i don't seem to get it....christians help plz?

Question

peace be upon all of you and you families.


Can you please tell me why exactly SAUL's name was changed to PAUL? I just never understood why?

Answer 1

No reason really given...
Paul means "little"
Saul means "asked" (of God)

Answer 2

And may the peace of the Lord be with you and your family.

Neither the Bible itself, nor any of Paul's writings, nor any other documents of his age explain why Saul chose the name Paul.

But we can make an informed guess based on WHEN he did so. Saul of Tarsus was a sort of hit man hired by a prominent Saducee priest to hassle the "unchurched" (meaning the Jewish church) of his day. He was also a Roman citizen -which meant he could get away with a lot of mischief.

He changed his name immediately after his conversion on the road to Damascus, and started calling himself "Paul." And so, we know that it was a name he took -not one that was conferred by someone else. He sought baptism immediately after his vision, and, if part of that ceremony involved asking his name (as the rite of baptism does to this day) that may have been the "trigger" the caused him to mark the change in his faith and belief with a permanent change in his name as well.

There is a darker interpretation as well: some may suggest that because Saul was a known "bad guy" among many groups, he used the name Paul to hide his true identity, so the crowd wouldn't refuse his admittance to their community of believers. Pure speculation -but a possibility.

Taylor Caldwell's book, "Great Lion of God," is an historical novel about Paul. It does not pretend to be a biography supported by facts; rather, it presents Paul in the context of his life and times and is a very good book to read. Your library should have a copy.

Answer 3

That's not the only name change in the Bible.

Abram changed to Abraham.
Sarai turned to Sarah.
Jacob turned to Israel.

Saul means: "a male given name: from a Hebrew word meaning “asked for.”
I can't find a Hebrew meaning for Paul, only a later Latin one. It's not in the Bible anyway. It just says that he was called both.

Acts 13:9
Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said...

Answer 4

JESUS changed saul's name to paul because of the sins saul committed he needed a new identity saul was a name that meant important significant paul means tiny insignificant and also saul was the first person to EVER SEE JESUS and follow Him and become one of His deciples upon saul's conversion is when JESUS gave him the name paul

Answer 5

It could very well be because he was changed into a new person. If you were a horrible murderer and persecuter of Christians, and then became a Christian, would you want everyone to still attach you with your horrible past? I feel it is a way of showing a new person. It can probably be related to Abraham, whose name was originnaly Abram. Sarah too had her name changed from Sarai. All of these name changes happened at important decision points in their life.

Answer 6

Back during that time period, your name described you. By changing your name, or in this case having it changed for you, it could be reflecting a change in your behavior and/or role in life.

In many places in the Bible, God changed the names of people to reflect their new/realized role in God's plan.

Answer 7

His name was changed because he became born again,and he wanted to show his change.So he changed his name(he use to kill many christians in hid days).

Answer 8

The same happened to Peter.

Answer 9

NO ONE CHANGED THE NAMES

I feel in different regions each of these names are called in different ways...funny

Answer 10

Maybe he didn't like his name, and had it legally changed?