1 Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. 3 As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. 4 Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” 5 And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” 6 So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” 7 And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one. 8 Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. 9 And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank.
Vs. 1-2 1 Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.
Now during this time of great evangelistic activity and prosperity in reaching people from every language and culture for Christ, there was also a counter zeal taking place. And so once again we hear of the person Saul, who was the young prodigy from the Sanhedrin council, who bore witness too and cast his vote for the death of Stephen, the churches fist martyr (Acts 6:8-7:60). It seems then that this Saul had now grown not only in years, but also in his own zeal for seeking out those Jews who were now turning to the Lord Jesus Christ. For the Scripture says that Saul was at that time now breathing out threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord (vs. 1), thus from a silent witness at the martyrdom death of Stephen as a young man, to now in his maturity an emboldened and hate filled zealous man whose only focus had become to seek to destroy the faith that he himself thought was a threat to his own. And so, Saul wanting to stop the spread of it by any means possible, now went to the high priest and requested letters from him that would authorize him to seize and arrest and bring back to Jerusalem for trial any who were of the Way, (i.e. John 14:6), that is any and all men and woman who were following and professing Jesus Christ as their Lord. This then was some of the darkest days of the early church, especially for Jewish believers, for they were then bearing the brunt of the persecution that had arisen against the Way.
Vs. 3-6 3 As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. 4 Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” 5 And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” 6 So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”
Though Saul’s zeal was now leading him onto Damascus to arrest the believers there, yet the Lord had other plans for Him. And so it was that as he journeyed that suddenly a light shone around him from heaven, and such was it’s intensity (Acts 26:12-18, vs. 13) that Saul immediately fell to the ground where he heard a voice speaking to him in the Hebrew language saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” vs. 4 Now when Saul heard the voice from heaven he immediately asked, “Who are You, Lord?” Now in Saul’s question there is an honest revelation about himself at that time. For up until then Saul did not know the Lord of heaven; though he knew the O.T. Scriptures and all the teachings of the Pharisees and their rabbis, yet he himself just like them did not know the Lord. Therefore, in answering him the Lord now declares Himself to him saying, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” (vs. 5) Now what a stunning revelation that must have been for Saul to hear that directly from Him, and in such a powerful way! For truly at that time in following the zeal and hatred of his own elders in seeking to destroy this “new sect”, Saul thought he was serving the Lord by binding believers in chains and putting them in prison wherever he found them. And so now Saul is shaken to the core of his very being when the Lord of heaven in revealing Himself to him declares that He is Jesus the Very One whom Saul thought Crucified and dead and yet here He is speaking to him from heaven telling him that what he has been doing was not serving Him, but only persecuting Him! For to seek to destroy or harm or unsettle anyone who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ is only to make war with Him! Therefore, the Lord Jesus also says to Saul, “…it is hard for you to kick against the goads.”
Vs. 3-6 Now goads are pointed barbs on wooden rods that were used to make stubborn animals move, thus Jesus gives Saul (and us) a wonderful picture of Saul’s own futile efforts in seeking to oppose Him and his people. For to “kick against the goads” is only to continue to harm and frustrate oneself in opposing the Lord and His people. Therefore, Saul now trembling and astonished said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” (vs. 6). Saul then having his own religious zealous pride broken by the Omnipresence of the Lord appearing and speaking to him will now find a new direction for his life, a direction that will make him a true servant of the Lord Jesus Christ! This then is how the once zealous but terribly misguided Saul was called by God to become the apostle Paul for Christ!
Vs. 7 “And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one.”
Now those men who traveled with Saul were not chosen by God to see the Glorified Lord Jesus Christ only Saul was, though they themselves heard the voice speaking to Saul from heaven.
Vs. 8-9 “Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. 9 And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank.”
Now as Saul arose from the ground, he found that after seeing the Lord that he was now blinded. And so those with him had to lead him by the hand and they brought him into Damascus, Saul’s destination. Now Saul was there three days and nights without sight, during which time he neither ate nor drank, for he himself had now gone into deep fasting and prayer.
Scripture Quotations
New King James (1982):Thomas Nelson.
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