Who was the Jesus that Saul was persecuting and trying to wipe from Jewish memory?
The Jesus Saul persecuted was Jehovah, the God of Abraham who spoke to Moses and David. Saul thought He was an imposter and blasphemer and tried to wipe His name from Jewish memory, yet this same Jehovah spoke from heaven after being crucified, buried, and risen.
Les explains that Saul's question, "Who art thou, Lord?", should in the original be understood as Jehovah, because Saul understood Jehovah as the God of Abraham. The answer came, "I'm Jesus." Les says to imagine Saul's reaction: the one he thought was an imposter and blasphemer, whose name he was trying to obliterate from Jewish thinking, was the same Jehovah who had called Abraham, spoken to Moses, and spoken to David. That same one was now speaking from heaven after having been crucified, buried, and risen from the dead. It was the voice from heaven saying, "I am Jesus whom you persecuted." Les also notes God works the ends into the middle: while dealing outside the city with Saul, He was dealing in the city with Ananias.
And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.
More Questions
Was Saul having second thoughts about persecuting Christians before his conversion?
Saul never had a thought like 'Am I being overzealous?' or 'Am I carrying this too far?' He was still fully determined to seize believing Jews in Damascus and take them back to Jerusalem.
What did Saul realize when Jesus answered 'I am Jesus'?
When Jesus answered 'I am Jesus,' Saul realized that the very person he hated and thought he had to stamp out was the same as his Jehovah from the Old Testament.