Which of these three different accounts of Paul’s Damascus Road experience is true?



Account One: Acts 9:3-17: "…[Saul] was approaching Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, `Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?'…The men who were traveling with him stood speechless because they heard the voice but saw no one. 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. For three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank.…there was a…disciple at Damascus named Ananias…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."


Account Two: Acts 22:6-21: "While I was…approaching Damascus…a great light from heaven suddenly shone about me. I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying…Saul,Saul, why are you persecuting me?...those who were with me saw the light but did not hear the voice…I could not see because of the brightness of the light…those with me…led me to Damascus…Ananias, who was a devout man according to the law and well spoken of by all the Jews living there…said…get up, be baptized, and have your sins washed away, calling on his name."


Account Three: Acts 26:12-18: "…I was traveling to Damascus…I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining around me and my companions. When we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, `Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It hurts you to kick against the goads…the Lord answered, `I am Jesus whom you are persecuting…get up and stand on your feet…"


Which account is correct? Saul alone fell to the ground; those with him stood speechless because they heard the voice but saw no one; Saul was without sight for three days; Ananias was a disciple who laid hands on Saul to restore his sight and fill him with the Holy Spirit.


Or, Saul alone fell to the ground; Those with him saw the light but did not hear the voice; No mention of three days without sight or food; Ananias was "a devout man according to the Law and liked by the Jews."


Or, Everyone fell to the ground; the voice spoke in the Hebrew Language; no blindness, no Ananias, no baptism, no restoration of sight, no “filled by Holy Spirit”!


Explanations of these blatant discrepancies in the story would be appreciated.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

DO NOT FORSAKE THE ASSEMBLING OF YOURSELVES TOGETHER! by David Yeubanks

“Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together" (Hebrews 10:25), is a common verse cited by Christians who believe that if you're not attending weekly meetings or plugged in a church denomination that you are somehow out of sync with Scripture and, for all practical purposes, "backsliding". Some refer to the out of church crowd as rebels, or the walking wounded and this verse is often given as the prescription. But is "attending church" really what the author of Hebrews had in mind here? YES THE BIBLE SAY’S NOT TO FORSAKE THE ASSEMBLING TOGETHER? NOTICE IT DOES NOT SAY DO NOT FORSAKE THE "ASSEMBLY" OR CHURCH BUILDING. First of all, it is essential that we understand the meaning of the word "church" as it is used in the Bible. These comments, while being historically and biblically sound, are not meant to suggest that Christians should not meet together, share fellowship, pray or preach the Word of God. If that is the conclusion
Read more

A Bloggers Take on "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" and "Hell".

Image
HAPPY DADS AND THE HORRORS OF HELL by Jeff Turner Jonathan Edwards once said the following words: “Reprobate infants are vipers of vengeance, which Jehovah will hold over hell, in the tongs of his wrath, till they turn and spit venom in his face!” Elsewhere, Edwards asked the question: “Can the believing father in Heaven be happy with his unbelieving children in Hell?” Now, a bit of clarification: Edwards is not referring to God when he speaks of the “believing father in Heaven”. Rather, he is speaking an earthly father who enters Heaven, while His children are sentenced to an eternity in Hell. One would assume that Edwards’ answer to this question would be something akin to, “Nay! And a thousand times nay!”. Unfortunately, his answer was as follows: “…it [the sight of his children in Hell] will increase rather than diminish his bliss.” To be honest with you, I’m not sure if I’ve ever read more demonic, and putrid words in all of my life. I have a level of respec
Read more

The Abusive Tool of Fear-Mongering.

Image
  Fear mongering is an abusive tool used by religion which cripples and limits one's spiritual growth to mature to the full stature of Christ. The fear mongering propaganda that is used as a means to get people saved speaks volumes about the quality of love used to try and scare people to become Christ followers. The scriptures declare that is is the “goodness of God that leads to repentance.” Another characteristic of  fear mongering believers is that they believe that natural disasters are God’s doing and are warnings or punishment for the sin of sinning people. Their sin consciousnesses has blurred their God consciousnesses to where they see God as the big bad wolf waiting to pounce on somebody for sinning. Natural disasters have happened at different times throughout history. Theses events have been used by money hungry fear-mongers to write books of impending doom, passed of as the gospel by using out-of-context scripture verses to validate the acceptance and sale of t
Read more