Author: Charlie Garrett

Crossing a river in West Virginia.

Saturday, 25 November 2023

“And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’ Acts 22:7

Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen).

You can also read this commentary, with music, courtesy of our friends at “Discern the Bible” on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).

In the last verse, Paul was approaching Damascus when a gleaming light shone around him. Next, it says, “And I fell to the ground.”

The light overwhelmed him, as happens at other points in Scripture where someone encounters the glory of God. Regardless of how He reveals Himself, it is a natural reaction to beholding His glory. An example of this is found in Peter’s encounter with Jesus –

“But Simon answered and said to Him, ‘Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net.’ ⁶ And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking. ⁷ So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. ⁸ When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!’” Luke 5:5-8

This doesn’t mean that Peter recognized Jesus as God, but he did recognize the miracle as having come from God. Thus, Peter understood that Jesus had been a divinely appointed Messenger of the Lord. The miracle leveled him because he discerned his utterly contemptible nature before such greatness.

Paul is now overwhelmed in a different but comparable way. The glory of the risen Lord was too much for him to bear, and the event, likewise, leveled him. With that having occurred, it next says, “and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul.’”

The Greek Saoul – Saoul is transliterated from the Hebrew name Shaul, or Saul, meaning Asked For. Further, the call is personal, having been repeated twice as so often occurs in Scripture. It is a way of bearing verbal emphasis. Further, it is generally used in a way that demonstrates intimate familiarity. For example –

“So Israel took his journey with all that he had, and came to Beersheba, and offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. ² Then God spoke to Israel in the visions of the night, and said, ‘Jacob, Jacob!’
And he said, “Here I am.”
³ So He said, ‘I am God, the God of your father; do not fear to go down to Egypt, for I will make of you a great nation there. ⁴ I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also surely bring you up again; and Joseph will put his hand on your eyes.’” Genesis 46:1-4

The Lord was emphatically calling Jacob, intimately identifying with him, and demonstrating that He knew what would come to pass. In this, He was reassuring Jacob concerning the future, the events of which were completely within the control of His capable hands.

As for the encounter between Jesus and Saul, the words continue, saying, “why are you persecuting Me?”

The accusation is personal as well – “Why are you persecuting ME?” An attack against believers is an attack against Christ Himself. If the church is “in Christ,” then it is “in” Christ! Of interest is that the noun “voice” is in a different case than in verse 9.

The same is true with Acts 9:4 and Acts 9:7. The reason is certainly to show that the others heard a sound, but it was not speech to them. The Lord was only speaking to Paul.

Life application: In Isaiah 66, it says –

“Thus says the Lord:
‘Heaven is My throne,
And earth is My footstool.
Where is the house that you will build Me?
And where is the place of My rest?
² For all those things My hand has made,
And all those things exist,’
Says the Lord.
‘But on this one will I look:
On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit,
And who trembles at My word.’” Isaiah 66:1, 2

The word of God, meaning the Holy Bible, reveals who God is. It speaks forth His intentions for the people of the world. God says that He looks favorably upon the one who trembles at this word. Does this reflect your state before God?

It is certain that you cannot tremble at a word you don’t read. Nor can you tremble at a word that you read in which you are looking for personal earthly gain. But this is how much of the church treats the word because this is what they have been taught about the word.

You might be looking to get rich, and so you look to the Bible as a talisman to make that happen. There is no trembling and reverent fear in this. There is only the expectation that the Great ATM in the sky will be paying out in the days ahead.

The word of God is supposed to appeal to our souls, convict us of our sins, reveal to us His greatness, demonstrate our need for His mercy and grace, etc. These things are what we should find when we open the word and look into it. Let us consider this as we reflect upon this sacred and precious word.

Glorious Lord God, we stand in awe of Your splendor and majesty. We thank You for the grace and kindness You have shown to us, even in our fallen state. And we thank You that, because of Jesus, we are now reconciled to You for all eternity. Be glorified in our praises to You, O God. Amen.

High school friend, wife, and son who went with me to 8 states.

Friday, 24 November 2023

“Now it happened, as I journeyed and came near Damascus at about noon, suddenly a great light from heaven shone around me.” Acts 22:6

Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen).

You can also read this commentary, with music, courtesy of our friends at “Discern the Bible”on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).

A more literal translation would be, “And it was to me, traveling and approaching Damascus about midday, suddenly from heaven considerable light gleamed around me” (CG).

In the previous verse, Paul told the gathered crowd that he had received letters allowing him to bring in chains to Jerusalem those who followed the Way in Damascus. He continues now, saying, “And it was to me, traveling and approaching Damascus.

Paul notes a few things here that are of interest. The first is that what occurred was as he was approaching Damascus. This means that it occurred outside of the land of Israel. It is not to simply be dismissed because of this though, as some Jewish commentaries attempt to do about such events.

Daniel and Ezekiel had their visions outside of the land. Moses received the law outside of the land. Elijah was taken out of the land when he spoke to the Lord. Etc. Paul is stating this as a fact, and the people were to receive it as such.

Secondly, he next says it was about midday. This was omitted from the account in chapter 9. Paul is giving a first-hand account of the matter. Stating that it was around the middle of the day is then telling the crowd that what occurred was more intense and brighter than even the sun in its fullest moment.

The glory which he beheld eclipsed the splendor of the sun. This is similar to how Jesus is described in Revelation 1:16 –

“He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength.”

As for the word translated as midday, this is the second and last time it is seen in Scripture. The word is mesémbria. It is a compound word coming from mesos, meaning “middle,” and hémera, meaning “day.” Hence, it means “midday.” Of the manifestation, he next says it occurred “suddenly from heaven.”

This was not something that could be attributed to man, such as someone in the distance carrying a mirror that reflected the light. Rather, the direction is from above. It wasn’t there, and then it was suddenly there. Continuing, Paul says, “considerable light gleamed around me.”

The word periastrapto is also used for the second and last time. It comes from peri, around, and astraptó, to flash forth. The word astraptó was used in Luke 24:4 to describe the dazzling garments worn by the two men at Jesus’ tomb. This was more than a temporary flash. Rather, there was a gleaming radiance from heaven that suddenly enveloped Paul.

Life application: Paul was chosen as an apostle and designated to go forth to the Gentiles. He was a hard case in his fight against Christianity, and it took a hard lesson for him to understand just who he was persecuting.

The same is true with many of the people of the world today. But it should not be expected that the Lord is going to suddenly reveal Himself to them. Nor is it wise to listen to people who claim this is how they met the Lord. We now meet the Lord through His completed word.

This is stated explicitly in Scripture. Instead of wasting your time reading books about heavenly visitations and watching videos about people claiming they have seen the Lord, it would be prudent to spend your time reading the Bible and sharing the gospel.

It is incumbent on us to tell the world about Jesus. He is not going to go around His word, popping into people’s heads or offices, to make converts. He has entrusted that sacred duty to the people of His church.

Lord God, what a treasure and a gift Your word is. May we be wise in pursuing it and diligent in sharing it. People need this word to know who Jesus is and what He has done. They need it to understand the gospel. Help us to learn the word and then share it with others. To Your glory, we pray. Amen.

Barn, old, 1 each. West Virgnia.

Thursday, 23 November 2023

“as also the high priest bears me witness, and all the council of the elders, from whom I also received letters to the brethren, and went to Damascus to bring in chains even those who were there to Jerusalem to be punished. Acts 22:5

Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen).

You can also read this commentary, with music, courtesy of our friends at “Discern the Bible” on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).

A more literal rendering would be, “as also the high priest bears me witness, and all the elderhood. From whom also having received letters to the brothers, I went to Damascus even to bring those there being bound to Jerusalem so that they might be punished” (CG).

In the previous verse, Paul noted that he persecuted the Way to the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women. He continues that thought now, saying, “as also the high priest bears me witness.”

Scholars enjoy arguing over which high priest is being referred to. Some are adamant that he’s speaking of the high priest at the time of his conversion. Others say that he is speaking of the high priest at the time he is speaking.

It could be either, but that is not what is important. Having grown up around these people, they would understand his actions and the authority of the position. Such argumentation distracts from the main point, which is the authority of the office. Along with the high priest, he next says, “and all the elderhood.”

His statement that the high priest, as well as all of the council of elders, knew of his actions could so easily be refuted that it had to be true. Some of them may have been standing there at that moment.

As for the term “elderhood,” it is found only in Luke 22:66, here, and 1 Timothy 4:14. In 1 Timothy 4, Paul uses it concerning the elders of the church. It is a noun indicating an elderhood or presbytery. Of these offices in the leadership of Israel, he next says, “From whom also having received letters to the brothers, I went to Damascus.”

From the body of the high priest and the elders, among whom some were still living at the present time, he received his permission to conduct his persecution of the Christians even as far as Damascus.

In his words about the Jews there, he calls them “brothers.” It is an emphatic way of saying that, even now, he identified himself with the Jewish people as brothers. Implied in this is that the faith he pursued in no way removed him from his status as a Jew.

What he did was with the authority and sanction of Israel’s leaders, and it was in accord with the principles of his Jewish brethren where he traveled. This was specifically, “even to bring those there being bound to Jerusalem.”

One can see that Paul was operating under a greater plan of ending the Way. Those in other locations who believed were bound. Paul went to retrieve them and bring them to the seat of power and authority in Jerusalem “so that they might be punished.”

The word he uses, timóreó, is found only here and in a verse where he again discusses this persecution against the saints, Acts 26:11. Its literal meaning is to assign due retribution. Paul was avenging himself upon the church, and he was working for the elders who would also avenge themselves on it. They believed that the church was committing offenses against their way of life. Thus, suitable atonement through their punishment was necessary.

Life application: Paul never stopped being a Jew when he came to faith in Jesus. However, this does not mean that he had to adhere to everything that he once adhered to. That thinking will be proven completely false in the verses ahead.

Rather than losing his cultural and national identity, he solidified it. As many messianic believers state today, they are now “completed Jews.” They have developed beyond the Law of Moses, having come to the One whom Moses spoke of.

The Law of Moses does not define who the Jewish people are. Their relationship with the Lord, in the context that applies at a given time within His redemptive plans, is what defines them as a people. As the law was fulfilled by Christ, it is by faith in Him alone that defines them as His people. This is explicitly stated in Romans 9-11.

Without national salvation through Messiah, Israel is not in a right standing with the Lord. Pray that they will seek Him out while He may be found. The end times are coming upon the world, and Israel will be here, enduring through that terrible trial because of their rejection of Christ.

The good news, however, is that they shall survive as a people and enter into the millennium with Christ as their Head. God is ever faithful to His faithless people.

Lord God may Your guiding hand be upon Israel during their time of trial and trouble in the years ahead. Open hearts and minds to the truth of who Jesus is before that day comes. And, Lord, we long for the day when You will be glorified through them when they, as Your people once again, hail the exalted name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

West Virginia sunset.

Wednesday, 22 November 2023

“I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women, Acts 22:4

Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen).

You can also read this commentary, with music, courtesy of our friends at “Discern the Bible” on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).

The words are more literally rendered, “Who persecuted this Way until death, binding and betraying to prisons both men and women” (CG).

In the previous verse, Paul refuted the accusations levied against him to the crowd standing before him, noting that he was zealous toward God as all of them were. Continuing now, he says, “Who persecuted this Way.”

Instead of saying, “I persecuted,” he uses a relative pronoun, referring to his past self in a way that highlights his particular role. In essence, “I am Paul, he who did these things.” Adding in the words “this Way” is a way of revealing that the man standing before them was the same man. It was a part of who he was at the time. He was an enemy of the Way.”

The term Way is the early Christian formula that hearkens back to the words of Jesus –

“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” John 14:6

By this time, it was an understood term used by believers that others also seemed to be aware of. And more, it could have been a term of derision used by non-believers. Like messianic believers today, they may have been accepted in society but considered on its fringe. This is true of any strange sect.

No matter what, the use of the words “this Way” identifies something that the people were aware of. As for his connection to persecuting the Way in his previous life, it was “until death.”

The word translated as “until” is achri. It doesn’t necessarily mean that he participated in their deaths but that his actions brought the people to this point. Acts 26 gives more detail on this –

“Indeed, I myself thought I must do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. ¹⁰ This I also did in Jerusalem, and many of the saints I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests; and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. ¹¹ And I punished them often in every synagogue and compelled them to blaspheme; and being exceedingly enraged against them, I persecuted them even to foreign cities.” Acts 26:9-11

Of this treatment, Paul openly acknowledges his previous conduct, saying, “binding and betraying to prisons.”

This was something already acknowledged in Acts 9, where Paul actively went out searching for those he wanted to be brought before the rulers for trial –

“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.” Acts 9:1, 2

He was given full authority to not only seize the people but to bind them and bring them in. But his words go further by using the word paradidómi, translated as “betraying.” It signifies close, personal involvement. Translating it as betray instead of deliver is because these were fellow countrymen. There had to be a sense of purposeful betrayal, whether right or wrong. Jesus uses the word often. In Matthew 26:46, He says of Judas –

“Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand.”

As for the word “prisons,” it is in the plural, even though not all translations rightly reflect this. It is a note to the people that he didn’t just have them arrested around his area but that he actively went out looking for people to be imprisoned. This included “both men and women.”

The man of the house was considered the responsible party for the conduct of the house. However, Paul held women personally accountable for their conduct and arrested them along with the men. He was passionate that anyone associated with the Way was to be rounded up, bound, and taken to prison. He felt there was no room for any such person within the Jewish society.

Life application: Acts 9, where Paul was converted, was a long time ago in the ongoing narrative. It had been many years, and Paul had never lost his zeal to speak out concerning the calling to which he had been called.

It is something that we should reflect on. It is not possible to retain the same level of emotion as we felt when we first came to love someone. But that doesn’t mean we cannot have the same level of commitment to them. Our love evolves and develops in new directions as we learn, grow, and interact. But our commitment can and should remain the same or even stronger.

There should never be a time that one is less committed to his marriage, being a parent, being a follower of Jesus, etc. And yet, though we may stay committed in some of these aspects, we may not be so devoted in others. Let us take time to evaluate how truly committed we are to those things we have a responsibility for.

Are we just as committed to our job as the day we started? Are we as committed to reading the Bible as we used to be? What about church attendance? Have we let that wane? Search out your priorities and refocus if need be.

You may have come to dislike your job, but you should be just as committed to it today as you were when things were going smoothly. Your pay reflects a standard that you should be upholding. Consider and redirect! Be that committed soul that you should be in those areas of life that are a part of who you are.

Heavenly Father, we may have let parts of our lives slacken in commitment. In doing this, it is ultimately a reflection on You because we are called by Your name because we are in Christ. Help us to consider this and to redirect ourselves to be fully committed to those things we are a part of in life. To Your glory, we pray. Amen.

Evening in West Virginia.

Tuesday, 21 November 2023

“I am indeed a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, taught according to the strictness of our fathers’ law, and was zealous toward God as you all are today. Acts 22:3

Note: You can listen to today’s commentary courtesy of our friends at “Bible in Ten” podcast. (Click Here to listen).

You can also read this commentary, with music, courtesy of our friends at “Discern the Bible” on YouTube. (Click Here to listen), or at Rumble (Click Here to listen).

More precisely, the Greek reads, “I am indeed a man, a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia and brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, instructed according to the scrupulousness of the patriarchal law; being a zealot for God, as all you are this day” (CG).

In the previous verse, Luke prepared us for Paul’s words of defense before the people of Israel. He now begins those words, saying, “I am indeed a man, a Jew.”

These words of Paul, spoken in his defense, will answer everything that he was accused of in Acts 21:28. He begins with the fact that he is a man, a Jew. Thus, he has identified himself as one who was legally allowed to be in the temple area, and specifically the area of the temple in which he was accosted. There is the Court of the Gentiles, the Court of the Women, and then it proceeded to where only men could go. From there, he next says, “born in Tarsus of Cilicia.”

Mentioning that he was born in Tarsus might seem unnecessary, but he is speaking to them in their language. Unlike many of those who came and didn’t speak the local dialect (as is seen in Acts 2), Paul did. Secondly, noting his place of birth sets the stage for his next words, “and brought up in this city.”

He was brought up in Jerusalem. He was fully aware of the culture and customs of the city. He would have frequently been to the temple, interacted with the people, and was fully aware of what was allowed and what was not.

This is important because it was in Acts 21:29 where it was supposed that he had brought Trophimus the Ephesian into the city. Anyone raised in Jerusalem would know that this was not acceptable. He then notes that his rearing was “at the feet of Gamaliel.”

This showed that not only was he a Jew, but that even from a very young age, he was brought up to live as an observant Jew in the home country and even in the home capital where Gamaliel instructed. And more, being brought up under him – one of the greatest teachers in their history – meant that Paul probably came there at 12 after becoming a “Son of the Covenant.” To be brought up “at the feet” of a rabbi as was the custom of observant families.

Sitting at the feet of a rabbi has a literal meaning. The rabbis sat in a highchair, and their students sat on the ground at their feet. In this honorable study, he next says he was “instructed according to the scrupulousness of the patriarchal law.”

The word translated as scrupulousness is found only here in Scripture, akribeia. It is a noun that gives the sense of exactly adhering to something. There is precise attention and focus.

In other words, he perfectly attended to the law which had been passed down from the fathers, even since it was received by Moses at Sinai. The adjective form of the word is used again in Acts 26:5.

As for the word translated as patriarchal, it is an adjective meaning hereditary, but in the masculine sense. It is that which is received from one’s fathers. Some translations say, “of our fathers,” “father’s law,” “ancestral law,” “patristic law,” etc. However, for an exact match, the word “patriarchal” gives the best sense. He next says, “being a zealot for God, as all you are this day.”

As he continues, he indicates that this strict upbringing made him just as zealous towards God as they were. It is a subtle compliment to them that they at least thought they were acting on behalf of God’s honor through their actions.

As he says this in the present tense, translating it as “was” as in the KJV and NKJV is a poor rendering. It makes it sound like his zealousness was in the past and not necessarily continuing at this time. Paul’s use of the present tense indicates that he is just as zealous to what God had presented now as he was in the past.

How could he say this if he was associating with Gentiles? It is because Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law of Moses. In following Jesus, Paul was actually more observant to Moses than any Jew who thought he was pleasing to God by observing the law without Jesus.

Life application: One cannot say he is a follower of Moses while rejecting Jesus. It is impossible because Moses wrote about Jesus (John 5:46). One who accepts the words of Moses will be willing to come to Jesus (John 5:40).

Moses wrote of the Prophet to come. Jesus is that Prophet. This Prophet would be like Moses. As Moses introduced the covenant at Sinai, Jesus would introduce the New Covenant in Jerusalem. This New Covenant was prophesied during the time of Moses (Jeremiah 31). Therefore, Moses (meaning the Law of Moses) anticipated the end of the law and the introduction of something new.

If one fails to come to Jesus through His New Covenant, he has failed to be obedient to Moses, and his condemnation remains. Only in coming to Christ can one truly be observant of the Law of Moses.

Paul does not say to the people that they are being obedient to the law. Rather, he says that they are zealous toward God. One can be zealous toward God in Islam. It does not mean that he is right with God. One can be zealous toward God in Judaism and not be right with Him. Paul did not mislead the people, and his words will continue to lead them to the truth of who Jesus is.

It will then be their choice to either receive or reject his words. The same is true with each of us today. Choose wisely. Choose Jesus.

Lord God, we thank You for Jesus who has come, fulfilled the Law of Moses, and who has set it aside so that we can worship You in spirit and in truth. Without Him, we are all goners. But in Christ, we are brought near to You for all eternity. Thank You, O God, for Jesus Christ our Lord! Amen.