An outline of Acts 12:1-17
1 Peter was a marked man
Text, Acts 12:1-5, KJV: 1 Now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church. 2 And he killed James the brother of John with the sword. 3 And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread.) 4 And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people. 5 Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.
Thoughts:
--This is the first mention of Herod taking action against the Church in Acts. He was mentioned in passing when the believers prayed as a group in Acts 4 but his dealings with the Church are not described until this point.
--James, the brother of John, had not been mentioned since Acts 1 as one of the apostles and one of the original group of disciples. Where he had gone and what he had done is never mentioned.
--It is also never stated why Herod chose this James to be the first apostle to be executed except that “it pleased the Jews.” It isn’t clear in the KJV if this means Herod choosing James pleased the Jews, or killing James pleased the Jews. At any rate, James perished and the Jews were pleased.
--Now, seeing the Jews were happy and pleased, Herod planned to execute Peter as well. He had Peter arrested during the “days of unleavened bread”—the days near Passover (“Easter”, KJV). Peter was under the supervision (!) of at least 16 soldiers, four groups (“quaternions”) guarding him (where could he go, as if he could even get loose?).
--Peter was at least kept alive for a few days; whether James had received any such time before being executed is not known. Definitely, when the saints heard about Peter being arrested and taken to prison, they began praying “without ceasing” for him. What could happen if a group of believers these days began to pray without ceasing for a certain object of prayer?
2 Peter was an imprisoned man
Text, Acts 12:6-11, KJV: 6 And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison. 7 And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands. 8 And the angel said unto him, Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And he saith unto him, Cast thy garment about thee, and follow me. 9 And he went out, and followed him; and wist not that it was true which was done by the angel; but thought he saw a vision. 10 When they were past the first and the second ward, they came unto the iron gate that leadeth unto the city; which opened to them of his own accord: and they went out, and passed on through one street; and forthwith the angel departed from him. 11 And when Peter was come to himself, he said, Now I know of a surety, that the Lord hath sent his angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews.
Thoughts:
--In what might have been his last night on this earth, Peter was asleep—and soundly! Compare this with some of the doings of those who were going to be put to death the next day. One such example is that of a missionary living in Nazi-occupied Europe during World War II: one of his sons was captured and sentenced to death. This young man spent most of his last night writing letters to a number of his acquaintances and faced execution a few hours later. Peter knew that even when, not if, his earthly life would end, he would be with Jesus.
--Security was tight with a capital T: not only was Peter chained between two soldiers; there were also “keepers before the door”. This is not easy to understand but it’s safe to say that even in Peter became free of the chains, he likely wouldn’t get very far. Other commentaries may provide additional information.
--But Peter wasn’t going to die just yet. An angel (“the angel of the Lord” in the KJV refers to one specific angel, not the “Angel of the LORD” in the Old Testament) came to Peter’s cell or wherever he was being kept, then after a light shined in the prison, the angel told Peter “Get up!”
--The chains fell off Peter’s hands. Then the angel told Peter to put on his clothing (probably the outer garment) and his shoes (“sandals”, KJV). Admittedly it would be hard for Peter to put on any clothing when he was still chained between two soldiers. When Peter was dressed, the angel then said, “Follow me.”
--The angel led Peter past various checkpoints, we might say, even past the iron gate that was the doorway to the city. Then the angel led Peter out to the city itself, and “through one street” but promptly left Peter at that point.
--Amazingly, Peter thought he was dreaming or seeing a vision! He soon came to realize this was real, that he was out of the prison, and that he was delivered from those who wanted to kill him!
3 Peter was a concerned and free man
Text, Acts 12:12-17, KJV: 12 And when he had considered the thing, he came to the house of Mary the mother of John, whose surname was Mark; where many were gathered together praying. 13 And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken, named Rhoda. 14 And when she knew Peter's voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in, and told how Peter stood before the gate. 15 And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, It is his angel. 16 But Peter continued knocking: and when they had opened the door, and saw him, they were astonished. 17 But he, beckoning unto them with the hand to hold their peace, declared unto them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, Go shew these things unto James, and to the brethren. And he departed, and went into another place.
Thoughts:
--How Peter came to know that people were praying for him, and that they were in the house of Mary (mother of John Mark, who some believe wrote the Gospel by Mark), is not known. The important thing is that first, believers were united in prayer, and second, they were in a large group (“many were gathered together”). What would happen if a large group of believers even today would be united in prayer for a specific concern?
--This was at night (see verse 6) and Peter probably wanted to avoid any detection. Note that he didn’t go to the house itself but stopped “at the door of the gate” which could have been some distance away from the house’s door.
--Rhoda, a true unsung heroine, was the first person to see Peter, free and unshackled, after he was out of the prison! She was so happy, though, that she didn’t open the gate but instead went into the house and told the believers Peter was outside.
--The reply was amazing: “You’re crazy!” comes close to our language today. That didn’t stop Rhoda from insisting, “No, he’s out at the gate!”
--Now their reply changed. “Oh, it must be his angel.” This is difficult for us to understand but, for example, Barnes’ notes on this verse have some helpful suggestions (https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/eng/bnb/acts-12.html) At any rate, they still refused to believe Peter was alive, let alone free.
--Peter could have left but he kept knocking, and now “they”—not just Rhoda—opened the door to see the surprise of their lives. Peter was there! And alive and free! Had they not been praying for just this thing?
--Then Peter relieved their concern by showing his own concern. First, he wanted to show them he was really alive. These believers were greatly concerned about this. Why else would they be praying like they did?
--And then Peter expressed his concern. He told them in so many words, “Keep still and don’t make any loud noises (paraphrased), but tell James and the (other) brethren about this.”
--To keep these believers out of any harm, Peter went someplace else; but that location is not known to us. Whoever gave Peter lodging for that night is another unsung hero or heroine!
Conclusion: not every believer will be released from captivity. Even so, we who are free have the opportunity to pray for our brothers and sisters enduring prison and other persecution. Who knows what might happen if we keep on praying?
Scripture quotations taken from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV).
