Albert Barnes Commentary Acts 24:11

"Seeing that thou canst take knowledge that it is not more than twelve days since I went up to worship at Jerusalem:" — Acts 24:11 (ASV)

Because you may understand. The Greek is, "You being able to know." That is, he could understand or know by considering the proper evidence.

Paul does not mean to say that Felix could understand the case because he had been many years a judge of that nation. That fact would qualify him to judge correctly, or to understand the customs of the Jews.

But the fact that he had been only twelve days in Jerusalem, and had been orderly and peaceable there, Felix could ascertain only by the proper testimony. The first part of Paul's defense (Acts 24:11–13) consists in an express denial of what they alleged against him.

Are yet but twelve days. Beza calculates these twelve days in this manner: The first was that on which he came to Jerusalem (Acts 21:15). The second he spent with James and the apostles (Acts 21:18). Six days were spent in fulfilling his vow (Acts 21:21, 26). On the ninth day the tumult arose, being the seventh day of his vow, and on this day he was rescued by Lysias (Acts 21:27; Acts 22:29).

The tenth day he was before the Sanhedrin (Acts 22:30; Acts 23:10). On the eleventh, the plot was laid to take his life, and on the same day, at evening, he was removed to Caesarea.

The days on which he was confined at Caesarea are not enumerated, since his design in mentioning the number of days was to show the improbability that, in that time, he had been engaged in producing a tumult. It would not be pretended that he had been so engaged while confined in a prison at Caesarea.

Paul's defense here is that only twelve days occurred from the time he went to Jerusalem until he was put under the custody of Felix. During so short a time, it was wholly improbable that he would have been able to excite sedition.

For to worship. This further shows that Paul's design was not to produce sedition. He had gone up for the peaceful purpose of devotion, not to produce riot and disorder.

That this was his design in going to Jerusalem, or at least a part of his purpose, is indicated by the passage in Acts 20:16. It should be observed, however, that our translation conveys an idea not necessarily in the Greek—that this was the design of his going to Jerusalem.

The original is, "Since I went up to Jerusalem worshipping" (proskunhswn); that is, he was actually engaged in devotion when the tumult arose. But his main design in going to Jerusalem was to convey to his suffering countrymen there the benefactions of the Gentile churches (Romans 15:25–26).