Jeremy Hoover

This is our bible study guide for Acts 7 for our bible study tonight. You may find previous bible studies on Acts by following the link.

I have an accompanying handout that is an outline of Stephen's speech, which you can find by following that link.

You may download the study guide (with answers) at the link below or use the questions posted here.

This section of Acts picks up where chapter 6 left off: Stephen was arrested and charged with blasphemy on the testimony of false witnesses. This section contains his defense.

1. Does Stephen answer the high priest's question (1)? How or how not? Why or why not?

2. Why does Stephen skip the origin stories in  his sermon (Genesis 1-11)?

3. Why did Stephen spend so much time on Moses?

4. What is most significant about Moses (37-38)?

5. Who is the coming prophet? How does Moses' passing on of living words that he received correlate to that prophet?

6. How did the ancestors disobey (39-43)? How is idolatry still a problem among God's people today?

7. What were the results of disobedience (42-43)?

8. What is the tabernacle associated with (44)?

9. What marks the tabernacle as pure and holy (44)?

10. Who are the two main figures who were responsible for upgrading the temple (46-47)?

11. Was the upgrade necessary? Why or why not? Why did God let them go through with it?

12. Whom did the people resist (51)?

13. What is the mark of their disobedience (51)? In what ways were they disobedient (51-52)?

14. What was their ultimate act of disobedience (52)?

15. Why should they have known better (53)?

16. How might we be just like these people in disobeying God even after having the same testimony they did?

17. How do the people respond to Stephen's sermon (54)? How did Stephen respond (55)?

18. What did Stephen see? Why is this significant (cf. 7:2)? What is the significance of Jesus standing? Why did Stephen call him the Son of Man?

19. What did they do to Stephen (57-58)? In what two ways did Stephen respond (59-60; cf. Luke 23:34, 46)?

20. What happened as a result of Stephen's murder (8:1)? Was this good or bad? Why weren't the apostles scattered?

21. What did Saul do (8:3)? Was this good or bad? Why? How would we respond to persecution today?