{And they took hold of him} (epilabomenoi de autou).
Second aorist middle participle of epilamban(935c), old verb, but in
the N.T. only in the middle, here with the genitive autou to
lay hold of, but with no necessary sense of violence ( Ac 9:27  23:27  Mr 8:23 ), unless the idea is that Paul was to be tried
before the Court of Areopagus for the crime of bringing in
strange gods. But the day for that had passed in Athens. Even so
it is not clear whether "{unto the Areopagus} (epi ton Areion
Pagon") means the Hill of Mars (west of the Acropolis, north of
the agora and reached by a flight of steps in the rock) or the
court itself which met elsewhere as well as on the hills, usually
in fact in the Stoa Basilica opening on the agora and near to the
place where the dispute had gone on. Raphael's cartoon with Paul
standing on Mars Hill has made us all familiar with the common
view, but it is quite uncertain if it is true. There was not room
on the summit for a large gathering. If Paul was brought before
the Court of Areopagus (commonly called the Areopagus as here),
it was not for trial as a criminal, but simply for examination
concerning his new teaching in this university city whether it
was strictly legal or not. Paul was really engaged in proselytism
to turn the Athenians away from their old gods to Jesus Christ.
But "the court of refined and polished Athenians was very
different from the rough provincial magistrates of Philippi, and
the philosophers who presented Paul to their cognizance very
different from the mob of Thessalonians" (Rackham). It was all
very polite. {May we know?} (Dunametha gn(936e)ai). Can we come to
know (ingressive second aorist active infinitive). {This new
teaching} (h(8820)kain(8820)haut(8820)didach(885c)). On the position of haut(885c)
see Robertson, _Grammar_, pp. 700f. The question was prompted by
courtesy, sarcasm, or irony. Evidently no definite charge was
laid against Paul.