December 23, 2022

…how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him. Hebrews 2:3

The Jewish nation was witnessed to by Jesus Himself for the first half of the 70th week. The covenant-maker was personally confirming it! But what about the second half? The resurrected Jesus, just before He ascended into heaven issued the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20) and Luke recorded these additional words of the Master:

“You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8

Jesus made clear to His followers that after His departure they were to continue to spread the Gospel in Jerusalem, and in all Judea in fulfillment of the seventy weeks’ time prophecy determined for [Daniel’s] people and for [his] holy city (Daniel 9:24). Remember these words of Gabriel to Daniel concerning the last seven years of the 490: Then he shall confirm covenant with many for one week. (Daniel 9:27a)

Then the word of God spread, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were obedient to the faith. And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders among the people. Acts 6:8

Now Stephen, well-known for having become the first Christian martyr, suffered his martyrdom at the close of the 70th week. It was the spring of 34AD. This historical marker contains several parallels between Stephen and Christ. Stephen was chosen to defend the cause of widows (compare Matthew 23:14 & Acts 6:1); he was a faithful man and full of the Holy Spirit (Acts 6:5,8); he did great wonders and signs among the people (v.8); no one could refute the wisdom with which he spoke (v.10); opponents secretly induced false witnesses to bring false charges of blasphemy (v.11); Jewish leadership and their followers were stirred up against him (v.12); false witnesses were brought to testify against him to accuse him of breaking the law (v.13). As he stood before his accusers, his face was radiant with a countenance of perfect peace.

And all who sat in the council, looking steadfastly at him, saw his face as the face of an angel. Acts 6:15

Standing before this official assembly, Stephen delivered a beautifully comprehensive history of the Jewish nation (see Acts 7). Over these past few years, the divine power that attended his preaching had effectively brought many other Jews to Christ, but these assembled leaders were only angered as their former followers moved their loyalty to Jesus. They had cultivated bitter hatred and envy towards Jesus, and now Stephen. Their attitude totally blinded them to the fact that this was the last appeal to the Jewish nation as a whole. Thus, the seventy weeks came to their prophetic end.

Then they cried out with a loud voice, stopped their ears, and ran at him with one accord; and they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.  Acts 7:57-60