The Folly of A Skeptic
August 9, 2008 by revjack
Not too long ago a skeptic claimed that a “discrepancy” discrepancy exists between Acts 9:7 and Acts 22:9, but if the “skeptic” making this claim actually knew Koine Greek, or at the very least, consulted a Greek lexicon such as Strong’s or Thayer’s he would understand that there is no discrepancy at all between these verses. In 9:7 Luke recorded that the men who traveled with Saul heard the sound (phōnēs), but in 22:9 Luke wrote that “they did not understand the voice” (phōnēn). Literally, that clause in 22:9 may be translated, “They did not hear the sound.” The NIV, ESV, NLT, and NASB correctly translates the verse, because the verb “to hear” with the genitive case may mean “to hear a sound” and with the accusative case “to hear with understanding.” The genitive case is employed in 9:7, and the accusative is used in 22:9. So the travelers with Saul heard the sound (9:7) but did not understand what Christ said (22:9)and the reason is obvious: Jesus was not addressing Saul’s companions and what He had to say was only for Saul to understand. Thus, there is no discrepancy at all. Just one’s failure to understand because he did not take the time to properly study the two passages.
Rev. Jack Howell
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God to salvation to every one that believes; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek." (Romans 1:16)
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