Limitless Word
But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers there the first time.
Acts 7:12 · New American Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent out our fathers the first time.
  • KJV But when Jacob heard that there was corn in Egypt, he sent out our fathers first.
  • BSB When Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent our fathers on their first visit.
  • NKJV But when Jacob heard that there was grain in Egypt, he sent out our fathers first.
  • NLT Jacob heard that there was still grain in Egypt, so he sent his sons—our ancestors—to buy some.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Hearing of grain in Egypt, Jacob sends his sons there. God's provision lies in the place of the once-rejected Joseph.

Overview

The fathers must turn to Egypt, and so to Joseph, for survival. Stephen highlights the irony that deliverance comes through the brother they had betrayed. This continues his theme that God saves through the rejected one, pointing ultimately to Christ.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 2

  • Gen 42:1–24Now Jacob saw that there was grain in Egypt, and Jacob said to his sons, “Why do you look at one another?”
  • Gen 43:2When they had eaten up the grain which they had brought out of Egypt, their father said to them, “Go again, buy us a little more food.”

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (1)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Acts videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Acts 7:12YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on ActsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Acts is the risen Christ continuing his work by the Spirit through the church, as the apostles preach that there is salvation in no other name under heaven.

How Acts 7:12 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.