At this they covered their ears and, yelling at a loud voice, all rushed at him together - the Sanhedrin's response to Stephen's heavenly vision is earthly mob violence. 'Covered their ears' (kateichon ta ōta, held their ears shut) is a gesture of refusal to hear blasphemy (or so they judge it). 'Yelling at a loud voice' (phonē megale, great voice, screaming) and 'all rushed at him together' (hormal homothymadon ep autō, rushed forward all together with one accord) show coordinated violence. They become the very persecutors Stephen has described in his speech.

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