Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could not see a thing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus.
Parallel translations
- WEB Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened, he saw no one. They led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus.
- KJV And Saul arose from the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw no man: but they led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus.
- NKJV Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus.
- NASB Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing; and leading him by the hand, they brought him into Damascus.
- NLT Saul picked himself up off the ground, but when he opened his eyes he was blind. So his companions led him by the hand to Damascus.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Saul rose blind and had to be led by hand into Damascus. The proud persecutor is brought to helpless dependence.
Overview
The man who set out to bind others now must be led like a child, his physical blindness mirroring his former spiritual blindness. This humbling reversal prepares him to receive sight and salvation as a gift. God often empties the proud before filling them with grace.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Acts 22:11Because the brilliance of the light had blinded me, my companions led me by the hand into Damascus.
- Acts 9:18At that instant, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and his sight was restored. He got up and was baptized,
- 2 Kgs 6:17–20Then Elisha prayed, “O LORD, please open his eyes that he may see.” And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw that the hills were full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
- Acts 13:11Now look, the hand of the Lord is against you, and for a time you will be blind and unable to see the light of the sun.” Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand.
- Gen 19:11And they struck the men at the entrance, young and old, with blindness, so that they wearied themselves trying to find the door.
- Exod 4:11And the LORD said to him, “Who gave man his mouth? Or who makes the mute or the deaf, the sighted or the blind? Is it not I, the LORD?
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Christ at the center
Acts is the risen Christ continuing his work by the Spirit through the church, as the apostles preach that there is salvation in no other name under heaven.
How Acts 9:8 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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