The apostle Paul (peace be upon him) is recorded as publicly bragging about being a “Hebrew of the
Hebrews”. As is written: “Circumcised the eighth day, of
the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, AN
HEBREW OF THE HEBREWS”- Philippians 3:5, KJV.
Not only that, but Paul even brags about being blameless (perfect) when it comes to the justice demanded by
God’s Law: “... TOUCHING THE RIGHTEOUSNESS WHICH IS IN THE LAW, BLAMELESS”-
Philippians 3:6, KJV.
But this behavior is unbecoming for
any true man of God, as both Hebrew and Christian scriptures
commands the believer to be humble, abstaining from self praise as well as from bearing witness of himself.
As is written: “Let another man
praise thee, and not thine own mouth; a stranger, and not thine own lips”-
Proverbs 27:2; And elsewhere says, “If
I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true”- John 5:31. Why
was it arrogant for Paul to describe himself as “an Hebrew of the Hebrews”?
Because it is arrogant (sinful) to call yourself “an Hebrew of the Hebrews” when you don’t even know who
the Hebrew High Priest actually is! As is written: “Then said Paul, I wist not, brethren, that he was the High
Priest: for
it is written, Thou shalt not speak evil of the ruler of thy people”- Acts 23:5.
In fact, Paul seems to have had a serious pride problem, as he would not accept to be treated as a second class
citizen, nor would he ever be humble enough to accept the fact that, not being
one of Jesus original apostles,
he needed the advice [and the guidance] of the latter.
As is written: «But Paul said to them, “They beat us in public without a trial, although WE ARE ROMAN
CITIZENS… LET THEM COME THEMSELVES AND ESCORT US OUT”»- Acts 16:37.
And elsewhere says: “… The gospel preached by me is not of human origin. FOR I DID NOT RECEIVE IT
FROM A HUMAN SOURCE AND I WAS NOT TAUGHT IT, BUT IT CAME BY A REVELATION OF
JESUS CHRIST…. I DID NOT IMMEDIATELY CONSULT WITH ANYONE… NOW, FROM THOSE
[APOSTLES] RECOGNIZED AS IMPORTANT (what they once were makes no
difference to me; God does
not show favoritism)—THEY ADDED NOTHING TO ME”- Galatians 1:12,15 & 2:6, Christian Standard
Bible.
What was God’s cure for Paul's arrogance? Well, since his Hebrew name was “Shaul”, and since [just like
ancient king Shaul] he considered himself to be the greatest of all Hebrews, God decided to give him the
same punishment he gave ancient king Shaul (1 Samuel 16:14)- to be tormented by an evil spirit.
As is written: “Therefore, so
that I would not exalt myself, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger
of Satan to torment me so that I would not exalt myself”- 2 Corinthians 12:7, Christian Standard Bible.
In short although Paul was indeed part of God’s plan to bring Hebrew monotheism unto the Gentile nations
of
the World, the Torah observant believers does well avoiding to place a blind trust on anything written by
this noble Christian apostle.
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