"Now it happened, as I journeyed and came near Damascus at about noon, suddenly a great light from heaven shone around me. And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?' So I answered, 'Who are You, Lord?' And He said to me, 'I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.' "And those who were with me indeed saw the light and were afraid, but they did not hear the voice of Him who spoke to me. So I said, 'What shall I do, Lord?' And the Lord said to me, 'Arise and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all things which are appointed for you to do.' And since I could not see for the glory of that light, being led by the hand of those who were with me, I came into Damascus. Acts 22:6-11

Paul (Saul when the encounter with Jesus took place) asked two questions. The first was “Who are You, Lord?” The Lord’s answer was clear and concise, “I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.” Jesus identified Himself in no uncertain terms, and He indicted Paul on the spot for the sin of persecuting the Lord’s people, which is tantamount to persecuting the Lord Himself. Remember what we said about the relationship between the Lord and His people being so intimate that to attack even the least of Jesus’ followers is to attack the Lord Himself!

Paul adds that those with him saw the blinding light but did not hear the voice. Some are bothered that in Acts 9, where Luke first tells of Paul’s conversion, he wrote that Paul’s companions “heard a voice” but saw no one, whereas in Acts 22 Paul said they saw the light but “did not hear the voice.” How do we reconcile these two different accounts? If an explanation is needed, I prefer the explanation that in Acts 9:7, they heard a voice that was indistinct, while in Acts 22 they did not hear the voice of Jesus. It kind of reminds me that when the gospel is preached, all present hear the voice of a preacher, but only the elect hear the voice of Jesus.

But I hasten to add that this difference in the two accounts does nothing to change the fact that Saul had an encounter with Jesus, regardless of what the others present heard or did not her.

Next time, what did Jesus tell Saul to do?