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Why Did Stephen Rehearse Israelite History? #679 · Scripture Central

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  Which of the prophets have not your father's persecuted?
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  And they have slain them, which shewed before of the coming of
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  the just one of whom ye have been now the betrayers and
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  murderers. Hey listeners, this is Nick from
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  Scripture Central and today's podcast addresses the question,
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  Why did Steven rehearse Israelite history?
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  As the church grew in Jerusalem, the 12 apostles called seven men
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  to assist with the temporal needs of the Saints, especially
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  the widows. One of these seven men named
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  Steven was full of faith and power, did great wonders and
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  miracles among the people. Because of this, Steven was
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  arrested on false charges of disrespecting Moses, the Law,
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  and the Temple. He was brought before the
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  Council where he would offer one of the most well known sermons
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  recorded in the Book of Acts. Throughout his sermon, Stephen
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  refers to various events in Israelite history as noted by
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  Andrew C Skinner and D Kelly Ogden.
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  Stephen reviews the history of Israel to show how great
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  persons, events, doctrines, and practices were all types and
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  shadows of Christ and how all the past culminates in the
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  coming of the Messiah, Jesus. In so doing, Stephen further
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  shows how Israel's history is a cycle of apostasy and
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  restoration. Israel has a long history of
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  rebellion against the Lord. Stephen shows, which culminated
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  in the rejection of the Messiah. Stephen begins his sermon by
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  referring to the obedience of Abraham.
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  The God of Glory appeared unto our Father Abraham when he was
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  in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Cheron, and said unto him,
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  Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into
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  the land which I shall shoe thee.
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  Because Abraham obeyed the Lord, a covenant was made with him
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  that his seed would inherit the promised Land.
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  Abraham's faith and obedience set a standard for his
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  descendants that would unfortunately largely be
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  ignored. Following describing Abraham,
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  Stephen then moves on to discuss how the sons of Jacob moved with
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  envy, sold Joseph into Egypt, but God was with him.
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  One scholar, Vincent KH Oi, remarked that this incident
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  shows how envy and hatred were already gripping the people of
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  promise at this early stage, threatening the unfolding of the
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  promise of God. However, Joseph's misfortune is
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  used by God to save his family. Stevens retelling of Joseph's
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  journey is one of God providentially bringing good out
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  of the evil intention of the Patriarchs and appointing the
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  rejected one over those who rejected him, Oi observes.
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  Abraham's descendants survived because God delivered them
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  through the one they rejected. Joseph, rejected by his own
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  brothers by God's choice, became the innocent sufferer and savior
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  of his people. This is a pattern reflected in
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  the stories of Moses, Jesus, and Stephen within Acts chapter 6
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  through 7. Furthermore, Joseph serves as a
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  type of Christ in his response to his brothers coming to Egypt
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  for food during the hard famine. Like Jesus, Joseph responded
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  graciously to those who rejected him, ensuring their salvation.
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  Moses, another prophetic type of Christ, was likewise rejected
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  multiple times by the Israelites.
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  This occurs, as Steven shows, even before Moses fled Egypt and
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  seeing one of them suffer. Wrong, he defended him and
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  avenged him that was oppressed and smote the Egyptian.
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  For he supposed his brethren would have understood how that
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  God by his hand would deliver them, but they understood not.
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  However, when Moses attempted to reconcile 2 Israelites the
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  following day, he was rejected, causing him to leave Egypt.
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  Then, after Moses had led the children of Israel out of Egypt,
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  Moses is again rejected on a much larger scale.
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  The children of Israel thrust him from them and their hearts
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  turned back again into Egypt, saying unto Aaron, make us gods
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  to go before us. For As for this Moses which
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  brought us out of the land of Egypt, we want not what is
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  become of him. The rejection of Moses is a
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  prophet in favor for false gods and Egyptian lifestyle became a
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  repeated struggle throughout the Israelites wandering in the
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  wilderness. The Israelites would continue to
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  reject the Lord for idols throughout their history,
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  causing them to be punished and exiled on multiple occasions.
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  However, the Lord did not completely reject his people and
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  would continue to bless them and gather them as they repented.
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  Finally, however, the greatest rejection would take place.
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  Just like Joseph was rejected by his brothers, just like Moses
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  was repeatedly rejected by the children of Israel, Jesus Christ
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  was ultimately rejected and killed by the present generation
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  of the House of Israel. This led to Stephen offering the
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  stinging rebuke. Ye stiff, naked, and
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  uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy
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  Ghost as your fathers did. So do ye Which of the prophets
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  have not your father's persecuted?
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  And they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of
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  the just one of whom ye have been now the betrayers and
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  murderers. The murder of Jesus was
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  ultimately the greatest act of treachery committed throughout
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  Israel's tumultuous history and shows how the people rather than
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  Stephen, were those who were ultimately speaking against the
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  Law, Moses, and the Temple, each of which pointed forward to
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  Jesus Christ. As Oy noted, Stevens indictment
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  appears to suggest that the killing of Jesus is related to,
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  if not a culmination of, the people's rejection of the law.
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  Steven would soon find himself the latest incident in Israel's
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  continued rejection of the prophets being stoned for his
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  testimony that I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man
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  standing on the right hand of God.
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  As Steven shows throughout his sermon, God has called and
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  continues to call prophets who testify of Jesus Christ.
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  Many of these prophets point to Jesus Christ through more than
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  just their message, emulating his life and on occasion, his
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  rejection and death. Despite the rejection they face,
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  prophetic messengers such as Steven stand firm in their
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  beliefs and testify to the world what they know to be true.
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  Furthermore, we can recognize how Steven portrays God's work
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  through His sermon. Even as His children are not
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  always faithful to His covenants and gospel.
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  The Lord is always at work for our salvation.
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  He continues to work in His vineyard seeking the immortality
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  and eternal life of all His children.
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  This is made available to us conditional upon our acceptance
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  of the Lord's will in our lives and our acceptance of His
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  messengers. We must follow the Prophet and
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  other appointed leaders of the Church if we hope to gain any
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  lasting peace in this life or the life to come, thereby
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  learning from the mistakes others have made throughout
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  history and choosing to follow the Lord instead.
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  Thank you for listening to this presentation from Scripture
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  Central. For more information, please
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  visit scripturecentral.org.