Acts 7:54-57 54But when they heard these things, they were infuriated in their hearts and ground their teeth at him. 55But being full of the Holy Spirit, looking intently into heaven, he saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56And he said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
Luke records two different responses to Stephen’s speech. On the one hand, the Jewish Sanhedrin dug their heels in spiritually and physically. Stephen already pointed out their rebellion against the Holy Spirit by their hard-heartedness (verse 51), and this led to their extreme anger towards Stephen. The word for infuriated (dieprionto) was also used in 5:33 for the response of the Sanhedrin and is a vivid picture word of being cut in two or ripped apart. Anger of this type is a sign of hatred and being despised. Instead of listening to Stephen’s comparison of their forefathers and heeding the conviction of the Holy Spirit, they turned their back on God’s clear revelation. Their spiritual depravity became evident physically by grinding their teeth, which would be a sign of extreme frustration and anger. They were emotional and not logical. Logic would have convinced them of the truth of what Stephen said.
Stephen, however, was full of the Holy Spirit, just the opposite of the Jews. He was obedient to the leading of the Spirit. Just as Jesus promised in Luke 21:12-13 and Acts 1:8, when brought to trial before leaders or when called upon to witness, the Spirit would be present and give his followers the words and courage to speak. What Stephen said did not come from his own thinking but was inspired by the Holy Spirit because it was just what the religious leaders needed to hear. It put the choice to accept or reject Jesus in their hands.
At the most crucial moment of his trial, he had a vision that confirmed his testimony. Jesus prophesied in Luke 22:69 about what Stephen now saw: Jesus standing at the right hand of God’s throne. This idea is the fulfillment of Psalm 110:1, which is cited many times in the New Testament (see Acts 2:33). The other references in the New Testament have Jesus seated at the right hand, but Stephen saw Jesus standing. This difference could simply be stylistic or perhaps significant in some way, since standing often shows specific attention, as if Jesus is watching and involved in what was happening to Stephen and how the Jews would respond at that moment. Stephen’s description of Jesus as the Son of Man is also unique, as the only time anyone besides Jesus uses this phrase in the New Testament. It could be another aspect of Stephen’s defense that tied his testimony to the Old Testament Scripture and the prophecy of Daniel. Stephen was functioning as a prophet like Daniel and had a similar vision as Daniel 7:13-14.
Stephen’s vision further enraged the Jews because it directly confirmed all he had spoken. His account of his vision sealed his fate before the council. Instead of him being on trial, the Jewish leaders were put on trial before God and found guilty. Instead of repenting, they hardened their hearts. Jesus, as the exalted Son of Man, stood as judge over them, waiting for their verdict of Stephen. Depending on how they judged Stephen would determine how Jesus would judge them.
The warning of this passage about hardening one’s heart against the truth of God’s revelation in Jesus is clear. The most significant decision anyone will make is how to respond to the truth of the gospel. These Jews had the full truth from Scripture, from their own witness of Jesus, hearing the testimony of the apostles with the clear proof of miracles, and in this passage, listening to Stephen’s testimony. People today are not first-hand witnesses of these events, but they have the Bible and Christian testimony that speaks of the truth of Jesus and calls them to account.
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