id destroy Jerusalem and the temple. The temple was never rebuilt to this day. This prophecy is given in much greater detail in Matthew Chapter 24. But, did you notice in this prophecy Jesus said:
thine enemies shall
be the destroyer. So, the charge before the council is distorted. No doubt, Stephen may have quoted one of these prophecies of Jesus, if not both, when disputing in the synagogue. The second part of the elaboration in v. 14, that Jesus,
shall change the customs which Moses delivered us.
again is a distortion. The word 'custom' here is used to mean the Law of Moses. It could not mean oral tradition as it sometimes does, because Moses did not deliver that. It had been developed since the time of Moses. The distortion is, Jesus did not say he would change or destroy the law. He said he came to fulfill the law. (Matthew 5:17) I hope you understand the difference. The Law of Moses, the 10 Commandments, as we sometimes call it, was an agreement or covenant or testament or contract imposed upon the Jews by God. It was NOT a treaty, in the sense that the Jews negotiated it. As I said, it was imposed by God. The only prerogative they had was they could keep it or they could break it. The law was temporary according to Galatians 3:19. When it was fulfilled, it was finished. When a contract is carried out, then it is fulfilled, NOT broken or changed. For example, if I make a contract with you, to build you a house AND I build the house, then I fulfilled my contract. If I did NOT build the house, then I would have broken or destroyed the contract. If I built a barn instead, the I would have changed the contract or altered the contract. If I built only half of the house and then did not complete it, I would NOT have fulfilled my contract. Jesus said:
one jot or one title shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. (Matthew 5:18)
We would say that like this: Not one dotting of the "I" or crossing of the "T" shall be left our, the contract will be completely carried out. God imposed the Old Testament until the New Testament was in force. Hebrews 10:9 says that like this:
He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second.
Stephen apparently tried to teach the Jews about the new covenant. It had been prophesied by Moses and all the prophets. The Jews would not accept that. So they distorted Stephen's words to say that Jesus shall change the Law of Moses. Now, these Pharisees considered that blasphemy, or cursing Moses and his law. So, that's the charge! Have you got it? Let's read v. 15;
And all that sat in the council, looking steadfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel.
Stephen kept a pleasant countenance or facial expression. He must have stood there as if he had all the confidence in the world, yes as humble as he could be. This must have caused the councilmen to observe him very closely while the charges were presented. It would be interesting here to know where the 12 apostles were, but the Spirit did not see fit to inform us. Let's read the first verse of chapter 7.
Then said the high priest, Are these things so?
That's like saying, "guilty" or "not guilty"? Stephen is then permitted to speak in his own defense. We'll cover and consider Stephen's reply in lesson 16.