Holy Bible

And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples. Acts 9:1-3 Saul, a persecutor A. Barnes, D. D. Saul was an educated young man, and that he should engage in the work of persecution strikes us as anomalous and unnatural. In young men we naturally expect a frank concession of freedom to think and generous and chivalrous impulses. We are not much surprised when we find intolerance as men advance in life, for age is conservative, and may be narrow and bigoted. Young men are often sceptical and unsettled in their notions; they question the correctness of opinions long held to be true, and employ themselves in adjusting new discoveries to received truths. But the very nature of this process tends to make them liberal, for they cannot deny to others the liberty they claim for themselves. Old men, however, are confirmed believers or unbelievers; and hate to be opposed or unsettled. Hence we are not surprised that the Sanhedrin should be composed in a great part of "elders," nor that the principal functionaries of the "holy office," should be men of advanced years. Yet few men, young or old, have been so furious in persecution as was Saul ( Acts 8:3 ; Acts 22:4 ; Acts 26:9-11 ; Galatians 1:13 ; 1 Timothy 1:13 ; 1 Corinthians 15:9 ). I. THE PREVALENCE OF PERSECUTION. The manner in which new views have been received is one of the most remarkable things in history. The public tears of Pericles were necessary to save Aspasia, suspected of philosophy; but all his eloquence could not save Anaxagoras for having taught that there was an intelligent cause of all things. Socrates was put to death for teaching the same thing. Aristotle only saved his life by flight in order, as he said, to save the Athenians a new crime against philosophy. Plato was twice thrown into prison, and once sold as a slave. Galileo was imprisoned for maintaining that the sun is the centre of the universe. The Saviour was crucified, and in almost every country His religion has encountered opposition and secured a triumph only as the result of a baptism of blood and fire. II. ITS CAUSES. 1. The war of opinion. A man's opinions are a part of himself, and become as dear as life or liberty. They are the measure of his reputation and influence, and are the result of all his experience and studies. To attack them is, therefore, to attack him; to overthrow them is to take away all that constitutes his claim to notice while living, or to remembrance when dead. This remark has additional force, if the matter is connected with religion. To attack this is to assail that which must be dearest of all to the heart of man, inasmuch as it may leave man in a world indisputably wretched with no hope of a better. Religious opinions, therefore, have been among the slowest to make progress; the strife in regard to them has been the most bitter; and freedom of religious speech has been among the last of the victories secured by the conflicts of past ages. 2. Vested interests. There are institutions, endowments, orders of men, customs and usages, that grow out of forms of doctrine. All the religions of ancient and most of modern times were sustained by law. Rome indeed recognised those of other nations, but then it was a principle that while each country recognised the rest, it allowed no attack on its own. When, therefore, Christianity attacked all forms of idolatry, it arrayed against itself all the malice of a mighty priesthood, and all the power of the State; and the result is well known. 3. The sanction given by religion to the corruptions of the human heart. The plan of the Prince of darkness has been to secure this for the indulgence of passion. Hence to attack vice, as true Christianity always does, and to carry a pure morality over the world, was to array against itself the power of all the religions of the earth. 4. The fixed aversion of the heart by nature to the holiness which God requires of man; to the scheme of salvation by the Cross, which is an "offence" to one class, and a "stumbling block" to another; to the doctrines of human depravity and of a just and changeless retribution, which grate hard on the natural feelings and are repulsive to human pride. III. ITS EFFECTS. 1. It has become, as the result of these trials, a settled principle that nothing which is good and true can be destroyed by persecution, but is established more firmly and spread more widely. It has led men to look with favour on what is persecuted; created a conviction that a right has been violated; awakened sympathy, stimulated inquiry in regard to the persecuted sentiments; and made the persecuted more firmly attached to their principles, and more eloquent in their defence. It has long since passed into a proverb that "the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church." Imperial power and every device of human ingenuity has been resorted to in order to extinguish it; and it may be assumed now that if Christianity is to become extinct in the world, it must be by some other means than by persecution. 2. In like manner, persecution becomes a test of the reality of religion. It is not, indeed, a direct demonstration of its truth. The advocates of other systems have borne persecution patiently, but although this does not prove that they were suffering for the truth, yet it may be still true that the mass of men will somehow see in the endurance of Christian martyrs an argument for the Divine origin of their religion. The number has been so great — they have borne their sufferings so patiently — they have met death so calmly — so many of them have been distinguished for intelligence — and so many of them were witnesses of what they affirmed to be true, that the general impression on mankind is that sufferings so varied, so protracted, so meekly borne, could be only in the cause of truth. 3. The results of persecution are worth all which they cost. The results of the imprisonment of Galileo, of the sufferings of Columbus, etc., are more than compensated for. And the happiness which has been conferred on the world by Christianity since the fires of persecution were first kindled, and that which the world will yet enjoy when it shall be diffused over all the earth have been and will be more than a compensation for all the sufferings of all the martyrs. ( A. Barnes, D. D. )

Benson Commentary Acts 9:1 And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, Acts 9:1-2 . And Saul, yet ( ??? , adhuc, hitherto, or still ) breathing out threatenings and slaughter — This very emphatical expression refers to what is related of Saul, Acts 8:3 ; (where see the note;) and it shows that his zeal against the followers of Christ was so outrageous that he could be satisfied with nothing less than their utter destruction. It shows too, that the Jews were now at liberty to put them to death; probably, as Macknight observes, “because between the removal of Pontius Pilate, and the accession of Herod Agrippa, in the second year of the Emperor Claudius, who gave him all the dominions of his grandfather, Herod the Great, there was no procurator in Judea to restrain their intemperate zeal.” Saul, therefore, being thus freed from restraint, and at liberty to pursue his malicious design of endeavouring to effect their extirpation; went to the high-priest — Whom he knew to be much exasperated against them; and desired of him letters to Damascus — It is generally supposed that Caiaphas now filled the office of high-priest; and if so, as he was an inveterate enemy of Christ, and had a principal hand in his crucifixion, he would doubtless be glad to employ so active and bigoted a zealot as Saul in carrying on the persecution against them, which at this time was very violent and severe. To the synagogues — From this, and from Acts 9:20 th, where Paul is said to preach Christ at Damascus in the synagogues of the Jews, it appears there were more than one in that city, as there were also in divers other cities of the Gentiles. These synagogues, it seems, had a jurisdiction over their own members, in the exercise of which, however, they were sometimes directed, as on this occasion, by the high-priest and council at Jerusalem. At this time Damascus was full of Jews. Indeed, being the capital city of Syria, it generally abounded with them; so much so, that Josephus assures us ten thousand of them were once massacred there in one hour; and at another time, eighteen thousand with their wives and children. (Joseph. Bell., lib. 2. cap. 20; and lib. 7. cap. 8.) Now in a place which so much abounded with Jews, it is very likely there would be some Christians. Probably, indeed, some of those whom persecution had driven from Jerusalem had taken refuge there, and by their zeal and diligence had been instrumental in making converts to the faith of Christ. If so, it must have exceedingly vexed Saul to find that his endeavours to extirpate Christianity only tended to spread it the more, and to increase the number of those who embraced it. This, of course, would the more inflame his rage against Christ’s disciples, and excite him to make still greater efforts to destroy them, and exterminate their religion. Be this as it may, understanding that there were Christians at Damascus, although it was at a great distance from Jerusalem, he resolved to go thither, with his new commission from the high-priest; that if he found any there of this way — Any of the Christian community; whether they were men or women — For he and his employers spared no age or sex; he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem — To be proceeded against in the severest manner by the sanhedrim. He was not content with having driven many of them into exile, and with having imprisoned others, ( Acts 8:3 ,) but he thirsted for their blood. And, as he was joined by assistants equally bigoted and furious with himself, the news of their coming reached Damascus before they arrived, and greatly terrified the saints, Acts 9:14 ; Acts 9:21 . The Lord, however, marvellously interposed for their deliverance, and probably in answer to their united and fervent prayers; but in a way which, it is likely, none of them had thought of. Acts 9:2 And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem. Acts 9:3 And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: Acts 9:3-5 . And as he journeyed — Full of wrath against the Lord’s disciples; and came near to Damascus, suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven — This, doubtless, was occasioned by the rays of glory which darted from our Lord’s body. Some have thought that Saul, being a learned Jew, would easily know this to be the Shekinah, or visible token of the divine presence; and that he therefore cried out, Who art thou, Lord? — Though he saw no human form. But the question certainly rather implies, that he did not know who or what he was who spoke to him: and it is plain, from Acts 22:14 , and other texts, that he did see, amidst this glory, a human form, which yet he might not at first imagine to be that of Jesus, though Stephen had, probably in his hearing, declared that he saw a vision of this kind. See Acts 7:55-56 . And he fell to the earth — As did also all those that journeyed with him, according to the relation which he himself gives, Acts 26:14 . They all fell prostrate from fear or reverence, supposing the supernatural light which they saw to be an indication of the appearance of some divine person or angel. Thus Saul, when his rage is come to the highest, is taught not to breathe slaughter. And what was wanting in time to confirm him in his discipleship, is compensated by the inexpressible terror he sustained. By this also the suddenly-constituted apostle was guarded against the grand snare in which novices are apt to fall, namely, that of pride and high-mindedness. And — To his great astonishment; he heard a voice — Severe, yet full of grace; saying unto him — In the Hebrew language, ( Acts 26:14 ,) Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? — The persecutions of Christ’s disciples are here represented as the persecutions of Christ himself; because of their union with him by the Holy Spirit, which renders them members of his body; and because of that sympathy which he has with them under all their sufferings. See Hebrews 4:15 ; Isaiah 63:9 . And he said, Who art thou, Lord? — And what is it that I have done against thee? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest — Who can describe the amazement and terror which must have seized Saul on hearing these words? The name of Jesus was not unknown to him; his heart had risen at it in anger and resentment many a time; and gladly would he have buried it in oblivion. He knew it was the name that he persecuted; but little did he expect to hear it from heaven, or from the midst of such glory as now shone round about him. It is hard for thee to kick against the pricks — Thou wilt find it hard for thee to accomplish thy malicious designs against me; nay, all thy fury can only wound thyself, without being able to do me or my cause any real injury. For, as Dr. Hammond rightly observes, this is a proverbial expression, signifying that impotent rage which hurts one’s self, and not the person or thing against which it is levelled. Acts 9:4 And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? Acts 9:5 And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. Acts 9:6 And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do. Acts 9:6 . And, trembling and astonished — To find that he whom he had so often affronted and despised, yea, blasphemously and virulently opposed, even Jesus of Nazareth, was such a glorious and powerful person; and yet, that instead of destroying him immediately, as he might have easily done, he had condescended thus compassionately to expostulate with him, he was overwhelmed with confusion and dismay; and in the deepest self-abasement and contrition, said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do — What is thy will concerning me? Can mercy be extended to me? If so, I am prepared for any submission, self-denial, labour, or hardship which may be required of me. These were the first words that grace spoke in and by Saul; and with these began his spiritual life. In these he manifested a serious desire to be instructed by Christ in his duty, and a sincere resignation of himself to Christ’s conduct and government. And the Lord said, Arise, and go into the city, &c. — To which thou art now near; and it shall be told thee what thou must do — Thou shall be instructed in all things which I have appointed concerning thee. It was encouragement enough to Saul, to have further instruction promised him. But, 1st, He must not have it yet: it shall be told him by and by what he must do: but for the present he must pause upon what has been already said to him; and must improve that: let him consider a while what he has done in persecuting Christ and his people, and be deeply humbled for that, and then he shall be told what he has further to do. 2d, He must not have further instructions in this way, by a voice from heaven, for it is what he cannot bear. He trembles and is astonished; he shall be told, therefore, what he must do, by a man like himself, whose terror shall not make him afraid. Observe, Christ declares his mind to his people by degrees; and both what he doth, and what he would have them do, though they know not now, they shall know hereafter. Acts 9:7 And the men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice, but seeing no man. Acts 9:7 . And the men which journeyed with him — Who at first fell to the ground, as Saul did: upon recovering themselves and rising up; stood speechless — With astonishment and terror; hearing a voice — ????????? ??? ??? ????? , hearing indeed the voice; namely, the sound of that voice which had spoken to Saul; but without distinctly understanding the sense of what was said. This seems the most probable way of reconciling this with Acts 22:9 ; and it is confirmed by John 12:29 ; where we learn that some present, when the voice from heaven came to Christ, took it for thunder. But seeing no man — Nor perceiving who it was that had been speaking to Saul. So it was with the men who were with Daniel, when he saw the vision, mentioned Daniel 10:7 ; and the heathen, however they came by the notion, thought their deities often rendered themselves visible to one only, in a company consisting of many. Acts 9:8 And Saul arose from the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw no man: but they led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus. Acts 9:8-9 . And Saul arose from the earth — When Christ bade him; but probably not without help, the vision having made him faint and weak, like Daniel; when, upon receiving a vision, no strength remained in him, Daniel 10:16-17 . And when his eyes were open, he saw no man — He was incapable of discerning objects; for his nerves had been so affected with the glory of that light which had shone from the body of Jesus, that he had lost the power of sight, Acts 22:11 ; but they — That were with him; led him by the hand — For as they had not looked so earnestly and steadfastly, as Saul had done, on the glorious light wherewith the person of Christ was surrounded, but had lain with their faces on the ground, their eye-sight remained. And he was three days without sight — By scales growing over his eyes, not only to intimate to him the blindness of the state he had been in, but to impress him also with a deeper sense of the almighty power of Christ, and to turn his thoughts inward, while he was rendered less capable of conversing with external objects. This was, likewise, a manifest token to others, of what had happened to him in his journey; and ought to have humbled and convinced those bigoted Jews, to whom he had been sent from the sanhedrim. And neither did eat nor drink — This his long-continued fasting was a natural expression of his bitter grief, for having opposed the gospel, and persecuted the disciples of Jesus. With fasting he joined fervent and often-repeated prayer, perhaps, to Jesus; in which he made confession of his sin in persecuting him, and earnest supplication for pardon; all which, being certain signs of his repentance, they are here ( Acts 9:11 ) mentioned as such. During his three days’ blindness and fasting, Saul was instructed by visions and revelations from the Lord, agreeably to what was promised him, that in Damascus it should be told him what he was to do. One vision of this kind is expressly mentioned, in which the restoration of his sight by Ananias was foretold to him. See Acts 9:12 . Here it is natural to reflect, that the situation in which Saul now lay, was indeed apparently very melancholy; his sight being lost, his appetite for food gone, and his whole soul wrapt up in deep astonishment, or melted in deep contrition and remorse. But, though he thus sowed in tears, he was soon to reap in joy. Light and gladness were sown for him. He came out of the furnace refined as gold and silver; and these three dark and dismal days are, no doubt, recollected by him in the heavenly world, as the era from whence he dates the first beamings of that divine light in which he now dwells. Let us never be afraid of the pangs of that godly sorrow, which, working repentance to salvation, not to be repented of, will soon be ten thousand times overbalanced by that exceeding weight of glory, and those full transports of eternal joy, for which it will prepare the soul. See Doddridge. Acts 9:9 And he was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink. Acts 9:10 And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here , Lord. Acts 9:10-12 . And there was a disciple named Ananias — This Ananias, before his conversion to Christianity, had lived so conformably to the law, that he was much esteemed by all the Jews who dwelt at Damascus, Acts 22:12 . And after his conversion, his piety being still more conspicuous, he was a person of great note among the brethren also. To him Jesus appeared in a vision on the third day of Saul’s fast, and ordered him to go into the house of Judas, and inquire for Saul of Tarsus; of whom he needed no longer be afraid, because he was praying, not as he had done formerly, while a Pharisee, in self-confidence and pride, but in humiliation, contrition, and deep penitence, namely, for the pardon of his sin in persecuting the saints; and because Ananias himself had been shown to him in a vision, as sent to cure his sight. He hath seen in a vision, &c. — This vision which Saul had may be considered, 1st, As an immediate answer to his prayer, and the keeping up that communion with God which be had entered into by prayer. He had in prayer spread the misery of his case before God, and God presently manifests himself, and the kind intentions of his grace to him. 2d, As designed to raise his expectations, and make Ananias’s coming more welcome: he would readily receive him as a messenger from God, since he was told beforehand in vision, that such a one would come to him. Acts 9:11 And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth, Acts 9:12 And hath seen in a vision a man named Ananias coming in, and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight. Acts 9:13 Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem: Acts 9:13-14 . Then Ananias — Astonished to hear such a name mentioned in such a connection; answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man — What a malicious enemy he is to thy gospel: all those who were scattered upon the late persecution, many of whom are come to Damascus, tell how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem — That he was the most virulent, violent persecutor of all the rest; what havoc he has made of the church: nay, and his errand to Damascus at this time is to persecute us Christians; for here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name — To treat thy disciples as the worst of criminals. Now, why doth Ananias thus object? Does he say, Therefore I do not owe him so much service? Why should I do him a kindness, who has designed and done us so much unkindness? No, Christ had taught him another lesson, namely, to render good for evil, blessing for cursing, and to pray for persecutors. But if he be such a persecutor of Christians, 1st, Will it be safe for Ananias to go to him? Will he not by so doing throw himself like a lamb into the mouth of a lion? And if he thus bring himself into trouble, will he not be justly blamed for his indiscretion? 2d, Will it be to any purpose to go to him? Can such a hard heart be ever softened? or such an Ethiopian ever change his skin? Acts 9:14 And here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name. Acts 9:15 But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: Acts 9:15-16 . But the Lord said, Go thy way — Do not tell me how bad he has been; I know it well; but go with all speed, and execute that message of mercy with which I have charged thee; for — How great and aggravated soever his former transgressions may have been, I assure thee he is a chosen vessel — Or instrument; unto me, to bear my name — That is, to testify of me, and bear witness of my truth; before the Gentiles — ??????? ????? , before nations, namely, heathen nations; and kings — King Agrippa and Cesar himself; and the children of Israel — To thousands of whom, as well in the Gentile countries as in Judea, he shall testify the gospel of my grace. Beza justly observes, that an instrument of building, agriculture, &c., is often, in Greek, called ?????? , here rendered vessel, because in him the gospel treasure was to be lodged, in order to the conveyance of it to many; and a chosen vessel, because he was destined for eminent services, for which, doubtless, some persons are chosen and set apart from their mother’s womb, as Paul says he was, Galatians 1:15 . For I will show him how great things he must suffer — He that hath been a persecutor, shall be himself persecuted. Christ’s saying he would show him this, was intended to signify his giving him notice of these sufferings beforehand, that they might be no surprise to him. Observe, reader, those that bear Christ’s name must expect to bear the cross for his name; and those that do most for Christ are often called to suffer most for him. Saul, that was designed for eminent services, was also designed for eminent sufferings. Acts 9:16 For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake. Acts 9:17 And Ananias went his way, and entered into the house; and putting his hands on him said, Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me, that thou mightest receive thy sight, and be filled with the Holy Ghost. Acts 9:17-19 . And Ananias went his way — With all readiness and joy undertook the message, not presuming to object any further; and entered into the house — To which he had been so particularly directed; and putting his hands on him — According to Christ’s direction, Mark 16:18 ; said, Brother Saul — So he terms him, because he was made a partaker of the grace of God, though not yet baptized; and his readiness to own Saul as a brother intimated to him God’s readiness to own him as a son, though he had been a blasphemer of God, and a persecutor of his children. The Lord, even Jesus — That same Jesus that appeared unto thee in the way — And convinced thee of thy sin in persecuting him; hath sent me — To thee, to comfort thee: his light struck thee blind, but he hath sent me that thou mightest receive thy sight — For his design was not ultimately to blind the eyes of thy body, but to open the eyes of thy soul; and that thou mightest be filled with the Holy Ghost — Which shall be poured out upon thee, not only in his sanctifying graces, but in his miraculous gifts, before I leave this place. See a further account of what passed between Ananias and Saul on this occasion, Acts 22:14-16 . And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales — ???? ??????? , something like scales, an emblem of the darkness and prejudice which before had veiled his eyes; and their falling off intimated the clear views of divine things which he should henceforth enjoy. And he received his sight forthwith — That is, immediately on the scales falling from his eyes: the cure was sudden, to show that it was miraculous. And he arose and was baptized — And thereby submitted himself to the government of Christ, and cast himself upon his grace. Saul is now a disciple of Christ, and not only ceases to oppose him, but devotes himself entirely to his service and honour. Happy change! a change for which he himself, and myriads of immortal beings, will bless God through the never-ending ages of eternity. And when he had received meat, he was strengthened — Recovered that bodily strength which had been impaired by his long fast, as well as by what had happened to him in the way; and that strength it was his immediate care to employ in the service of his new Master, now associating with the disciples at Damascus, whom he had come to persecute. In this miraculous manner was Saul, in the very height of his rage against the saints, converted, and made an apostle of Jesus Christ, and called to preach that very faith which he had been so zealous to destroy. Luke has not mentioned any date by which we can with certainty fix either Saul’s age at his conversion, or the particular year in which that remarkable event took place; nevertheless, from some circumstances mentioned in his history, learned men have gathered that it happened about the end of the third year after the death of Christ, or the beginning of the fourth, and when Saul was about thirty-four years of age. It may not be improper to observe here, that this conversion of Saul “added great lustre to the evidence of Christ’s resurrection from the dead. He had persecuted all who preached that miracle; wherefore, when he himself went over to the persecuted party, and published Christ’s resurrection with greater earnestness and diligence than any of them, every impartial person must have been sensible that such an alteration of sentiment and conduct, in a person of Saul’s good sense, learning, and zeal, and that at the very time he was breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, could not possibly have happened, unless he had actually received that unquestionable evidence of Christ’s resurrection from the dead, which he affirmed had been given him, by Christ’s appearing to him personally as he went to Damascus, and by conferring upon him the gift of the Holy Ghost. It is true, the appearing of Jesus might seem to many an improbable story; yet, as by the miracles which Saul performed, he gave convincing proofs that Christ had bestowed on him the gift of the Holy Ghost, no reasonable person, after that, could doubt of his having appeared to him, as Saul constantly affirmed.” — Macknight. Acts 9:18 And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose, and was baptized. Acts 9:19 And when he had received meat, he was strengthened. Then was Saul certain days with the disciples which were at Damascus. Acts 9:20 And straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God. Acts 9:20-22 . And straightway — That is, immediately after his conversion; he preached Christ in the synagogues — Some writers have given it as their opinion, (see Dr. Wells on the place, and Script. Geog., vol. 3. p. 375,) that as soon as Saul had strength to go anywhere abroad, he retired into the desert of Arabia, and there was favoured with a full revelation of Christianity, and spent some considerable time in devotion; and that after this he returned to Damascus and preached, which they argue from Galatians 1:16-17 . But this opinion seems inconsistent with what is here said of his preaching, ?????? , immediately. It seems, therefore, probable, that by his going into Arabia, to which Damascus now belonged, we are to understand his making excursions from that city into the neighbouring parts of that country, which he might do, perhaps, between the time in which he began to preach in Damascus, and his quitting it, after repeated labours there, to go to Jerusalem. That he is the Son of God — Foretold Psalms 2.; which he knew and proved Christ to be by incontestable arguments. But all that heard him were amazed — As well they might be; and said, Is not this he that destroyed them which called on this name — And now doth he call on this name himself, and persuade others to call upon it, and strengthen the hands of those that do! Nay, and did he not come hither for that intent — To seize all the Christians he could find; and bring them bound to the chief priests? — Who would have thought then that he should preach Christ as he doth? No doubt this was looked upon by many to be, what indeed it was, a great confirmation of the truth of Christianity, that a person who had been such a notorious persecutor of it, should come on a sudden to be such an intelligent and strenuous preacher of it. This miracle upon the mind of such a man outshone the miracles upon men’s bodies, and the giving Saul such another heart was more than giving men to speak with other tongues. But Saul increased the more in strength — Became more intimately acquainted with the gospel of Christ, and his pious affections became more strong, his faith and hope firm, and his love to Christ and his disciples, and to all mankind, more fervent. He also became more bold and resolute in the defence of the gospel: and confounded the unbelieving Jews, proving that this Jesus of Nazareth is the very Christ — The true Messiah, the Son of God. He answered their objections to the satisfaction of all indifferent persons, and pressed them with arguments to which they could make no reply. And we can have no reason to doubt that he was instrumental in converting many to the faith of Christ, and therefore of building up the church at Damascus, which he had come thither to destroy. Acts 9:21 But all that heard him were amazed, and said; Is not this he that destroyed them which called on this name in Jerusalem, and came hither for that intent, that he might bring them bound unto the chief priests? Acts 9:22 But Saul increased the more in strength, and confounded the Jews which dwelt at Damascus, proving that this is very Christ. Acts 9:23 And after that many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel to kill him: Acts 9:23-25 . And after many days were fulfilled — In which several events took place, which are elsewhere hinted at; and particularly after he had made an excursion into Arabia, as is mentioned Galatians 1:16-18 , probably to spread the gospel there, or, as some suppose, that he might have opportunity, in privacy and retirement, for studying the Jewish Scriptures more carefully than he had done, by the help of the new light which had been bestowed on him, and for prayer and meditation, and attending to such further revelations as Christ should be pleased to make to him; and after he had returned again to Damascus, the Jews took counsel to kill him — Finding it impossible to answer his arguments, or to damp his zeal, they resolved to silence him by putting an end to his life. Here we cannot but reflect on the astonishing malignity and obstinacy of these blinded Jews! How amazing it is, that when so great a persecutor of the Christians was, by a voice and appearance from heaven, converted to Christianity, they should be so far from following his example, that they should attempt even to take away his life! In this design they were assisted by the governor of the city, under Aretas, king of Arabia, who, after having been conquered by the Romans under Pompey, had by some means got possession of it. This governor guarded the city night and day with the greatest strictness, persons being appointed to keep watch at all the gates to prevent his escaping; and the Jews, in the mean time, lying in wait to seize and murder him. Their designs, however, were known to Saul, God graciously discovering them to him, so that he kept himself concealed, and gave them no opportunity of executing their purpose. Then the disciples — Who were in Damascus, anxious to preserve a life of so much value; took him by night — When they were not observed, either by the Jews or the governor’s garrison; and let him down by the wall in a basket — As Rahab did the spies, Joshua 2:15 ; and Michal did David, 1 Samuel 19:12 ; the providence of God directing and assisting them in this undertaking, so that, as he himself says, ( 2 Corinthians 11:32-33 ,) he escaped out of their hands. Acts 9:24 But their laying await was known of Saul. And they watched the gates day and night to kill him. Acts 9:25 Then the disciples took him by night, and let him down by the wall in a basket. Acts 9:26 And when Saul was come to Jerusalem, he assayed to join himself to the disciples: but they were all afraid of him, and believed not that he was a disciple. Acts 9:26-30 . And when Saul was come to Jerusalem, &c. — It must be observed here, that the history of Paul’s preaching at Damascus, going into Arabia, and visiting Jerusalem, is somewhat intricate, and interpreters differ much about it. But the series of it seems most probably to be as Dr. Whitby has stated it; namely, 1st, That, “after his conversion, he constantly preached in the synagogues of Damascus, that Jesus was the Son of God. 2d, That, going thence into Arabia, between two and three years after, he returned to Damascus, ( Galatians 1:17 ,) of which journey, however, Luke, not being with him, gives no account. 3d, That, at his return, being increased in wisdom and strength, he continued many days in Damascus, proving that Jesus was the Christ. 4th, That, after three years, escaping from Damascus, he came to Jerusalem, and was by Barnabas brought to the apostles Peter and James, and continued there fifteen days, Galatians 1:18-19 . 5th, There Christ appeared to him in a vision; commanding him to depart out of Jerusalem; and he accordingly went thence to Cesarea Philippi in Cœlo-Syria, and to Tarsus in Cilicia, Acts 9:30 ; Galatians 1:21 .” He assayed to join himself to the disciples — The despised, persecuted followers of Jesus, who were now in his eyes the excellent of the earth, and with whom he desired to be united in Christian fellowship. But they were all afraid of him, and believed not that he — Who had signalized himself so much by his rage against the church; was indeed a disciple — But suspected that his professing to be such was a mere artifice whereby he endeavoured to insinuate himself into their confidence, in order that he might thus have it in his power to detect and ruin a great number of them. It may seem strange that so remarkable an event as Saul’s conversion should be concealed so long from the Christians at Jerusalem; but it is to be considered, that there were not then such conveniences of correspondence between one place and another as we now have, and the war then subsisting between Herod Antipas and Aretas, (Jos. Antiq., Acts 18:5 ,) might have interrupted that between Damascus and Jerusalem. Now might Paul be tempted to think himself in an ill case, when the Jews had abandoned and persecuted him on the one hand, and the Christians, on the other, would not receive and entertain him. But Barnabas took him — Probably having been informed of his conversion by Ananias, or some of the brethren of Damascus; and brought him to the apostles — Namely, to Peter and James, the rest, it seems, being then absent from Jerusalem, for Paul himself tells us, ( Galatians 1:19 ,) that, on his going to Jerusalem at this time, he saw no other of the apostles but these two. And declared unto them how he had seen the Lord in the way — To Damascus, and that he had spoken to him in a manner that had conquered all his former prejudices against the gospel; and how — In consequence of the change which was then made in his views, and in his heart; he had preached boldly at Damascus — Even at the apparent hazard of his life. So that he gave sufficient proof that he was a new creature, changed in principle and practice. A

Expositor's Bible Commentary Acts 9:1 And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, elete_me Acts 9:1-6 Chapter 2 THE CONVERSION OF THE PERSECUTOR. Acts 8:3 ; Acts 9:1-6 WE have in the last chapter traced the course of St. Paul’s life as we know it from his own reminiscences, from hints in Holy Scripture, and from Jewish history and customs. The Jewish nation is exactly like all the nations of the East, in one respect at least. They are all intensely conservative, and though time has necessarily introduced some modifications, yet the course of education, and the force of prejudice, and the power of custom have in the mare remained unchanged down to the present time. We now proceed to view St. Paul, not as we imagine his course of life and education to have been, but as we follow him in the exhibition of his active powers, in the full play and swing of that intellectual energy, of those religious aims and objects for which he had been so long training. St. Paul at his first appearance upon the stage of Christian history, upon the occasion of St. Stephen’s martyrdom, had arrived at the full stature of manhood both in body and in mind. He was then the young man Saul; an expression which enables us to fix with some approach to accuracy the time of his birth. St. Paul’s contemporary Philo in one of his works divides man’s life into seven periods, the fourth of which is young manhood, which he assigns to the years between twenty-one and twenty-eight. Roughly speaking, and without attempting any fine-drawn distinctions for which we have not sufficient material, we may say that at the martyrdom of St. Stephen St. Paul was about thirty years of age, or some ten years or thereabouts junior to our Lord, as His years would have been numbered according to those of the sons of men. One circumstance, indeed, would seem to indicate that St. Paul must have been then over and above the exact line of thirty. It is urged, and that upon the ground of St. Paul’s own language, that he was a member of the Sanhedrim In the twenty-sixth chapter, defending himself before King Agrippa, St. Paul described his own course of action prior to his conversion as one of bitterest hostility to the Christian cause: "I both shut up many of the saints in prisons, having received authority from the chief priests, and when they were put to death, I gave my vote against them" ; an expression which clearly indicates that he was a member of a body and possessed a vote in an assembly which determined questions of life and death, and that could have been nothing else than the Sanhedrin, into which no one was admitted before he had completed thirty years. St. Paul, then, when he is first introduced to our notice, comes before us as a full-grown man, and a well-trained, carefully educated, thoroughly disciplined rabbinical scholar, whose prejudices were naturally excited against the new Galilean sect, and who had given public expression to his feelings by taking decided steps in opposition to its progress. The sacred narrative now sets before us (1) the Conduct of St. Paul in his unconverted state, (2) his Mission, (3) his Journey, and (4) his Conversion. Let us take the many details and circumstances connected with this passage under these four divisions. I. The Conduct of Saul . Here we have a picture of St. Paul in his unconverted state: "Saul, yet breathing threatening and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord." This description is amply borne out by St. Paul himself, in which he even enlarges and gives us additional touches of the intensity of his antichristian hate. His ignorant zeal at this period seems to have printed itself deep upon memory’s record. There are no less than at least seven different notices in the Acts or scattered through the Epistles, due to his own tongue or pen, and dealing directly with his conduct as a persecutor. No matter how he rejoiced in the fulness and blessedness of Christ’s pardon, no matter how he experienced the power and working of God’s Holy Spirit, St. Paul never could forget the intense hatred with which he had originally followed the disciples of the Master. Let us note them, for they all bear out, expand, and explain the statement of the passage we are now considering. In his address to the Jews of Jerusalem as recorded in Acts 22:1-30 . he appeals to his former conduct as an evidence of his sincerity. In verses 4 and 5 { Acts 22:4-5 } he says, "I persecuted this Way unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women. As also the high priest doth bear me witness, and all the estate of the elders: from whom also I received letters unto the brethren, and journeyed to Damascus, to bring them also which were there unto Jerusalem in bonds, for to be punished." In the same discourse he recurs a second time to this topic; for, telling his audience of the vision granted to him in the temple, he says, verse 19 { Acts 22:19 }, "And I said, Lord, they themselves know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue them that believed on Thee: and when the blood of Stephen Thy witness was shed, I also was standing by, and consenting, and keeping the garments of them that slew him." St. Paul dwells upon the same topic in the twenty-sixth chapter, when addressing King Agrippa in verses 9-11 { Acts 26:9-11 }, a passage already quoted in part: "I verily thought with myself, that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. And this I also did in Jerusalem: and I both shut up many of the saints in prisons, having received authority from the chief priests, and when they were put to death, I gave my vote against them. And punishing them oftentimes in all the synagogues, I strove to make them blaspheme; and being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them even unto foreign cities." It is the same in his Epistles. In four different places does he refer to his conduct as a persecutor-in 1 Corinthians 15:9 , Galatians 1:13 , Php 3:6 , 1 Timothy 1:13 ; while again in the chapter now under consideration, the ninth of Acts, we find that the Jews of the synagogue in Damascus, who were listening to St. Paul’s earliest outburst of Christian zeal, asked, "Is not this he that in Jerusalem made havock of them which called on this name? and he had come hither for this intent, that he might bring them bound before the chief priests"; using the very same word "making havoc" as Paul himself uses in the first of Galatians, which in Greek is very strong, expressing a course of action accompanied with fire and blood and murder, such as occurs when a city is taken by storm. Now these passages have been thus set forth at length because they add many details to the bare statement of Acts 9:1-43 , giving us a glimpse into those four or five dark and bloody years, the thought of which henceforth weighed so heavily upon the Apostle’s mind and memory. Just let us notice these additional touches. He shut up in prison many of the saints, both men and women, and that in Jerusalem before he went to Damascus at all. He scourged the disciples in every synagogue, meaning doubtless that he superintended the punishment, as it was the duty of the Chazan, the minister or attendant of the synagogue, to scourge the condemned, and thus strove to make them blaspheme Christ. He voted for the execution of the disciples when he acted as a member of the Sanhedrin. And lastly he followed the disciples and persecuted them in foreign cities. We gain in this way & much fuller idea of the young enthusiast’s persecuting zeal than usually is formed from the words, "Saul yet breathing threatening and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord," which seem to set forth Saul as roused to wild and savage excitement by St. Stephen’s death, and then continuing that course in the city of Jerusalem, for a very brief period. Whereas, on the contrary, St. Paul’s fuller statements, when combined, represent him as pursuing a course of steady, systematic, and cruel repression, which St. Paul largely helped to inaugurate, but which continued to exist as long as the Jews had the power to inflict corporal punishments and death on the members of their own nation. He visited all the synagogues in Jerusalem and throughout Palestine, scourging and imprisoning. He strove-and this is, again, another lifelike touch, -to compel the disciples to blaspheme the name of Christ in the same manner as the Romans were subsequently wont to test Christians by calling upon them to cry anathema to the name of their Master. He even extended his activity beyond the bounds of the Holy Land, and that in various directions. The visit to Damascus may not by any means. have been his first journey to a foreign town with thoughts bent on the work of persecution. He expressly says to Agrippa, "I persecuted them even unto foreign cities." He may have: visited Tarsus, or Lystra, or the cities of Cyprus or Alexandria itself, urged on by the consuming fire of his blind, restless zeal, before he entered upon the journey to Damascus, destined to be the last undertaken in opposition to Jesus Christ. When we thus strive to realise the facts of the case, we shall see that the scenes of blood and torture and death, the ruined homes, the tears, the heartbreaking separations which the young man Saul had caused in his blind zeal for the law, and which are briefly summed up in the words "he made havoc of the Church," were quite sufficient to account for that profound impression of his own unworthiness and of God’s great mercy towards him which he ever cherished to his dying day. II. The Mission of Saul . Again, we notice in this passage that Saul, having shown his activity in other directions, now turned his attention to Damascus. There were political circumstances which may have hitherto hindered him from exercising the same supervision over the synagogue of Damascus which he had already extended to other foreign cities. The political history and circumstances of Damascus at this period are indeed rather obscure. The city seems to have been somewhat of a bone of contention between Herod Antipas, Aretas the king of Petra, and the Romans. About the time of St. Paul’s conversion, which may be fixed at A.D. 37 or 38, there was a period of great disturbance in Palestine and Southern Syria. Pontius Pilate was deposed from his office and sent to Rome for judgment. Vitellius, the president of the whole Province of Syria, came into Palestine, changing the high priests, conciliating the Jews, and intervening in the war which raged between Herod Antipas and Aretas, his father-in-law. In the course of this last struggle Damascus seems to have changed its masters, and, while a Roman city till the year 37, it henceforth became an Arabian city, the property of King Aretas, till the reign of Nero, when it again returned beneath the Roman sway. Some one or other, or perhaps all these political circumstances combined may have hitherto prevented the Sanhedrin from taking active measures against the disciples at Damascus. But now things became settled. Caiaphas was deposed from the office of high priest upon the departure of Pontius Pilate. He had been a great friend and ally of Pilate; Vitellius therefore deprived Caiaphas of his sacred office, appointing in his stead Jonathan, son of Annas, the high priest. This Jonathan did not, however, long continue to occupy the position, as he was deposed by the same Roman magistrate, Vitellius, at the feast of Pentecost in the very same year, his brother Theophilus being appointed high priest in his room; so completely was the whole Levitical hierarchy, the entire Jewish establishment, ruled by the political officers of the Roman state. This Theophilus continued to hold the office for five or six years, and it must have been to Theophilus that Saul applied for letters unto Damascus authorising him to arrest the adherents of the new religion. And now a question here arises, How is it that the high priest could exercise such powers and arrest his co-religionists in a foreign town? The answer to this sheds a flood of light upon the state of the Jews of the Dispersion, as they were called. I have already said a little on this point, but it demands fuller discussion. The high priest at Jerusalem was regarded as a kind of head of the whole nation. He was viewed by the Romans as the Prince of the Jews, with whom they could formally treat, and by whom they could manage a nation which, differing from all-others in its manners and customs, was scattered all over the world, and often gave much trouble. Julius Caesar laid down the lines on which Jewish privileges and Roman policy were based, and that half a century before the Christian era. Julius Caesar had been greatly assisted in his Alexandrian war by the Jewish high priest Hyrcanus, so he issued an edict in the year 47 B.C., which, after reciting the services of Hyrcanus, proceeds thus, "I command that Hyrcanus and his children do retain all the rights of the high priest, whether established by law or accorded by courtesy; and if hereafter any question arise touching the Jewish polity, I desire that the determination thereof be referred to him"; an edict which, confirmed as it was again and again, not only by Julius Caesar, but by several subsequent emperors, gave the high priest the fullest jurisdiction over the Jews, wherever they dwelt, in things pertaining to their own religion. It was therefore in strictest accord with Roman law and custom that, when Saul wished to arrest members of the synagogue at Damascus, he should make application to the high priest Theophilus for a warrant enabling him to effect his purpose. The description, too, given of the disciples in this passage is very noteworthy and a striking evidence of the truthfulness of the narrative. The disciples were the men of "the Way." Saul desired to bring any of "the Way" found at Damascus to be judged at Jerusalem, because the Sanhedrin alone possessed the right to pass capital sentences in matters of religion. The synagogues at Damascus or anywhere else could flog culprits, and a Jew could get no redress for any such ill-treatment even if he sought it, which would have not been at all likely; but if the final sentence of death were to be passed, the Jerusalem Sanhedrin was the only tribunal competent to entertain such questions. And the persons he desired to hale before this awful tribunal were the men of the Way. This was the name by which, in its earliest and purest day, the Church called itself. In the nineteenth chapter and ninth verse we read of St. Paul’s labours at Ephesus and the opposition he endured: "But when some were hardened and disobedient, speaking evil of the Way before the multitude"; while again, in his defence before Felix, { Acts 24:14 } we read, "But this I confess unto thee, that after the Way which they call a sect, so serve I the God of our fathers." The Revised translation of the New Testament has well brought out the force of the original in a manner that was utterly missed in the Authorised Version, and has emphasised for us a great truth concerning the early Christians. There was a certain holy intolerance even about the very name they imposed upon the earliest Church. It was the Way, the only Way, the Way of Life. The earliest Christians had a lively recollection of what the Apostles had heard from the mouth of the Master Himself, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one cometh unto the Father but by Me"; and so, realising the identity of Christ and His people, realising the continued presence of Christ in His Church, they designated that Church by a term which expressed their belief that in it alone was the road to peace, the sole path of access to God. This name, "the Way," expressed their sense of the importance of the truth. Theirs was no easy-going religion which thought that it made not the slightest matter what form of belief a man professed. They were awfully in earnest, because they knew of only one way to God, and that was the religion and Church of Jesus Christ. Therefore it was that they were willing to suffer all things rather than that they should lose this Way, or that others should miss it through their default. The marvellous, the intense missionary efforts of the primitive Church find their explanation in this expression, the Way. God had revealed the Way and had called themselves into it, and their great duty in life was to make others know the greatness of this salvation; or, as St. Paul puts it, "Necessity is laid upon me; woe is unto me if I preach not the gospel." The exclusive claims of Christianity are thus early set forth; and it was these same exclusive claims which caused Christianity to be so hated and persecuted by the pagans. The Roman Empire would not have so bitterly resented the preaching of Christ, if His followers would have accepted the position with which other religions were contented. The Roman Empire was not intolerant of new ideas in matters of religion. Previous to the coming of our Lord the pagans had welcomed the strange, mystic rites and teaching of Egypt. They accepted from Persia the curious system and worship of Mithras within the first century after Christ’s crucifixion. And tradition tells that at least two of the emperors were willing to admit the image of Christ into the Pantheon, which they had consecrated to the memory of the great and good. But the Christians would have nothing to say or do with such partial honours for their Master. Religion for them was Christ alone or else it was nothing, and that because He alone was the Way. As there was but one God for them, so there was but one Mediator, Christ Jesus. III. Saul’s Journey . "As he journeyed, it came to pass that he drew nigh unto Damascus." This is the simple record left us in Holy Writ of this momentous event. A comparison of the sacred record with any of the numerous lives of St. Paul which have been published will show us how very different their points of view. The mere human narratives dwell upon the external features of the scene, enlarge upon the light which modern discoveries have thrown upon the lines of road which connected Jerusalem with Southern Syria, become enthusiastic over the beauty of Damascus as seen by the traveller from Jerusalem, over the eternal green of the groves and gardens which are still, as of old, made glad by the waters of Abana and of Pharpar; while the sacred narrative passes over all external details and marches straight to the great central fact of the persecutor’s conversion. And we find no fault with this. It is well that the human narratives should enlarge as they do upon the outward features and circumstances of the journey, because they thus help us to realise the Acts as a veritable history that was lived and acted. We are too apt to idealise the Bible, to think of it as dealing with an unreal world, and to regard the men and women thereof as beings of another type from ourselves. Books like Farrar’s and Lewin’s and Conybeare and Howson’s " Lives of St. Paul " correct this tendency, and make the Acts of the Apostles infinitely more interesting by rendering St. Paul’s career human and lifelike and clothing it with the charm of local detail. It is thus that we can guess at the very road by which the enthusiastic Saul travelled. The caravans from Egypt to Damascus are intensely conservative in their routes. In fact, even m our own revolutionary West trade and commerce preserve in large measure the same routes to-day as they used two thousand years ago. The great railways of England, and much more the great main roads, preserve in a large degree the same directions which the ancient Roman roads observed. In Ireland, with which I am still better acquainted, I know that the great roads starting from Dublin preserve in the main the same lines as in the days of St. Patrick. And so it is, but only to a much greater degree, in Palestine and throughout the East. The road from Jerusalem to Jericho preserved in St. Jerome’s time, four centuries later, the same direction and the same character an in our Lord’s day, so that it was then called the Bloody Road, from the frequent robberies; and thus it is still, for the pilgrims who now go to visit the Jordan are furnished with a guard of Turkish soldiers to protect them from the Arab bandits. And to-day, as in the first century, the caravans from Egypt and Jerusalem, to Damascus follow either of two roads: one which proceeds through Gaza and Ramleh, along the coast, and then, turning eastward about the borders of Samaria and Galilee, crosses the Jordan and proceeds through the desert to Damascus-that is the Egyptian road; while the other, which serves for travellers from Jerusalem, runs due north from that city and joins the other road at the entrance to Galilee. This latter was probably the road which St. Paul took. The distance which he had to traverse is not very great. One hundred and thirty-six miles separate Jerusalem from Damascus, a journey which is performed in five or six days by such a company as Saul had with him. We get a hint, too, of the manner in which he travelled. He rode probably on a horse or a mule, like modern travellers on the same road, as we gather from Acts 9:4 compared with Acts 22:7 , passages which represent Saul and his companions as falling to the earth when the supernatural light flashed upon their astonished vision. The exact spot where Saul was arrested in his mad career is a matter of some debate; some fix it close to the city of Damascus, half a mile or so from the south gate on the high road to Jerusalem. Dr. Porter, whose long residence at Damascus made him an authority on the locality, places the scene of the conversion at the village of Caucabe, ten miles away, where the traveller from Jerusalem gets his first glimpse of the towers and groves of Damascus. We are not anxious to determine this point. The great spiritual truth which is the centre and core of the whole matter remains, and that central truth is this, that it was-when he drew near to Damascus and the crowning act of violence seemed at hand, then the Lord put forth His power-as He so often still does just when men are about to commit some dire offence-arrested the persecutor, and then, amid the darkness of that abounding light, there rose upon the vision of the astonished Saul at Caucabe, "the place of the star," that true Star of Bethlehem which never ceased its clear shining for him till he came unto the perfect day. IV. Lastly we have the actual conversion of the Apostle and the circumstances of it. We have mention made in this connection of the light, the voice, and the conversation. These leading circumstances are described in exactly the same way in the three great accounts in the ninth, in the twenty-second, and in the twenty-sixth chapters. There are minute differences between them, but only such differences as are natural between the verbal descriptions given at different times by a truthful and vigorous speaker, who, conscious of honest purpose, did not stop to weigh his every word. All three accounts tell of the light; they all agree on that. St. Paul in his speeches at Jerusalem unhesitatingly declares that the light which he beheld was a supernatural one, above the brightness, the fierce, intolerable brightness of a Syrian sun at midday; and boldly asserts that the attendants and escort who were with him saw the light. Those who disbelieve in the supernatural reject, of course, this assertion, and resolve the light into a fainting fit brought upon Saul by the burning heat, or into a passing sirocco blast from the Arabian desert. But the sincere and humble believer may fairly ask, Could a fainting fit or a breath of hot wind change a man who had stood out against Stephen’s eloquence and Stephen’s death and the witnessed sufferings and patience displayed by the multitudes of men and women whom he had pursued unto the death? But it is not our purpose to discuss these questions in any controversial spirit. Time and space would fail to treat of them aright, specially as they have been fully discussed already in works like Lord Lyttelton on the conversion of St. Paul, wholly devoted to such aspects of these events. But, looking at them from a believer’s point of view, we can see good reasons why the supernatural light should have been granted. Next to the life and death and resurrection of our Lord, the conversion of St. Paul was the most important event the world, ever saw. Our Lord made to the fiery persecutor a special revelation of Himself in the mode of His existence in the unseen world, in the reality, truth, and fulness of His humanity, such as He never made to any other human being. The special character of the revelation shows the importance that Christ attached to the person and the personal character of him who was the object of that revelation. Just, then, as we maintain that there was a fitness when there was an Incarnation of God that miracles should attend it; so, too, when the greatest instrument and agent in propagating a knowledge of that Incarnation was to be converted, it was natural that a supernatural agency should have been employed. And then, when the devout mind surveys the records of Scripture, how similar we see St. Paul’s conversion to have been to other great conversions. Moses is converted from mere worldly thoughts and pastoral labours on which his soul is bent, and sent back to tasks which he had abandoned for forty years, to the great work of freeing the people of God and leading them to the Land of Promise; and then a vision is granted, where light, a supernatural light, the light of the burning bush, is manifested. Isaiah and Daniel had visions granted to them when a great work was to be done and a great witness had to be borne, and supernatural light and glory played a great part in their cases. {See Exodus 3:1-22 , Isaiah 6:1-13 , and Daniel 10:1-21 } When the Lord was born in Bethlehem, and the revelation of the Incarnate God had to be made to humble faith and lowly piety, then the glory of the Lord, a light from out God’s secret temple, shone forth to lead the worshippers to Bethlehem. And so, too, in St. Paul’s case; a world’s spiritual welfare was at stake, a crisis in the world’s spiritual history, a great turning-point in the Divine plan of salvation had arrived, and it was most fitting that the veil which shrouds the unseen from mortal gaze should be drawn back for a moment, and that not Saul alone but his attendants should stand astonished at the glory of the light above the brightness of the sun which accompanied Christ’s manifestation. Then, again, we have the voice that was heard. Difficulties have been also raised in this direction. In the ninth chapter St. Luke states that the attendant escort "heard a voice"; in the twenty-second chapter St. Paul states "they that were with me beheld indeed the light, but they beard not the voice of Him that spake to me." This inconsistency is, however, a mere surface one. Just as it was in the case of our Lord Himself reported in John 12:28-29 , where the multitude heard a voice but understood not its meaning, some saying that it thundered, others that an angel had spoken, while Christ alone understood and interpreted it; so it was in St. Paul’s case; the escort heard a noise, but the Apostle alone understood the sounds, and for him alone they formed articulate words, by him alone was heard the voice of Him that spake, And the cause of this is explained by St. Paul himself in Acts 26:14 , where he tells King Agrippa that the voice spake to him in the Hebrew tongue, the ancient Hebrew that is, which St. Paul as a learned rabbinical scholar could understand, but which conveyed no meaning to the members of the temple-police, the servants, and constables of the Sanhedrin who accompanied him. Many other questions have here been raised and difficulties without end propounded, because we are dealing with a region of man’s nature and of God’s domain, wherewith we have but little acquaintance and to which the laws of ordinary philosophy do not apply. Was the voice which Paul heard, was the vision of Christ granted to him, subjective or objective? is, for instance, one of such idle queries. We know, indeed, that these terms, subjective and objective, have a meaning for ordinary life. Subjective in such a connection means that which has its origin, its rise, its existence wholly within man’s soul; objective that which comes from without and has its origin outside man’s nature. Objective, doubtless, St. Paul’s revelation was in this sense. His revelation must have come from outside, or else how do we account for the conversion of the persecuting Sanhedrist, and that in a moment? He had withstood every other influence, and now he yields himself in a moment the lifelong willing captive of Christ when no human voice or argument or presence is near. But then, if asked, how did he gee Christ when he was blinded with the heavenly glory? how did he speak to Christ when even the escort stood speechless? we confess then that we are landed in a region of which we are totally ignorant and are merely striving to intrude into the things unseen. But who is there that will now assert that the human eye is the only organ by which man can see? that the human tongue is the only organ by which the spirit can converse? The investigations of modern psychology have taught men to be somewhat more modest than they were a generation or two ago, when man in his conceit thought that he had gained the very utmost limits of science and of knowledge. These investigations have led men to realise that there are vast tracts of an unknown country, man’s spiritual and mental nature, yet to be explored, and even then there must always remain regions where no human student can ever venture and whence no traveller can ever return to tell the tale. But all these regions are subject to God’s absolute sway, and vain will be our efforts to determine the methods of His actions in a sphere of which we are well-nigh completely ignorant. For the Christian it will be sufficient to accept on the testimony of St. Paul, confirmed by Ananias, his earliest Christian teacher, that Jesus Christ was seen by him, and that a voice was heard for the first time in the silence Of his soul which never ceased to speak until the things of time and sense were exchanged for the full fruition of Christ’s glorious presence. And then, lastly, we have the conversation held with the trembling penitent. St. Luke’s account of it in the ninth chapter is much briefer than St. Paul’s own fuller statement in the twenty-sixth chapter, and much of it will most naturally come under our notice at a subsequent period. Here, however, we note the expressive fact that the very name by which the future apostle was addressed by the Lord was Hebrew: "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me." It is a point that our English translation cannot bring out, no matter how accurate. In the narrative, hitherto the name used has been the Greek form, and he has been regularly called ?????? . But now the Lord appeals to the very foundations of his religious life, and throws him back upon the thought and manifestation of God as revealed of old time to His greatest leader and champion under the old covenant, to Moses in the bush; and so Christ uses not his Greek name but the Hebrew, ?????, ????? . Then we have St. Paul’s query, "Who art Thou, Lord?" coupled with our Lord’s reply, "I am Jesus whom thou persecutest," or, as St. Paul himself puts it in Acts 22:8 , "I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest." Ancient expositors have Well noted the import of this language. Saul asks who is speaking to him, and the answer is not, The Eternal Word who is from everlasting, the Son of the Infinite One who ruleth in the heavens. Saul would have acknowledged at once that his efforts were not aimed at Him. But the speaker cuts right across the line of Saul’s prejudices and feelings, for He says, "I am Jesus of Nazareth," whom you hate so intensely and against whom all your efforts are aimed, emphasising those points against which his Pharisaic prejudices must have most of all revolted. As an ancient English commentator who lived more than a thousand years ago, treating of this passage, remarks with profound spiritual insight, Saul is called in these words to view the depths of Christ’s humiliation that he may lay aside the scales of his own spiritual pride. And then finally we have Christ identifying Himself with His people, and echoing for us from heaven the language and teaching He had used upon earth. "I am Jesus of N