9:23 many days. The “many days” may refer to the nearly three years that Paul spent east of Damascus in the Arabian desert (see note on Galatians 1:17-18).

9:23 Jews. The Jews had been anticipating Paul’s arrival in Damascus, knowing he was coming to arrest the Christians who were creating such a problem for them. When he came to the synagogue, however, instead of denouncing the Christians and their teachings, he proclaimed persuasively that Jesus was the “Christ” and the “Son of God” (Acts 9:20-22), so he only made matters worse for them. No wonder they decided to stop him.