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.
inflicted on the transgressors of the first five Commandments, as stated in Spec. 2,242. Here the judgment of death is stated for violating each of the first five Commandments, and this severe punishment is here further argued for by reference to the honorable role of Israel in the world, i.e., by his emphasis on the great significance and responsibility of belonging to the people of God.
Concerning the punishment to be inflicted according to 2,252, this is given already in its opening statement: "For persons who call God to witness to an untruth, death is the appointed punishment" (w#ristai di/kh qana/tou). One ought probably to include 2,253 too: "God, though his nature is to be merciful, will never free from guilt him who swears falsely to an injustice, a miscreant almost beyond possibility of purification, even if he evades the chastisements of men." Hence the following conclusions can be drawn: the relevant punishment is death. This is to be carried out by humans, but if anyone should manage to escape the hands of men, he/she will not escape God: he/she will for ever be considered as impure.
Returning to Gal 1,14, Paul does not only say that he was ‘zealous’ and persecuted, but he clothes his statements in expressions that emphasize the intensity and severity of his attitudes and actions. In Galatians he uses the verb diw/kein both in descriptions of his own persecutions (Gal 1,13-23; cf. 1 Cor 15,9; Phil 3,6), as well as the persecutions he himself suffered (Gal 4,29; 5,11; 6,12; cf. 1 Cor 4,12; 2 Cor 4,9). This verb is, however, somewhat ambiguous. In a much cited article Ph. Menoud has suggested that in Galatians 1,13.23 Paul used the porqei=n in a "sens morale", denoting that Paul tried to destroy the faith of the Christians72. D.R.A. Hare followed this up by stating that "From what we know of his character and abilities it seems highly probable that his activity was primarily verbal", representing something like ‘annoy’ and ‘harass verbally’73. Others have strongly opposed such a reading74.