Bible. New Testament -- Criticism, interpretation, etc.; Christianity -- Origin; Paul, the Apostle, Saint
Oh! but (says somebody) it is only in Paul 1st,--in Paul's supposed
unstudied speech, that the historian makes them see the light that Paul
saw. Answer. True: but neither in his own person does he say the
contrary. As to their seeing, all he says is, that _they_ saw no man,
"hearing a voice but seeing no man." (ver. 7.) But by the same account,
(ver. 8.) "When _his_ eyes were opened, he saw no man;" so that, though
in what he says in his own person the historian does not mention this
which he mentions, speaking in Paul's person,--yet he does not
contradict it.
10. _Paul's companions. What part, if any, took they in the
conversation?_ Per Acts, they stood speechless: and it is after the
dialogue has been reported, that this is stated. In the unstudied
speech, nothing is said about their speech. In the studied speech, with
reference to them, no mention is made of speech; any more than of sight
or hearing.
But, forasmuch as, according to Acts, whatever Paul saw and heard, they
saw and heard likewise; how happened it, that by no one of them, so much
as a word, on an occasion so interesting to all, was said--or a question
put? To be sure it was to Paul alone, that by the voice, whosever it
was, any address was made. It was his concern:--his alone, and none of
theirs.
So, indeed, some might think; but, others in their situation, quite as
naturally might think otherwise. Sooner or later, at any rate, they
would recover whatever it was they lost: sight, if sight; speech, if
speech. Whenever recovered, speech would thereupon range with but the
greater freedom, for the restraint which, for a time, had been put upon
it:--range over the whole business, including whatever secrets Paul had
been put in possession of:--the commission, the sweeping and
incarcerating commission he had been intrusted with by the rulers, and
the unperformed promise that had been made to him by the voice, which
being at midday, accompanied by an extraordinary light, was of course
the Lord's voice. These things would naturally, by these his companions,
have been converted from secrets into town-talk.
Nay but (says somebody) though it _is_ said he saw no _man_, it is _not_
said, he saw not the Lord: and elsewhere he may be seen saying--saying
in the most positive terms, that he did see the Lord[7]. And if he did
see the Lord anywhere, why not here as well as anywhere else?
"_Saw no man._" Yes: so says the English version. But the original is
more comprehensive:--Saw no person, says the original: that is, to speak
literally, saw no one of the masculine gender. No one what? No one
person of this gender: this is what the word means, if it means
anything. No person; and therefore no Lord: no God; if so it be that,
when applied to denote God, the word person means God, or as some say, a
part of God.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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