7 And so the word of God continued to spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem grew larger and larger, and a great number of priests accepted the faith.
8 Stephen, a man richly blessed by God and full of power, performed great miracles and wonders among the people.
9 But he was opposed by some men who were members of the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), which had Jews from Cyrene and Alexandria. They and other Jews from the provinces of Cilicia and Asia started arguing with Stephen.
10 But the Spirit gave Stephen such wisdom that when he spoke, they could not refute him.
11 So they bribed some men to say, “We heard him speaking against Moses and against God!”
12 In this way they stirred up the people, the elders, and the teachers of the Law. They seized Stephen and took him before the Council.
13 Then they brought in some men to tell lies about him. “This man,” they said, “is always talking against our sacred Temple and the Law of Moses.