Acts 9 indicated he went to Jerusalem shortly after the conversion but Galatians 1 he said he didn’t until 3 years afterwards.
Did Acts 15 and Galatians 2 record the same visit?
you know I'm glad you pointed this part about about the discrepancy of acts 9 and Galatians 2. At first it seems to be one way but then if it is resolved by thinking acts 15 is the second visit then acts 9 is different from what Paul is stating. So since we spoke of it I have been researching it more in depth and as we discussed in the first 2 pages of the thread we both agreed that the letter(you've got mail/o.p.) is probably the oldest(or one of the first of the)Epistles,I (no longer) think this is so,in fact it might well be provable that the letter to the Galatians was written (before the decree at Jerusalem),,maybe a year before or just months before.
The events in (Acts 12;23),Herod's death was in ad44
Herod Agrippa - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia ,,but in (acts 11;28) "the dearth/drought/famine" in the days of Claudius Cesar(acts 11;28)
Claudius - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (Jan. 24,ad41),so acts 9;27 is his first visit then acts 11;30 is his second visit,,then acts 15 is his 3rd(but had not taken place yet so is not in Galatians at the time it was written),that is he said "up by Revelations" is of the "dearth" in (acts 11;27-30) is the revaluation.
So if Paul is reciting his mathematics in Galatians 1and 2 from his conversion then 17 years from ad44 is ad27 one year after Pontius palate began to rule
Crucifixion of Jesus - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (it is in the chronology) but the time span Paul is beginning from is his conversion(1st cor.15;8) and not the Crucifixion,so it is after this point(unknown time),,and before his second trip to Jerusalem in (acts 11),,,So if the (letter/decree at Jerusalem) was written in ad50 the difference between ad44(Herod's death,acts 12;23) and acts 15 is 6years,so the epistle to the Galatians was written between the death of Herod and the decree(o.p.) and so the remainder from acts 12-13 to acts 15 is a 6 year period of time.
here is a link "pdf" that is very interesting it discusses the issue of the controversy of acts 9 and Galatians mathmatics from several different views
http://www.etsjets.org/files/JETS-PDFs/37/37-1/JETS_37-1_055-068_Morgado.pdf and also there are others on the www but the differing mathematics are resolved if instead "thinking the council in acts 15 is the 2nd visit of Paul if it is the 3rd,and that the letter of the apostles,elders,brethren(o.p.) was issued (after) Galatians was written.