The Good News Translation connects the shouting mentioned in this verse with the quarrel mentioned in verse 7: the shouting became louder (so Jerusalem Bible). It is also possible to do as the New English Bible has done: “so a great uproar broke out.” One can, of course, translate in such a way as to specify the participants who were doing the shouting—for example, “the Sadducees and Pharisees started shouting louder and louder.”

Teachers of the Law is a term which is rendered “scribes” by most translators (New English Bible “doctors of the law”). These people were, in fact, much more than the English word “scribe” would indicate; they were recognized teachers of the Jewish Law, and usually, though not always, they belonged to the Pharisaic party.

Protested strongly (see Phillips “protested violently”) is a much stronger word than “contended” (Revised Standard Version) or “insisted” (An American Translation*) might suggest.

We cannot find a thing wrong with this man may be rendered as “we have not discovered anything which will cause this man to be condemned” or “we have not found anything wrong that he has done.”

Perhaps a spirit or an angel really did speak to him implies that the Pharisees believed that Paul was spoken to by an angel or a spirit.

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on The Acts of the Apostles. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1972. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .