“Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief.”
King James Version (KJV)
1:13 A blasphemer - Of Christ. A persecutor - Of his church. A reviler - Of his doctrine and people. But I obtained mercy - He does not say, because I was unconditionally elected; but because I did it in ignorance. Not that his ignorance took away his sin; but it left him capable of mercy; which he would hardly have been, had he acted thus contrary to his own conviction.
1Ti 1:13 Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious. Paul never could forget his old life, before he was converted. But I obtained mercy, because I did [it] ignorantly in unbelief. The reason is that he was honest, sincere in his opposition, being an unbeliever, and acting ignorantly. Had he been a willful sinner, he would never have been chosen.