Texts in Conversation
Acts 7 quotes Isaiah 66, where heaven is God’s throne and earth his footstool, contrasting ritual with humility. Stephen uses this language to stress that the Jerusalem temple is not permanent, likely reflecting views shaped after its destruction.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
LXX Isaiah 66:2
Septuagint
1 Thus says the Lord, Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: what kind of a house will you build me? and of what kind is to be the place of my rest? 2 For all these things my hand has made, and all these things are mine, says the Lord: and to whom will I look, but to the humble and quiet, and the man that trembles at my words? 3 But the transgressor that sacrifices a calf to me, is as he that kills a dog; and he that offers fine flour, as one that offers swine's blood; he that gives frankincense for a memorial, is as a blasphemer. Yet they have chosen their own ways, and their soul has delighted in their abominations. 4 I also will choose their mockeries, and will repay them for their sins; because I called them, and they did not listen to me; I spoke, and they did not hear: and they did evil before me, and chose the things in which I did not delight.
Date: 100–1 BCE (based on scholarly estimates)
Acts 7:49
New Testament
47 But Solomon built a house for him. 48 Yet the Most High does not live in houses made by human hands, as the prophet says, 49 ‘Heaven is my throne, and earth is the footstool for my feet. What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord, or what is my resting place? 50 Did my hand not make all these things?’ 51 “You stubborn people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are always resisting the Holy Spirit, like your ancestors did!
Date: 70–90 CE (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... Isaiah 66:1-6 ... Ring composition appears again. Three stanzas are presented before being repeated backward. Specific references to the temple appear at the beginning (1) and at the end (6). The man who is 'poor and contrite in spirit,' who 'trembles at my word' (2), is clearly the hero of this prophetic homily. That same person in stanza 5 is identified as hated and cast out 'for my name's sake,' and told that he will be vindicated. A blistering attack on the person who offers sacrifices appears in the climactic center in stanza 3, and in stanza 4 the reason for the attack is given: 'because, when I [God] called, no one answered.' The prophet's anger is triggered by the presence of 'sacrament' without 'word.' The rituals are rejected if, 'when I [God] called, no one answered,' and 'when I spoke they did not listen.' In passing, it is worth noting that this passage is prominent elsewhere in the New Testament. Stanza 1 is quoted in Stephen's speech in Acts 7:49-50 and indirectly referenced in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5:34-35. What of the relationship between this prophetic homily and the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector? ..."
Kenneth E. Bailey, Jesus through Middle Eastern Eyes: Cultural Studies in the Gospels (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2008), 306–307.
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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