We have found this man to be a pestilenceThe term "pestilence" is used metaphorically to describe Paul as a source of trouble or a public nuisance. In the Roman context, this accusation implies that Paul is a threat to public order. The Jewish leaders viewed him as a disruptive force, much like a disease spreading unrest. This reflects the broader tension between early Christians and Jewish authorities, as Paul’s teachings challenged traditional Jewish beliefs and practices.
stirring up dissension among the Jews all over the world
Paul's missionary journeys took him across the Roman Empire, from Jerusalem to Asia Minor, Greece, and Rome. His message of Jesus as the Messiah often led to division within Jewish communities, as some accepted the gospel while others rejected it. This phrase highlights the widespread impact of Paul's ministry and the perceived threat it posed to Jewish religious unity. The phrase "all over the world" refers to the Jewish diaspora throughout the Roman Empire, emphasizing the extensive reach of Paul's influence.
He is a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes
The term "ringleader" suggests leadership and organization, portraying Paul as a prominent figure within the early Christian movement. The "sect of the Nazarenes" refers to the followers of Jesus of Nazareth, a term used by opponents to distinguish Christians from mainstream Judaism. This label underscores the early perception of Christianity as a distinct and potentially heretical movement within Judaism. The use of "Nazarenes" connects to Jesus' upbringing in Nazareth, fulfilling the prophecy that the Messiah would be called a Nazarene (Matthew 2:23). This phrase also reflects the early church's struggle for identity and legitimacy within the broader Jewish and Roman worlds.
Persons / Places / Events
1.
Paul the ApostleThe central figure in this passage, Paul is being accused by Jewish leaders of causing unrest and leading a new religious movement. His missionary work and teachings about Jesus Christ have made him a controversial figure.
2.
TertullusA lawyer who represents the Jewish leaders in their accusations against Paul. He presents the charges to the Roman governor, Felix.
3.
The NazarenesA term used to describe the early followers of Jesus Christ, indicating their association with Jesus of Nazareth. This term highlights the perceived sectarian nature of the early Christian movement.
4.
The JewsReferring to the Jewish leaders and community who are opposing Paul, accusing him of causing dissension.
5.
The Roman WorldThe broader context in which these events occur, highlighting the spread of Christianity and the challenges it faced within the Roman Empire.
Teaching Points
The Cost of DiscipleshipFollowing Christ may lead to opposition and false accusations, as seen in Paul's experience. Believers should be prepared to face challenges for their faith.
The Spread of the GospelDespite opposition, the message of Christ continues to spread. Christians are called to be bold in sharing their faith, trusting in God's plan.
Identity in ChristBeing labeled as a "Nazarene" or a Christian may carry stigma, but it is a badge of honor that aligns believers with Jesus.
Legal and Social ChallengesChristians may face legal and societal challenges, but they should respond with integrity and trust in God's justice.
Unity in the Body of ChristThe early church faced divisions and accusations, yet they remained united in their mission. Modern believers should strive for unity amidst diversity.
Bible Study Questions and Answers
1.What is the meaning of Acts 24:5?
2.How does Acts 24:5 illustrate the accusations against Paul as a "ringleader"?
3.What can we learn from Paul's response to false accusations in Acts 24:5?
4.How does Acts 24:5 connect with Jesus' warnings about persecution in Matthew 5:11?
5.How should Christians today respond to being labeled as "troublemakers" for their faith?
6.What strategies can we use to defend our faith when falsely accused?
7.How does Acts 24:5 reflect early Christian identity and its perception by outsiders?
8.Why was Paul labeled a "ringleader of the Nazarene sect" in Acts 24:5?
9.What historical evidence supports the accusations against Paul in Acts 24:5?
10.What are the top 10 Lessons from Acts 24?
11.In Acts 24:5–6, Tertullus labels Paul a public menace; why does no Roman record confirm such major unrest caused by a single individual?
12.What do Nazarenes believe and represent?
13.Who are the Natsarim?
14.Who was Felix in the Bible?What Does Acts 24:5 Mean
We have found this man• The accusers (Ananias the high priest and the elders,Acts 24:1) point to Paul with a dismissive “this man,” hoping to paint him as a dangerous outsider.
• Similar language was hurled at believers before: “Men of Israel, help! This is the man who teaches everyone everywhere against our people” (Acts 21:28).
• Like Elijah—“Is that you, O troubler of Israel?” (1 Kings 18:17)—Paul is labeled troublesome because he calls people back to God.
• The irony: the very figure they try to reduce to “this man” is God’s chosen instrument (Acts 9:15).
To be a pestilence• “Pestilence” pictures a spreading plague. Calling Paul that implies he endangers public health.
• Yet the gospel he carries brings life, not death: “I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness” (John 10:10).
• The world has often branded God’s messengers with similar insults: believers in Thessalonica were said to have “turned the world upside down” (Acts 17:6).
• God’s servants may be slandered, but the word of God “is not bound” (2 Timothy 2:9).
Stirring up dissension among the Jews all over the world• The charge of inciting riots ignores that opposition usually arose from unbelieving crowds, not from Paul (Acts 13:50; 14:2; 17:5; 18:12; 19:23).
• Paul states the truth moments later: “They found me neither debating with anyone in the temple, nor causing a disturbance among the crowds” (Acts 24:12).
• The gospel does create division because truth confronts sin: “Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No… but division” (Luke 12:51).
• Worldwide reach—“among the Jews all over the world”—unintentionally testifies to how far Paul’s ministry has spread (Romans 15:19).
He is a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes• “Nazarenes” links believers to Jesus of Nazareth (Matthew 2:23); outsiders dismiss the church as a fringe group.
• Paul freely owns the label while clarifying: “I worship the God of our fathers according to the Way, which they call a sect” (Acts 24:14).
• The risen Christ Himself said, “I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting” (Acts 22:8); following Him is no crime.
• Calling Paul a “ringleader” highlights God-given leadership: the Lord told Ananias that Paul would “carry My name before the Gentiles” (Acts 9:15).
• Believers were first called Christians at Antioch (Acts 11:26); whatever name the world uses, our identity is anchored in Christ.
summaryActs 24:5 records three false accusations meant to destroy Paul’s credibility. Instead, they reveal the impact of a faithful servant whose life-giving message has spread across the Roman world. Being labeled a plague, a disturber, or a sect leader did not silence Paul; it only showcased the unstoppable advance of the gospel. When we are misunderstood or maligned for Christ, we stand in good company and can trust God to use even hostile words to further His kingdom.
(5)
We have found this man a pestilent fellow.--The Greek gives the more emphatic substantive,
a pestilence, a plague. The advocate passes from flattering the judge to invective against the defendant, and lays stress on the fact that he is charged with the very crimes which Felix prided himself on repressing. St. Paul, we may well believe, did not look like a
sicarius,or brigand, but Tertullus could not have used stronger language had he been caught red-handed in the fact.
A mover of sedition among all the Jews throughout the world.--The "world" is, of course, here, as elsewhere, the Roman empire. (See Note onLuke 2:1.) The language may simply be that of vague invective, but we may perhaps read between the lines some statements gathered, in preparing the case, from the Jews of Thessalonica (Acts 17:6) and Ephesus (Acts 21:28) who had come to keep the Feast of Pentecost at Jerusalem.
A ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes.--This is the first appearance of the term of reproach as transferred from the Master to the disciples. (Comp. Note onJohn 1:46.) It has continued to be used by both Jews and Mahometans; and it has been stated (Smith'sDict. of Bible,Art. "Nazarene"), that during the Indian Mutiny of 1855 the Mahometan rebels relied on a supposed ancient prophecy that theNazarenes would be expelled from the country after ruling for a hundred years.
Verse 5.- Insurrection for
sedition, A.V. and T.R.
We have found (
εὑρόντες). The construction of the sentence is an anacoluthon. The participle is not followed, as it should be, by a finite verb,
ἐκρατήσαμεν (in ver. 6), but the construction is changed by the influence of the interposed sentence, "who moreover assayed to profane the temple," and so, instead of
ἐκρατήσαμεν αὐτόν, we have
ὅν καὶ ἐκρατήσαμεν.
A pestilent fellow (
λοιμόν); literally, a
pestilence; as we say, "a pest," "a plague," or "a nuisance," like the Latin
pestis. It only occurs here in the New Testament, but is of frequent use in the LXX., as
e.g.1 Samuel 2:12;
1 Samuel 10:27, and 1 Sam 25:25,
υἱοὶλοιμοὶ, "sons of Belial;" 1 Macc. 10:61 1 Macc. 15:3
ἄνδρες λοιμοί: and 15:21, simply
λοιμοὶ (rendered "pestilent fellows" in the A.V.), and elsewhere as the rendering of other Hebrew words. It is occasionally used also in this sense by classical writers.
A mover of insurrections (
στάσεις, R.T.). This was the charge most likely to weigh with a Roman procurator in the then disturbed and turbulent state of the Jewish mind (camp.
Luke 23:2;
John 19:12). Felix himself had had large experience of Jewish insurrections. The Jewish riots at Philippi (
Acts 16:20), at Thessalonica (
Acts 17:6), at Corinth (
Acts 18:12), at Ephesus (
Acts 19:29), and at Jerusalem (
Acts 21:30), would give color to the accusation.
The world (
ἥ οἰκουμένη). The Roman, or civilized, world (Luke it. l; Luke 4:5, etc.).
Ringleader;
πρωτοστάτης, only here in the New Testament, but used by the LXX. in
Job 15:24, and not uncommon in classical Greek, as a military term, equivalent to the first,
i.e. the right-hand man in the line. Also, in the plural, the soldiers in the front rank.
The sect of the Nazarenes. As our Lord was contemptuously called "The Nazarene "(
Matthew 26:71), so the Jews designated his disciples" Nazarenes." They would not admit that they were Christians,
i.e. disciples of the Messiah.
Parallel Commentaries ...
Greek
We have foundΕὑρόντες(Heurontes)Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 2147:A prolonged form of a primary heuro, which heureo is used for it in all the tenses except the present and imperfect to find.thisτοῦτον(touton)Demonstrative Pronoun - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3778:This; he, she, it.man [to be]ἄνδρα(andra)Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 435:A male human being; a man, husband. A primary word; a man.a nuisance,λοιμὸν(loimon)Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3061:(a) a pestilence, (b) a pestilent fellow. Of uncertain affinity; a plague.stirring upκινοῦντα(kinounta)Verb - Present Participle Active - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2795:To set in motion, move, remove, excite, stir up. From kio; to stir, literally or figuratively.dissensionστάσεις(staseis)Noun - Accusative Feminine Plural
Strong's 4714:From the base of histemi; a standing, i.e. position; by implication, a popular uprising; figuratively, controversy.amongπᾶσιν(pasin)Adjective - Dative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3956:All, the whole, every kind of. Including all the forms of declension; apparently a primary word; all, any, every, the whole.theτοῖς(tois)Article - Dative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3588:The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.JewsἸουδαίοις(Ioudaiois)Adjective - Dative Masculine Plural
Strong's 2453:Jewish. From Iouda; Judaean, i.e. Belonging to Jehudah.all overκατὰ(kata)Preposition
Strong's 2596:A primary particle; down, in varied relations (genitive, dative or accusative) with which it is joined).theτὴν(tēn)Article - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 3588:The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.world.οἰκουμένην(oikoumenēn)Noun - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 3625:Feminine participle present passive of oikeo; land, i.e. The globe; specially, the Roman empire.[He is]τε(te)Conjunction
Strong's 5037:And, both. A primary particle of connection or addition; both or also.a ringleaderπρωτοστάτην(prōtostatēn)Noun - Accusative Masculine Singular
Strong's 4414:From protos and histemi; one standing first in the ranks, i.e. A captain.of theτῆς(tēs)Article - Genitive Feminine Singular
Strong's 3588:The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.sectαἱρέσεως(haireseōs)Noun - Genitive Feminine Singular
Strong's 139:From haireomai; properly, a choice, i.e. a party or disunion.of theτῶν(tōn)Article - Genitive Masculine Plural
Strong's 3588:The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.Nazarenes,Ναζωραίων(Nazōraiōn)Noun - Genitive Masculine Plural
Strong's 3480:A Nazarene, an inhabitant of Nazareth. From Nazareth; a Nazoraean, i.e. Inhabitant of Nazareth; by extension, a Christian.
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NT Apostles: Acts 24:5 For we have found this man (Acts of the Apostles Ac) 
