(if you are viewing this via email, the website has a recording of this poem and commentary; click the title above)
Stephen, full of faith,
The Spirit, grace, and power,
Served the Lord one glorious hour.
When Freedmen apprehended him,
He spoke to them of Moses,
Sent by God to set his people free.
He recounted how the Jewish slaves
Rebuffed their would-be liberator,
But let him lead them out, eventually.
Short-lived, this being led….
They got it in their head
A cow could rescue them instead.
It’s no surprise, this people unwise
Would not heed Moses when he said,
“Watch for another like me to rise.”
Angry, the list’ners let rocks fly.
Like risen Jesus, Stephen would die,
A loud “Forgive them!” his final cry.
— Brad Hepp, 8/17/2023
Commentary
In my crawl through Acts, I just arrived in chapter seven, and pitched my tent there. This poem is an early reflection on what I’m seeing as I look around my new camping spot.
(background image is a photograph of Rembrandt’s “The Stoning of Saint Stephen.” That is one of Rembrandt’s earliest paintings.)
