Your post makes no sense.
“Power, influence, and fame with believers (which belief he hoped to spread further.)”
What evidence do you have for any of these claims of yours about Paul? He knew he was risking his life by BECOMING a Christian. Why do it when he had more power as a Jew?
“As to how he lived his life, I’m happy if he didn’t rape any teenage girls, although the Bible doesn’t really say much about raping virgins so it probably wouldn’t have mattered if he had, and we’ll never know.”
What? You think it would not have mattered if Paul raped young girls? Paul preached the importance of sexual self-control and you’re saying it wouldn’t have mattered if he raped young girls? Seriously, do you realize how kooky that point of view is?
“Plenty of other men in the Bible had sex with young wives, slaves, multiple wives... I think Lot did it with his daughters... it wasn’t exactly a hotbed of women’s rights.”
So if it was a “hotbed of women’s rights” it would have mattered if Paul raped young girls but since it isn’t it doesn’t matter?
“I’d still put Paul in the same category with the myriad of other men over the centuries who claimed power and enlightenment from a diety.”
Really? And which one of them did he act like?
“Indeed, I seem to remember European kings believed they ruled by divine right.”
Some said that but “divine right monarchy” was a short lived concept in Europe.
“Many of them met with violent ends... I suspect they believed God would protect them right up till that last moment. It’s pretty common, apparently, to say (and maybe even believe) that God has spoken to you, chosen you, you are special, you have a fantastical destiny in store...”
Your post makes no sense.
“I actually have a schizophrenic ex-boyfriend who went through this in 2010-2011. He wandered around India for quite a while, convinced that God was talking to him and warning him about 2012 and the end of the world.”
I’m sorry about your friend, but nothing about Paul is about your friend in regard to your friend’s illness.
Men who seek power always do it at great risk. I don't suppose you can think of any revolutionaries, kings, political figures, cult leaders, union leaders, or presidents that have ever been assassinated, can you?
You think it would not have mattered if Paul raped young girls?
Well, Jewish law would have required him to pay a fee to her father and marry her, but other than that, no, Thou Shalt Not Rape didn't make the Top Ten. Women were not important in the Middle East, not then and not now. They were basically chattel.
As for how many years the divine right of kings lasted in Europe, it doesn't matter. It crops up all over the world, and simply shows that leaders of all types tend to assure their populace that they represent God, that obeying them is God's will, etc. Many religions even impress upon women that her husband is representative of God to her. Our modern day Democrats assure us that their overwhelming desire to feed the poor stems directly from their close, personal relationship with Jesus. Anyone who desires power quickly learns the advantage of convincing others that God is in perfect agreement. Thus with Paul.