For you have heard of my manner of life in time past in the Jews' religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it:
All Commentaries on Galatians 1:13 Go To Galatians 1
John of Damascus
AD 749
The whole construction is a demonstration that he did not receive the mystery from a man; for such an abrupt conversion could not possibly have taken place through a man. The teaching of men makes progress little by little. But there is also another underlying construction, in that he gently teaches them not to do the things of law; for he says, if he who showed such a great diligence in connection with the law, abandoned the things of law and turned to the salvation which is from faith, it is obvious that he abandoned the law as being unable to lead to perfection. How much more fitting, then, should it be for those who have turned to the faith not to seek to follow what is unable to lead to perfection!
