Where did Paul go after Damascus instead of Jerusalem?
After Damascus, Paul did not go to Jerusalem to the apostles; he went into Arabia, specifically to Mount Sinai in the desert of Arabia. God sovereignly sent him there, where he spent almost three years and received the doctrines of grace before later going to Jerusalem to see Peter.
Les explains that in Galatians 1 Paul says he did not go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before him, but instead conferred not with flesh and blood and went into Arabia. Les connects this Arabia with Mount Sinai from Galatians 4:25, concluding that God sovereignly drove Paul out of Damascus and sent him down into the desert of Sinai, or Arabia, to Mount Sinai. There, Les suggests, God gave Paul the doctrines of grace, just as He gave the law to Moses at Sinai. After nearly three years, Paul finally went up to Jerusalem to see Peter for fifteen days, seeing none of the other apostles except James the Lord's brother, who was not one of the twelve.
Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus.
More Questions
Why is the phrase 'I returned again to Damascus' important for tracing Paul's route after his conversion?
The phrase 'I returned again to Damascus' is decisive, because without it one could logically infer that Paul went from Damascus to Sinai and then directly to Jerusalem to visit Peter before heading to Tarsus.