Saul is still threatening the disciples of Jesus. He obtains letters authorizing him to go to Damascus and bring followers of “the Way” back to Jerusalem as prisoners.

As he approaches Damascus, a light from heaven suddenly flashes around him. Saul falls to the ground and hears a voice asking why he is persecuting him. Saul asks who is speaking. The answer identifies the speaker as Jesus, the one Saul is persecuting.

Saul is told to enter the city and wait for further instructions. When he rises, he cannot see. His companions lead him by the hand into Damascus, where he remains blind for three days and does not eat or drink.

In the city a disciple named Ananias receives a vision telling him to go to Saul. Ananias objects for understandable reasons: he has heard about Saul’s violence against believers and knows why Saul came to Damascus. The Lord tells him to go, describing Saul as a chosen instrument who will carry Jesus’ name before Gentiles, kings, and the people of Israel.

Ananias enters the house, addresses the feared persecutor as “Brother Saul,” and lays hands on him. Saul’s sight is restored, he is baptized, and he eats.

The reversal quickly becomes public. Saul begins proclaiming in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. Listeners are astonished because they know his reputation. Opposition eventually develops, and Saul escapes a plot against his life by being lowered through an opening in the city wall.

When he reaches Jerusalem, the disciples are initially afraid to accept him. Barnabas brings him to the apostles and explains what has happened. Acts presents Saul’s transformation not as a quiet private change but as the beginning of a new vocation that will shape the rest of the book.