62: Saul meets Jesus – Acts 9:1-31

9Meanwhile Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest ² and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any who belonged to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.
³ Now as he was going along and approaching Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. ⁴ He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” ⁵ He asked, “Who are you, Lord?” The reply came, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. ⁶ But get up and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.” ⁷ The men who were traveling with him stood speechless because they heard the voice but saw no one. ⁸ Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. ⁹ For three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank. 

¹⁰ Now there was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” He answered, “Here I am, Lord.” ¹¹ The Lord said to him, “Get up and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul. At this moment he is praying, ¹² and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.” ¹³ But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints in Jerusalem; ¹⁴ and here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who invoke your name.” ¹⁵ But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is an instrument whom I have chosen to bring my name before Gentiles and kings and before the people of Israel; ¹⁶ I myself will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.” ¹⁷ So Ananias went and entered the house. He laid his hands on Saul and said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on your way here, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” ¹⁸ And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and his sight was restored. Then he got up and was baptized,
¹⁹ and after taking some food, he regained his strength.

For several days he was with the disciples in Damascus, ²⁰ and immediately he began to proclaim Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.” ²¹ All who heard him were amazed and said, “Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem among those who invoked this name? And has he not come here for the purpose of bringing them bound before the chief priests?” ²² Saul became increasingly more powerful and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Messiah. 

²³ After some time had passed, the Jews plotted to kill him, ²⁴ but their plot became known to Saul. They were watching the gates day and night so that they might kill him; ²⁵ but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a basket. 

²⁶ When he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples; and they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple. ²⁷ But Barnabas took him, brought him to the apostles, and described for them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had spoken boldly in the name of Jesus.
²⁸ So he went in and out among them in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. ²⁹ He spoke and argued with the Hellenists; but they were attempting to kill him.
³⁰ When the believers learned of it, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus. 

³¹ Meanwhile the church throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and was built up. Living in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers. NRSV

Get into the Word:

1. What is Saul doing as the story opens? Why does Saul want to go to Damascus? What happens to him during the trip? How does Saul respond? How do the people with him react? How might you have reacted?

2. What happens to Saul next? Why do you think he was blind and didn’t eat for three days?

3. Who does God choose to go to Saul? What is his initial reaction? Why is he reluctant? How does God deal with this situation? What rationale does God give for selecting Saul?

4. What does Ananias do? What happens to Saul as a result? How does Saul respond to this development?

5. How long does Saul wait to put his zeal to work for Christ? What did he do? How did the Jews in Damascus react to the “new” Saul? Do you think Saul was aware of the effect he was having on his former allies?

6. How does Saul avoid the Jews who want to kill him? Where does he go after he escapes? How do the believers in Jerusalem respond to him? How do you think you would have felt? Who intercedes for Saul? How did he help Saul gain acceptance by the church leaders?

Get Personal

There is a difference between “knowing about Jesus” and actually “knowing him.” How has Jesus revealed himself to you? How has this affected your walk with him?

9:1. Saul — was born in Tarsus, the capital city of Cilicia in Asia Minor. His father was a Roman citizen and his mother was Jewish. Just as he had a Jewish and Roman heritage (he was a member of the tribe of Benjamin), he had Jewish (Saul) and Roman (Paul) names. He studied under Gamaliel, the most respected rabbi of his time and his Jewish heritage was clearly more important to him. 
9:2. Damascus — continues as the capital of Syria. In fact, it is credited with being the oldest continually-inhabited city in the world, and is mentioned in connection with Abraham’s journey to Canaan. Because of its location at the junction of major trade routes it was a cosmopolitan city then and now.
Letters — Saul wanted letters of extradition so he could force the Christians in Damascus to renounce their faith or return to Jerusalem for trial.
The Way — an early name for Christianity.

9:9. Three days — it is not uncommon that a person who experiences a traumatic shock also experiences temporary physiological effects, such as loss of sight or hearing. Saul’s meeting with Jesus reversed every aspect of his life prior to that moment.
9:17. Hands — here is another instance of a person’s touch being involved with receiving the Holy Spirit. 
9:25. Opening — probably a window in a room adjacent to the city wall. Saul is not the first Biblical hero to leave a city in this fashion: Then she let [Joshua and Caleb] down by a rope through the window, for her house was on the outer side of the city wall, [Josh 2:15]; and, So Michal let David down through the window, and he fled and escaped, [1 Sam 19:12].
9:27. Barnabas — now a leader in the Jerusalem church [Acts 4:36-37], he is able to pave the way for Saul to join with the believers in Jerusalem.