Acts 24:1-25

The Accusations Against Paul

24:1 After five days the high priest Ananias ¹  came down with some elders and an attorney ²  named ³  Tertullus, and they ⁴  brought formal charges ⁵  against Paul to the governor. 24:2 When Paul ⁶  had been summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, ⁷  saying, “We have experienced a lengthy time ⁸  of peace through your rule, ⁹  and reforms ¹⁰  are being made in this nation ¹¹  through your foresight. ¹²  24:3 Most excellent Felix, ¹³  we acknowledge this everywhere and in every way ¹⁴  with all gratitude. ¹⁵  24:4 But so that I may not delay ¹⁶  you any further, I beg ¹⁷  you to hear us briefly ¹⁸  with your customary graciousness. ¹⁹  24:5 For we have found ²⁰  this man to be a troublemaker, ²¹  one who stirs up riots ²²  among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader ²³  of the sect of the Nazarenes. ²⁴  24:6 He ²⁵  even tried to desecrate ²⁶  the temple, so we arrested ²⁷  him. 24:7 [[EMPTY]] ²⁸  24:8 When you examine ²⁹  him yourself, you will be able to learn from him ³⁰  about all these things we are accusing him of doing.” ³¹  24:9 The Jews also joined in the verbal attack, ³²  claiming ³³  that these things were true.

Paul’s Defense Before Felix

24:10 When the governor gestured for him to speak, Paul replied, “Because I know ³⁴  that you have been a judge over this nation for many years, I confidently make my defense. ³⁵  24:11 As you can verify ³⁶  for yourself, not more than twelve days ago ³⁷  I went up to Jerusalem ³⁸  to worship. 24:12 They did not find me arguing ³⁹  with anyone or stirring up a crowd ⁴⁰  in the temple courts ⁴¹  or in the synagogues ⁴²  or throughout the city, ⁴³  24:13 nor can they prove ⁴⁴  to you the things ⁴⁵  they are accusing me of doing. ⁴⁶  24:14 But I confess this to you, that I worship ⁴⁷  the God of our ancestors ⁴⁸  according to the Way (which they call a sect), believing everything that is according to the law ⁴⁹  and that is written in the prophets. 24:15 I have ⁵⁰  a hope in God (a hope ⁵¹  that ⁵²  these men ⁵³  themselves accept too) that there is going to be a resurrection of both the righteous and the unrighteous. ⁵⁴  24:16 This is the reason ⁵⁵  I do my best to always ⁵⁶  have a clear ⁵⁷  conscience toward God and toward people. ⁵⁸  24:17 After several years ⁵⁹  I came to bring to my people gifts for the poor ⁶⁰  and to present offerings, ⁶¹  24:18 which I was doing when they found me in the temple, ritually purified, ⁶²  without a crowd or a disturbance. ⁶³  24:19 But there are some Jews from the province of Asia ⁶⁴  who should be here before you and bring charges, ⁶⁵  if they have anything against me. 24:20 Or these men here ⁶⁶  should tell what crime ⁶⁷  they found me guilty of ⁶⁸  when I stood before the council, ⁶⁹  24:21 other than ⁷⁰  this one thing ⁷¹  I shouted out while I stood before ⁷²  them: ‘I am on trial before you today concerning the resurrection of the dead.’” ⁷³ 

24:22 Then Felix, ⁷⁴  who understood the facts ⁷⁵  concerning the Way ⁷⁶  more accurately, ⁷⁷  adjourned their hearing, ⁷⁸  saying, “When Lysias the commanding officer comes down, I will decide your case.” ⁷⁹  24:23 He ordered the centurion ⁸⁰  to guard Paul, ⁸¹  but to let him have some freedom, ⁸²  and not to prevent any of his friends ⁸³  from meeting his needs. ⁸⁴ 

Paul Speaks Repeatedly to Felix

24:24 Some days later, when Felix ⁸⁵  arrived with his wife Drusilla, ⁸⁶  who was Jewish, he sent for Paul and heard him speak ⁸⁷  about faith in Christ Jesus. ⁸⁸  24:25 While Paul ⁸⁹  was discussing ⁹⁰  righteousness, self-control, ⁹¹  and the coming judgment, Felix ⁹²  became ⁹³  frightened and said, “Go away for now, and when I have an opportunity, ⁹⁴  I will send for you.”

[24:1]  ¹ sn Ananias was in office from a.d. 47-59.

[24:1]  ² tn The term refers to a professional advocate (BDAG 905 s.v. ῥήτωρ).

[24:1]  ³ tn Grk “an attorney, a certain Tertullus.”

[24:1]  ⁴ tn Grk “who” (plural). Because in English the relative pronoun “who” could be understood to refer only to the attorney Tertullus and not to the entire group, it has been replaced with the third person plural pronoun “they.” “And” has been supplied to provide the connection to the preceding clause.

[24:1]  ⁵ tn BDAG 326 s.v. ἐμφανίζω 3 has “ἐ. τινὶ κατά τινος bring formal charges against someone…Ac 24:1; 25:2.”

[24:2]  ⁶ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[24:2]  ⁷ tn Or “began to bring charges, saying.”

[24:2]  ⁸ tn Grk “experienced much peace.”

[24:2]  ⁹ tn Grk “through you” (“rule” is implied).

[24:2]  ¹⁰ tn This term is used only once in the NT (a hapax legomenon). It refers to improvements in internal administration (BDAG 251 s.v. διόρθωμα).

[24:2]  ¹¹ tn Or “being made for this people.”

[24:2]  ¹² sn References to peaceful rule, reforms, and the governor’s foresight in the opening address by Tertullus represent an attempt to praise the governor and thus make him favorable to the case. Actual descriptions of his rule portray him as inept (Tacitus, Annals 12.54; Josephus, J. W. 2.13.2-7 [2.253-270]).

[24:3]  ¹³ sn Most excellent Felix. See the note on Felix in 23:24.

[24:3]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “in every way and everywhere.”

[24:3]  ¹⁵ tn Or “with complete thankfulness.” BDAG 416 s.v. εὐχαριστία 1 has “μετὰ πάσης εὐ.…with all gratitude Ac 24:3.” L&N 31.26 has “‘we acknowledge this anywhere and everywhere with complete thankfulness’ Ac 24:3.”

[24:4]  ¹⁶ tn Or “may not weary.” BDAG 274 s.v. ἐγκόπτω states, “ἵνα μὴ ἐπὶ πλεῖόν σε ἐγκόπτω Ac 24:4 is understood by Syr. and Armen. versions to mean in order not to weary you any further; cp. ἔγκοπος weary Diog. L. 4, 50; LXX; and ἔγκοπον ποιεῖν to weary Job 19:2; Is 43:23. But impose on is also prob.; detain NRSV.”

[24:4]  ¹⁷ tn Or “request.”

[24:4]  ¹⁸ tn This term is another NT hapax legomenon (BDAG 976 s.v. συντόμως 2). Tertullus was asking for a brief hearing, and implying to the governor that he would speak briefly and to the point.

[24:4]  ¹⁹ tn BDAG 371 s.v. ἐπιείκεια has “τῇ σῇ ἐ. with your (customary) indulgence Ac 24:4.”

[24:5]  ²⁰ tn Grk “For having found.” The participle εὑρόντες (Jeurontes) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[24:5]  ²¹ tn L&N 22.6 has “(a figurative extension of meaning of λοιμός ‘plague,’ 23.158) one who causes all sorts of trouble – ‘troublemaker, pest.’ … ‘for we have found this man to be a troublemaker” Ac 24:5.”

[24:5]  ²² tn Or “dissensions.” While BDAG 940 s.v. στάσις 3 translates this phrase “κινεῖν στάσεις (v.l. στάσιν) τισί create dissension among certain people Ac 24:5,” it is better on the basis of the actual results of Paul’s ministry to categorize this usage under section 2, “uprising, riot, revolt, rebellion” (cf. the use in Acts 19:40).

[24:5]  ²³ tn This term is yet another NT hapax legomenon (BDAG 894 s.v. πρωτοστάτης).

[24:5]  ²⁴ sn The sect of the Nazarenes is a designation for followers of Jesus the Nazarene, that is, Christians.

[24:6]  ²⁵ tn Grk “who.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the relative pronoun (“who”) was replaced by the third person singular pronoun (“he”) and a new sentence begun here in the translation.

[24:6]  ²⁶ tn Or “profane” (BDAG 173 s.v. βεβηλόω). The term was also used of profaning the Sabbath.

[24:6]  ²⁷ tn Or “seized.” Grk “whom also we arrested.” Because of the awkwardness of a relative clause in English at this point, the relative pronoun (“whom”) was replaced by the pronoun “him” as object of the verb.

[24:7]  ²⁸ tc Some later mss include some material at the end of v. 6, all of 24:7, and some material at the beginning of v. 8: “and we wanted to judge him according to our law. 24:7 But Lysias the commanding officer came and took him out of our hands with a great deal of violence, 24:8 ordering those who accused him to come before you.” Acts 24:6b, 7, and 8a are lacking in Ì⁷⁴ א A B H L P 049 81 1175 1241 pm and a few versional witnesses. They are included (with a few minor variations) in E Ψ 33 323 614 945 1505 1739 pm and a few versional witnesses. This verse (and parts of verses) is most likely not a part of the original text of Acts, for not only is it lacking from the better witnesses, there is no easy explanation as to how such could be missing from them. The present translation follows NA²⁷ in omitting the verse number, a procedure also followed by a number of other modern translations.

[24:8]  ²⁹ tn Or “question.”

[24:8]  ³⁰ tn Grk “From whom when you examine him yourself, you will be able to learn…” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the relative pronoun (“whom”) was replaced by the third person singular pronoun (“him”) and a new sentence begun at the beginning of v. 8 in the translation.

[24:8]  ³¹ tn Grk “about all these things of which we are accusing him.” This has been simplified to eliminate the relative pronoun (“of which”) in the translation.

[24:9]  ³² tn Grk “joined in the attack,” but the adjective “verbal” has been supplied to clarify that this was not another physical assault on Paul. The verb is another NT hapax legomenon (BDAG 969 s.v. συνεπιτίθημι).

[24:9]  ³³ tn Or “asserting” (BDAG 1050 s.v. φάσκω).

[24:10]  ³⁴ tn Grk “knowing.” The participle ἐπιστάμενος (epistamenos) has been translated as a causal adverbial participle.

[24:10]  ³⁵ sn “Because…defense.” Paul also paid an indirect compliment to the governor, implying that he would be fair in his judgment.

[24:11]  ³⁶ 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.”

[24:11]  ³⁷ tn Grk “it is not more than twelve days from when.” This has been simplified to “not more than twelve days ago.”

[24:11]  ³⁸ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[24:12]  ³⁹ tn Or “disputing,” “conducting a heated discussion.”

[24:12]  ⁴⁰ 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.

[24:12]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “in the temple.” This is actually a reference to the courts surrounding the temple proper, and has been translated accordingly.

[24:12]  ⁴² sn See the note on synagogue in 6:9.

[24:12]  ⁴³ 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.

[24:13]  ⁴⁴ 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.”

[24:13]  ⁴⁵ 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.

[24:13]  ⁴⁶ 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.

[24:14]  ⁴⁷ tn Or “serve.”

[24:14]  ⁴⁸ tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”

[24:14]  ⁴⁹ 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.

[24:15]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “having.” The participle ἔχων (ecwn) has been translated as a finite verb and a new sentence begun at this point in the translation because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence.

[24:15]  ⁵¹ sn This mention of Paul’s hope sets up his appeal to the resurrection of the dead. At this point Paul was ignoring the internal Jewish dispute between the Pharisees (to which he had belonged) and the Sadducees (who denied there would be a resurrection of the dead).

[24:15]  ⁵² tn Grk “a hope in God (which these [men] themselves accept too).” Because the antecedent of the relative pronoun “which” is somewhat unclear in English, the words “a hope” have been repeated at the beginning of the parenthesis for clarity.

[24:15]  ⁵³ tn Grk “that they”; the referent (these men, Paul’s accusers) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[24:15]  ⁵⁴ tn Or “the unjust.”

[24:16]  ⁵⁵ tn BDAG 329 s.v. ἐν 9.a, “ἐν τούτῳ πιστεύομεν this is the reason why we believe Jn 16:30; cp. Ac 24:16.”

[24:16]  ⁵⁶ tn BDAG 224 s.v. διά 2.a, “διὰ παντός…always, continually, constantly…Ac 2:25 (Ps 15:8); 10:2; 24:16.” However, the positioning of the adverb “always” in the English translation is difficult; the position used is one of the least awkward.

[24:16]  ⁵⁷ tn BDAG 125 s.v. ἀπρόσκοπος 1 has “ἀ. συνείδησις a clear conscience Ac 24:16.”

[24:16]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “men,” but this is a generic use (Paul does not have only males in view).

[24:17]  ⁵⁹ tn BDAG 401 s.v. ἔτος has “δι᾿ ἐ. πλειόνων after several years 24:17.”

[24:17]  ⁶⁰ tn Grk “to bring alms,” but the term “alms” is not in common use today, so the closest modern equivalent, “gifts for the poor,” is used instead.

[24:17]  ⁶¹ tn Or “sacrifices.” BDAG 887 s.v. προσφορά 1 has “προσφοράς ποιεῖν have sacrifices made Ac 24:17,” but this may be overly specific. It is not clear from the immediate context whether the offering of sacrificial animals (so BDAG assumes) or offerings of some other sort (such as financial gifts) are in view. The combination with ἐλεημοσύνας (elehmosuna") in the preceding clause may suggest monetary offerings. Some have suggested this is an allusion to the payments made by Paul on behalf of the four other men mentioned in Acts 21:23-26, but the text here seems to suggest something Paul had planned to do before he came, while the decision to pay for the expenses of the men in 21:23ff. was made at the suggestion of the Jerusalem leadership after he arrived. In either case, Paul was portraying himself as a pious worshiper of his God.

[24:18]  ⁶² sn Ritually purified. Paul’s claim here is that he was honoring the holiness of God by being sensitive to issues of ritual purity. Not only was he not guilty of the charges against him, but he was thoroughly devout.

[24:18]  ⁶³ tn BDAG 458 s.v. θόρυβος 3.b has “μετὰ θορύβου…with a disturbance Ac 24:18.”

[24:19]  ⁶⁴ tn Grk “Asia”; in the NT this always refers to the Roman province of Asia, made up of about one-third of the west and southwest end of modern Asia Minor. Asia lay to the west of the region of Phrygia and Galatia. The words “the province of” are supplied to indicate to the modern reader that this does not refer to the continent of Asia.

[24:19]  ⁶⁵ tn BDAG 533 s.v. κατηγορέω 1 states, “nearly always as legal t.t.: bring charges in court.” L&N 33.427 states for κατηγορέω (kathgorew), “to bring serious charges or accusations against someone, with the possible connotation of a legal or court context – ‘to accuse, to bring charges.’”

[24:20]  ⁶⁶ tn Grk “these [men] themselves.”

[24:20]  ⁶⁷ tn Or “unrighteous act.”

[24:20]  ⁶⁸ tn The words “me guilty of” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. L&N 88.23 has “αὐτοὶ οὗτοι εἰπάτωσαν τί εὗρον ἀδίκημα στάντος μου ‘let these men themselves tell what unrighteous act they found me guilty of’ Ac 24:20.”

[24:20]  ⁶⁹ tn Grk “the Sanhedrin” (the Sanhedrin was the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).

[24:21]  ⁷⁰ tn BDAG 433 s.v. ἤ 2.c has “οὐδὲν ἕτερον ἤ nothing else than…Ac 17:21. τί…ἤ what other…than…24:21.”

[24:21]  ⁷¹ tn Grk “one utterance.”

[24:21]  ⁷² tn Cf. BDAG 327 s.v. ἐν 1.e, which has “before, in the presence of, etc.”

[24:21]  ⁷³ sn The resurrection of the dead. Paul’s point was, what crime was there in holding this religious belief?

[24:22]  ⁷⁴ sn See the note on Antonius Felix in 23:24.

[24:22]  ⁷⁵ tn Grk “the things.”

[24:22]  ⁷⁶ tn That is, concerning Christianity.

[24:22]  ⁷⁷ tn BDAG 39 s.v. ἀκριβῶς has “Comp. ἀκριβέστερον more exactly…ἀ. ἐκτίθεσθαι explain more exactly Ac 18:26, cp. 23:15, 20; also more accurately…24:22.” Felix knew more about the Christian movement than what the Jewish leaders had told him.

[24:22]  ⁷⁸ tn L&N 56.18 s.v. ἀναβάλλω has “to adjourn a court proceeding until a later time – ‘to adjourn a hearing, to stop a hearing and put it off until later.’…‘then Felix, who was well informed about the Way, adjourned their hearing’ Ac 24:22.”

[24:22]  ⁷⁹ tn BDAG 227 s.v. διαγινώσκω 2 states, “to make a judicial decision, decide/hear (a case)…τὰ καθ᾿ ὑμᾶς decide your case Ac 24:22.”

[24:23]  ⁸⁰ sn See the note on the word centurion in 10:1.

[24:23]  ⁸¹ tn Grk “that he was to be guarded.” The passive construction (τηρεῖσθαι, threisqai) has been converted to an active one in parallel with the following clauses, and the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[24:23]  ⁸² tn BDAG 77 s.v. ἄνεσις 1 states, “lit. relaxation of custodial control, some liberty, ἀ. ἔχειν have some freedom Ac 24:23.”

[24:23]  ⁸³ tn Grk “any of his own” (this could also refer to relatives).

[24:23]  ⁸⁴ tn Grk “from serving him.”

[24:24]  ⁸⁵ sn See the note on Antonius Felix in 23:24.

[24:24]  ⁸⁶ sn It is possible that Drusilla, being Jewish, was the source of Felix’s knowledge about the new movement called Christianity. The youngest daughter of Herod Agrippa I and sister of Agrippa II, she would have been close to 20 years old at the time. She had married the king of a small region in Syria but divorced him at the age of 16 to marry Felix. This was her second marriage and Felix’s third (Josephus, Ant. 19.9.1 [19.354], 20.7.2 [20.141-144]). As a member of Herod’s family, she probably knew about the Way.

[24:24]  ⁸⁷ tn The word “speak” is implied; BDAG 32 s.v. ἀκούω 1.c has “ἤκουσεν αὐτοῦ περὶ τῆς…πίστεως he heard him speak about faith Ac 24:24.”

[24:24]  ⁸⁸ tn Or “Messiah Jesus”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[24:25]  ⁸⁹ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[24:25]  ⁹⁰ tn Or “speaking about.”

[24:25]  ⁹¹ tn Grk “and self-control.” This καί (kai) has not been translated since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

[24:25]  ⁹² sn See the note on Felix in 23:26.

[24:25]  ⁹³ tn Grk “becoming.” The participle γενόμενος (genomenos) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[24:25]  ⁹⁴ tn Or “when I find time.” BDAG 639 s.v. μεταλαμβάνω 2 has “καιρὸν μ. have an opportunity = find time…Ac 24:25.”