Acts 7:26

And the next day he appeared to two of them as they were fighting, and tried to reconcile them, saying, ‘Men, you are brethren; why do you wrong one another?’ Acts 7:26

Stephen will now explain the words of the previous verse concerning Moses. There, it said, “For he supposed that his brethren would have understood that God would deliver them by his hand, but they did not understand.” Their not understanding begins to be explained with the words, “And the next day he appeared to two of them.”

The word used signifies that he appeared in an unexpected way or suddenly. It is the kind of appearance that would describe someone having a vision or being sent from God. The use of this word is clearly hinting at the advent of Christ Jesus who came in an unexpected and sudden way As for Moses, this unexpected appearance occurred “as they were fighting.”

One gets the sense of two men having a fight and Moses is suddenly there, as if he was destined to be the one to bring peace between the two. It is at this time, and with this unexpected appearance that Moses “tried to reconcile them.”

The phrase is more literally rendered, “urged them to peace.” One can see a fight going on today and another person coming up and saying, “Hey guys, lighten up and calm down. There is no need for this!” Moses feels he is doing the right thing. It was laid upon his heart to visit his brethren, and instead of finding a group that is united and caring of one another, he finds fighting. In this state of things, he looks to bring reconciliation, “saying, ‘Men, you are brethren; why do you wrong one another?’”

Stephen gives more information than the original account in Exodus, which reads –

“And when he went out the second day, behold, two Hebrew men were fighting, and he said to the one who did the wrong, ‘Why are you striking your companion?’” Exodus 7:13

Stephen acknowledges the bond between the two and uses that as an anchor to then question why they would have enmity for one another. His words are undoubtedly chosen to reveal the attitude of Israel towards Jesus. That will be more fully expressed in the verses to come. Moses came to deliver his people from the bondage of Egypt and to unite them as a people under the Lord. Jesus came to deliver His people from the bondage of sin and to unite them as children of God.

Life application: Solomon was an observant man. He was able to look at the world around him and see how things should work, what is effective or ineffective, what will lead to peace and what will lead to trouble, and so on. It could be that he was reading this account of Moses from Exodus and then thought about other similar instances he had seen and then penned the words of this proverb –

“He who passes by and meddles in a quarrel not his own Is like one who takes a dog by the ears.” Proverbs 26:17

Taking a dog by the ears means you are more than likely going to get bit. Such is true when you step into an already explosive situation. The two who are quarreling are set on fixing the matter themselves. When someone who has no stake in the matter sticks his nose into the fight, it is like bringing along a bucket of gasoline and an already lit match. Things will probably not go well.

Instead of bringing peace and reconciliation, the two who are fighting will find the interference unacceptable and are bound to take out their frustration on the meddler first before finishing their own quarrel. Moses didn’t see this, and to this day, those who fail to heed the words of proverbs will continue to make exactly the same mistake. Human nature doesn’t change, so to gain wisdom, be sure to read and apply the words of Proverbs to your life.

Lord God, thank You for the wisdom Your word provides. If we will just apply it to our lives, things will go better for sure. Help us to display wisdom by reading and taking heed to Your word. You created us, and You have given the manual for proper operating conditions concerning us. Therefore, Lord, help us to tweak our walk before You so that all things will go smoothly! Amen.