Thematic Bible: Religious Intolerance


Thematic Bible



The high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by him to strike him on the mouth. Verse ConceptsConfrontationHigh Priest, In NtSmitingSmiting Of The RighteousOther References To MouthsRivers

The Jews were moved with jealousy so they gathered bad people who organized a crowd for a riot. They assaulted the house of Jason in order to bring them out to the crowd. Verse ConceptsEnvyIntoleranceJealousyMarketsUnbelieversEnvy, Example OfUnbelief, Examples OfDisorder Among PeopleBringing People Out Of Other PlacesIsrael HardenedMaking Israel Jealous

They said: This man persuades men to worship God contrary to the law. Verse ConceptsIntoleranceInciting To EvilHow Not To WorshipBreaking God's Law

The Jews incited the devout and honorable women and the leading men of the city. They caused persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their coasts. Verse ConceptsDevout MenIntoleranceInciting To EvilUnbelief, As Response To GodPersecution, OriginPersecution Of The Apostle Paul

They shouted: Men of Israel, help! This is the man who teaches all men everywhere against the people, and the law, and this place; and moreover he brought Greeks also into the temple, and defiled this holy place. They had previously been with him in the city Trophimus the Ephesian, whom they supposed that Paul had brought into the Temple. The entire city was aroused, and the people ran together from all directions. They laid hold on Paul and dragged him out of the Temple. Immediately the doors were shut. read more.
They were seeking to kill him when tidings came to the military commander of the band that all Jerusalem was in confusion.

The people listened to Paul until he said this. Then they shouted at the top of their voices: Away with him! Kill him! He is not fit to live! They were screaming, throwing off their clothes, and throwing dust up in the air.

Saul agreed to his death. There was at that time a great persecution against the congregation at Jerusalem. All but the apostles were scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria. Devout men buried Stephen and mourned him greatly. Saul ravaged the congregation. He entered every house and dragged off men and women and put them in prison.

Certain men arose from the synagogue. It was called the synagogue of the Libertines, Cyrenians, and Alexandrians. Some of them were from Cilicia and Asia. They argued with Stephen. They were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit by which he spoke. They secretly induced me to say: We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses, and against God. read more.
They stirred up the people, the elders and the scribes, and pursued him. They caught him and brought him to the council. They brought false witnesses, which said: This man will not stop speaking blasphemous words against this holy place and the law. We heard him say: 'This Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place, and will change the customs that Moses delivered to us.' All who sat in the council looked intently at him and saw his face was like the face of an angel.

Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord. They threw him out of the city, and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man's feet. His name was Saul. They stoned Stephen. He called out: Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!


Never offer a bull or a sheep that has a defect or anything seriously wrong with it as a sacrifice to Jehovah your God. That is an abomination to him. In one of the cities Jehovah your God is giving you, there may be a man or woman among you who is doing what Jehovah considers evil. This person may be disregarding the conditions of Jehovah's covenant. Some worship and bow down to other gods, the sun, the moon, or the whole army of heaven. I have forbidden this. read more.
If it is told you and you have heard of it, then you shall inquire thoroughly. If it is true and the thing certain that this detestable thing has been done in Israel, Bring that man or woman who has done this evil deed out to your gates. Stone the man or the woman to death. On the evidence and testimony of two witnesses or three witnesses, he who is to die shall be put to death. He shall not be put to death on the evidence of one witness. The witnesses must throw the first stone to put him to death, and afterward all the people. So you shall purge the evil from your midst.

When the Jews of Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God at Beroea, they went there and stirred up the crowds and caused trouble. Verse ConceptsGospel, Responses ToPreaching, Effects OfInciting To EvilSpiritual Warfare, Causes OfUnbelief, As Response To GodIsrael Hardened

As they spoke to the people, the chief priests, the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees came to them. They were annoyed because they taught the people through Jesus. They preached the resurrection from the dead. They laid hands on them, and put them in custody until the next day for it was already evening.

They ordered them to leave the council. Then they conferred among themselves. They said: What shall we do to these men? The fact that a notable miracle has been done by them is evident to all who live in Jerusalem. And we cannot deny it. We must warn these men not to speak about it in order to stop this from spreading further among the people. read more.
They called them, and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. Peter and John answered: You judge whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God. We cannot stop speaking the things we have seen and heard. When they further threatened them, they let them go. They found no basis for punishment because of the people for all men glorified God for that which was done.

John said: Master we saw some one casting out demons in your name. So we prevented him from doing this because he does not follow us. Verse Conceptsdriving outIntoleranceMiracles, Nature OfPeople Casting Out DemonsIn The Name Of ChristNot With PeopleMan's Authority Over The DevilCasting Out DemonsgroupsDemonic Influence

John spoke up: Teacher, we saw someone who does not follow us casting out demons in your name. We tried to stop him because he does not follow us. But Jesus said: Do not stop him, for there is no one who will do a mighty work in my name, and be able quickly to speak evil of me.

They made an agreement with one another to dedicate their lives to serve the true God Jehovah, the God of their ancestors with all their heart and all their being. All people, young and old, male and female, who refused to dedicate their lives to the true God Jehovah the God of Israel were to be killed.

Jehu assembled all the people and said to them: Ahab was Baal's servant in a small way, but Jehu will be his servant on a great scale. Now send for all the prophets of Baal, all his servants and priests, to come to me. Let no one stay away for I have a great offering to make to Baal. Anyone who is not present will be put to death. Jehu did this with deceit. It was his purpose to destroy the servants of Baal. Jehu said: Let there be a special holy meeting for the worship of Baal. So a public statement was made. read more.
Jehu sent through all Israel; and all the servants of Baal came, not one kept away. They entered the house of Baal. It was full from one end to the other end. Jehu said to the keeper of the robes: Get out robes for all the servants of Baal. So he got out robes for them. Jehu, with Jehonadab, the son of Rechab, went into the house of Baal. He said to the servants of Baal: Make a search with care, to see that no servant of Jehovah is with you, but only servants of Baal. They went in to make offerings and burned offerings. Jehu put eighty men outside. He told them: If any man whom I give into your hands escapes, he who lets him go will forfeit his own life for that life. As soon as he finished offering the burned offering Jehu said to the armed men and the captains: Go in and put them to death! Do not let one come out! So they put them to the sword. Pulling the images to the ground, they went into the holy place of the house of Baal. They removed the image of Asherah from the house of Baal and burned it. The altar of Baal was pulled down and the house of Baal was broken up and made an unclean place, as it is to this day. Jehu put an end to the worship of Baal in Israel. But Jehu did not keep himself from all the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and the evil he made Israel do. The gold calves were still worshiped in Bethel and in Dan. Jehovah said to Jehu: You have done well by doing what is right in my eyes. You carried out my purpose for the family of Ahab. Therefore your sons will be kings of Israel to the fourth generation. But Jehu did not take care to keep the law of Jehovah with all his heart. He did not keep himself from the sin that Jeroboam did and made Israel do.

Thus Moses went out and told the people what Jehovah said. He assembled seventy of the leaders and placed them around the tent. Jehovah came down in the cloud and spoke to him. He took some of the spirit he had given to Moses and gave it to the seventy elders. When the Spirit came on them, they began to shout like prophets, but not for long. Two of the seventy elders, Eldad and Medad, stayed in the camp and did not go out to the tent. There in the camp the Spirit came on them, and they too began to shout like prophets. read more.
A young man ran out to tell Moses what Eldad and Medad were doing. Joshua son of Nun, who had been Moses' helper since he was a young man, spoke up and said to Moses: Stop them, sir!

Elijah said to them: Take the prophets of Baal. Do not let one of them get away. So they took them, and Elijah made them go down to the stream Kishon, and executed them there. Verse ConceptsCommands, in OTRivers And StreamsKilling ProphetsRiver KishonProphets Of Other GodsBrooks