A Thorn in the Flesh

Over the years, many well-meaning theologians have attempted to offer what Paul’s mysterious “thorn in the flesh” really was. Some have postulated that Paul merely had some physically debilitating handicap: poor eyesight, a wound that wouldn’t heal, or epilepsy. A few more liberal souls, many of the Episcopal persuasion, have speculated that Paul was gay, and theorize that this explains his apparent self-loathing. Others simply assume and conclude that we really don’t know what his “thorn” actually was.

This kind of wild speculation about Paul’s “thorn” is a huge enigma in the study of the Scriptures because if we just read Paul’s own words instead of trying to make assumptions, we’ll realize that he is actually very specific about what this “thorn” is! We just need to read his words and follow them to their logical conclusion.

In 2 Corinthians 12:7 Paul very clearly states that because of his boasting God has “tormented” him with a thorn in the flesh,[1] an aggelos satan. The term aggelos within the Greek simply means “messenger” or “one who is sent”; it is the Greek root of the English term “angel”.

We need to carefully note that the word aggelos can be translated one of two ways depending upon the subject being spoken of. Aggelos is always translated as “messenger” when referring to a “human” being, and always translated as “angel” when referring specifically to a “supernatural” being. Whether aggelos is translated into English as “messenger” or “angel” is entirely dependent upon the nature of the noun to which it belongs, whether physical, such as a man, or supernatural, such as a being sent from God.[2]

The term aggelos is a well-understood term that is used almost 200 times in the New Testament’s Greek. Paul himself uses the term aggelos thirteen other times within his epistles and in all instances, he’s referring to a supernatural being. He even refers to himself as an aggelos of God. This is something that is not at all out of character for Paul; but even here the translators render the passage correctly because even though Paul is talking about himself, the subject is still an “angel” sent by God.

Now here is the problem: The one and only time aggelos is rendered in translation as “messenger” instead of “angel” when clearly referring to a “supernatural” subject (a being) is when the translators refer to Paul’s “thorn”—Paul’s “aggelos satan” that was sent by God.[3] To render the Bible passage to be consistent with every other use of aggelos within the Bible, and to correctly translate what Paul is saying, the passage would and should read:

“… there was given me a large wooden stake in my flesh, an angel of Satan, to torment me.”[4]

 

Let’s not mince words here: an “angel of Satan” is by anyone’s definition a demonic spirit; a “demon”. Period. Our modern mainstream Bible translators also realize this, which is why they have attempted to water down Paul’s admission with a deliberate mistranslation of his words.[5] This is completely understandable. Who wants to be the popular mainstream scholar or pastor who is tasked to tell the rest of Christendom that Paul was tormented “in his flesh”, not just externally, by an actual real demon of Satan!? It is therefore completely understandable to see why Paul’s punishment has been completely reframed, recast as nothing more serious than a mere “thorn”.

Now lest we believe that this phrase aggelos satan is being used allegorically for a physical disease or other ailment, consider that in all of these uses of the term aggelos within the “New Testament”, it is always used to denote a “being”, a “messenger”, whether physical or spiritual, and never a physical condition or disease. Remember, the word aggelos specifically means “one who is sent, a messenger”. Aggelos has nothing to do with infirmity or disease.

Christianity deals with this “problem passage” by automatically beginning its exegesis (study/interpretation) of the Scriptures with a full set of presumed and well-developed doctrines already set-in-stone. It then sets out to “prove” these doctrines with the Scriptures no matter what is found within the texts. This “preferred perspective” is actually consistent with the historical record, as Christianity in general has a long history of picking those words of Paul’s that it likes to take literally and those it does not. When Paul says that “Christ is the end of the law”, we take these words literally and preach, “Christ abolished the Law!”[6] But when Paul says he was “tormented by an angel of Satan” we suddenly want to take these words figuratively, so we downplay and recast these plainly written and well understood words as being “Paul was afflicted with a mere thorn …”

Jesus’ Prophecy about Paul

There is an irony and a corollary here that escapes quite a few Christian believers and even Biblical scholars. King Saul of Israel and Saul of Tarsus (Paul) have some very stark similarities in their lives, not the least of which is that they share the same name.

Both Paul and King Saul also had a very similar “thorns in the flesh”. Like Paul, King Saul was also arrogant and refused to listen to God.  Remember, Samuel warned Saul that, “rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry.”[7] Both men were also on paths of murderous behavior. King Saul was slaughtering the priests under Samuel (1 Sam. 22) and Saul-turned-Paul was slaughtering the followers of God who had learned from Jesus and the Twelve.[8]

Eventually, God turned King Saul over to his sin. Samuel records what happened to King Saul because of his arrogance. God said to Samuel,

“How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel?” … Now the Spirit of AHYH had departed from Saul, and an evil [injurious] spirit from AHYH tormented him. Saul’s attendants said to him, “See, an evil spirit from God is tormenting you. …”[9]

Perhaps not so coincidentally, both Saul and Paul were also Benjamites, from the tribe of Benjamin. Benjamin was the son whom Jacob “blessed” as a “ravenous wolf” and one who “devours prey”.[10] This is not the kind of “blessing” one might expect from one’s own father! King Saul’s arrogant and murderous behavior could easily be described as that of a murderous “ravenous wolf”. Later, the Prophets themselves would write of evil leadership in the same manner, describing an evil religious leadership as roaring lions who tear and devour men as their prey.[11]

Jesus the Messiah also used this very same prophetic imagery when he spoke of false religious leaders (false prophets, false apostles), calling such false leaders “ravenous wolves”.[12]

“Beware of the false prophets [leaders, apostles], who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits [what they do and say; how well they uphold the Law and Commandments of God]. Grapes [truthful teachings] are not gathered from thorn bushes [dishonest teachers] nor figs from thistles, are they? …

Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name cast out demons, and in your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS [void the Law of God].”[13]

In telling this parable, Jesus was actually warning us about whom we should look out for and avoid. In essence, Jesus was giving us a prophecy against the “ravenous wolf”. The “ravenous wolf” corollary would not at all be at all lost on the Hebrews of the day; they would indeed be looking for a murderous Benjamite. And the man who fit this lawless and murderous pattern to a ‘T’ was indeed “Saul” of Tarsus.

Did the Holy Spirit of God reveal to Jesus Paul’s final punishment and ultimate downfall, and that it would be a veritable repeat of Paul’s own namesake, King Saul?

If one were to be literally truthful in the translation of Paul’s own words, as the CEV and Wycliffe Bibles have been, one would see that Paul’s punishment was that he was being tormented by an evil spirit, a real demon, for his idolatrous arrogance and Law-less teachings. This “thorn” was not something that was sent to merely test Paul, but rather was sent by the hand of God as, at best, a form of deep chastisement (Leviticus 26) or, at worst, a “King Saul” form of final punishment where the Most High had finally abandoned Paul to his unrepentant sin.