"For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain." — Philippians 1:21 (KJV)
The short answer
Paul was a first-century Pharisee named Saul who violently persecuted the early church until the risen Christ met him on the road to Damascus. Transformed by grace, he became the apostle to the Gentiles, planting churches across the Roman world and writing thirteen New Testament letters before dying a martyr for his faith.
Few lives in Scripture turn as sharply as Paul's. He begins as the church's fiercest enemy and ends as its most devoted servant, and the hinge between the two is a single encounter with the risen Jesus. His story stands as proof that no one is beyond the reach of God's grace. Here is who Paul was, told from the Bible itself, with every quoted verse taken exactly from the King James Version.
Who was Saul before he met Christ?
Before he was Paul the apostle, he was Saul of Tarsus — a devout Pharisee, educated under the teacher Gamaliel, and a zealous persecutor of the followers of Jesus. He stood approving while Stephen was stoned and went house to house dragging believers off to prison. Yet Paul never hid this past; he held it up as the dark backdrop against which grace shines.
"For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me." — 1 Corinthians 15:9-10 (KJV)
Paul calls himself the least of the apostles, unworthy of the name because of what he had done. But he does not stop there. Whatever he became, he insists, was not his own doing: by the grace of God I am what I am. Even his tireless labour flowed not from himself but from grace at work in him.
What happened on the road to Damascus?
The turning point came as Saul travelled to Damascus, carrying letters that authorized him to arrest Christians there. A light from heaven flashed around him, he fell to the ground, and the voice of Jesus asked why he persecuted Him. Blinded for three days, Saul was sent to a disciple named Ananias, and the Lord explained why He had chosen so unlikely a man.
"But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:" — Acts 9:15 (KJV)
A chosen vessel — the very man who hunted the church would now carry Christ's name to the Gentiles, to kings, and to Israel. God did not merely forgive Saul; He commissioned him. The enemy became the ambassador.
What did Paul give up for Christ?
Paul had every credential a religious man could want: heritage, status, and a spotless reputation among the Pharisees. After meeting Jesus he re-weighed all of it against a single measure — knowing Christ.
"But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ," — Philippians 3:7-8 (KJV)
What once counted as gain he now counted as loss. He does not say his old life was worthless in itself, but that nothing compares to the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus his Lord. Everything else he was willing to lose in order to gain the one thing that mattered.
How did Paul describe life in Christ?
Paul's letters return again and again to a single truth: the Christian no longer lives for himself. In one of the most beloved verses he ever wrote, he compresses his whole transformed life into a few words.
"I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." — Galatians 2:20 (KJV)
Crucified with Christ, yet alive; no longer living his own life, but Christ living in him. This was not poetry to Paul but daily reality — a life received by faith in the Son of God who loved him and gave Himself for him.
How did Paul's life end?
Paul spent decades on missionary journeys, planting churches and enduring beatings, shipwreck, and imprisonment for the gospel. Writing near the end from a Roman prison, aware that his death was near, he looked back without regret.
"I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:" — 2 Timothy 4:7 (KJV)
He had fought, finished, and kept faith. Church tradition holds that Paul was martyred in Rome. He died as he had lived ever since Damascus — belonging wholly to the Christ who had claimed him.
Frequently asked questions
Why did Paul change his name from Saul to Paul?
Scripture never says God renamed him. Saul was his Hebrew name and Paul his Roman name, and both were his from the start. Luke simply begins using Paul in Acts 13:9, Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) as the apostle turned to minister among the Gentiles, for whom the Roman name was more familiar. The shift reflects his mission to the wider world, not a change of identity forced by his conversion.
How many books of the Bible did Paul write?
Thirteen New Testament letters bear Paul's name as their author: Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, and Philemon. Together they form a large portion of the New Testament. Some also connect Paul with the letter to the Hebrews, though that book does not name its writer. Through these letters Paul still teaches the church today.
"Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen." — 1 Timothy 1:17 (KJV)
Take it deeper
Paul's story is one thread in the great tapestry of Scripture. FlickerFaith is a Scripture-first study companion — open it to read these passages in full context, trace Paul's missionary journeys, search related verses, and ask honest questions about grace and calling. It keeps you close to the Word, not away from it.
Keep reading
Meet the other apostles whose lives were changed by Jesus: who was Peter, who was John the Apostle, and who was Thomas. To meet the Savior at the center of Paul's story, read who is Jesus Christ? and what the Bible says about following Jesus. You can also browse all Bible topics or return home.