Acts Six
1 Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution. 2 And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. 3 Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. 4 But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” 5 And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. 6 These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them. 7 And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith. 8 And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and signs among the people. 9 Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), and of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of those from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and disputed with Stephen. 10 But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking. 11 Then they secretly instigated men who said, “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.” 12 And they stirred up the people and the elders and the scribes, and they came upon him and seized him and brought him before the council, 13 and they set up false witnesses who said, “This man never ceases to speak words against this holy place and the law, 14 for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and will change the customs that Moses delivered to us.” 15 And gazing at him, all who sat in the council saw that his face was like the face of an angel. (Acts 6, ESV Bible)
1 Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution. (Acts 6:1, ESV Bible)
A Problem with the Widow’s List
The Jerusalem community of disciples lived collectively. They contributed their belongings and earnings to a common purse from which they maintained the destitute and impoverished among them. The Twelve administered the fund, distributing the resources across the community's various needs.
In those days, congregations of disciples kept a special list on which they registered the widows and orphans among them. Those on the list were entitled to daily provisions from the community fund.
Widows stood at a sharp economic disadvantage. Career opportunities for women were scarce, and the typical widow might have several children to feed. Without income or public assistance, widows relied on the generosity of others. The Torah frequently enjoins us to look after the widow and orphan, providing them with justice, equity, and charity. James, the brother of the Master and leader of the Jerusalem community, taught, "Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress" (James 1:27). Pauline communities also distributed provision to widows who qualified for a widow's list, but according to Paul's rule, young widows eligible for remarriage did not qualify for a permanent place on the list (I Timothy 5:9-16).
In Judaism, the distribution of public charity occurred along tightly defined models. The community appointed certain men to collect contributions of food and money and distribute them to the poor:
Our Rabbis taught: The charity basket is collected by two persons and distributed by three ... Food for the dish is collected by three and distributed by three, since it is distributed as soon as it is collected. Food is distributed every day, the charity basket every Friday. The dish is for all who come, the charity basket is only for the local residents who are poor. (b.Bava Batra 8b)
At some point in the first few years of the Jerusalem community, the Greek-speaking disciples brought a complaint to the Twelve. They alleged that Greek-speaking widows were not receiving their fair allotment from the daily distribution. They complained that the Hebrew-speakers discriminated against the Greek-speakers.
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
The Hellenist
Luke referred to a certain group of disciples in Jerusalem as Hellenists. The word is not found in any literature earlier than the book of Acts. Luke uses it to mean "one who speaks Greek." In the context of Acts 6, it means Greek-speaking Jews-not Gentiles.
In the broadest sense of the term, the Hellenist Jews were Jews who spoke Greek and were conversant in Greek culture. Most Hellenist Jews lived in the Diaspora. Greek-speaking Jews were just as Zealous for Torah as Hebrew and Aramaic-speaking Jews. Virtually every major city of the Roman world contained a Jewish population. Those populations spoke Greek and moved somewhat comfortably within the Greco-Roman culture. Some came to live in or around Jerusalem, where they lived as a minority within the broader Jewish community.
Hellenist Jews were not necessarily less devout in their allegiance to the Torah and the Temple than Hebrew and Aramaic-speaking Jews. The Greek-speaking Jewish community contained a broad diversity of people with varying affiliations and loyalties. A Hellenist Jew might be assimilated into the Gentile culture (e.g., Herod Agrippa), or he might be scrupulously Torah-observant (e.g., Saul of Tarsus). Greek-speaking Jews were better equipped to bridge the narrow worldview of Torah-Judaism and the broader worldview of Hellenism than the conservative "Hebrews" within Judea and Galilee. For example, Philo, a famous Jewish philosopher and thinker from Alexandria, attempted to merge the Greek philosophical tradition with Jewish theology.
Greek-speaking Jews looked toward the large and prosperous Jewish community of Alexandria, Egypt, as their cultural, political, and financial center. They could look with pride to the Great Synagogue in Alexandria and the powerful Jewish community that occupied much of that city. Some Greek-speaking Jews also participated in the renegade Jewish Temple at Leontopolis, Egypt. Despite all that, Greek-speaking Jews remained loyal to Jerusalem and the land of Israel. They made pilgrimage to the Temple and submitted to rulings issued by the Sanhedrin.
The Hellenists relied on the Septuagint (LXX, the Greek version of the Hebrew Scriptures), and they considered that translation as authoritative as the Hebrew. They attended Greek-speaking synagogues, heard the Torah read in Greek, prayed in Greek, and taught in Greek. Even in Jerusalem, the large Synagogue of the Freedmen offered a home to Greek-speaking Jews where they could worship and study in Greek.
Hellenist Judaism produced a highly literate society, which exercised considerable influence on Roman culture. Religious writings from the pens of Greek-speaking Jews have survived the centuries, preserved in monastic libraries. The entire Greek New Testament came to us through the hands of Hellenist Jews.
Greek-speaking Jews constituted a majority in the Diaspora's Jewish communities in the West. They also had strong enclaves in and around the land of Israel. The Greek-speaking Decapolis cities all contained Jewish quarters populated by Greek-speaking Jews. Inscriptional evidence from Jerusalem's tombs indicates that Greek was common in the Second Temple Era, and many Jews of the day were bilingual.
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
The Hebrews
Luke contrasts the Greek-speaking Jews against a group he calls "Hebrews." In fact, all biological descendants of Abraham are Hebrew, but Luke uses the term to indicate language and culture, not ethnicity. The Hebrews were those Jews who spoke Aramaic and/or Hebrew. Aramaic-speaking Jews lived primarily in Babylon, Parthia, Syria, Galilee, Perea, Judea, and Idumea. While many Jews were assimilating under the allure of Hellenism, the Hebrews maintained a more traditional, separatist attitude than the cosmopolitan Hellenists. They resisted the encroachment of Greco-Roman culture. The rabbinic community represented their religious interests. They regarded themselves as a faithful remnant, untainted by compromise with the Greco-Roman culture. For example, the sages frowned on Greek entertainment. They considered the games, circuses, and theaters idolatrous and immoral (they were). The presence of a stadium in Jerusalem and numerous theaters throughout the land of Israel made their resolve against Greek culture all the firmer. Unlike Philo, who tried to marry Torah to Greek philosophy, the traditionalist Hebrews discouraged the study of Greek literature and philosophy:
Ben Damah the son of Rabbi Yishmael's sister once asked Rabbi Ishmael, "Is it permissible for someone like myself who has studied the whole of the Torah to learn Greek philosophy?" Rabbi Yishmael replied with the verse that says [in Joshua 1:8], "Do not let this Book of the Torah depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night. Therefore it is permissible for you to study Greek philosophy when it is neither day nor night." (b.Menachot 99b)
Subsequent to the Jewish revolts, the Hebrew and Hellenist communities of Jewery merged. Shortly after the destruction of Jerusalem and the Roman defeat of Judea, the Alexandrian Jewish community faced a similar devastation. The distinction between the Hellenist Jews and the Hebrew Jews began to fade. The rabbis tried issuing a decree against learning Greek, but the attempt failed. By the third century CE, the Greek language had surpassed Aramaic in the land of Israel. In the days of the apostles, however, the sharp distinction between Greek-speaking Jews and the "Hebrews" was still keenly felt. Yeshua and His original disciples belonged to the latter category.
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
2 And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. (Acts 6:2, ESV Bible)
The Word of God
Several of the Greek-speaking disciples approached the Twelve to complain that the Hellenist widows did not receive the same daily distribution as those widows among the Hebrew/Aramaic speakers. They said their widows were overlooked in the serving of food. The Twelve replied, “It is not desirable for us to neglect the word of God in order to serve tables” (Acts 6:2). It doesn’t refer to serving tables like a waiter but rather to managing or overseeing the distribution of food. The term “word of God” refers not to the Bible exclusively but to any message from God, in this case, the teaching of Yeshua and the good news of the kingdom. The Twelve decided to appoint deacons (servants) to serve the community. The word “serve” translates the Greek diakoneo (διακονέω), the verbal form of the Greek word for a slave (diakonos, διάκονος).
They summoned a general meeting of the entire community of disciples. They announced their decision to remove themselves from the daily administration of the community funds and food distribution. They said they did not want to sacrifice the study and teaching of "the word of God" for the sake of serving tables. The community had grown to number in the thousands, more than they could easily manage. Like Moses appointing judges beneath them, they needed to appoint men to administer affairs on their behalf.
They were not shirking their responsibility, nor did they consider the humble work of serving tables as something beneath their dignity and prestige. Our Master washed their feet and told them not to think of themselves as too important to serve:
He who is the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like the servant. For who is greater, the one who reclines at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at the table? But I am among you as the one who serves. (Luke 22:26-27)
As the appointed witnesses of Yeshua, they found their first priority in the obligation of passing on the Master's teaching. In order to do so, they needed to devote themselves to study and teaching. They told the assembly, "Therefore, brethren, select from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this task. But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word" (Acts 6:3-4).
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
3 Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. 4 But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” (Acts 6:3-4, ESV Bible)
Criteria for Deacons
The Twelve allowed the community to elect their own servants, but they established certain criteria. They asked them to pick seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit, and full of wisdom. The Greek word from which we derive "deacons" is διάκονος (diakonos).
In Greek, ministry and service are represented by the same word family, primarily διάκονος (diakonos) (servant), διακονία (diakonia) (service or ministry), and διακονέω (diakoneo) (to serve). This linguistic overlap highlights that in the New Testament, ministry and service are essentially the same concept, with no division between "spiritual" and "practical" forms of service. Ministry = Service. The New Testament does not separate serving physical needs from serving spiritual needs. Both are integral to what it means to minister. Whether feeding the hungry, preaching the gospel, or visiting the sick, ministry is about meeting the needs of others in the name of God. This unity of meaning elevates service to its rightful place as central to the Christian life, making every believer's contributions to the community—whether through teaching, feeding, helping, or comforting—essential parts of the ministry.
They sought seven men to function as a board of community administrators. According to the Talmud, Jewish cities appointed seven trusted men as trustees to administer public affairs in a city (b.Megillah 26a). Josephus considered the appointment of seven city administrators, "zealous in the exercise of virtue and righteousness," as a law of Torah given by Moses (Josephus, Antiquities 4:214/viii.14).
The men were to be "of good reputation." The Torah says, "You shall select out of all the people able men who fear God, men of truth, those who hate dishonest gain" (Exodus 18:21). The sages said that having "a good name" was more important than being a Torah scholar, a priest, or royalty (m.Avot 4:13).
The men were to be "full of the Spirit." In the Torah, Moses appointed seventy elders to serve under him. The LORD filled the seventy elders with the Holy Spirit: "When the Spirit rested upon them, they prophesied" (Numbers II:25).
The men were to be "full of wisdom." The Torah says, "Choose wise and discerning and experienced men from your tribes, and I will appoint them as your heads" (Deuteronomy 1:13). The sages said, "Judges must be wise men, understanding, and full of knowledge" (Deuteronomy Rabbah 1:10). When Pharaoh appointed Joseph to administer over Egypt's food supply, he said, "There is no one so discerning and wise as you are" (Genesis 4:39).
An additional criterion seems to be implied: the men were to be bilingual, conversant in both Greek and Aramaic. All seven deacons had Greek names.
The criteria for choosing the seven deacons sounds reminiscent of the qualifications necessary for serving on the Sanhedrin:
Rabbi Yochanan said, "No one may be appointed to the Sanhedrin unless he is a man of stature, wisdom, good appearance, mature age, familiar with [the deceits of] sorcery, and fluent in all the seventy languages of man so that the court will not need of an interpreter. (b.Sanhedrin 17а)
In his epistle to Timothy, Paul expounds on the criteria for deacons as follows:
Deacons likewise must be men of dignity, not double-tongued, or addicted to much wine or fond of sordid gain, but holding to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience ... tested ... beyond reproach ... husbands of only one wife, and good managers of their children and their own households. For those who have served well as deacons obtain for themselves a high standing and great confidence in the faith that is in the Messiah Yeshua. (I Timothy 3:8-13)
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
5 And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. (Acts 6:5, ESV Bible)
The Seven Parnasim
The role of deacon answers to that of parnas (provider, פַּרְנָס) in ancient Jewish communities, a leader entrusted with administering the business affairs of a community. Parnasim (plural form) served as political leaders over a town. According to the Talmud, men appointed as parnasim over a community must be disciples of the sages who can answer legal questions about the Torah. The title denoted a general leader of the people and sometimes also a member of the city council. Elsewhere, parnasim functioned primarily as the men responsible for overseeing the collection and distribution of charity for the poor.
Rabbi Yitzchak said, "We do not appoint a parnas over a community without first consulting the community" (b. Berachot 55a). Likewise, the Twelve asked the community of disciples in Jerusalem to choose the candidates for the office. The Twelve wanted the community to elect seven parnasim to function as stewards over the community's business affairs. By modern analogy, the seven deacons might be compared to a board of directors who oversee the finances of an organization.
The community of the disciples approved and put forward seven candidates to serve as "deacons." Except for Stephen and Philip, the Bible tells us almost nothing about the seven men other than their Greek names. Luke notes that Nicolas was a proselyte to Judaism, indicating that the other six were born Jewish.
Hippolytus of Rome, a third-century Christian, places all seven of the deacons on a spurious list of the Master's seventy disciples. They might also have been among the "more than five hundred brethren" to whom He appeared at one time (I Corinthians 15:6).
STEPHEN
Stephans (Στέφανος) means "crown." According to a fifth-century tradition, his Hebrew name was Kelil (כֶּתֶר), a word that also means "crown." Epiphanius claims that Stephen numbered among the Master's seventy disciples, but his tradition may be spurious. In any case, Stephen might have been of apostolic stature-a witness of the risen Messiah. He worshiped with Jerusalem's Greek-speaking Jewish community at the Synagogue of the Freedmen. He was "a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit" (Acts 6:5) and the first to die as a martyr for the name of Yeshua.
PHILIP
Philippos (Φίλιππος) means "horse-loving." The name was popular among Herodian Jews. King Herod the Great named two of his sons Philip. One of the Master's twelve disciples was also known as Philip. To separate between the two Philips, we ordinarily make a distinction between Philip the apostle and Philip the evangelist (Acts 21:8), but that distinction was lost in the second and third centuries. Church tradition inevitably conflated the two men. On the other hand, perhaps they are the same person. It remains possible that Philip served both among the Twelve and the Seven. Perhaps the Twelve wanted to retain at least one position in the administration of the community.
The book of Acts will go on to narrate the adventures of Philip. Philip later settled in Caesarea, where he hosted Paul and Luke in his home. Philip may have provided Paul's traveling companion Luke with source material, anecdotes, and traditions for his narratives. Luke says that Philip had four virgin daughters who were prophetesses. Philip and two of his daughters left Caesarea and settled in Hierapolis, where his tomb was revered by later generations of Christians.
PROCHORUS
Prochoros (Πρόχορος) was an unusual name that means "leader of the dance." The name is otherwise unattested in ancient sources. According to the apocryphal Acts of John, the apostles sent Prochorus out to Asia Minor as the traveling companion of the Apostle John. Prochorus served the apostle as an interpreter and translator. Hippolytus of Rome says cryptically, "Prochorus, bishop of Nicomedia, who also was the first that departed, believing together with his daughters."
NICANOR
Nikanor (Νικάνωρ) means "victorious." A prominent Alexandrian Jew by the same name donated gates to the Temple. According to an unreliable source, Nicanor originally came from Cyprus before settling in Jerusalem, and he returned to Cyprus before his death. According to Hippolytus of Rome, however, "Nicanor died when Stephen was martyred."
TIMON
Timon (Τίμων) is a common Greek name, but there are no other Jewish examples of it. According to Hippolytus of Rome, Timon became the bishop of Bostra, Syria. Some traditions say he was martyred there.
PARMENAS
Parmenas (Παραμενᾶς) means "remaining true." The name is rare, and there are no other Jewish examples of it. Some scholarship suggests that the name indicates heritage from a Diaspora community in Cyrene.
NICOLAS
Nikolaos (Νικόλαος) means "victor of the people." Luke says he was a proselyte from the city of Antioch. Most likely, he underwent conversion in Antioch before coming into contact with the disciples of Yeshua, but it remains possible that he underwent circumcision and conversion subsequent to his introduction to the apostles. As a fellow member of the Antioch community, Luke may have known Nicolas personally.
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
The Sect of the Nicolaitans
According to Irenaeus, Nicolas became the author of the heretical, Gnostic sect of the Nicolaitans who led "lives of unrestrained indulgence ... teaching it is permissible to practice adultery and to eat things sacrificed to idols" (Irenaeus, Against Heresies 1.26.3; cf. 3.I1.1). The Master Himself names the sect in Revelation. He condemned the way and the teaching of the Nicolaitans and declared that He hated "the deeds of the Nicolaitans" (Revelation 2:6). He compared their ways to the sin of Baal Peor: "[The Nicolaitans] hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit acts of immorality" (Revelation 2:14; click here for more).
According to Clement of Alexandria, Nicolas did not found the immoral sect of the Nicolaitans. Rather, the sect formed when some Gnostic Christians misconstrued the teaching and example of Nicolas (Clement of Alexandria, Stromata 2.20, 3.4; Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 3.29). The following legend about the relationship between Nicolas and the Nicolaitans should be taken with suspicion. The entire legend might have developed simply as an attempt to explain the relationship between the common-sounding names in two otherwise completely unrelated passages.
According to the legend transmitted by Clement of Alexandria, Nicolas used to teach, "The flesh must be treated with contempt." He voluntarily took on a life of harsh asceticism, including celibacy. He may have been emulating the holy celibates among the Essenes or following in the example of Moses, who, according to tradition, undertook a life of celibacy in order to remain in a state of constant ritual purity. Nicolas probably looked to the Master's teaching about celibacy and chose to make himself a spiritual "eunuch for the sake of the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 19:10-12). Perhaps he failed to notice that Yeshua prescribed that path only for unmarried men.
Nicolas was already married to a young, beautiful wife when he chose to subjugate his flesh through celibacy and asceticism:
He taught what it meant to "treat the flesh with contempt" by restraining the eager passions. For, as the Lord commanded, he did not wish to serve two masters, pleasure and God. (Clement of Alexandria)
According to Clement, after adopting the path of celibacy, Nicolas began to be "jealous" over his wife. Epiphanius says he broke his vows of celibacy, and the matter became known. When others in the community accused him of some misconduct regarding his wife, he rashly brought her before the apostles and publicly divorced her, declaring, "Anyone who desires her may marry her." (In Jewish divorce law, a certificate of divorce states that a woman is free to remarry.) Clement says that Nicolas "never had relations with any woman other than the wife he married." Moreover, his children followed his celibate example: "His daughters remained virgins to their old age, and his son remained pure."
The Nicolaitan sect that allegedly named themselves after Nicolas followed his example by renouncing marriage, but they did not adopt celibacy. They practiced a type of hedonistic Gnosticism. They believed that they could best "treat the flesh with contempt" by indulging it. They shared common spouses and disregarded other prohibitions, such as the prohibition on foods sacrificed to idols. The sect named after Nicolas lived in a manner opposite the lifestyle he advocated. Epiphanius tells a more cynical version of the same story:
Nicolas had an attractive wife but adopted celibacy in imitation of some whom he believed to be devout and godly. He endured this for a while but in the end could not control himself ... Ashamed of his failure and suspecting that the matter had become known, he [changed his mind and] began to teach, "Unless one indulges daily, he cannot have eternal life." (Panarion [Adversus haereses; Against Heresies] 25.1.4)
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
6 These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them. (Acts 6:6, ESV Bible)
The Laying on of Hands
The community placed their choice of seven men before the Twelve. The Twelve approved the choices. They prayed over the men and laid hands on them.
In the Bible, the laying on of hands symbolizes an investiture of identity for the sacrificial rites, for surrogacy, for ordination, and for spiritual endowment. For example, Moses laid hands on Joshua to ordain him as his successor. According to tradition, Joshua laid hands on his disciples, continuing an unbroken chain that transmitted the authority of Moses to succeeding generations. The rabbis also used the laying on of hands to confer ordination. When a disciple reached a certain point in his education, a sage laid hands on him to invest him with the authority to teach, sit in judgment, decide legal questions, and raise disciples of his own. The Twelve used the laying on of hands in the same respect to ordain the seven to take positions of leadership in the community. The early believers considered the teacher-to-disciple ordination and transmission process so fundamental that the writer of the book of Hebrews refers to the laying on of hands as one of the "elementary teachings about the Messiah" (Hebrews 6:1-2).
The laying on of hands goes way back within Jewish tradition:
9 Now Joshua the son of Nun was filled with the spirit of wisdom (רוּחַ חָכְמָה, ruach chokhmah), because Moses had laid his hands on him (יָדָיו, yadav); and the sons of Israel listened to him and did as the Lord had commanded Moses.
(Deuteronomy 34:9)
We see that laying of hands is how authority is handed over to someone else. It is someone you can trust or “lean on.” In Hebrew סְמִיכָה (semicha) is the word for "ordination" from סָמַךְ (samach) "to lean on". (Jacob - Gen. 48, Aaron – Ex 29, Num 8:1 - Sons of Israel upon Levites.)
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
7 And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith. (Acts 6:7, ESV Bible)
Priests Entering the Faith
No longer responsible for the day-to-day administration of the community, the Twelve committed themselves all the more fervently to the study and teaching of the word of God and to prayer. Through their teaching, "the word of God increased." More and more people came under their teaching, and the number of disciples in Jerusalem multiplied. A great number of priests became obedient to the faith as well.
Although the aristocratic Sadducees dominated the upper ranks of the priesthood, most priests in the late Second Temple Era were pious men of modest means. Many of them were loyal to the teaching of the Pharisees, and they looked for the consolation of Israel. Luke's gospel provides two examples: Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist, who was "righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord" (Luke 1:4), and the "righteous and devout" Simeon of Luke 2:25.
In those days, the priesthood had grown so large (and corrupt at the top) that the common priest often found the tithes and priestly portions insufficient to support his family. The priests supplemented their income with trades and crafts.
Most priests did not live in Jerusalem. They lived throughout the land in the villages of Judea, Galilee, and even in the Diaspora. Their priestly duties brought them to Jerusalem only a few times a year. Twenty-four courses of the priesthood rotated through the Temple, each course serving one week at a time. The average priest served in the Temple only two weeks a year (and on the pilgrimage festivals).
Each time a priest arrived in Jerusalem to serve his week in the Temple, he observed the growth of the Yeshua sect that congregated there daily at the times of prayer. He heard the teaching of the apostles and observed their ardent faith.
The more that the aristocratic chief priests tried to suppress the Yeshua movement, the more attractive the movement appeared to the common, Pharisaic priests. Many priests began to believe. They confessed their faith that the crucified one had risen and would return as the promised Messiah. They joined themselves to His school of disciples.
How did faith in Yeshua of Nazareth change their priestly functions? Did the Messianic priests renounce their participation in the Temple services and the sacrificial rites on the basis that they now regarded Yeshua as the atoning sacrifice? Replacement theology assumes that they must have abandoned the priesthood after becoming believers, but from a Messianic Jewish perspective, the believing priests found no conflict whatsoever between their priestly duties and messianic faith. The apostles did not teach that Yeshua's death abolished the Temple, the sacrifices, or the priesthood.
If anything, the believing priest found the sacrificial rites more meaningful and potent than ever before. Any priest serving his term of duty in the Temple must have occasionally wondered, "What is the point of all this blood? What is this all about?" Yeshua's atoning death and resurrection imbued those same sacrificial rites with new meaning and substance. For example, imagine officiating over Passover sacrifices during the first Passover after the Master's death. Imagine splashing the blood of the Passover lambs against the altar on the anniversary of the Master's crucifixion. The large number of priests entering the faith further anchored the believers to the Temple and its services.
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
8 And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and signs among the people. 9 Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), and of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of those from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and disputed with Stephen. (Acts 6:8-9, ESV Bible)
In the Synagogue of the Freedmen
Stephen proved himself more than simply a capable community administrator. God's Spirit rested on him powerfully. He was an apostle himself and a designated representative of the Twelve. Like the Twelve, he performed signs and wonders among the people, and the community began to regard him as a miracle worker.
Stephen also proved himself a worthy disciple of Yeshua and student of the Twelve by delivering powerful teachings. He spoke with "wisdom and spirit" (Acts 6:10), and he tried to persuade other Jews of Jerusalem to repent from sin and confess the risen Messiah. His native language skills gave him access to a large population of Jerusalemite Jews that many of the other apostles could address only through translation (or a miraculous gift of languages). Stephen met with success among the Greek-speaking Jews, particularly in the Greek-speaking synagogue he attended.
The city of Jerusalem contained numerous synagogues serving the wide variety of sectarian groups, languages, customs, cultures, and convictions that constituted first-century Judaism. The Jewish believers felt no need to start new synagogues. The thought of "church planting" did not occur to them. They did not regard their faith in Messiah as something so radical or different that it would require them to separate from other Jews and start their own houses of worship. They continued to attend the various synagogues that they had attended before becoming believers. To meet with their fellow disciples, they only needed to attend the daily times of prayer in the Temple courts. They could always find the assembly of the disciples in Solomon's Colonnade.
Stephen attended a synagogue called "Synagogue of the Freedmen, " a Jerusalem synagogue for Greek-speaking Jews. The Greek name, Synagogue of the Libertinos (Λιβερτίνους), transliterates the Latin libertine and refers to emancipated slaves. In 63 BCE, the Roman general Pompey took large numbers of Judeans captive. Many were enslaved in Rome or elsewhere in the republic. After they obtained their freedom, many of them (and their descendants) returned to Jerusalem as Greek-speakers. That does not mean that everyone who attended the Synagogue of the Freedmen was an emancipated slave. The synagogue had apparently come to be regarded as the elite Hellenist synagogue in Jerusalem.
People who are born free, are in a different social status than those who are freed or liberated. They do not have the same rights within the Roman culture. These were all Jews and they were presumably arguing with Stephen about what Stephen was teaching.
During a 1913 excavation on the southern end of the hill of the City of David, archaeologists discovered a stone slab bearing a Greek inscription that a majority of scholars associate with Stephen's Synagogue of the Freedmen:
Theodotos, (son) of Vettenus, priest and synagogue ruler, son of a synagogue ruler, (and) grandson of a synagogue ruler, built the synagogue for the reading of the law and the teaching of the commandments, and the guest room, and the chambers, and the water fixtures, as an inn for those in need from foreign parts, (the synagogue) which his fathers and the elders and Simonides founded. (Theodotos Inscription)
Theodotos is likely donating money toward the building of the synagogue and this is an inscription of dedication. It was a synagogue for the broad and those coming from other locations. Based on this synagogue being used by those from other locations (and of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of those from Cilicia and Asia), some scholars believe this could be the Synagogue of the Freedman. Archaeological remains in the same area indicated a large, lavish complex with ornate architecture. The wealthy synagogue included room for study halls and the reading of the Torah, but it also provided accommodations for pilgrims and ritual baths for those going to the Temple.
According to Luke, Greek-speaking Jews from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia, and Asia Minor attended the Synagogue of the Freedmen. Rabbinic literature seems to refer to the same synagogue as the Synagogue of the Alexandrians because it was used by Alexandrian Jews who lived in Jerusalem. The Babylonian Talmud calls it the Synagogue of the Tarsians, i.e., Jews from Tarsus. Saul the Benjamite, a native Greek-speaking Jew from the city of Tarsus, probably congregated at the wealthy Synagogue of the Freedmen and first encountered Stephen there.
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
10 But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking. (Acts 6:10, ESV Bible)
Debate in the Study Hall
In the Synagogue of the Freedmen, Stephen utilized his native Greek tongue to teach the message of the kingdom and proclaim Yeshua as Messiah. He called on his fellow congregants to repent, and he warned them about how Yeshua of Nazareth had predicted the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple.
Stephen said things like, "Repent now, lest you perish with this wicked generation on the day of the LORD. For my Master has declared that the day will come when armies will surround this city. How terrible that day will be! Not one stone of the Temple will be left upon another. Behold, He has said, 'Destroy this Temple, and after three days, I will raise it up again."
After putting up with this sort of thing for some time, certain members of the synagogue took exception to the young man's apocalyptic message and tried to contest him. A small collection of scholars from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia, and Asia Minor agreed to refute Stephen publicly and silence his nonsense about a crucified and risen Messiah. They did not want to hear any more about the Nazarene's apocalyptic prophecies and controversial teachings.
One of Stephen's anonymous opponents can be identified with some certainty. Tarsus was the principal city in Cilicia. Rabban Gamliel's prodigy, Saul of Tarsus, must have been among Cilician scholars who challenged Stephen and engaged him in the study halls.
The scholars with Saul thought that silencing Stephen would be an easy matter. They probably employed some of the same objections on which anti-missionaries still rely today. Saul and his friends planned on quickly embarrassing Stephen in front of those assembled with a series of Scriptures and prophecies selected to stump believers. Instead, they found Stephen a formidable opponent. He deftly answered their objections and swept aside their arguments. He raised proofs from Scripture that answered their own and left them scrambling to defend themselves. His wisdom and learning were apparent to everyone, and the power of the Spirit was upon him. The small clutch of scholars found themselves publicly humiliated as Stephen dismantled their arguments and turned back their attacks. Those in attendance agreed that Stephen carried the debate, and they congratulated him for it.
Saul and his colleagues burned with anger. They thought of their bruised egos and tarnished reputations. From their perspective, the spectators in the study hall applauded an unlearned ignoramus and jeered against the real Torah scholars. Nobody likes a smart-aleck. Their resentment quickly turned to malice:
They incited men against him saying, "We have heard him speaking blasphemies against Mosheh and God." They stirred up the people and the elders and the scholars and rose up against him and snatched him and brought him before the Sanhedrin. (Ma'asei HaShlichim 6:II-12)
They "secretly induced" some men of the synagogue to say, "We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God" (Acts 6:11). The next time Stephen appeared at the synagogue, they sprang the trap. The false witnesses stood up and launched a public, vocal accusation, claiming to have heard Stephen speaking blasphemy. They alleged that Stephen was now teaching contrary to the Torah and blaspheming the Almighty.
Their angry shouts and passionate appeals stirred up the crowd and threw the synagogue into commotion. The elders and the scribes of the synagogue were called from the study hall to deal with the situation. They seized Stephen and convened a quick Beit Din (Court of Judgment) to hear the accusations against him.
Stephen, no doubt, denied the charges, but his accusers adamantly maintained their story. They claimed to have heard Stephen publicly deny the Torah and blaspheme God. Perhaps with the prompting of the prestigious Saul of Tarsus, the elders of the synagogue agreed to defer the case to a higher authority. They dragged Stephen up the hill to stand before the Sanhedrin.
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
13 and they set up false witnesses who said, “This man never ceases to speak words against this holy place and the law, 14 for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and will change the customs that Moses delivered to us.” (Acts 6:13-14, ESV Bible)
False Witnesses and the Face of an Angel
We have seen that Stephen was under the power of the Holy Spirit and the people could not argue with him. So they resorted to stirring up the people and bringing false witness against him. They stirred up the people, the elders, and the scribes. Saul of Tarsus observed with satisfaction as the accusers brought Stephen into the chamber. Saul was a disciple of the president of the Sanhedrin. He sat in one of the three rows of disciples before the sages. He knew he would not have a chance to cast a vote against Stephen. The court would disqualify him because of his personal involvement with the defendant. Nevertheless, he had a keen interest in the proceedings and hoped for the best. His teacher, Gamliel, favored the Nazarenes and ruled against bothering them, but Saul considered that ruling mistaken. Saul wanted to see the entire sect extinguished, starting with Stephen.
The court called the witnesses and the cross-examination began. Saul's friends and colleagues stepped forward, one at a time, to testify against Stephen. Luke says that Stephen's enemies put forward "false witnesses" who lodged four specific charges against Stephen:
Speaks against the Temple
Speaks against the Torah
Yeshua the Nazarene will destroy the Temple
Yeshua the Nazarene will change the customs handed down from Moses
The charges were serious. It was not only Stephen who stood trial. The entire Yeshua sect stood trial with him. As a community leader over the assembly of Yeshua's disciples, Stephen represented the beliefs of the whole community. If the court found him guilty of blasphemy, they might turn against the whole sect.
The false witnesses came forward and lodged their accusations. Caiaphas and the court cross-examined the witnesses, looking for flaws in their testimony that might exonerate Stephen. The witnesses knew the drill and might have even received some advance coaching from Saul.
As the false witnesses testified against Stephen, the eyes of the judges rested on the defendant. Saul of Tarsus (who probably described the proceedings to Luke) recalled that there was something otherworldly about the way Stephen looked at that moment. Stephen's eyes burned with an uncanny ferocity, and his countenance blazed with an unseen light. The men of the Sanhedrin "saw his face like the face of an angel" (Acts 6:15). In English idiom, the adjective "angelic" implies innocence and benevolence. For example, a boy with an angelic face is one who appears to be without guile. Misguided artwork depicting cherubim as winged babies furthers the illusion. In biblical terminology, an angelic face is fearsome to behold. According to Judges 13:6, angels appear awesome and terrifying: "His appearance was like the appearance of the angel of God-exceedingly fearsome!" (Judges 13:6, Daniel Lancaster translation). An angelic countenance is fearsome and awe-inspiring, not innocent and child-like:
When the prophets went out on a mission for the Holy One, blessed be He, the Holy Spirit which rested upon them gave them a fearsome appearance in the eyes of those that saw them, so that all were afraid of them, for they looked like angels. (Numbers Rabbah 10:5)
When at last the witnesses had all been heard and dismissed, the wicked high priest Caiaphas turned to Stephen and asked, "Are these things so?" Stephen felt the Spirit of God rush upon him as he began to reply.
References
This lesson is adapted from Daniel Lancaster's teachings in The Sent Ones, as presented by First Fruits of Zion for the Torah Club.
The Sad Truth
The false witnesses accused Stephen of saying, “Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses delivered to us.” Tragically, this same teaching is commonly found in many churches today and is echoed throughout much of Christian literature. Ironically, Stephen was accused of holding beliefs that align more closely with modern church doctrines than with his own. Stephen did not believe these things. Yet, he was unjustly condemned and ultimately martyred for allegedly espousing them. How can we fail to recognize the flaw in this modern interpretation? It calls us to reflect deeply on the inconsistency between Stephen’s faith and what has become accepted teaching.
References
This lesson was adapted from teachings in Stories of the Jewish Church: Acts 5-9, as presented on the Israel Bible Center website.