“Those who were with me indeed saw the light and were afraid, but they didn’t understand the voice of him who spoke to me.
Parallel Translations
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“Those who were with me indeed saw the light and were afraid, but they didn’t understand the voice of him who spoke to me.
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And they that were with me sawe verely a lyght and were a frayde: but they hearde not the voyce of him that spake with me.
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Moreouer they that were with me, sawe in deede a light and were afraide: but they heard not the voyce of him that spake vnto me.
Examined in Scripture Analysis
Contradictions (1)
Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.
Cross-references (4)
Passages linked to Acts 22:9 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Acts 9:7 The men who traveled with him stood speechless, hearing the sound, but seeing no one.
- Daniel 10:7 I, Daniel, alone saw the vision; for the men who were with me didn’t see the vision; but a great quaking fell on them, and they fled to hide themselves.
- Acts 26:13 at noon, O king, I saw on the way a light from the sky, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who traveled with me.
- John 12:29-30 Therefore the multitude who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” Jesus answered, “This voice hasn’t come for my sake, but for your sakes.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (14 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 9. They which were with me. I showed in…
9. They which were with me. I showed in the other place, that there is no such disagreement in the words of Luke as there seemeth to be. Luke said there, that though Paul’s companions stood amazed, yet heard they a voice. But in this place he saith, they heard not the voice of him which spake to Paul though they saw the light. Surely it is no absurd thing to say that they heard some obscure voice; yet so that they did not discern it as Paul himself, whom alone Christ meant to stay and tame with the reprehension. Therefore, they hear a voice, because a sound doth enter into their ears, so that they know that some speaketh from heaven; they hear not the voice of him that spake to Paul, because they understand not what Christ saith. Moreover, they see Paul compassed about with the light, but they see none which speaketh from heaven.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 9 And they that were with me saw indeed…
9 And they that were with me saw indeed the light, and were afraid; but they heard not the voice of him that spake to me.
Ver. 9. But they heard not] {See Trapp on "Act 9:7"}
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Of this; See Poole on "Act 9:7". This may…
Of this; See Poole on "Act 9:7". This may be added to what was formerly said, that the men who travelled with Paul may be said not to have heard the voice of him that spake, because they did not understand it, or obey it; they were not converted, as Paul was, by it; the Hebrew language putting hearing for obeying, as in many scriptures; and both St. Paul, who here spake, and Luke, who penned this history, understood exactly the proprieties of that tongue.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And I said, what shall I do, Lord?.... See…
And I said, what shall I do, Lord?.... See Gill on Act 9:6.
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Acts 22:11
act 22:11
act 22:11
act 22:11And when I could not see for the glory of that light,.... Which was above the brightness of the sun, and so dazzled his eyes, that he could not see his way into the city, some of his company took him by the hand, and led him: and
being led by the hand of them that were with me, I came unto Damascus but not with the same view he set out with: he took his journey thither, and pursued it, in order to persecute the saints there; but now he enters into it, to be informed by one of them what he must do for Christ, whom he had persecuted.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain They did not hear the voice - Distinctly; but…
They did not hear the voice - Distinctly; but only a confused noise.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Heard not the voice. To reconcile this with chap.…
Heard not the voice. To reconcile this with chap. ix. ver. 7. where it is said that they heard the voice; it may be answered that they heard a noise, and a voice, but heard it not distinctly, nor so as to understand the words. (Witham) --- They heard not the voice of him who spoke to the apostle, but they heard the latter speak; (Acts ix. 7.) or perhaps they heard a noise, which they could not understand. They perhaps heard the voice of Paul answering, but not that of Christ complaining.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain they that were with me--(See on Act 9:7, &c.)
they that were with me--(See on Act 9:7, &c.)
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 9. Heard not the voice—Paul introduces this cautionary clause,…
9. Heard not the voice—Paul introduces this cautionary clause, because he was, doubtless, aware that his attendants, on returning to Jerusalem, in reporting the wonderful light and sound, testified to nothing of the mission he received from the words of Jesus. That special testimony their ears were incompetent to receive, and the official witness was to be Ananias.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 9. and were afraid] These words are omitted in…
9. and were afraid] These words are omitted in the oldest MSS. and have been left out in the Rev. Ver. But they are not like anything in the other two accounts, the one of which (Act_9:7) describes Saul’s companions as being “speechless,” the other (Act_26:14) as “all falling to the ground.” Therefore it seems best to retain them, as not being due to any annotation, or to the assimilation of one form of the story to another. The last three letters of this phrase are the same as those of the phrase preceding it, and the eye of a scribe in early times may have passed from one to the other, and thus words belonging to the earliest form of the narrative may have been omitted.
heard not the voice] i.e. the words which were spoken to Saul. They were only conscious of a sound around them. See above on Act_22:7.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (9) They heard not the voice . . .—i.e.,…
(9) They heard not the voice . . .—i.e., they did not hear it as a voice uttering articulate words. It was for them as though it thundered. (See Notes on Act_9:7, and Joh_12:29.)
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Beheld for saw, A.V. Beheld indeed the light and…
Beheld for saw, A.V. Beheld indeed the light and were afraid, A.V. This corresponds with the statement in Act_9:7, that the men who journeyed with Saul "stood speechless." They were dazzled and amazed at the sudden brightness. But they heard not the voice. This at first sight seems inconsistent with the statement in Act_9:7, "hearing the voice." But the apparent inconsistency disappears when we observe that here St. Paul wished to impress upon his hearers that, though his companions had seen the light, they had not heard the words which were addressed to him by the Lord Jesus (see ver. 14); whereas St. Luke, in the narrative in Acts 9., wished rather to insist upon the fact that though the men had seen the light and heard the sound of the voice, they had not seen Jesus. To see and hear the risen Christ was a privilege given to St. Paul alone.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. W. McGarvey 1914 · Public Domain See notes on verse 3
See notes on verse 3
J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain Cf. (See Scofield "Act 9:7").
voice
Cf. (See Scofield "Act 9:7").
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 they did not understand the voice of him who…
they did not understand the voice of him who spoke to me
Here "voice" stands for the person speaking. AT: "they did not understand what the one who spoke to me was saying" (See: Synecdoche)
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there you will be told
This can be stated in active form. AT: "there someone will tell you" or "there you will find out" (See: Active or Passive)
I could not see because of that light's brightness
"I was left blind because of that light's brightness"
being led by the hands of those who were with me, I came into Damascus
Here "hands" stands for those leading Paul. This can be stated in active form. AT: "those with me guided me into Damascus" (See: Synecdoche and Active or Passive)
translationWords
lord
Damascus
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.