04_Sandnes_550-564_copia_550-564 10/12/15 10:24 Pagina 554 554 KARL OLAV SANDNES 554 erence can be made to Jer 1,5-6 and Isa 42,6-7; 49,6. In Rom 11,13- 15, Paul presents this primary mission of his as instrumental to bring salvation to the Jews, thus joining the aim attributed to the prophets more widely 11. However, when Paul in Galatians says that he has been entrusted with the gospel to the nations (2,7), this target of his becomes deeply involved in his theological re-orientation which finds no analogy in the prophetic traditions. In Galatians 1, Paul places himself “within the stream of the prophetic tradition” 12. Thus the prophetic legacy in Paul’s self-un- derstanding, with emphasis on his call, enhances continuity and his being firmly embedded within the Jewish tradition. Nonetheless, some peculiarities come into view as well, and they need to be account- ed for: the emphasis on euvaggeli,zomai; the Christocentric nature of his mission; the fact that Paul is called to preach what was shown him in his inaugural vision, and also that his Damascus revelation works paradigmatically vis-à-vis his addressees in Galatians (see more below). All these observations cumulatively imply that Paul, albeit enrolled among the prophets of old, is a “prophet” for a time that also sets him apart from them. Pamela Eisenbaum says that “if there was any conversion for Paul, it was a conversion about what time it was in history” 13. While I think this insight paves the way for recognizing further developments in Paul, Eisenbaum goes on to exclude any re-orientation beyond that. 2. Damascus as Paradigm: An Altered Perspective This paves the way for some further considerations on how his call works within this epistle. Paul says that his call to become an apostle was also an act of God’s grace (cf. 1 Cor 15,10). I have pre- viously pointed out that the forgiveness of his persecution of the Christ-believers was analogous to the prophetic motif of “overcom- ing the insufficiency of the one called,” a typical feature in call nar- ratives of the Old Testament (Exod 3,11; Isa 6,5; Jer 1,6; Ezek 11 For prophetic elements in Roman 9–11 more widely, see C.A. EVANS, “Paul and the Prophets: Prophetic Criticism in the Epistle to the Romans (with special reference to Romans 9–11)”, Romans and the People of God. Essays in Honor of Gordon D. Fee on the Occasion of his 65th Birthday (eds. S.K. SODER- LUND – N.T. WRIGHT) (Grand Rapids, MI – Cambridge U.K. 1999) 115-128. 12 AERNIE, Paul, 137. 13 EISENBAUM, Paul, 219.