Acts 7:55-60
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The context
Stephen, one of the seven chosen to serve tables, has been arrested and has retold Israel's history before the council, ending with a sharp indictment. The crowd turns violent. The narrator describes a vision, then a stoning carried out outside the city, with a young man named Saul looking on.
What it establishes
It establishes that the first recorded death for the message is accompanied by a vision of the exalted Christ and by prayers that echo Jesus' own: receiving the spirit and forgiving the killers.
What it does not establish
It does not make standing a doctrinal detail. The text says Jesus standing at God's right hand, where other passages speak of him seated; the variation is noted, not explained, and should not be pressed into a claim about posture. Nor does it say the crowd acted legally.
Short note, first pass, October 2026. Corrections welcome.
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Part of Scripture, Opened — the exegetical layer behind every citation on this site. Scripture quotations are from the ESV.