A
The Bible can surprise me. I've read all of it at one time or another, but even so I sometimes come across interesting passages which I seem to have missed before.
In 1Timothy 1:15, St Paul says that he is the worst of sinners, and then repeats this in the very next verse.
It is an easy passage to read without grabbing the full meaning, but one day I found myself puzzled by it. It appears at a glance to be a very arrogant thing to say. You may be just a common sinner, but St Paul is the worst of sinners.
Then it dawned on me that St Paul was one of the first people ever to persecute Christians - until around midday as he approached Damascus.
In short, it appears that St Paul was implying that the worst sinner is the person who persecutes Christians.
In 1Timothy 1:15, St Paul says that he is the worst of sinners, and then repeats this in the very next verse.
It is an easy passage to read without grabbing the full meaning, but one day I found myself puzzled by it. It appears at a glance to be a very arrogant thing to say. You may be just a common sinner, but St Paul is the worst of sinners.
Then it dawned on me that St Paul was one of the first people ever to persecute Christians - until around midday as he approached Damascus.
In short, it appears that St Paul was implying that the worst sinner is the person who persecutes Christians.