Torrey Seland, «Saul of Tarsus and Early Zealotism. Reading Gal 1,13-14 in Light of Philo’s Writings», Vol. 83 (2002) 449-471
One of the most consistent features in the portraits of Saul of Tarsus in the Acts of the Apostles and in the letters accredited to Paul, is the fervent zeal of his youth. The zeal of the young Saul has been dealt with in several studies, drawing on the issue of zealotry in Palestine, but the conclusions reached are rather diverse. The present study suggests that the often overlooked phenomenon of zealotry in the writings of Philo of Alexandria should also be considered. The material from Philo does not support the view that the early zealots formed any consistent movement or party, but that they were vigilant individuals who took the Law in their own hands when observing cases of gross Torah transgressions.
several features. The expression nomi/santaj of 1,55 (‘they should think that the occasion has made them councillors etc...’) represents an aspect having some parallels in other texts related to the issue of self-redress and lynching. In Spec. 1,316 (on Deut 13) it is said that those who would rush to take vengeance on the unholy seducer would do so kri/nontej eu)age_j to_ kat' au)tou= fona=n ("deem it a religious duty to seek his death"). A similar statement is given in Spec. 3,96, which deals with the measures to be taken against ma/goi and farmakeutai/: "And therefore it is right that even the most reasonable and mild-tempered should seek the blood of these, that they should lose hardly a moment in becoming their executioners, and should hold it a religious duty to keep their punishment in their own hands and not commit it to others (kai_ nomi/santaj eu)age_j ei]nai to_ mh_ e(te/roij th_n timwri/an e)pitre/pein a)ll' e(autoi=j)". Similar sayings are also to be found in Philo’s retelling of the Levites’ action in the desert (Spec. 3,26) and of Moses’ killing the Egyptian (Mosis 1,44). Accordingly, there are cases where it is right to kill on the spot a violator of the Torah. And such an action should be deemed holy, as "a religious duty" (Spec. 3,128, cf. John 16,1-4). These aspects surely point to features of "affective emphasis" among the agents thus described. Furthermore, in 1,55 this aspect is described thus: They should "give full scope to the feelings which possess them, that hatred of evil and love of God which urges them to inflict punishment without mercy on the impious (a)lla_ tw=| parasta/nti misoponh/rw| pa/qei kai_ filoqe/w| kataxrh=sqai pro_j ta_j tw=n a)sebw=n a)paraith/touj kola/seij)". Here this comes as an explanation of their zeal and is in accordance with Spec. 4,14, where Philo says that "everyone who is inspired with zeal for virtue (zh=loj a)reth=j), is severe of temper and absolutely implacable against manstealers." The same emotional aspect is followed up by the injunction to exact the penalties "offhand and with no delay"42 and "without fear or hindrance" (Spec. 3,96), and by the statement that the punishment is to be inflicted "without mercy" on the impious. The expression here translated "without mercy," i.e., the Greek term a)parai/thtoj, meaning "inexorable," "inevitable," "not to