Acts 9:12
ESV
and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight."
NIV
In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight."
NASB
and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him, so that he might regain his sight.'
CSB
In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in and placing his hands on him so that he may regain his sight."
NLT
I have shown him a vision of a man named Ananias coming in and laying hands on him so he can see again.'
KJV
And hath seen in a vision a man named Ananias coming in, and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight.
NKJV
And in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him, so that he might receive his sight.”
What does Acts 9:12 mean?
Ananias is a Jesus-follower in Damascus who knows about the Saul who initiated the violent persecution of the church (Acts 8:1–3; 9:1–2). Because Saul later refers to him as "devout" (Acts 22:12), he may be a Gentile who worshiped the Jewish God before he became a Christian. He is not the husband of Sapphira (Acts 5:1–6) or the future high priest whom Saul will offend (Acts 23:2; 24:1).Despite living 133 miles from Jerusalem, Ananias is still nervous that Saul, under the authority of the Sanhedrin, is coming to Damascus to arrest Jesus-followers. Now, Jesus is telling him that Saul has reached the city and he needs to find him. On the road to Damascus, Jesus appeared to Saul in a blazing light and asked him why he was persecuting Him (Acts 9:1–9). For the last three days, Saul has been in a house, fasting from food and drink, and praying.
What's more, Saul is blind, and Jesus wants Ananias to heal him. Healing the blind is a miracle that is particularly associated with the Messiah (Isaiah 42:7). Only Jesus is credited with healing of blindness in Scripture—including here, where Ananias acts as something of a surrogate or conduit for Christ's healing. If Saul has any doubt about who Jesus is, this healing will end it. But Ananias needs more convincing.
