Act 7:42 | MHM | STEP | Stephen's Address In this part of his speech, Stephen reminds the Jewish leaders of their ancestors’ history of idolatry and how God allowed them to follow their own sinful desires as a punishment. He also answers the accusation that he spoke against the temple, showing that God’s presence is not limited to any building. Stephen uses Israel’s past to warn his listeners not to repeat the same mistakes by rejecting God’s true worship and the message of Jesus. v. 42 : Stephen points out that when the Israelites turned to idols, God let them go their own way. He says, Then God turned, and gave them up to worship the host of heaven . This was the worst punishment—they were left to follow their own sinful desires. Stephen quotes the prophet Amos to show that even in the wilderness, the people did not truly worship God with sacrifices, but later turned to idols (Amos 5:25 ). God had warned them not to worship the sun, moon, and stars (Deuteronomy 4:19 ), but when they insisted, he let them go their own way (Jeremiah 8:2 ).

‏ Acts 7:42

Stephen's Address

In this part of his speech, Stephen reminds the Jewish leaders of their ancestors’ history of idolatry and how God allowed them to follow their own sinful desires as a punishment. He also answers the accusation that he spoke against the temple, showing that God’s presence is not limited to any building. Stephen uses Israel’s past to warn his listeners not to repeat the same mistakes by rejecting God’s true worship and the message of Jesus.

v. 42: Stephen points out that when the Israelites turned to idols, God let them go their own way. He says, Then God turned, and gave them up to worship the host of heaven. This was the worst punishment—they were left to follow their own sinful desires. Stephen quotes the prophet Amos to show that even in the wilderness, the people did not truly worship God with sacrifices, but later turned to idols (Amos 5:25 ^a). God had warned them not to worship the sun, moon, and stars (Deuteronomy 4:19 ^b), but when they insisted, he let them go their own way (Jeremiah 8:2 ^c).