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Research Writing Assignment Part II

Connor E. Pinney

Department of Christian Ministry, Olivet Nazarene University

BLIT 210: Christian Scriptures

Dr. Russ Lovett

November 18, 2021

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Research Writing Assignment Part II

The purpose of this paper is to compare Isaiah 66:1-2 with its quotation by Stephen,

recorded by Luke in Acts 7:49-50 (NIV, 2011). The text “heaven is my throne, and the earth is

my footstool” and “where will my resting place be, has not my hand made all these things” are

both copied exactly between the two excerpts in the New International Version (Isa. 66:1-2, Acts

7:49-50). The author of Isaiah wrote this poetry to call on the Hebrew people to refocus on God.

Stephen uses this quotation as the final element of the defense of his evangelism before his

accusers: Jews of Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia, and Asia. He quotes the book of Isaiah to criticize

the Jewish elder’s exaltation of the temple above God.

“‘Heaven is my throne,

and the earth is my footstool.

Where is the house you will build for me?

Where will my resting place be?

Has not my hand made all these things,

and so they came into being?’

declares the Lord.”

(NIV, 2011, Isa. 66:1-2)

Isaiah 66

A. S. Herbert (1975) describes the words of Isaiah 66:1-2, indicating that the words likely

serve as a check on the Jewish people’s spiritual dependence in the temple as an object. The

Jewish people had to understand that the temple was not the source of, nor a container for God.

They could not put their reverence in the temple above God. The author of Isaiah wrote this

poetry to call on the Hebrew people to refocus on God, a call they had received many times
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before. The authors wrote these verses in the poetic style of synthetic parallelism. With this

technique, the author establishes an idea in the first line of two and builds upon the idea in the

second. The word synthesize comes from Greek, meaning to build (Macdonald, 2016). He

finishes by saying, “temple or no temple, God looks first for genuine humility and reverence” (p.

191). On first reading, this passage is not very direct in its purpose, but in Herbert's text, he

clears up any confusion.

Acts 7

The only difference between the original text in Isaiah and the sentences in Acts is that

the text in Acts includes the word “or” before “where will my resting place be, has not my hand

made all these things” (NIV, 2011, Isa. 66:1-2, Acts 7:49-50). This inclusion appears simply to

create a better narrative, or poetic, flow. Isaiah says, “where is the house you will build for me?”

The author of Acts writes, “what kind of house will you build for me?” This is a minor

difference in wording, but it has a larger implication. Stephen is living under a new covenant,

and God resides in all who call on him. It is not a matter of where the house is, but what kind of

house was built (Weinert, 1987). Stephen also leaves out a few sentences written by Isaiah. “And

so they came into being, declares the Lord. These are the ones I look on with favor: those who

are humble and contrite in spirit, and who tremble at my word.” Stephen likely made this

exemption because he saw no need for this text for his purposes.

Stephen’s narrative marks the transition in the book of Acts from Peter’s ministry to the

Jews to Paul’s ministry to the Gentiles, beginning with the persecution he executed against the

Christians (Dunnett, 1981). Luke records the persecution under his Hebrew name, Saul (R.

Lovett, personal communication, November 16, 2021). The Holy Spirit filled Stephen with

wisdom and power. The Hellenistic Jews, who were Grecophone Jews from outside of Palestine,
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took issue with Stephen’s ministry. They incited false accusations, and accused Stephen of

blasphemy. When Stephen first stood to defend against them, he had a “face like the face of an

angel” because the Holy Spirit was with him (NIV, 2011, Acts 6:15). Stephen tells his accusers,

the elders of the Hellenistic Jews, that their fathers too persecuted the true prophets and they

have not kept the law. Stephens’s quotation from Isaiah is the final point in his defense of

evangelism. He asserts that God does not reside in man’s creation, because everything is God’s

creation.

Conclusion

Stephen stands for an outward expression of faith, towards the nations (Weinert, 1987).

He evangelizes outwardly, instead of focusing inwardly, on the self and the temple. Stephen

sought to condemn the Jewish leaders' inward focus. The Jewish leaders accuse him of

blasphemy, but he turns their accusations around on them. Though it does not save his life,

Stephen, in his final moments, continues his ministry and promotes intimacy in relationship with

God. This is the message to the 21st century reader. In order to walk with Christ, one must reject

the things of this world in favor of a true Christian relationship, even if the things of this world

intend to honor God.

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References

Dunnett, W. M. (1981). The book of acts (pp. 50–56). Baker Book House.

Herbert, A. S. (1975). The book of the prophet isaiah: Chapters 40-66 (pp. 190–191).

Syndics of the Cambridge University Press.

Macdonald, W. (2016). Believer’s Bible commentary. Thomas Nelson.

New International Version Bible. (2011). (Original work published 1973)

Weinert, F. D. (1987). Luke, Stephen, and the temple in Luke-Acts. Biblical Theology

Bulletin: Journal of Bible and Culture, 17(3), 88–90.

https://doi.org/10.1177/014610798701700303