But some in the crowd were shouting one thing, and some were shouting another, and since the commander could not find out any reliable information because of the uproar, he ordered Paul to be taken away to the barracks.
As Paul was about to be brought into the barracks, he said to the commander, “Do I have permission to speak to yoʋ?” The commander said, “Yoʋ know how to speak Greek?
When the dissension grew violent, the commander, exercising caution lest Paul be torn to pieces by them, ordered the troops to go down, take him away from them by force, and bring him into the barracks.
Then he ordered the centurion to keep Paul in custody, but to allow him a certain measure of freedom and not to prevent his own people from attending to his needs or visiting him.