Acts 24:11-14

24:11 As you can verify ¹  for yourself, not more than twelve days ago ²  I went up to Jerusalem ³  to worship. 24:12 They did not find me arguing ⁴  with anyone or stirring up a crowd ⁵  in the temple courts ⁶  or in the synagogues ⁷  or throughout the city, ⁸  24:13 nor can they prove ⁹  to you the things ¹⁰  they are accusing me of doing. ¹¹  24:14 But I confess this to you, that I worship ¹²  the God of our ancestors ¹³  according to the Way (which they call a sect), believing everything that is according to the law ¹⁴  and that is written in the prophets.

---

¹ tn BDAG 369 s.v. ἐπιγινώσκω 2.c has “notice, perceive, learn of, ascertain…Also as legal t.t. ascertain (2 Macc 14:9) τὶ Ac 23:28; cp. 24:8. W. ὅτι foll. Ac 24:11.” “Verify” is an English synonym for “ascertain.”

² tn Grk “it is not more than twelve days from when.” This has been simplified to “not more than twelve days ago.”

sn Part of Paul’s defense is that he would not have had time to organize a revolt, since he had arrived in Jerusalem not more than twelve days ago.

³ map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

⁴ tn Or “disputing,” “conducting a heated discussion.”

⁵ tn BDAG 381 s.v. ἐπίστασις 2 has “ἐ. ποιεῖν ὄχλου to cause a crowd to gather Ac 24:12.” Roman authorities would not allow a mob to gather and threaten the peace, and anyone suspected of instigating a mob would certainly be arrested.

⁶ tn Grk “in the temple.” This is actually a reference to the courts surrounding the temple proper, and has been translated accordingly.

⁷ sn See the note on synagogue in 6:9.

⁸ sn A second part of Paul’s defense is that he did nothing while he was in Jerusalem to cause unrest, neither arguing nor stirring up a crowd in the temple courts or in the synagogues or throughout the city.

⁹ tn BDAG 778 s.v. παρίστημι/παριστάνω 1.f has “οὐδὲ παραστῆσαι δύνανταί σοι περὶ ὧν νυνὶ κατηγοροῦσίν μου nor can they prove to you the accusations they are now making against me Ac 24:13.”

sn Nor can they prove. This is a formal legal claim that Paul’s opponents lacked proof of any wrongdoing. They had no witness who could justify the arrest at the temple.

¹⁰ tn The words “the things” are not in the Greek text but are implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context, but must be supplied for the modern English reader.

¹¹ tn Grk “nor can they prove to you [the things] about which they are now accusing me.” This has been simplified to eliminate the relative pronoun (“which”) in the translation.

¹² tn Or “serve.”

¹³ tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”

¹⁴ sn That is, the law of Moses. Paul was claiming that he legitimately worshiped the God of Israel. He was arguing that this amounted to a religious dispute rather than a political one, so that the Roman authorities need not concern themselves with it.