Why does Acts 9:7 say that those traveling with Paul heard a voice, but Acts 22:9 says that they heard no voice?

Acts 9:7; Acts 22:9.

When we have accepted the truth of the inspiration - the verbal inspiration - of the Scripture we are always confident that any seeming contradiction is only apparent. Our knowledge may be defective, and the reconciliation of divergent statements may be beyond our reach, but there will be no doubt whatever concerning the absolute truth of what is recorded. But in the ease before us a very little attention will suffice to solve the difficulty. In Acts 9 it says that Saul's companion heard "a voice"; in chapter 22 that "they heard not the voice of Him that spake to me." That is, they heard a sound - which was really the "voice" - but they could not distinguish, did not hear, the words spoken. The Lord's communication was to Saul alone, and he alone received it; for while his attendants were with him they only heard a voice, but what the voice said was concealed from all but him to whom it was addressed. In like manner, in John 12, when there came a voice from heaven to our blessed Lord, in answer to His prayer, "Father, glorify Thy name," I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again," those that "stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to Him." They also heard, but did not understand, the voice.

'And it came to pass, as I was journeying and drawing near to Damascus, that about midday there suddenly shone out of heaven a great light round about me, and I fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to me, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me? And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? And He said to me, I am Jesus, the Nazarene, Whom thou persecutest. Now they that were with me beheld the light1 but did not hear the voice of Him that was speaking to me. And I said, What shall I do, Lord? And the Lord said to me, Rise up, and go into Damascus; and there it shall be told thee of all things which it has been appointed for thee to do' (vers. 6-10). {1 Text. Rec. adds on large authority of MSS. et al., καὶ ἒμφοβοι ἐγένετο, 'and they were affrighted', but ℵABH, several cursives, and the best Versions leave the words out.}

Thus the intimation here is that it was 'about midday', still more precisely than we were told in Acts 9:3. This makes the vision far more striking. It was not a trance, but an open fact. The light which shone round about him out of heaven transcended the sun at midday, in the presence of men who were travelling with him. Deception was impossible. As far as we know, he, and he only, was converted thereby. The voice addressed no other at that time; and here it is particularly said that the rest heard not the voice of Him that was speaking to him. The same historian, who gives this as the distinct statement of the apostle, had himself told us that his fellow-travellers stood speechless hearing the voice but beholding no one. This to a casual reader looks like a discrepancy, but a reader must be careless indeed, or bent on evil, who does not perceive that the two statements are altogether in harmony beneath the surface. In Acts 9 we learn that his companions heard a sound, and no more; and in the present chapter2 we learn that he alone heard the voice of Him that spoke to him. To the others it was inarticulate; to him it was not only intelligible, but the turning point of a life beyond all others rich in testimony to His grace Who spoke to him. {2 In Acts 9 φωνή 'sound' or 'voice' is in the genitive, and merely partitive in Acts 22 it is the accusative which has the largest bearing on the object and is not partitive.}

'The men that journeyed with Saul were standing speechless, hearing the sound but beholding no one' (ver. 7). The word often means 'voice', as it is rightly translated in verse 4, where Saul clearly heard what the Lord said to him. Here his companions did not hear one word articulately, as we are distinctly told in Acts 22:9. Yet they did hear that something was being uttered. Hence 'sound' appears to be a more accurate representation of the fact intended by the expression. And this is confirmed by a nice difference in the form of the Greek phrase; for the genitive (expressive of partition) is used where the physical effect was incomplete, the accusative where the words were sent home in power. In spiritual reception the genitive is always used; for who among men could be said to have heard in full what the voice of the Son of God imports?

The crowd having been quietened, Paul speaks with fullest respect for those he addresses, and doing so in the Hebrew language, he attracts more serious attention. He has been practically convicted by the crowd without being heard, so that he asks them to hear his defense. Jewish, and born in Tarsus, yet he had spent his earlier years under the instruction of Gamaliel, a renowned teacher of the law, which he calls, the law of our fathers, in which he was well grounded and taught, being zealous toward God, as he credits them with being also.

His zeal was well proven in his persecuting the followers of Jesus "unto death," taking both men and women prisoner, to be tried and punished at Jerusalem. He reminds them that the high priest and all the elders could bear witness to this. They had given him letters to Damascus authorizing him to arrest Christians and bring them to Jerusalem. Nearing Damascus on his journey, he tells them, he fell to the ground when a great light from heaven encircled him, followed by a voice, "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me?" How could he possibly ignore this voice? He asked, "Who art Thou, Lord?" and received the astounding answer, "I am Jesus whom thou persecutest." His companions saw the light and heard someone speaking to him (Acts 9:7), but evidently did not understand what was said, which may be the explanation of the words, "they heard not the voice."

It will be worth our while to notice a few particularities in the apostle's discourse. The Lord still calls Himself Jesus of Nazareth. We know that He was glorified, but this makes Him shine with a light more brilliant than that of the sun. He is ever the same benign and gentle Man who learned human sorrows in the midst of men. He thinks of others, and considers all Christians as part of Himself. "I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest." Infinitely precious truth! Then we find in Paul the same liberty as we have seen in Ananias. He reasons with the Lord (v. 18-21), saying that more than any other he was fit for testimony at Jerusalem. And this makes his sincerity evident. Yet in this he might perceive the Lord's wisdom, for he is bearing witness against his own presence at Jerusalem. And here too we see what a perfect conscience is, by grace and by the blood of Christ. He recounts to Christ all his sins, and the hatred which at the beginning had been in his heart to the Lord's name; how he had persecuted the members of Christ, and taken part in the death of Stephen; and all this he presents to the Lord as a motive for his mission to the Jews. But his conscience was pure now.

432 I believe we have spoken of a little difficulty which Paul's words present here, but I shall not err in repeating it. The companions of Paul saw the light, but did not hear the voice of Him who spoke with him. In chapter 9 we read that they heard the voice, but saw no one. They did not see the Lord, nor did they hear His words, but they saw a great light, and heard a voice without being able to distinguish the words. This is just what was necessary. They were undeniable witnesses that the vision was true and real, but the communication was for Paul alone. Only he saw the Lord (Acts 22:14-15). For he had to be taught by Him, and bear testimony as an ocular witness that he had seen Him.

It is widely taught that there are contradictions in the two accounts of the conversion of Saul, in Acts 9:7 and 22:9. Let us carefully compare them. Both Saul and those who travelled with him are mentioned. Saul saw the Lord Jesus Christ, was blinded by the light, heard Him speak words to him personally, addressing him in the Hebrew tongue, calling him by name, and Saul replied. The men who were with him saw the light, were alarmed, did not speak a word, saw no one, but heard a voice or sound. In Acts 9:7 we read, "The men which journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice [or sound] but seeing no man." In chapter 22:9, we read, "They that were with me saw indeed the light, and were afraid; but they heard not the voice of him that spake to me." In these scriptures there is surely no discrepancy.

For suddenly, about noon - the sun, we may suppose, shining on the city in its meridian splendour - a light shone round about him and his company above the brightness of that sun. All saw the light (Acts 22:9), but the rest saw no one. All heard a voice (9:7), but Saul only understood the meaning of it (22:9). It addressed him in the Hebrew tongue. Speechless the rest stood, hearing a sound, but seeing no man. So writes the historian. But Paul, recounting the matter before Festus and Agrippa, states that all had fallen to the earth before he heard the voice speaking to him (26:14), - an apparent discrepancy which, had we been present, would doubtless have admitted of an easy explanation. And we may offer one drawn from the narrative. Startled by the light, and hearing a voice to them unintelligible, for which they could not account, the company might well have stood speechless, as arrested suddenly in their course: the next moment, prostrate on the ground, the conversation between the Lord Jesus and Saul took place. [32]

[32] What they heard was a voice (9:7); but its sound conveyed no meaning to them, - just as in John 12:29 the people, who heard the Father's voice, thought it was thunder. So Acts 9:7 and 22:9 are not contradictory.

However, he had forgotten heaven's authority, and the light suddenly shining from heaven was more than he expected. It was the light, not an exertion of great power, that prostrated him to the ground. Then a penetrating voice, impossible to be ignored, deeply searches his conscience: "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?" Whoever is speaking, Saul knows that He is Lord, but questions as to His name. The answer, "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting" must surely have produced a tremendous upheaval in the heart of the proud, zealous, prejudiced Pharisee! This was the Man whose name he was determined to banish from the earth!

Saul is evidently stricken virtually dumb, and the Lord tells him to arise and go into the city (Damascus), where he would be told what to do. Those with him heard the voice, and were speechless also. Chapter 22:9 evidently indicates that they did not understand what was said, though aware of a voice speaking. The message was intended for him alone. The Lord knows how to impress His truth on individuals, who realize the message to be specifically for them. The effect of this is striking. Saul is unable to see when he stands up. Like other Pharisees (John 9:41), he thought he was a highly enlightened man, but God teaches him that the light of which he boasted was darkness in contrast to the light from heaven. For three days also he neither ate nor drank. We can hardly imagine the greatness of the revolution taking place in his soul.

Several interesting features, not mentioned in the earlier accounts, appear here. The light from heaven brought the whole company down into the dust, and not Paul only. Further, the voice was in the Hebrew tongue. This is remarkable, for we have been told earlier that though his companions heard the voice it conveyed nothing to them. It was in their own language, yet they did not understand. They were affected physically, but only Paul was affected spiritually. The essential element in conversion is not great sights, nor wonderful sounds, but the life-giving work of the Holy Ghost. Jesus was manifested only to Paul, and that in such a way that he discovered Him to be his Lord.