His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.

He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.

And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own?

And he said unto him, Well, thou good servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very little, have thou authority over ten cities.

Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching;

Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness.

I beseech you, brethren, (ye know the house of Stephanas, that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and that they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the saints,)

For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.

As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.

If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

And when he came upon the stairs, so it was, that he was borne of the soldiers for the violence of the people.

And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch:

And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people.

And all that sat in the council, looking stedfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel.

Then said the high priest, Are these things so?

And said unto him, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and come into the land which I shall shew thee.

And he gave him none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on: yet he promised that he would give it to him for a possession, and to his seed after him, when as yet he had no child.

And the nation to whom they shall be in bondage will I judge, said God: and after that shall they come forth, and serve me in this place.

And the patriarchs, moved with envy, sold Joseph into Egypt: but God was with him,

Now there came a dearth over all the land of Egypt and Chanaan, and great affliction: and our fathers found no sustenance.

And at the second time Joseph was made known to his brethren; and Joseph's kindred was made known unto Pharaoh.

So Jacob went down into Egypt, and died, he, and our fathers,

But when the time of the promise drew nigh, which God had sworn to Abraham, the people grew and multiplied in Egypt,

The same dealt subtilly with our kindred, and evil entreated our fathers, so that they cast out their young children, to the end they might not live.

And when he was cast out, Pharaoh's daughter took him up, and nourished him for her own son.

And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel.

For he supposed his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them: but they understood not.

But he that did his neighbour wrong thrust him away, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge over us?

Then fled Moses at this saying, and was a stranger in the land of Madian, where he begat two sons.

When Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to behold it, the voice of the Lord came unto him,

Then said the Lord to him, Put off thy shoes from thy feet: for the place where thou standest is holy ground.

This Moses whom they refused, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge? the same did God send to be a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the angel which appeared to him in the bush.

This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear.

To whom our fathers would not obey, but thrust him from them, and in their hearts turned back again into Egypt,

And they made a calf in those days, and offered sacrifice unto the idol, and rejoiced in the works of their own hands.

Yea, ye took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of your god Remphan, figures which ye made to worship them: and I will carry you away beyond Babylon.

Which also our fathers that came after brought in with Jesus into the possession of the Gentiles, whom God drave out before the face of our fathers, unto the days of David;

But Solomon built him an house.

Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool: what house will ye build me? saith the Lord: or what is the place of my rest?

Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.

Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it.

And many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.

But even after that we had suffered before, and were shamefully entreated, as ye know, at Philippi, we were bold in our God to speak unto you the gospel of God with much contention.

Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.