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Acts 12
Lexham English Bible

Herod Kills James and Imprisons Peter

12 Now at that time, Herod the king laid hands on some of those from the church to harm them.[a] 2 So he executed James the brother of John with a sword. 3 And when he[b] saw that it was pleasing to the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. (Now this was during the feast[c] of Unleavened Bread.) 4 After he[d] had arrested him,[e] he also put him[f] in prison, handing him[g] over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending to bring him out for public trial[h] after the Passover. 5 Thus Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer was fervently being made to God by the church for him.

Peter Rescued by an Angel

6 Now when Herod was about to bring him out, on that very night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and guards before the door were watching the prison. 7 And behold, an angel of the Lord stood near him,[i] and a light shone in the prison cell. And striking Peter’s side, he woke him up, saying, “Get up quickly!”[j] And his chains fell off of his[k] hands. 8 And the angel said to him, “Gird yourself and put on your sandals!” And he did so. And he said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me!” 9 And he went out and[l] was following him.[m] And he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but was thinking he was seeing a vision. 10 And after they[n] had passed the first and second guard, they came to the iron gate that leads to the city, which opened for them by itself, and they went out and[o] went forward along one narrow street, and at once the angel departed from him.

11 And when[p] Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I know truly that the Lord has sent out his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and all that the Jewish people expected!”[q] 12 And when he[r] realized this,[s] he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John (who is also called Mark), where many people were gathered together and were praying. 13 And when[t] he knocked at the door of the gateway, a female slave named[u] Rhoda came up to answer. 14 And recognizing Peter’s voice, because of her[v] joy she did not open the gate, but ran in and[w] announced that Peter was standing at the gate. 15 But they said to her, “You are out of your mind!” But she kept insisting[x] it was so. And they kept saying,[y] “It is his angel!” 16 But Peter was continuing to knock, and when they[z] opened the door[aa] they saw him and were astonished. 17 But motioning to them with his[ab] hand to be silent, he related to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, “Report these things to James and to the brothers,” and he departed and[ac] went to another place.

18 Now when[ad] day came, there was not a little commotion among the soldiers as to what then had become of Peter. 19 And when[ae] Herod had searched for him and did not find him,[af] he questioned the guards and[ag] ordered that they be led away to execution. And he came down from Judea to Caesarea and[ah] stayed there.

Herod’s Gruesome Death

20 Now he was very angry with the Tyrians and Sidonians. So they came to him with one purpose, and after[ai] persuading Blastus, the king’s chamberlain,[aj] they asked for peace, because their country was supported with food from the king’s country. 21 So on an appointed day Herod, after[ak] putting on royal clothing and sitting down on the judgment seat, began to deliver a public address to them. 22 But the people began to call out loudly,[al] “The voice of a god and not of a man!” 23 And immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down because[am] he did not give the glory to God. And he was eaten by worms and[an] died. 24 But the word of God kept on increasing[ao] and multiplying.

25 So Barnabas and Saul returned to[ap] Jerusalem when they[aq] had completed their[ar] service, having taken along with them[as] John (who is also called Mark).

Footnotes

  1. Acts 12:1 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  2. Acts 12:3 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“saw”) which is understood as temporal
  3. Acts 12:3 Literally “now these were the days”
  4. Acts 12:4 Here “after” is supplied as a component of the participle (“had arrested”) which is understood as temporal
  5. Acts 12:4 Literally “whom”
  6. Acts 12:4 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  7. Acts 12:4 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  8. Acts 12:4 Literally “to the people”
  9. Acts 12:7 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  10. Acts 12:7 Literally “with quickness”
  11. Acts 12:7 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  12. Acts 12:9 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“went out”) has been translated as a finite verb
  13. Acts 12:9 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  14. Acts 12:10 Here “after” is supplied as a component of the participle (“had passed”) which is understood as temporal
  15. Acts 12:10 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“went out”) has been translated as a finite verb
  16. Acts 12:11 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“came”) which is understood as temporal
  17. Acts 12:11 Literally “the expectation of the people of the Jews”
  18. Acts 12:12 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“realized”) which is understood as temporal
  19. Acts 12:12 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  20. Acts 12:13 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the temporal genitive absolute participle (“knocked”)
  21. Acts 12:13 Literally “by name”
  22. Acts 12:14 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  23. Acts 12:14 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“ran in”) has been translated as a finite verb
  24. Acts 12:15 This imperfect verb is translated as an iterative imperfect (“kept insisting”)
  25. Acts 12:15 *This imperfect verb is translated as an iterative imperfect (“kept saying”)
  26. Acts 12:16 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“opened”) which is understood as temporal
  27. Acts 12:16 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  28. Acts 12:17 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  29. Acts 12:17 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“departed”) has been translated as a finite verb
  30. Acts 12:18 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the temporal genitive absolute participle (“came”)
  31. Acts 12:19 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“had searched for”) which is understood as temporal
  32. Acts 12:19 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
  33. Acts 12:19 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“questioned”) has been translated as a finite verb
  34. Acts 12:19 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“came down”) has been translated as a finite verb
  35. Acts 12:20 Here “after” is supplied as a component of the participle (“persuading”) which is understood as temporal
  36. Acts 12:20 Literally “the one over the bedroom of the king”
  37. Acts 12:21 Here “after” is supplied as a component of the participle (“putting on”) which is understood as temporal
  38. Acts 12:22 *The imperfect tense has been translated as ingressive here (“began to call out loudly”)
  39. Acts 12:23 Literally “in return for which”
  40. Acts 12:23 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“was”) has been translated as a finite verb
  41. Acts 12:24 This imperfect verb has been translated as customary (“kept on increasing”)
  42. Acts 12:25 Some manuscripts read “from”
  43. Acts 12:25 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“had completed”) which is understood as temporal
  44. Acts 12:25 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  45. Acts 12:25 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
Close NLT

Acts 12
New Living Translation

James Is Killed and Peter Is Imprisoned

12 About that time King Herod Agrippa[a] began to persecute some believers in the church. 2 He had the apostle James (John’s brother) killed with a sword. 3 When Herod saw how much this pleased the Jewish people, he also arrested Peter. (This took place during the Passover celebration.[b]) 4 Then he imprisoned him, placing him under the guard of four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring Peter out for public trial after the Passover. 5 But while Peter was in prison, the church prayed very earnestly for him.

Peter’s Miraculous Escape from Prison

6 The night before Peter was to be placed on trial, he was asleep, fastened with two chains between two soldiers. Others stood guard at the prison gate. 7 Suddenly, there was a bright light in the cell, and an angel of the Lord stood before Peter. The angel struck him on the side to awaken him and said, “Quick! Get up!” And the chains fell off his wrists. 8 Then the angel told him, “Get dressed and put on your sandals.” And he did. “Now put on your coat and follow me,” the angel ordered.

9 So Peter left the cell, following the angel. But all the time he thought it was a vision. He didn’t realize it was actually happening. 10 They passed the first and second guard posts and came to the iron gate leading to the city, and this opened for them all by itself. So they passed through and started walking down the street, and then the angel suddenly left him.

11 Peter finally came to his senses. “It’s really true!” he said. “The Lord has sent his angel and saved me from Herod and from what the Jewish leaders[c] had planned to do to me!”

12 When he realized this, he went to the home of Mary, the mother of John Mark, where many were gathered for prayer. 13 He knocked at the door in the gate, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to open it. 14 When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed that, instead of opening the door, she ran back inside and told everyone, “Peter is standing at the door!”

15 “You’re out of your mind!” they said. When she insisted, they decided, “It must be his angel.”

16 Meanwhile, Peter continued knocking. When they finally opened the door and saw him, they were amazed. 17 He motioned for them to quiet down and told them how the Lord had led him out of prison. “Tell James and the other brothers what happened,” he said. And then he went to another place.

18 At dawn there was a great commotion among the soldiers about what had happened to Peter. 19 Herod Agrippa ordered a thorough search for him. When he couldn’t be found, Herod interrogated the guards and sentenced them to death. Afterward Herod left Judea to stay in Caesarea for a while.

The Death of Herod Agrippa

20 Now Herod was very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon. So they sent a delegation to make peace with him because their cities were dependent upon Herod’s country for food. The delegates won the support of Blastus, Herod’s personal assistant, 21 and an appointment with Herod was granted. When the day arrived, Herod put on his royal robes, sat on his throne, and made a speech to them. 22 The people gave him a great ovation, shouting, “It’s the voice of a god, not of a man!”

23 Instantly, an angel of the Lord struck Herod with a sickness, because he accepted the people’s worship instead of giving the glory to God. So he was consumed with worms and died.

24 Meanwhile, the word of God continued to spread, and there were many new believers.

25 When Barnabas and Saul had finished their mission to Jerusalem, they returned,[d] taking John Mark with them.

Footnotes

  1. 12:1 Greek Herod the king. He was the nephew of Herod Antipas and a grandson of Herod the Great.
  2. 12:3 Greek the days of unleavened bread.
  3. 12:11 Or the Jewish people.
  4. 12:25 Or mission, they returned to Jerusalem. Other manuscripts read mission, they returned from Jerusalem; still others read mission, they returned from Jerusalem to Antioch.
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.