What's easy to miss here is that "many days" is a deliberate understatement. Luke's brief mention actually covers a significant period of about three years, during which Paul ministered and grew, a time that scholars note is filled in by Paul's own account in Galatians. This narrative choice highlights the stark contrast between Paul's productive ministry and the bitter, life-threatening opposition he faced from those who should have recognized God's work.
When many days had passed, the Jews plotted to kill him, but their plot became known to Saul. They were watching the gates day and night in order to kill him, but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a basket.
English Standard Version (ESV)
After his dramatic conversion and initial ministry in Damascus, Saul (now Paul) spent a significant period, possibly up to three years, strengthening his faith and ministry, including time in Arabia. Upon his return to Damascus, his fervent preaching and powerful arguments in the synagogues stirred up the local Jewish leaders. Unable to refute him, they resorted to plotting his murder to silence him.
The Bible skips over years in its narrative, but that doesn't mean nothing significant happened. What was Paul doing in Damascus after his dramatic conversion?
The phrase "many days had passed" in Acts 9:23 is a quiet signal to a significant period in Paul's life that the book of Acts doesn't detail. While Luke focuses on the immediate aftermath of Paul's conversion and his initial bold preaching in Damascus, other parts of Scripture, particularly Paul's own letter to the Galatians, reveal that this period was not empty.
A Time of Deeper Learning
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Paul's conversion was a miracle, but it didn't immediately win everyone over. In fact, it ignited intense opposition. Why would people plot to kill someone who was now passionately sharing the 'good news'?
The violent opposition Paul faced from the Jews in Damascus, as described in Acts 9:23, highlights a profound spiritual reality: truth, especially when it challenges deeply held beliefs, often provokes fierce resistance.
From Argument to Assassination
Understand the original words
epiboulē · Greek Noun
A secret scheme or conspiracy, usually malevolent, intended to cause harm or death to a person or group.
mathētēs · Greek Noun
Adherents or followers of a teacher; in the NT, this refers to those who have committed themselves to follow the teachings and person of Jesus Christ.
The phrase 'many days' in this verse covers a significant period of three years following Paul's conversion, during which he ministered in Arabia and Damascus before his life was threatened, highlighting the gradual unfolding of God's plan and the intense opposition faced by early believers.
c. AD 33-36
Saul's Conversion
Saul, a zealous persecutor of early Christians, has a dramatic encounter with the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus and is converted.
c. AD 33-36
Paul travels to Arabia
Following his conversion, Paul retreats to Arabia for a period of time, likely for spiritual reflection, study, and private revelation from Christ.
c. AD 33-36— this verse
Paul returns to Damascus
After his time in Arabia, Paul returns to Damascus and begins boldly proclaiming Jesus as the Son of God in the synagogues.
c. AD 33-36
Jewish leaders plot to kill Paul
Paul's powerful arguments and successful preaching in Damascus infuriate the local Jewish leaders, who conspire to assassinate him.
c. AD 36
Paul escapes Damascus
Disciples secretly help Paul escape Damascus by lowering him in a basket over the city wall, thwarting the assassination plot.
c. AD 36
Paul travels to Jerusalem
After his escape from Damascus, Paul travels to Jerusalem, where he meets with Peter and James, the brother of Jesus.
This passage directly complements Acts 9:23 by revealing that Paul spent time in Arabia during the 'many days' mentioned, adding crucial context to his early ministry after conversion.
Joshua 2:15This verse describes Rahab letting spies down by a rope over the wall, a clear parallel to how the disciples helped Paul escape Damascus, highlighting God's use of seemingly humble means for deliverance.
2 Corinthians 11:32Paul himself recounts escaping Damascus by being lowered down the city wall in a basket, directly corroborating the details of his escape mentioned in Acts 9:25, which follows this verse.
Romans 10:1This verse expresses Paul's deep desire for the salvation of his kinsmen, the Jews, which provides the underlying motivation for his preaching in Damascus and explains the intense opposition he faced from them.
ellicottActs 9:23: "And after that many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel to kill him:"
(23) After that many days were fulfilled. —We learn from the more definite statement in Galatians 1:18 that these few words cover a period of otherwise unrecorded work, extending over a period of three years. That period must have witnessed the growth of a Christian society at Damascus, with an order of discipline and worship based on the outlines of that at Jerusalem. It follows, however, from the subseque…
jfbActs 9:23: "And after that many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel to kill him:"
- And after many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel to kill him—Had we no other record than this, we should have supposed that what is here related took place while Saul continued at Damascus after his baptism. But in Ga 1:17, 18 we learn from Paul himself that he "went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus," and that from the time of his first visit to the close of his second, both of whi…
What's easy to miss here is that "many days" is a deliberate understatement. Luke's brief mention actually covers a significant period of about three years, during which Paul ministered and grew, a time that scholars note is filled in by Paul's own account in Galatians. This narrative choice highlights the stark contrast between Paul's productive ministry and the bitter, life-threatening opposition he faced from those who should have recognized God's work.
After his dramatic conversion and initial ministry in Damascus, Saul (now Paul) spent a significant period, possibly up to three years, strengthening his faith and ministry, including time in Arabia. Upon his return to Damascus, his fervent preaching and powerful arguments in the synagogues stirred up the local Jewish leaders. Unable to refute him, they resorted to plotting his murder to silence him.
After his dramatic conversion and initial ministry in Damascus, Saul (now Paul) spent a significant period, possibly up to three years, strengthening his faith and ministry, including time in Arabia. Upon his return to Damascus, his fervent preaching and powerful arguments in the synagogues stirred up the local Jewish leaders. Unable to refute him, they resorted to plotting his murder to silence him.
"When many days had passed, the Jews plotted to kill him, but their plot became known to Saul. They were watching the gates day and night in order to kill him, but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the w…" — What's easy to miss here is that "many days" is a deliberate understatement. Luke's brief mention actually covers a significant period of about three years, during which Paul ministered and grew, a t…
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Last reviewed October 2026
