Acts 7:37 - Printer Friendly

ESV: This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers.’

NIV: "This is the Moses who told the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your own people.’

NASB: This is the Moses who said to the sons of Israel, ‘God WILL RAISE UP FOR YOU A PROPHET LIKE ME FROM YOUR COUNTRYMEN.’

CSB: "This is the Moses who said to the Israelites: God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers and sisters.

NLT: Moses himself told the people of Israel, ‘God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from among your own people.’

KJV: This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear.

NKJV: “This is that Moses who said to the children of Israel, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear.’

After Moses rescued the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, they wandered in the wilderness for forty years. Near the end of that time, as they prepared to enter the land God had promised Abraham, Moses took some time to reiterate the laws God had given them at the beginning of their journey. He also prophesied that God would send them a prophet like him, specifically, one who would stand between them and the terrible holiness of God (Deuteronomy 18:15–18). This is understood to be a messianic prophecy, meaning the Prophet of whom Moses spoke is Messiah.

In Deuteronomy 18:16 Moses refers to something that happened at Horeb. He is speaking of an event that happened shortly after the Israelites reached Mount Sinai. God directed the people to go through extensive measures to purify themselves before He descended on the mountain in fire and smoke (Exodus 19). After He gave the Ten Commandments, the people begged Moses, "You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die" (Exodus 20:19). Forty years later, Moses revealed that God had approved of the people's caution (Deuteronomy 18:15–17), but as a concession. God intends all His followers to have the faith to be a "royal priesthood" (1 Peter 2:9) and "draw near to the throne of grace" (Hebrews 4:16), needing no other liaison than His Son, the Prophet who followed Moses (Deuteronomy 18:18).

Stephen wants the Jews to understand that Jesus is the fulfillment of God's promise (Acts 7:52). Jesus stands between God and God's people, giving us God's words and protecting us from God's holiness. But just as the Israelites rejected Moses' instruction (Acts 7:39–41) and killed the prophets (Acts 7:52), they also killed the Prophet promised by Moses to take his place. The Sanhedrin is familiar with the line of thinking. Peter has already tied Jesus to Moses' prophecy in his own defense (Acts 3:22–26).

Acts 7:35–38 reminds a Jewish audience of Moses' credentials. These words are spoken by Stephen, a Jewish follower of Jesus and leader in the church in Jerusalem. Devout Jews are accusing Stephen of blaspheming against Moses and the Mosaic law (Acts 6:11–14). Stephen is showing that his accusers' forefathers directly rebelled against Moses and many other prophets who came after him. Here, he reminds them how Moses was in direct contact with God, and how he prophesied about Jesus.

Stephen is a Greek-speaking Jewish Christian and one of the first deacons in the church in Jerusalem (Acts 6:1–7). He's also a skilled apologist and has been debating Jews from outside Judea about the proper place of the Mosaic law and the temple (Acts 6:8–15). His opponents cannot counter his arguments so they resort to lies. They tell the Sanhedrin that Stephen wants to destroy the temple and repeal the Mosaic law. Stephen counters that his accusers don't respect Moses or the Law, and the temple isn't necessary to worship God. This enrages the mob, and Stephen is stoned, becoming the first Christian martyr.

Chapter 7 is one of the pivot points of the book of Acts. Until recently, the early church has seen favor from the people and indifference from the Sanhedrin. Now, the Sanhedrin has beaten the apostles and ordered them not to preach about Jesus (Acts 5:40), and the people are starting to realize how different Christianity is. In Jerusalem, a Hellenist Jewish Jesus-follower named Stephen has been in a debate with other foreign Jews who finally accuse him of wishing to destroy the temple, like Jesus (Acts 6:8–15). This is Stephen's defense, which leads to his death and the introduction of Paul.

The summary of the book of Acts is provided in Jesus' words in Acts 1:8: ''But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.'' In Acts 2:1–13, the Christ-followers receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:14—7:60 describes the rapid growth of the church in Jerusalem. Chapters 8—12 find Jewish persecution inadvertently spreading the gospel throughout Judea and Samaria. And in chapters 13—28, Paul and his companions spread the good news throughout the Roman Empire.