John Calvin Commentary Galatians 1:17

"neither went I up to Jerusalem to them that were apostles before me: but I went away into Arabia; and again I returned unto Damascus." — Galatians 1:17 (ASV)

Neither did I return to Jerusalem. What he had just written is now explained and more fully stated. It is as if he had said, “I did not seek the authority of any man,” not even of the apostles themselves. It is a mistake to suppose that, because the apostles are now separately mentioned, they are not included in the term flesh and blood. Nothing new or different is added here, but merely a clearer explanation of what had already been said.

And no disrespect to the apostles is implied in that expression. To show that he did not owe his commission to man, the false boasting of unprincipled men made it necessary for him to contrast the authority of the apostles themselves with the authority of God. When a creature is compared with God, however contemptuous or humiliating the language used may be, he has no reason to complain.

But I went into Arabia. In the Acts of the Apostles, Luke has omitted these three years. Similarly, there are other passages of the history which he does not touch; therefore, the slander of those who seek to build on this a charge of inconsistency in the narratives is ridiculous. Let godly readers consider the severe temptation with which Paul was called to struggle at the very beginning of his course. He who only yesterday, to honor him, had been sent to Damascus with a magnificent retinue, is now compelled to wander as an exile in a foreign land; but he does not lose his courage.