It Is Hard for Thee to Kick Against the Pricks

LearningToLetGo

LearningToLetGo

"And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, 'Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?' And he said, 'Who art thou, Lord?' And the Lord said, 'I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks." (The Acts of the Apostles 9:3-5)

Only the King James Bible includes the last line, "it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks." Modern translations omit that sentence entirely. At first glance that sentence is nonsensical. What pricks? What is he talking about? To answer that we must adopt an agrarian perspective.

Until modern times, and still outside of industrial countries, farmers used oxen, horses, or other large beasts to plow their fields. To encourage the beast to move forward, farmers would goad them with sharp sticks. Sometimes the animals would resist by kicking backwards towards the farmer. Occasionally this would result in the stick lodging in the beast's foot or leg, furthering the animal's pain.

What Jesus is saying here is that it is painful for Saul to fight against his master, Jesus. Fighting Jesus only brings Saul more pain. In this case, the pain Saul feels is him being lead by God along the path of his will, same as the ox being lead by the farmer. Saul resists God (not knowing it is God) when he persecutes the early Christians. This is analogous to the ox kicking back at the farmer. In both cases further pain is received, not because pain was intended but because it is the necessary result of the engaged action. The ox is stabbed by the sharp stick; Saul is blinded by Jesus' reproof.

The question then becomes, why do we feel the pain that we do? Are we feeling the necessary pain of God leading us down the path of his choosing according to his will, or are we feeling the added pain of our own pride and stubbornness as we "kick against the pricks?"
 
When Paul is describing his conversion Acts 26:14 it is repeated again in my KJV study bible and while not mentioned in Acts 9:5 in the Amplified bible the Amp does say It is hard for you to kick against the goads in Acts 26:14. Perhaps the KJV translaters saw it in 26:14 and thought it should be in 9:5? We will probably never know.
 
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Hopefull said:
When Paul is describing his conversion Acts 26:14 it is repeated again in my KJV study bible and while not mentioned in Acts 9:5 in the Amplified bible the Amp does say It is hard for you to kick against the goads in Acts 26:14. Perhaps the KJV translaters saw it in 26:14 and thought it should be in 9:5? We will probably never know.
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Good to know.

I lived all my life with the expression "to goad someone on" and never knew the source of that phrase until forced to lookup "to kick against the pricks." I guess that's how it goes for a modern city dweller.
 
LearningToLetGo said:
Good to know.

I lived all my life with the expression "to goad someone on" and never knew the source of that phrase until forced to lookup "to kick against the pricks." I guess that's how it goes for a modern city dweller.
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I didnt know what it meant until I read a bible commentary on the verse.
 
LearningToLetGo said:
The question then becomes, why do we feel the pain that we do? Are we feeling the necessary pain of God leading us down the path of his choosing according to his will, or are we feeling the added pain of our own pride and stubbornness as we "kick against the pricks?"
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I can tell you that I add to my own pain. I am stubborn. I am wilful. I always ask, "why?" I am never content with "just because," or "because I said so." This is a real issue between me and God because often God does not say why he wills something.
 
LearningToLetGo said:
I can tell you that I add to my own pain. I am stubborn. I am wilful. I always ask, "why?" I am never content with "just because," or "because I said so." This is a real issue between me and God because often God does not say why he wills something.
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Im the same way. I like to know the why and how of things. Scripture sure but not only scripture.
 
Hopefull said:
Im the same way. I like to know the why and how of things. Scripture sure but not only scripture.
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When I get snared up in the "why?" of it all, I turn to Isaiah 55:9 "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." This comforts me in that it reminds me that God is in charge and I can trust him. But it's not always easy.
 
LearningToLetGo said:
When I get snared up in the "why?" of it all, I turn to Isaiah 55:9 "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." This comforts me in that it reminds me that God is in charge and I can trust him. But it's not always easy.
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You're right, it isn't easy. Genesis 50:20 goes well with that Isaiah verse.
20 But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.

God will take evil and bad days or events and turn them into something special for great purposes.
 
LearningToLetGo said:
"And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, 'Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?' And he said, 'Who art thou, Lord?' And the Lord said, 'I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks." (The Acts of the Apostles 9:3-5)

Only the King James Bible includes the last line, "it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks." Modern translations omit that sentence entirely. At first glance that sentence is nonsensical. What pricks? What is he talking about? To answer that we must adopt an agrarian perspective.
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I've always seen this passage as putting a damper on free-will. But that may just be me. 🤓
 
Big Moose said:
Saul, (Paul), had already used his free will to commit himself to serving God. He just didn't know that Jesus was really God's son. God wanted Paul because of this staunch commitment.
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Apparently, other Jews had a staunch commitment...yet, were not shown the grace and mercy Paul was shown...

Romans 10:2-3 (KJV) For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.

Paul was in the same boat...

Philippians 3:5-8 (KJV) Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,

He goes on to explain the general condition of that boat before conversion...

Romans 3:10-12 (KJV) As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
 
Well that is true. Paul had that zeal and on top of that, brilliance and most importantly, an ability to understand the importance of Love.
1 Corinthians 13:
1 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.

All the abilities God gave Paul were what God needed to carry out the mission to spread the Gospel. Imagine all the preparations Saul, as a young man, went through, and the irony of a tent maker becoming the great revival preacher for mankind.
 
I doubt it was added in.
It was probably there, except some ancient manuscripts forgot to copy it in. Thats why those 'ancient manuscripts' weren't used cos they omitted scripture.

Anyway, I always knew what it meant despite not having ever ridden a horse.
It would be like revving a stalled car or something. Not gonna budge with the brakes on.
 
Paul was actually riding on a horse when he met Jesus. Its not mentioned specifically but he would have been on a horse as he journeyed (as well as the others) to Damascus.

It wasn't that Paul was walking and fell down. He fell off his horse because of the bright light. Jesus literally stopped him in his tracks, like a red stop light stops traffic.
 
Big Moose said:
Well that is true. Paul had that zeal and on top of that, brilliance and most importantly, an ability to understand the importance of Love.
1 Corinthians 13:
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As well as grace...

For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
(1Co 15:9-10)
 
It's good to remember that Saul persecuted Christians before becoming Paul, the apostle to the gentiles. He was, after all, the very same Saul who held the cloaks of the men who stoned Stephan, the first recorded Christian martyr.
 
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