa Translation
But the people to whom they will be enslaved I will condemn, said God, and after that, they shall go out and serve me in this land.

Good News Translation
But I will pass judgment on the people that they will serve, and afterward your descendants will come out of that country and will worship me in this place.'

Lexham English Bible
and the nation that they will serve as slaves, I will judge,' God said, ‘and after these things they will come out and will worship me in this place.'

Literal Translation
And God said, I will judge the nation to which you will be in bondage." And, After these things they will come out and will serve Me in this place. Gen. 15:14; Ex. 3:12

American Standard Version
And the nation to which they shall be in bondage will I judge, said God: and after that shall they come forth, and serve me in this place.

Bible in Basic English
And I will be the judge, said God, of that nation which made them servants: and after that, they will come out and give me worship in this place.

Hebrew Names Version
'I will judge the nation to which they will be in bondage,' said God, 'and after that will they come out, and serve me in this place.'

International Standard Version
'But I will punish the nation they serve,' said God, 'and afterwards they will leave and worship me in this place.'Genesis 15:13-14; Exodus 3:12">[fn]Exodus 3:12;">[xr]

Etheridge Translation
And the nation whom they will serve (in) bondage will I judge, saith Aloha: and afterward they shall come forth and serve me in this place.

Murdock Translation
And the nation, to whom they perform bondservice, I will judge saith God. And afterwards, they will go out, and will worship me in this land.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And the nation to whom they shalbe in bondage, wyll I iudge, sayde God: And after that, shall they come foorth, & serue me in this place.

English Revised Version
And the nation to which they shall be in bondage will I judge, said God: and after that shall they come forth, and serve me in this place.

World English Bible
'I will judge the nation to which they will be in bondage,' said God, 'and after that will they come out, and serve me in this place.'

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
And the nation to whom they shall be in bondage, will I judge, saith God. And after that, they shall come forth, and serve me in this place.

Weymouth's New Testament
"`And the nation, whichever it is, that enslaves them, I will judge,' said God; `and afterwards they shall come out, and they shall worship Me in this place.'

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
and Y schal iuge the folk, to which thei schulen serue, seith the Lord. And after these thingis thei schulen go out, and thei schulen serue to me in this place.

Update Bible Version
And I will judge the nation to which they will serve as slaves, God said: and after that they shall come forth, and serve me in this place.

Webster's Bible Translation
And the nation to whom they shall be in bondage will I judge, said God: and after that they shall come forth, and serve me in this place.

New English Translation
But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves ,' said God, ‘ and after these things they will come out of there and worship me in this place.'

New King James Version
'And the nation to whom they will be in bondage I will judge,' Genesis 15:14">[fn] said God, 'and after that they shall come out and serve Me in this place.' Exodus 3:12">[fn]

New Living Translation
‘But I will punish the nation that enslaves them,' God said, ‘and in the end they will come out and worship me here in this place.'

New Life Bible
I will say to that nation that it is guilty for holding them and making them work without pay. After that they will go free. They will leave that country and worship Me in this place.'

New Revised Standard
‘But I will judge the nation that they serve,' said God, ‘and after that they shall come out and worship me in this place.'

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And, the nation unto which they shall be in bondage, will, I, judge - said God; and, after these things, shall they come forth, and render divine service unto me, in this place.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And the nation which they shall serve will I judge (said the Lord): and after these things they shall go out and shall serve me in this place.

Revised Standard Version
'But I will judge the nation which they serve,' said God, 'and after that they shall come out and worship me in this place.'

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
But the nacion to whom they shalbe in bondage will I iudge sayde God. And after that shall they come forthe and serve me in this place.

Young's Literal Translation
and the nation whom they shall serve I will judge, said God; and after these things they shall come forth and shall do Me service in this place.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
and ye people whom they shal serue, wil I iudge, sayde God. And after that shal they go forth, and serue me in this place.

Mace New Testament (1729)
and the nation to whom they shall be in bondage, will I judge, said God: and after that shall they come forth, and serve me in this place."

Simplified Cowboy Version
God said, 'But I'll pay back that country for all the abuse they'll give your family. When all is said and done, they will leave that country and come back here to worship me.'

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

the nation: Genesis 15:14-16, Exodus 7:1 - Exodus 14:31, Nehemiah 9:9-11, Psalms 74:12-14, Psalms 78:43-51, Psalms 105:27-36, Psalms 135:8, Psalms 135:9, Psalms 136:10-15, Isaiah 51:9, Isaiah 51:10

and serve: Exodus 3:12

Reciprocal: Genesis 15:13 - thy Ezekiel 16:4 - for

Cross-References

Genesis 6:18
"But I'm going to establish a covenant with you: You'll board the ship, and your sons, your wife and your sons' wives will come on board with you. You are also to take two of each living creature, a male and a female, on board the ship, to preserve their lives with you: two of every species of bird, mammal, and reptile—two of everything so as to preserve their lives along with yours. Also get all the food you'll need and store it up for you and them."

Genesis 7:1
Next God said to Noah, "Now board the ship, you and all your family—out of everyone in this generation, you're the righteous one.

Genesis 7:13
That's the day Noah and his sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth, accompanied by his wife and his sons' wives, boarded the ship. And with them every kind of wild and domestic animal, right down to all the kinds of creatures that crawl and all kinds of birds and anything that flies. They came to Noah and to the ship in pairs—everything and anything that had the breath of life in it, male and female of every creature came just as God had commanded Noah. Then God shut the door behind him.

Proverbs 22:3
A prudent person sees trouble coming and ducks; a simpleton walks in blindly and is clobbered.

Hebrews 11:7
By faith, Noah built a ship in the middle of dry land. He was warned about something he couldn't see, and acted on what he was told. The result? His family was saved. His act of faith drew a sharp line between the evil of the unbelieving world and the rightness of the believing world. As a result, Noah became intimate with God.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And the nation to whom they shall be in bondage,.... At the end of the four hundred years, and which was the Egyptian nation:

I will judge, said God; that is, condemn and punish them, as he did, by inflicting the ten plagues upon them:

and after that they shall come forth; out of the land of Egypt, and their hard bondage there; and which was brought about by the judgments executed upon the Egyptians:

and serve me in this place; in the land of Canaan; though these words are not to be found in Genesis 15:13 what comes nearest them is in Exodus 3:12. "Ye shall serve God upon this mountain"; meaning Mount Horeb, where Moses then was, and from whence the law was afterwards given.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And the nation ... - Referring particularly to the Egyptians.

Will I judge - The word “judge,” in the Bible, often means to “execute judgment” as well as to pronounce it; that is, “to punish.” See John 18:31; John 3:17; John 8:50; John 12:47; Act 24:6; 1 Corinthians 5:13, etc. It has this meaning here. God regarded their oppressive acts as deserving His indignation, and He evinced it in the plagues with which He visited upon them, and in their overthrow at the Red Sea.

Shall serve me - Shall worship me, or be regarded as my people.

In this place - That is, in the place where God made this promise to Abraham. These words are not found in Genesis, but similar words are found in Exodus 3:12, and it was a practice, in making quotations, to quote the sense only, or to connect two or more promises having relation to the same thing.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Acts 7:7. Will I judge — κρινωεγω, I will punish, for in this sense the Greek word is frequently taken. "When," says Bp. Pearce, "a malefactor is brought before a judge, the judge does three things:

1. he tries or judges him;

2. he then gives his judgment or sentence; and,

3. he puts the law in execution, and punishes him.

Hence κρινω, at different times, signifies each of these things; and the sense of the word is to be determined by the context. Here it signifies to punish, as κριμα is used for punishment, in Romans 13:2; 1 Corinthians 11:29, compared with 1 Corinthians 11:30-31." The Egyptians, to whom the Israelites were in bondage, were punished by the ten plagues, described Exodus 7:19-30