Acts 3:12

3:12 When Peter saw this, he declared to the people, “Men of Israel, ¹  why are you amazed at this? Why ²  do you stare at us as if we had made this man ³  walk by our own power or piety?

Acts 5:28

5:28 saying, “We gave ⁴  you strict orders ⁵  not to teach in this name. ⁶  Look, ⁷  you have filled Jerusalem ⁸  with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood ⁹  on us!”

Acts 23:9

23:9 There was a great commotion, ¹⁰  and some experts in the law ¹¹  from the party of the Pharisees stood up ¹²  and protested strongly, ¹³  “We find nothing wrong ¹⁴  with this man. What if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?”

Acts 24:2

24:2 When Paul ¹⁵  had been summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, ¹⁶  saying, “We have experienced a lengthy time ¹⁷  of peace through your rule, ¹⁸  and reforms ¹⁹  are being made in this nation ²⁰  through your foresight. ²¹ 

Acts 24:10

Paul’s Defense Before Felix

24:10 When the governor gestured for him to speak, Paul replied, “Because I know ²²  that you have been a judge over this nation for many years, I confidently make my defense. ²³ 

[3:12]  ¹ tn Or perhaps “People of Israel,” since this was taking place in Solomon’s Portico and women may have been present. The Greek ἄνδρες ᾿Ισραηλῖται (andre" Israhlitai) used in the plural would normally mean “men, gentlemen” (BDAG 79 s.v. ἀνήρ 1.a).

[3:12]  ² tn Grk “or why.”

[3:12]  ³ tn Grk “him”; the referent (the man) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:28]  ⁴ tc ‡ The majority of mss, including a few important witnesses (א² D E [Ψ] 1739 Ï sy sa), have the negative particle οὐ (ou) here, effectively turning the high priest’s words into a question: “Did we not give you strict orders not to teach in this name?” But the earliest and most important mss, along with some others (Ì⁷⁴ א* A B 1175 lat bo), lack the particle, making this a strong statement rather than a question. Scribes may have been tempted to omit the particle to strengthen the contrast between official Judaism and the new faith, but the fact that v. 27 introduces the quotation with ἐπηρώτησεν (ephrwthsen, “he questioned”) may well have prompted scribes to add οὐ to convert the rebuke into a question. Further, that excellent witnesses affirm the shorter reading is sufficient ground for accepting it as most probably authentic. NA²⁷ includes the particle in brackets, indicating some doubt as to its authenticity.

[5:28]  ⁵ tn Grk “We commanded you with a commandment” (a Semitic idiom that is emphatic).

[5:28]  ⁶ sn The name (i.e., person) of Jesus is the constant issue of debate.

[5:28]  ⁷ tn Grk “And behold.” Because of the length of the Greek sentence and the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[5:28]  ⁸ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[5:28]  ⁹ sn To bring this man’s blood on us is an idiom meaning “you intend to make us guilty of this man’s death.”

[23:9]  ⁷ tn Or “clamor” (cf. BDAG 565 s.v. κραυγή 1.a, which has “there arose a loud outcry” here, and Exod 12:30).

[23:9]  ⁸ tn Or “and some scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 4:5.

[23:9]  ⁹ tn Grk “standing up.” The participle ἀναστάντες (anastante") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[23:9]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “protested strongly, saying.” L&N 39.27 has “διαμάχομαι: to fight or contend with, involving severity and thoroughness – ‘to protest strongly, to contend with.’…‘some scribes from the party of the Pharisees protested strongly’ Ac 23:9.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant and has not been translated.

[23:9]  ¹¹ sn “We find nothing wrong with this man.” Here is another declaration of innocence. These leaders recognized the possibility that Paul might have the right to make his claim.

[24:2]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[24:2]  ¹¹ tn Or “began to bring charges, saying.”

[24:2]  ¹² tn Grk “experienced much peace.”

[24:2]  ¹³ tn Grk “through you” (“rule” is implied).

[24:2]  ¹⁴ 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]  ¹⁵ tn Or “being made for this people.”

[24:2]  ¹⁶ 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]).

[24:10]  ¹³ tn Grk “knowing.” The participle ἐπιστάμενος (epistamenos) has been translated as a causal adverbial participle.

[24:10]  ¹⁴ sn “Because…defense.” Paul also paid an indirect compliment to the governor, implying that he would be fair in his judgment.