Acts 12:1-25

Good News for Everyone

Acts

Marion Adams

Chapter 12

Peter in prison again, 12:1-5

v1 At that time, King Herod arrested some members of the *church. He made them suffer very badly. v2 He ordered soldiers to kill James, John’s brother, with a sword. v3 The *Jews were pleased about that. Herod saw that they were pleased. So, he arrested Peter also. (This happened during the *Festival of *Unleavened Bread.) v4 After Herod had arrested Peter, he put Peter in prison. Four groups of soldiers guarded Peter. And each group had four soldiers in it. Herod wanted to bring Peter out after the *Passover because he wanted Peter to have a public *trial then.

v5 So, Herod kept Peter in prison. But the Christians prayed to God about Peter. They did not stop praying.

Verse 1 Herod was the name that people called all the *Jewish rulers. It was the name of the rulers’ family. This Herod was Herod Agrippa the First (the first Herod that had the name Agrippa). He was Herod the Great’s grandson. Herod the Great was ruling when Jesus was born (Matthew 2:1). Herod Agrippa the First was a friend of the *Roman rulers, Caligula and Claudius. When Claudius became the *Emperor in *AD 41, he gave *Judea to Herod Agrippa. Before, a *Roman had ruled over it.

Herod Agrippa the First wanted to stay popular with the *Jews. Many *Jewish leaders now opposed the *church. So, Herod opposed the *church too. He used his authority to *persecute *believers. He arrested the leaders of the *church. He wanted to destroy the *church.

Verse 2 James was an important *disciple. He was John’s brother. In the *Gospels, the writers mention James and John many times

Soldiers killed James ‘with a sword’. This means that they cut off his head. This was the punishment for political crimes.

Verses 3-5 ‘The *Jews were pleased.’ ‘The *Jews’ here probably meant the *Jewish rulers, who were the *Pharisees and the *Sadducees. Herod wanted to be even more popular. He wanted to show that he was loyal to the *Jewish religion. So, he arrested Peter.

Herod wanted to arrange a public *trial for Peter. But Herod could not do this immediately. He had to wait until the *Passover had finished. The *Passover lasted 7 days. So, he had to keep Peter in prison in the meanwhile.

However, the *apostles had many friends. Also, many people were secret *believers. So, Herod made sure that Peter could not escape. Guards were with Peter all day and all night. They guarded him in turn, so that there were always four soldiers there. It seemed impossible for Peter to get away.

But nothing is impossible for God. While Peter was in prison, the *believers prayed for him. They did not pray only once. They continued to pray. Then a *miracle happened!

Peter escapes! 12:6-10

v6 It was the night before Peter’s *trial. He was asleep between two soldiers. They had tied him up with two chains. There were some other soldiers, who were guarding the exit of the prison. v7 Suddenly, an *angel of the *Lord appeared. A light shone everywhere in Peter’s room in the prison. The *angel hit Peter on his side. The *angel woke Peter up. ‘Be quick! Get up!’ said the *angel. The chains fell off Peter’s hands. v8 Then the *angel said, ‘Put on your clothes and shoes.’ Peter did this. Then the *angel said, ‘Put on your coat and follow me.’ v9 Peter followed the *angel out of the prison. But Peter thought that he was dreaming. He did not know that it was real. v10 They passed the first guards. They passed the second guards. Then they came to the iron gate. To get out into the city, one had to go through this gate. It opened by itself! So, they went out. They went along the street. Suddenly, the *angel disappeared.

Verses 6-10 Peter was sleeping. He felt calm, because he always trusted God. Probably, he thought that he would die the next day. He did not know that he would escape. But he was calm.

Suddenly, an *angel appeared in Peter’s room. The *Greek word for ‘*angel’ (aggelos) can just mean a person who brings a message. So, some students say that this *angel was human. They say that it was not an *angel from heaven. But Luke mentioned *angels from heaven many times in his *Gospel. He also mentioned them at the beginning of Acts. In total, he mentioned them about 15 times. And here, Luke writes that ‘a light shone everywhere in Peter’s room’ (verse 7). Luke meant that the *angel was not human. Peter’s escape was a *miracle. Even Peter thought that he was dreaming!

Peter and the *angel had to pass through three gates to get out. Perhaps the soldiers who were guarding the first two gates were asleep. Or maybe they thought that Peter was a servant. It was dark. They did not expect to see him. But the third gate (the iron one) was the main gate. Servants would not go out of the main gate at night. So, God made a wonderful thing happen. The iron gate just opened by itself. When they were outside, the *angel disappeared.

A surprise! 12:11-19

v11 Then Peter realised what had happened. He said, ‘I am sure now that the *Lord sent his *angel to me. He sent the *angel to rescue me from Herod. He rescued me from everything that the *Jews decided to do to me.’

v12 When he understood this, he went to Mary’s home. Mary was John Mark’s mother. Many people had gathered there and they were praying. v13 Peter knocked on the gate. A servant girl called Rhoda came. v14 She recognised Peter’s voice. But she did not open the gate. She was so happy that she ran back inside. She told the people that Peter was standing outside.

v15 ‘You are crazy!’ they all told her. But she continued to say that it was true. So, they said, ‘It is his *angel, then.’

v16 But Peter continued to knock. So, they opened the gate. When they saw him, they were very surprised. v17 Peter gave a signal with his hand. He wanted them to be quiet. Then he described how the *Lord had brought him out of prison. ‘Tell James and all the other *believers what has happened’, he said. Then he left and he went to another place.

v18 The next morning, the guards did not know what had happened to Peter. So, they were very worried. v19 Herod ordered his soldiers to search for Peter. But they could not find him. So, Herod asked the guards questions. Then he ordered soldiers to kill the guards. After this, Herod left *Judea. He went to Caesarea and he stayed there for some time.

Verses 11-12 Peter knew now that he was not dreaming. What had happened was real. He was free. But he knew that he must hide quickly. So, he went to a house where *Christians met.

The *church in *Jerusalem was too big to meet in one building. So, groups of its members met in big houses. Some members met in the house of John Mark’s mother. This is the first time that Luke mentions John Mark. John Mark wrote the second *Gospel. He travelled with Paul. We shall read more about him later in ‘Acts’. Luke does not mention his father. Perhaps John Mark’s mother was a widow. She was rich. We know that because she owned a big house. It had a gate (verse 13). This gate was the entrance to a yard. Also, she had a servant. Possibly, she had more than one servant.

Verses 13-16 The servant, Rhoda, was so happy that she forgot to open the door! The *believers inside were praying for Peter. But they did not believe that he was there, outside! Perhaps they did not think that God would answer their prayers so quickly. They thought that Rhoda was crazy. Or they thought that Peter’s *angel was outside.

People believed that each person had an *angel, who looked after him or her. But they refused to believe that it was really Peter himself.

Peter probably felt very impatient. He needed to get off the street, so that nobody could see him there. So, he continued to knock until they answered.

Verse 17 Peter wanted them to be quiet, because he was still in danger. When Herod’s guards searched for him, they would come to this house first. This was because his *Christian friends met there. He told his friends what had happened. He told them to tell James (Jesus’ brother) and the other *believers. This James became a leader of the *church in *Jerusalem (Acts 15:13; Acts 21:18).

‘He went to another place’ (verse 17). Peter had to go far away from *Jerusalem. We do not know where he went. Probably, he went to a country where Herod was not the ruler. Later, he returned to *Jerusalem (Acts 15:7).

Verses 18-19 Herod probably thought that the guards had helped Peter to escape. Now there would not be a public *trial. Herod was very angry. So, he punished the guards by death. Then Herod left *Jerusalem.

Herod Agrippa the First dies, 12:20-25

v20 Herod was very angry with the people who lived in Tyre and Sidon. So, a group of them went to see Blastus. Blastus was one of Herod’s most important officials. The group of people persuaded Blastus to help them. Then they went to Herod. They asked Herod for peace between him and their cities. This was because their country got much food from Herod’s country.

v21 They arranged to meet on a certain day. Herod put on his royal clothes and he sat on his *throne. He made a speech to the people.

v22 ‘This is not a man’s voice. It is the voice of a god!’ shouted the people.

v23 Immediately, an *angel of the *Lord knocked Herod down. Herod had taken the honour that belonged to God. That was why the *angel knocked him down. *Worms ate Herod and he died.

v24 God’s message continued to grow and it continued to spread. v25 Barnabas and Saul finished the work that they had to do. After this, they returned from *Jerusalem. They took John Mark with them.

Verse 20 When Herod left *Jerusalem, he went to Caesarea. Caesarea was on the coast. Tyre and Sidon were ports by the Mediterranean Sea. They were close to Caesarea, which was also a port. Perhaps the traders in Tyre and Sidon took trade away from Caesarea. Perhaps that is why Herod was angry with Tyre’s people and Sidon’s people.

However, we do not know exactly why Herod argued with them. But the people from Tyre and Sidon wanted to make peace with Herod. Wheat grew in *Galilee and those people needed this wheat for food. Herod was ruling over *Galilee. So, they persuaded Blastus, Herod’s official, to help them.

Verses 21-23 Herod and the people from Tyre and Sidon wanted to be friends again. They wanted to do this in public. Perhaps Herod was trying to be popular again. So, they chose a day when they would meet. It was probably a special day, like the *Emperor’s birthday.

The *Jewish writer Josephus also wrote an account of this occasion. He described the clothes that Herod wore. Someone had made them from silver cloth. They shone in the sun. For that reason, the people shouted that Herod was a god. Josephus wrote that Herod did not stop them. Josephus also described Herod’s death.

Suddenly, Herod had a bad pain in his bowels. (The bowels are part of the body. Food passes through the bowels and then it goes out of the body.)

Herod was very ill for 5 days before he died. In Acts, Luke tells us what was making Herod so ill. ‘*Worms ate Herod and he died.’ *Worms can damage the bowels and in this way they can cause death. Luke shows that Herod’s death was God’s punishment of Herod.

Verse 25 Barnabas and Saul had gone to *Jerusalem with money. (Look at Acts 11:30.) This money would be a help to the *Jewish *Christians during the *famine. John Mark was Barnabas’s cousin (Colossians 4:10). John Mark returned to Antioch with Barnabas and Saul.

church ~ a group of Christians that meet together. (A church is not just the building that they meet in.) It can also mean all the Christians in the world.
Christian ~ a person who obeys Jesus *Christ; a person who believes in him.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
festival ~ a special holiday.
unleavened ~ unleavened bread is flat. It does not contain anything that would make the bread rise.
Passover ~ an important holy day for the Jews; a special meal that they ate on this day every year. At the time when Moses was alive, their people had been slaves in Egypt. Then God had freed them from Egypt. This special meal helped them to remember that. They came to Jerusalem, to meet in the Temple. And then they ate the same food together.
holy ~ very, very good; separate from sin. Only God is really holy.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
Egypt ~ a country in North Africa. The Israelites were slaves in Egypt for several hundred years. God told Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. And finally they went to the Promised Land. The escape from Egypt was a very important event in Jewish history.
Jerusalem ~ the capital city in Israel.
temple ~ a building where people worship God (or a false god).
Temple ~ the Temple was the special building in Jerusalem where the Jews worshipped God.
sin ~ to sin is to do wrong, bad or evil things; not to obey God. Sins are the wrong things that we do. We do them against God or against other people.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
Israelites ~ another name for the Jews. They are the people from Israel.

Promised Land ~ the country that God promised to give to Abraham and his family.
Jewish ~ a word that describes a Jew; or it describes anything that belongs to a Jew.
Israel ~ the country that is the Jews’ home.
worship ~ to give honour to God with praise and thanks.
praise ~ to tell God how great he is. We can do this when we are praying to him. Or we can do it when we are singing to him.
trial ~ a legal examination in which a person answers questions. Then the judge decides whether the person is guilty of a crime.
Jewish ~ a word that describes a Jew; or it describes anything that belongs to a Jew.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
Roman ~ a person from Rome; a word that describes someone from Rome; or it describes something from Rome. The Roman soldiers fought against people in many countries. And they defeated them. They made the people obey the rules that officials in Rome made. They made the people pay taxes to Rome.
Rome ~ the most famous city in the world when Jesus lived on earth.
emperor ~ the most important ruler in Rome.
Rome ~ the most famous city in the world when Jesus lived on earth.
AD ~ AD 50 means 50 years after Jesus was born, and so on.
Judea ~ a region in the country where the Jews lived.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
persecute ~ to attack people because they believe in *Christ; and to hurt them for that reason.
believer ~ a person who knows *Christ and accepts him.
disciple ~ someone who follows another person and he or she learns from that person; someone whom Jesus taught. It also means someone who believes in Jesus. This person also does the things that Jesus teaches.
Gospel ~ a book at the beginning of the New Testament. There are 4 Gospels. They are called Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
gospel ~ the good news about Jesus; the message that Jesus came to save us.

New Testament ~ the Bible’s last part, which the writers wrote after Jesus lived on earth. It is about the things that Jesus did. And it is about the things that he taught. It is also about the church. It is about what Christians believe. And it is about what they do.
save ~ to rescue from sin’s result.
church ~ a group of Christians that meet together. (A church is not just the building that they meet in.) It can also mean all the Christians in the world.
Christian ~ a person who obeys Jesus *Christ; a person who believes in him.
sin ~ to sin is to do wrong, bad or evil things; not to obey God. Sins are the wrong things that we do. We do them against God or against other people.
Pharisee ~ a member in a certain group of Jews. These Jews thought that they obeyed all God’s rules. They did not like the things that Jesus taught. They thought that they did not do any wrong things. So, they became very proud.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
Sadducees ~ a certain group of Jews that did not believe in heaven and resurrection. This group was important when Jesus lived on earth. They used only the 5 books at the beginning of the Old Testament.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
resurrection ~ when someone comes back to life after death; when someone rises from death to life.

Old Testament ~ the Bible’s first part, which the writers wrote before Jesus lived on earth; the holy things that the writers wrote before *Christ’s birth.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
holy ~ very, very good; separate from sin. Only God is really holy.
sin ~ to sin is to do wrong, bad or evil things; not to obey God. Sins are the wrong things that we do. We do them against God or against other people.
apostle ~ a man that God chose to lead other Christians; a man that God chose to teach about Jesus; one of the 12 men that Jesus chose to be his helpers.
Christian ~ a person who obeys Jesus *Christ; a person who believes in him.
miracle ~ a wonderful thing that God does by his power; a wonderful thing that happens.
angel ~ a servant of God. He brings messages from God to people that live on earth.
Lord ~ the name for God or Jesus in the Bible; the name means that he is above all other things; a name that we use for Jesus when we obey him; someone with authority.
Greek ~ the language that the people from Greece spoke; the language in which authors wrote the New Testament; a person from Greece.

New Testament ~ the Bible’s last part, which the writers wrote after Jesus lived on earth. It is about the things that Jesus did. And it is about the things that he taught. It is also about the church. It is about what Christians believe. And it is about what they do.
church ~ a group of Christians that meet together. (A church is not just the building that they meet in.) It can also mean all the Christians in the world.
Christian ~ a person who obeys Jesus *Christ; a person who believes in him.
Christian ~ a person who obeys Jesus *Christ; a person who believes in him.
Jerusalem ~ the capital city in Israel.
Israel ~ the country that is the Jews’ home.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
throne ~ a special chair that a king or ruler sits on.
worm ~ a long thin animal without legs. Worms can live inside a person. They can live in the part where food passes through.
Galilee ~ a region in northern Israel, where Jesus and some disciples lived; a lake in that region.
Israel ~ the country that is the Jews’ home.
disciple ~ someone who follows another person and he or she learns from that person; someone whom Jesus taught. It also means someone who believes in Jesus. This person also does the things that Jesus teaches.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
famine ~ when crops do not grow, so that there is not much food.