That the use of synagogues was Paul’s missionary strategy for a long time is confirmed by Paul’s own recollection of how often he suffered under Jewish discipline (five times he had received 39 lashes [2 Cor. 11.24]), for it is difficult to imagine that Paul would have been punished and persecuted if he avoided synagogue communities and lived solely as a gentile among gentile populations (Dunn 2008, pp.
