Acts 26:9-11

Verse 9: “I verily thought…” Henry Ripley writes:

“Let us not fail to notice, that sincerity is not a test of truth; nor does it prove us accepted of God. We may be sincerely wrong, as well as sincerely right. Our aim ought to be to learn the real will of God, and to be conformed to that.”[1]

Paul returns to refer to his earlier manner of life (cf. v. 4) as a persecutor of Christians – in which he thought the proper way to serve God was “to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth,” even though he believed in a resurrection of the dead. He, nevertheless, originally denied the resurrection of Jesus. This would become a constant theme of Paul the new creature and new preacher. Cf. I Corinthians 15:16-20. “Jesus of Nazareth” is used five times in Acts (2:22; 6:14; 10:38: 22:8; 26:9).

Verses 10-11: He did this in Jerusalem, shutting up saints in prison. He received authority from the chief priests to do this (cf. 8:3; 9:1-2, 13-14; 22:5), and he “gave voice” (κατηνεγκα ψηφον, gave his vote, his voice, his approval of the proceedings) against Christians when to be put to death (Stephen, for example). He pursued them to every synagogue.  Paul said (Acts 22:19-20), “Lord, they know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue them that believed on thee; and when the blood of thy martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by, and consenting unto his death, and kept the raiment of them that slew him.” Compelling Christians to blaspheme probably means to try to get them to recant or else obtain their confession of Christ as Lord, and then charge them with blasphemy on that account.  Paul’s zeal worked him into a frenzy (“being exceedingly mad”) that could not be contained in Jerusalem and the region roundabout, but led him to venture out to persecute them unto “strange cities” (εξω πολεις, that is, cities that were foreign, outside Judæa). He details this also in Acts 22:4. Paul (Saul) sought to quash the rise of Christianity.

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[1] Ripley, The Acts of the Apostles, p. 313.