 the Sanhedrin; he was not even in Jerusalem during Stephen’s trial. How did Luke know what Stephen’s face looked like? Well, much knowledge of the writers of Scripture may have been divinely conveyed, but rarely of the exact details of events. Most likely Luke learned of Stephen’s angelic countenance from somebody who was at the trial. Most likely, that person was Paul. As the accuser instigator, Saul was there. Many believe that Saul actually had a seat on the council. Luke knew Paul and traveled with him. It seems hardly a stretch of speculation for us to understand that during some evening discussion during their travels, Paul disclosed to Luke an image that haunted him—Stephen’s face with the calm, joy-sustained, secure, hopeful face of an angel. It haunted him because that angelic face, burned into his memory, was tied inextricably to the memory of his own cruelty and murderous activity. Just the fact of Luke’s mention of this apart from more comment seems to seal the connection that this piece of information was indeed from Paul.
Have you ever wondered why the stoning executioners placed their coats at Saul’s feet? Sure we have all been told that Saul acted in some kind of official capacity or simply that it showed Saul consented to the stoning. But why place their coats at his feet? Was this some kind of custom or legal practice? No, it wasn’t. The stoners were not the whole council rushing out en masse in the murder. Saul, who had instigated the argument, accusations, and trial itself, had his own band of followers who, after the council’s anger and pride determined that stoning was in order, followed Saul (their leader) out with Stephen in their clutches. They came to a steep drop-off outside the city gates (probably over the Kidron valley), and cast Stephen down. Then, to be less encumbered, they took off their coats, and put them down right there as they were gathered around their leader Saul. So Saul stood in command with their coats as they began pelting the fallen Stephen with rocks, increasing the rock size until greater stones completed the crushing of Stephen’s body. Therefore, that statement by Luke that Saul watched over their coats is indeed meant so that we may understand not only Saul’s complicity but his very leadership of the execution.
Just a few verses later at the beginning of chapter 8, Luke strikes a noteworthy contrast. Sandwiched between two statements about the immediate rise of persecution to the church (8:1 and 8:3) is the comment that devout men buried Stephen and lamented over him. Notice that Luke doesn’t say the apostles buried him or the church found his body and buried him. The vague “devout men” is not meant to turn our thinking to the church. These devout men are simply Jews—maybe some leaders—but nevertheless just Jews, not Christians. The Christians weren’t all standing around watching Saul execute Stephen and then when he and his band left, came forward to retrieve Stephen’s body. No, the apostles and others may not even have known Stephen was being stoned.
Remember that the people in general looked favorably on the Christians. The apostles were healing people, and their message was being met with interest in the temple. The point Luke makes is that this general good will of the Jews didn’t suddenly change because the rulers became irritated in a private trial. As was custom, people were buried immediately at death. So devout Jews, from the city’s population that still did look favorably on the Christians, came forward to bury him and did indeed mourn his death. But Luke contrasts this mourning and favor by the general community by immediately switching back (in verse 3) to the cause of the persecution: “But Saul was ravaging the church.” It was not a hatred by the Jews in general. It was not an organized attack by Caiaphas and the council. It was Saul as instigator and leader who conducted this persecution.
Finally, the definitive contrast Luke presents to provide certainty that Saul instigated and led this persecution on his own is between statements in 8:1 and 9:31. In 8:1