Acts 24:19
in Acts 24who ought to appear before you and bring charges, if they have anything against me.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
who ought to have been here before thee, and to make accusation, if they had aught against me.
KJV
Who ought to have been here before thee, and object, if they had ought against me.
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This verse in Acts 24
Commentary
9 notes on this verseWho ought to have been here before thee,.... For they were the only persons who saw him in the temple, and what he was doing; and who by an hideous outcry raised a mob upon him, who took things upon hearsay from them: and object, if they had ought against me; either with respect to sedition, or blasphemy, error or heresy, if they were capable of proving anything.
This site's exposition
to bring alms to my people
on Acts 24:17-19
Paul returned to Jerusalem to bring alms to his people, the collection of the Gentile congregations in Macedonia and Achaia (Romans 15:25-27). His accusers, some Jews from the province of Asia, are absent, though Roman procedure required accusers to face the accused.
This site's exposition
ought to appear before you
The Jews from Asia were the only eyewitnesses to what happened in the temple, as Albert Barnes and John Gill both note. Gill adds that their outcry raised the mob, which acted on hearsay from them. Barnes takes their absence as a sign they feared close examination.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
Then also he casts out their person: but, says he, they that found me, were certain Jews from Asia, who ought to have been here before thee, and object, if they had ought against me. He also does well to challenge his accusers who were from Asia, Who ought to accuse before thee, etc., but he does well also not to reject this either.
The Medieval Church1 voice
But some Jews from Asia. Join this to the preceding, that is, these are the ones who found me in the temple.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
In the council: "Since the Jews of Asia are not here to prove any thing upon me done amiss in the temple, let these same that are here, the high priest and the elders, say whether they have found any evil doing in me, or whether I was guilty of any misdemeanor when I stood before the council, when also they were ready to pull me in pieces,
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — odd-straight-quotes
Who ought to have been present before thee - But the world never commit greater blunders, even against its own laws, than when it is persecuting the children of God.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Who ought to have been here ... - They were the proper witnesses, and as they had staid away it showed that they were not prepared to undergo a strict examination. They alone could testify as to anything that occurred in the temple; and as they were not present, that charge ought to be dismissed.
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
found me purified in the temple--not polluting it, therefore, by my own presence, and neither gathering a crowd nor raising a stir: If then these Asiatic Jews have any charge to bring against me in justification of their arrest of me, why are they not here to substantiate it?
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
The words behind it
12 Greek wordsEvery Greek word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Greek | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| οὓς | hous | [19] who | G3739 → | 1405 times |
| ἔδει | edei | it was necessary | G1163 → | 101 times |
| ἐπὶ | epi | before | G1909 → | 883 times |
| σοῦ | sou | you | G4771 → | 2973 times |
| παρεῖναι | pareinai | to appear | G3918 → | 25 times |
| καὶ | kai | and | G2532 → | 9120 times |
| κατηγορεῖν, | kategorein | to make accusation, | G2723 → | 22 times |
| εἴ | ei | if | G1487 → | 508 times |
| τι | ti | anything | G5100 → | 528 times |
| ἔχοιεν | echoien | they would have | G2192 → | 707 times |
| πρὸς | pros | against | G4314 → | 700 times |
| ἐμέ. | eme | me myself. | G1473 → | 839 times |
οὓς[19] who
housG3739 →1405 times
ἔδειit was necessary
edeiG1163 →101 times
ἐπὶbefore
epiG1909 →883 times
σοῦyou
souG4771 →2973 times
παρεῖναιto appear
pareinaiG3918 →25 times
καὶand
kaiG2532 →9120 times
κατηγορεῖν,to make accusation,
kategoreinG2723 →22 times
εἴif
eiG1487 →508 times
τιanything
tiG5100 →528 times
ἔχοιενthey would have
echoienG2192 →707 times
πρὸςagainst
prosG4314 →700 times
ἐμέ.me myself.
emeG1473 →839 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Acts 25:16I told them that it is not the Roman custom to hand a man over before he has had an opportunity to face his accusers and defend himself against their charges.
it leads to
- John 7:51
“Does our law convict a man without first hearing from him to determine what he has done?”
- Deuteronomy 19:17–18
both parties to the dispute must stand in the presence of the LORD, before the priests and judges who are in office at that time.
- Acts 23:30
When I was informed that there was a plot against the man, I sent him to you at once. I also instructed his accusers to present their case against him before you.
- Proverbs 18:17
The first to state his case seems right until another comes and cross-examines him.
- Acts 25:4–5
But Festus replied, “Paul is being held in Caesarea, and I myself am going there soon.
- John 7:51
Through
Acts 23:30When I was informed that there was a plot against the man, I sent him to you at once. I also instructed his accusers to present their case against him before you.
it leads to
- Acts 25:16
I told them that it is not the Roman custom to hand a man over before he has had an opportunity to face his accusers and defend himself against their charges.
- Acts 23:35
he said, “I will hear your case when your accusers arrive.” Then he ordered that Paul be kept under guard in Herod’s Praetorium.
- Acts 23:20
He answered, “The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul to the Sanhedrin tomorrow on the pretext of acquiring more information about him.
- Acts 25:16
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Acts
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Bede, Commentary on Acts; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Chrysostom, Homily on Acts 50; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and William Ramsay, St. Paul the Traveller and the Roman Citizen.