Acts 9:18

"Ananias departed and entered into the house. Laying his hands on him, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord, who appeared to you on the road by which you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”"

Key Reflection

In Acts 9:18, Ananias enters Saul's home after receiving a divine directive to restore him to faith and vision. This act of laying hands on Saul, anointing him with the Holy Spirit, was a significant ritual in early Jewish tradition. By doing so, Ananias fulfills his role as commissioned by Jesus Christ, who had appeared to Saul on the road to Damascus. This encounter marked the beginning of Saul's transformation into the apostle Paul, symbolizing not only physical and spiritual healing but also the start of his missionary journey to spread Christianity among both Jews and Gentiles.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

Verse 18. As it had been scales. wsei lepidev The word wsei, "as it had been," is designed to qualify the following word. It is not said that scales literally fell from his eyes; but that an effect followed as if scales had been suddenly taken off. Evidently the whole expression is designed to mean no more than this. The effect was such as would take place if some dark, impervious substance had been placed before the eyes, and had been suddenly removed. The cure was as sudden, the sight was as immediate, as if such an interposing substance had been suddenly removed. This is all that the expression fairly implies, and this is all that the nature of the case demands.

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