Acts 22:6-16 continues Paul’s testimony. He relays how the resurrected Jesus appeared to him on the road to Damascus, blinding him and calling him to stop his persecution. In Damascus, a believer named Ananias healed Paul’s vision, baptized him, and told him that God had chosen Paul to preach the gospel.
In Acts 22:6-16Acts 22:6-16 commentary, commentary Paul tells how Jesus appeared to him on the road to Damascus.
In the previous section, Roman soldiers had arrested Paul to prevent a mob of anti-gospel Jews from beating him to death. But as the Romans escorted Paul to their barracks, he requested the chance to speak to the mob. The Roman commander allowed this, and Paul began revealing his full history to the murderous crowd below him. He told them how he is a Jew who grew up in Jerusalem as a disciple of the well-respected Pharisee, Gamaliel. He learned the Jewish law, traditions, and customs, and persecuted those who believed in Jesus because he was zealous for God, just as the crowd that hates him is.
Paul explained how years ago he was the driving force of persecution against followers of the Way of Jesus. He arrested believers and put them in prison. He wanted to snuff out the Way completely. The high priest and the elder council could vouch for what Paul claimed, since some on the council would probably have been there decades earlier when this happened. The council had given Paul jurisdiction to arrest believers who had fled as far as Damascus. Paul began his journey to Damascus to arrest any believers hiding there, to bring them back to Jerusalem to be punished.
On this journey, Paul’s life changes forever. He had told his testimony many times to new believers (Galatians 1:11-12Galatians 1:11-12 commentary, commentary1 Corinthians 15:8-91 Corinthians 15:8-9 commentary, commentaryPhilippians 3:4-7Philippians 3:4-7 commentary), but here in Acts 22Acts 22 commentary he had the opportunity to share this amazing turnabout to a crowd of people with the same anger and unbelief he once had, as though speaking to a multiplicity of his past self.
On the way to Damascus, eager to arrest the believers there, Paul is stopped in his tracks by the Son of God: But it happened that as I was on my way, approaching Damascus about noontime, a very bright light suddenly flashed from heaven all around me (v. 6).
This event happened while he was on his way to Damascus, approaching the Syrian city, soon to arrive there and begin the arrests. It was about noontime, in the middle of the day, when Jesus appears to Paul. Paul perceives it as a very bright light; the light is instant; it suddenly flashed from heaven (the sky) all around me. Everywhere Paul looked, all he could see was this very bright light from above, flooding his surroundings with its illumination. During a later testimony, Paul will describe this light as being “brighter than the sun” (Acts 26:13Acts 26:13 commentary).
Paul is cowed and afraid. All he can see is this light which is brighter than the sun. The sun is already dangerously bright. On a normal cloudless day, the sun causes most people to squint, and can blind anyone who stares into it directly for too long. But this supernatural light is even brighter than the sun and cannot be looked away from. It is everywhere. Overwhelmed, Paul falls down in submission,
and I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’ (v. 7)
After Paul fell to the ground in a daze from the extreme light, he heard a voice. The voice of Jesus confronts him. Jesus repeats the Hebrew version of Paul’s name twice, Saul, Saul, and asks him, why are you persecuting me?
Paul asks for the identity of the voice coming from the light. At this point, he seems to know that something supernatural was happening,
And I answered, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ (v. 8).
The Son of God reveals Himself to Paul: And He said to me, ‘I am Jesus the Nazarene, whom you are persecuting’ (v. 8).
Jesus identifies Himself by the town where He grew up in His earthly life, in Nazareth, making Him a Nazarene. It was a fulfillment of prophecy that the Messiah would come from a lowly, unimportant place with an unimpressive appearance and status (Matthew 2:23Matthew 2:23 commentary, commentaryIsaiah 53:2Isaiah 53:2 commentary). Jesus was often associated with Nazareth, even after His ascension (John 19:19John 19:19 commentary, commentaryMark 10:47Mark 10:47 commentary, commentaryLuke 4:34Luke 4:34 commentary, commentaryActs 2:22Acts 2:22 commentary).
In part, it helped specify exactly which Jesus was being referenced. Jesus (“Yeshua,” “Joshua”) was a common name in the first century. Peter healed a lame man in the name of Jesus the Nazarene (Acts 3:6Acts 3:6 commentary). There were men who were brought in to lie about Stephen the Deacon at his trial who referred to “this Nazarene, Jesus” (Acts 6:14Acts 6:14 commentary). At Paul’s trial in Acts 24Acts 24 commentary, commentary the opposing counsel will brand him “a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes,” indicating that “the Nazarenes” was another commonly known label for believers in Jesus, along with “Christians” (Acts 11:26Acts 11:26 commentary) and followers of “the Way” (Acts 9:2Acts 9:2 commentary, 19:919:9 commentary).
So, in answer to Paul’s question, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ (v. 8), Jesus referenced Himself by a name He was commonly called, that He was Jesus the Nazarene. To further ensure Paul understood who was speaking to him, Jesus said that He was the one whom Paul was persecuting (v. 8).
Paul, in his self-delusion and hatred, believed himself to be justly persecuting a sect of blasphemers who worshiped their dead rabbi. Now, blinded by a light brighter than the sun, Paul was confronted by Jesus the Nazarene. The stories told by His followers were true, then. This Jesus had not stayed dead. He was alive. He was the Son of God, stopping Paul in his tracks with power and glory. It was the Son of God whom Paul was persecuting, in persecuting His followers.
Paul, in retelling this event, makes clear that this confrontation was for him alone. There were others traveling with Paul to Damascus, possibly temple guards to act as muscle to arrest believers in Jesus, but these others did not hear Jesus’s words. Yet, the Son of God’s presence was not hidden from them entirely, for they too saw the overwhelming light:
And those who were with me saw the light, to be sure, but did not understand the voice of the One who was speaking to me (v. 9).
The account in Acts 9Acts 9 commentary describes the other men as being speechless as well as “hearing the voice but seeing no one” (Acts 9:7Acts 9:7 commentary). They could only perceive what was happening in part. They saw the light, to be sure. It seems anyone there on the road that day would have seen the light, as it came down from heaven brighter than the sun. And they heard the sound of Jesus’s voice to some extent, but did not understand the words of the One who was speaking to Paul. It is not unlike how, during Jesus’s ministry, God spoke, but some in the crowd thought they heard thunder or the voice of an angel (John 12:29John 12:29 commentary). Whatever audible voice or sound these men heard, they could not comprehend what was being said.
Paul’s response is telling. There is already the tone of repentance in how he reacts, the swift changing of his mind of what he thought he knew, now knowing that Jesus is alive, powerful, and communicating through supernatural means. He does not argue, or curse Jesus, or convince himself he is experiencing heat stroke or a mental break. Paul saw and heard the truth on the Road to Damascus. Now that he knows the identity of the One who was speaking to him, he asks for Jesus to tell him what to do. He wants to know what Jesus wants from him:
And I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’
And the Lord said to me, ‘Get up and go on into Damascus, and there you will be told of all that has been appointed for you to do’ (v. 10).
Jesus’s answer is for Paul to go into Damascus as he had intended, and to wait for further instruction. In his testimony before King Agrippa in Acts 26Acts 26 commentary, commentary Paul appears to summarize this experience, abridging it slightly, where Jesus reveals to Paul what he has been appointed to do. In that same testimony, Paul leaves out that he was struck blind, as well as his healing and conversation with Ananias.
But in the longer account here and in Acts 9Acts 9 commentary, commentary Jesus gives Paul a command to obey by faith, to Get up and go on into Damascus, blind and waiting, where at some point further instructions would reach him. Jesus does not promise to heal Paul’s blindness, nor does He give him a timeframe of when he will learn more. Paul is simply commanded to wait. All he knew was that he has been appointed by the Lord Jesus for some purpose.
Paul explains that the light of Jesus had blinded him:
But since I could not see because of the brightness of that light, I was led by the hand by those who were with me and came into Damascus (v. 11).
Jesus’s appearance to Paul had certainly been real, since Paul was genuinely blinded afterward because of the brightness of that light, and specially for Paul’s benefit, since Paul’s traveling companions were not blinded. It was Paul whom Jesus wanted to confront, convert, and appoint. The other men had seen the light too, but it did not destroy their vision. They heard the voice of Jesus, but did not understand the words. Instead, they were obligated to lead Paul by the hand. Blinded and helpless, Paul came into Damascus to wait for what would happen next.
Paul introduces the first believer who showed him mercy, Ananias, who was prompted by Jesus to heal Paul and tell him what Jesus had appointed him to do (Acts 9:10-16Acts 9:10-16 commentary):
A certain Ananias, a man who was devout by the standard of the Law, and well spoken of by all the Jews who lived there (v. 12).
It is important to remember that Paul’s audience here in Acts 22Acts 22 commentary is a mob of hostile Jewish men who believe that Paul “preaches to all men everywhere against [the Jewish] people and the Law and [the temple]” (Acts 21:28Acts 21:28 commentary).
So, Paul makes a point that this certain Ananias in Damascus was a man who was devout by the standard of the Law. Ananias followed the Law; he was devout (devoted to, loyal), obedient to God’s commandments. This was not Paul’s private opinion of Ananias; everyone knew that Ananias lived by the standard of the Law. His reputation was sterling among the Jewish community in Damascus. Ananias was well spoken of by all the Jews who lived there because they saw how devout a man he was.
But Ananias was also a believer in Christ. He was both devout by the standard of the Law, well respected and well spoken of by all the Jews in his city, and yet he also believed that Jesus the Nazarene was the Messiah. Paul highlights this detail perhaps to show the crowd that one can be zealous for the Law and believe in Jesus Christ, further exhibiting that Paul himself was not against the Jewish people or the Law or the temple.
This certain Ananias who upheld the Law and was respected by the Jewish community came to me, Paul explains, and standing near said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight!’ And at that very time I looked up at him (v. 13).
Ananias, through God’s power, heals Paul of his blindness. He calls him Brother Saul, a term of familial closeness, which was incredible because up until that day, Saul/Paul had arrested believers in Jesus and voted for their deaths. Paul was no Brother of Ananias’s based on his actions. But Ananias accepts Paul as a Brother in obedience to Christ, and simply commands the blindness to go away: receive your sight!
Paul’s sight returned instantly, for at that very time (or hour/moment) Paul looked up and saw Ananias standing near him. The account in Acts 9:17Acts 9:17 commentary reveals that Ananias said that when Paul was healed, he was also “filled with the Holy Spirit.”
Ananias communicates the message Jesus had given him to impart to Paul: And he said, ‘The God of our fathers has appointed you to know His will and to see the Righteous One and to hear an utterance from His mouth” (v. 14).
This is no small job to which Paul is being called. The God of our fathers is the God of Israel, Yahweh, the “I Am” (Exodus 3:14Exodus 3:14 commentary). Paul has been appointed to know God’s will. Part of God’s will for Paul is that he has been appointed to see the Righteous One.
The Righteous One is Jesus Christ (Acts 7:52Acts 7:52 commentary, commentary1 John 2:11 John 2:1 commentary). He was God’s anointed servant who lived a holy life of obedience and was rejected by His people (Acts 3:14Acts 3:14 commentary, commentaryDaniel 9:26Daniel 9:26 commentary). Elsewhere in scripture, the term “the Righteous One,” or “the Righteous Branch” refers to God or His messiah (Isaiah 24:16Isaiah 24:16 commentary, commentaryJeremiah 23:5-6Jeremiah 23:5-6 commentary).
Perhaps the most well-known and most explicit reference to God’s Messiah as “the Righteous One” or “the Righteous Servant” who will bring salvation is in Isaiah 53:11Isaiah 53:11 commentary:
“As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied; By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, As He will bear their iniquities.”
Paul has also been appointed to hear an utterance from the mouth of the Righteous One, Jesus.
Once having seen Jesus and hearing the utterance from His mouth, Paul’s appointed task is to share this utterance with the world:
For you will be a witness for Him to all men of what you have seen and heard (v. 15).
The grammar in this statement indicates that this is a sure thing. Paul will be a witness for Him. This will happen. Paul’s appointment is to be a witness for Jesus to all men, all people groups.
This is in part what has led Paul into so much trouble in his ministry. His calling was to preach to all men, including the Gentiles. And he has been open in teaching Gentile believers that they do not need to follow the Jewish Law, which has caused him endless conflict with competing Jewish “authorities,” some who believe in Jesus, and some who do not (Acts 15:1-2Acts 15:1-2 commentary, 5-115-11 commentary, Galatians 1:6-9Galatians 1:6-9 commentary, 2:3-52:3-5 commentary, 3:1-33:1-3 commentary, 5:1-45:1-4 commentary, Titus 1:10-11Titus 1:10-11 commentary, commentaryRomans 4:9-13Romans 4:9-13 commentary).
Nevertheless, Paul has faithfully carried out that appointment as a witness and has taught all men of what he has seen and heard. He has been on three lengthy mission trips into Cyprus, Galatia, the Roman province of Asia, Greece, and Macedonia. He has planted many churches and led thousands to faith in Jesus. He has performed miracles through God’s power. He has suffered stonings, beatings, imprisonments, and banishments from various synagogues.
This very retelling of his testimony is Paul being a witness for Jesus. He is telling the mob of what he has seen and heard. Paul had this encounter with Christ, and clearly had others, perhaps more than were recorded in scripture (Acts 18:9-10Acts 18:9-10 commentary, commentaryGalatians 1:11-12Galatians 1:11-12 commentary, commentary1 Corinthians 9:11 Corinthians 9:1 commentary, commentary2 Corinthians 12:2-42 Corinthians 12:2-4 commentary).
Ananias, after healing Paul, hurried him to take action:
Now why do you delay? Get up and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on His name (v. 16).
It was as though Ananias was saying, “What are you waiting for? God has given you a job to do. Get going.” Ananias himself likely baptized Paul (Acts 9:18Acts 9:18 commentary). This means Paul was dunked under water by Ananias and raised up out of the water to proclaim that Paul now identified with Christ, he was a believer in Jesus, and was calling on His name for salvation and forgiveness, trusting only in Jesus and nothing else, so that Paul was forgiven his rebellion against God and his murderous campaign against believers in Jesus. Because of Jesus, whom Paul put his trust in, God washed away his sins.
Set to dark mode
Acts 22:6-16 meaning
In Acts 22:6-16Acts 22:6-16 commentary, commentary Paul tells how Jesus appeared to him on the road to Damascus.
In the previous section, Roman soldiers had arrested Paul to prevent a mob of anti-gospel Jews from beating him to death. But as the Romans escorted Paul to their barracks, he requested the chance to speak to the mob. The Roman commander allowed this, and Paul began revealing his full history to the murderous crowd below him. He told them how he is a Jew who grew up in Jerusalem as a disciple of the well-respected Pharisee, Gamaliel. He learned the Jewish law, traditions, and customs, and persecuted those who believed in Jesus because he was zealous for God, just as the crowd that hates him is.
Paul explained how years ago he was the driving force of persecution against followers of the Way of Jesus. He arrested believers and put them in prison. He wanted to snuff out the Way completely. The high priest and the elder council could vouch for what Paul claimed, since some on the council would probably have been there decades earlier when this happened. The council had given Paul jurisdiction to arrest believers who had fled as far as Damascus. Paul began his journey to Damascus to arrest any believers hiding there, to bring them back to Jerusalem to be punished.
On this journey, Paul’s life changes forever. He had told his testimony many times to new believers (Galatians 1:11-12Galatians 1:11-12 commentary, commentary 1 Corinthians 15:8-91 Corinthians 15:8-9 commentary, commentary Philippians 3:4-7Philippians 3:4-7 commentary), but here in Acts 22Acts 22 commentary he had the opportunity to share this amazing turnabout to a crowd of people with the same anger and unbelief he once had, as though speaking to a multiplicity of his past self.
On the way to Damascus, eager to arrest the believers there, Paul is stopped in his tracks by the Son of God: But it happened that as I was on my way, approaching Damascus about noontime, a very bright light suddenly flashed from heaven all around me (v. 6).
This event happened while he was on his way to Damascus, approaching the Syrian city, soon to arrive there and begin the arrests. It was about noontime, in the middle of the day, when Jesus appears to Paul. Paul perceives it as a very bright light; the light is instant; it suddenly flashed from heaven (the sky) all around me. Everywhere Paul looked, all he could see was this very bright light from above, flooding his surroundings with its illumination. During a later testimony, Paul will describe this light as being “brighter than the sun” (Acts 26:13Acts 26:13 commentary).
Paul is cowed and afraid. All he can see is this light which is brighter than the sun. The sun is already dangerously bright. On a normal cloudless day, the sun causes most people to squint, and can blind anyone who stares into it directly for too long. But this supernatural light is even brighter than the sun and cannot be looked away from. It is everywhere. Overwhelmed, Paul falls down in submission,
and I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’ (v. 7)
After Paul fell to the ground in a daze from the extreme light, he heard a voice. The voice of Jesus confronts him. Jesus repeats the Hebrew version of Paul’s name twice, Saul, Saul, and asks him, why are you persecuting me?
Paul asks for the identity of the voice coming from the light. At this point, he seems to know that something supernatural was happening,
And I answered, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ (v. 8).
The Son of God reveals Himself to Paul: And He said to me, ‘I am Jesus the Nazarene, whom you are persecuting’ (v. 8).
Jesus identifies Himself by the town where He grew up in His earthly life, in Nazareth, making Him a Nazarene. It was a fulfillment of prophecy that the Messiah would come from a lowly, unimportant place with an unimpressive appearance and status (Matthew 2:23Matthew 2:23 commentary, commentary Isaiah 53:2Isaiah 53:2 commentary). Jesus was often associated with Nazareth, even after His ascension (John 19:19John 19:19 commentary, commentary Mark 10:47Mark 10:47 commentary, commentary Luke 4:34Luke 4:34 commentary, commentary Acts 2:22Acts 2:22 commentary).
In part, it helped specify exactly which Jesus was being referenced. Jesus (“Yeshua,” “Joshua”) was a common name in the first century. Peter healed a lame man in the name of Jesus the Nazarene (Acts 3:6Acts 3:6 commentary). There were men who were brought in to lie about Stephen the Deacon at his trial who referred to “this Nazarene, Jesus” (Acts 6:14Acts 6:14 commentary). At Paul’s trial in Acts 24Acts 24 commentary, commentary the opposing counsel will brand him “a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes,” indicating that “the Nazarenes” was another commonly known label for believers in Jesus, along with “Christians” (Acts 11:26Acts 11:26 commentary) and followers of “the Way” (Acts 9:2Acts 9:2 commentary, 19:919:9 commentary).
So, in answer to Paul’s question, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ (v. 8), Jesus referenced Himself by a name He was commonly called, that He was Jesus the Nazarene. To further ensure Paul understood who was speaking to him, Jesus said that He was the one whom Paul was persecuting (v. 8).
Paul, in his self-delusion and hatred, believed himself to be justly persecuting a sect of blasphemers who worshiped their dead rabbi. Now, blinded by a light brighter than the sun, Paul was confronted by Jesus the Nazarene. The stories told by His followers were true, then. This Jesus had not stayed dead. He was alive. He was the Son of God, stopping Paul in his tracks with power and glory. It was the Son of God whom Paul was persecuting, in persecuting His followers.
Paul, in retelling this event, makes clear that this confrontation was for him alone. There were others traveling with Paul to Damascus, possibly temple guards to act as muscle to arrest believers in Jesus, but these others did not hear Jesus’s words. Yet, the Son of God’s presence was not hidden from them entirely, for they too saw the overwhelming light:
And those who were with me saw the light, to be sure, but did not understand the voice of the One who was speaking to me (v. 9).
The account in Acts 9Acts 9 commentary describes the other men as being speechless as well as “hearing the voice but seeing no one” (Acts 9:7Acts 9:7 commentary). They could only perceive what was happening in part. They saw the light, to be sure. It seems anyone there on the road that day would have seen the light, as it came down from heaven brighter than the sun. And they heard the sound of Jesus’s voice to some extent, but did not understand the words of the One who was speaking to Paul. It is not unlike how, during Jesus’s ministry, God spoke, but some in the crowd thought they heard thunder or the voice of an angel (John 12:29John 12:29 commentary). Whatever audible voice or sound these men heard, they could not comprehend what was being said.
Paul’s response is telling. There is already the tone of repentance in how he reacts, the swift changing of his mind of what he thought he knew, now knowing that Jesus is alive, powerful, and communicating through supernatural means. He does not argue, or curse Jesus, or convince himself he is experiencing heat stroke or a mental break. Paul saw and heard the truth on the Road to Damascus. Now that he knows the identity of the One who was speaking to him, he asks for Jesus to tell him what to do. He wants to know what Jesus wants from him:
And I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’
And the Lord said to me, ‘Get up and go on into Damascus, and there you will be told of all that has been appointed for you to do’ (v. 10).
Jesus’s answer is for Paul to go into Damascus as he had intended, and to wait for further instruction. In his testimony before King Agrippa in Acts 26Acts 26 commentary, commentary Paul appears to summarize this experience, abridging it slightly, where Jesus reveals to Paul what he has been appointed to do. In that same testimony, Paul leaves out that he was struck blind, as well as his healing and conversation with Ananias.
But in the longer account here and in Acts 9Acts 9 commentary, commentary Jesus gives Paul a command to obey by faith, to Get up and go on into Damascus, blind and waiting, where at some point further instructions would reach him. Jesus does not promise to heal Paul’s blindness, nor does He give him a timeframe of when he will learn more. Paul is simply commanded to wait. All he knew was that he has been appointed by the Lord Jesus for some purpose.
Paul explains that the light of Jesus had blinded him:
But since I could not see because of the brightness of that light, I was led by the hand by those who were with me and came into Damascus (v. 11).
Jesus’s appearance to Paul had certainly been real, since Paul was genuinely blinded afterward because of the brightness of that light, and specially for Paul’s benefit, since Paul’s traveling companions were not blinded. It was Paul whom Jesus wanted to confront, convert, and appoint. The other men had seen the light too, but it did not destroy their vision. They heard the voice of Jesus, but did not understand the words. Instead, they were obligated to lead Paul by the hand. Blinded and helpless, Paul came into Damascus to wait for what would happen next.
Paul introduces the first believer who showed him mercy, Ananias, who was prompted by Jesus to heal Paul and tell him what Jesus had appointed him to do (Acts 9:10-16Acts 9:10-16 commentary):
A certain Ananias, a man who was devout by the standard of the Law, and well spoken of by all the Jews who lived there (v. 12).
It is important to remember that Paul’s audience here in Acts 22Acts 22 commentary is a mob of hostile Jewish men who believe that Paul “preaches to all men everywhere against [the Jewish] people and the Law and [the temple]” (Acts 21:28Acts 21:28 commentary).
So, Paul makes a point that this certain Ananias in Damascus was a man who was devout by the standard of the Law. Ananias followed the Law; he was devout (devoted to, loyal), obedient to God’s commandments. This was not Paul’s private opinion of Ananias; everyone knew that Ananias lived by the standard of the Law. His reputation was sterling among the Jewish community in Damascus. Ananias was well spoken of by all the Jews who lived there because they saw how devout a man he was.
But Ananias was also a believer in Christ. He was both devout by the standard of the Law, well respected and well spoken of by all the Jews in his city, and yet he also believed that Jesus the Nazarene was the Messiah. Paul highlights this detail perhaps to show the crowd that one can be zealous for the Law and believe in Jesus Christ, further exhibiting that Paul himself was not against the Jewish people or the Law or the temple.
This certain Ananias who upheld the Law and was respected by the Jewish community came to me, Paul explains, and standing near said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight!’ And at that very time I looked up at him (v. 13).
Ananias, through God’s power, heals Paul of his blindness. He calls him Brother Saul, a term of familial closeness, which was incredible because up until that day, Saul/Paul had arrested believers in Jesus and voted for their deaths. Paul was no Brother of Ananias’s based on his actions. But Ananias accepts Paul as a Brother in obedience to Christ, and simply commands the blindness to go away: receive your sight!
Paul’s sight returned instantly, for at that very time (or hour/moment) Paul looked up and saw Ananias standing near him. The account in Acts 9:17Acts 9:17 commentary reveals that Ananias said that when Paul was healed, he was also “filled with the Holy Spirit.”
Ananias communicates the message Jesus had given him to impart to Paul: And he said, ‘The God of our fathers has appointed you to know His will and to see the Righteous One and to hear an utterance from His mouth” (v. 14).
This is no small job to which Paul is being called. The God of our fathers is the God of Israel, Yahweh, the “I Am” (Exodus 3:14Exodus 3:14 commentary). Paul has been appointed to know God’s will. Part of God’s will for Paul is that he has been appointed to see the Righteous One.
The Righteous One is Jesus Christ (Acts 7:52Acts 7:52 commentary, commentary 1 John 2:11 John 2:1 commentary). He was God’s anointed servant who lived a holy life of obedience and was rejected by His people (Acts 3:14Acts 3:14 commentary, commentary Daniel 9:26Daniel 9:26 commentary). Elsewhere in scripture, the term “the Righteous One,” or “the Righteous Branch” refers to God or His messiah (Isaiah 24:16Isaiah 24:16 commentary, commentary Jeremiah 23:5-6Jeremiah 23:5-6 commentary).
Perhaps the most well-known and most explicit reference to God’s Messiah as “the Righteous One” or “the Righteous Servant” who will bring salvation is in Isaiah 53:11Isaiah 53:11 commentary:
“As a result of the anguish of His soul,
He will see it and be satisfied;
By His knowledge the Righteous One,
My Servant, will justify the many,
As He will bear their iniquities.”
Paul has also been appointed to hear an utterance from the mouth of the Righteous One, Jesus.
Once having seen Jesus and hearing the utterance from His mouth, Paul’s appointed task is to share this utterance with the world:
For you will be a witness for Him to all men of what you have seen and heard (v. 15).
The grammar in this statement indicates that this is a sure thing. Paul will be a witness for Him. This will happen. Paul’s appointment is to be a witness for Jesus to all men, all people groups.
This is in part what has led Paul into so much trouble in his ministry. His calling was to preach to all men, including the Gentiles. And he has been open in teaching Gentile believers that they do not need to follow the Jewish Law, which has caused him endless conflict with competing Jewish “authorities,” some who believe in Jesus, and some who do not (Acts 15:1-2Acts 15:1-2 commentary, 5-115-11 commentary, Galatians 1:6-9Galatians 1:6-9 commentary, 2:3-52:3-5 commentary, 3:1-33:1-3 commentary, 5:1-45:1-4 commentary, Titus 1:10-11Titus 1:10-11 commentary, commentary Romans 4:9-13Romans 4:9-13 commentary).
Nevertheless, Paul has faithfully carried out that appointment as a witness and has taught all men of what he has seen and heard. He has been on three lengthy mission trips into Cyprus, Galatia, the Roman province of Asia, Greece, and Macedonia. He has planted many churches and led thousands to faith in Jesus. He has performed miracles through God’s power. He has suffered stonings, beatings, imprisonments, and banishments from various synagogues.
This very retelling of his testimony is Paul being a witness for Jesus. He is telling the mob of what he has seen and heard. Paul had this encounter with Christ, and clearly had others, perhaps more than were recorded in scripture (Acts 18:9-10Acts 18:9-10 commentary, commentary Galatians 1:11-12Galatians 1:11-12 commentary, commentary 1 Corinthians 9:11 Corinthians 9:1 commentary, commentary 2 Corinthians 12:2-42 Corinthians 12:2-4 commentary).
Ananias, after healing Paul, hurried him to take action:
Now why do you delay? Get up and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on His name (v. 16).
It was as though Ananias was saying, “What are you waiting for? God has given you a job to do. Get going.” Ananias himself likely baptized Paul (Acts 9:18Acts 9:18 commentary). This means Paul was dunked under water by Ananias and raised up out of the water to proclaim that Paul now identified with Christ, he was a believer in Jesus, and was calling on His name for salvation and forgiveness, trusting only in Jesus and nothing else, so that Paul was forgiven his rebellion against God and his murderous campaign against believers in Jesus. Because of Jesus, whom Paul put his trust in, God washed away his sins.