On [a]the very night when Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, (A)bound with two chains, and guards in front of the door were watching over the prison. And behold, (B)an angel of the Lord suddenly (C)stood near Peter, and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter’s side and woke him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And (D)his chains fell off his hands. And the angel said to him, “Put on your belt and [b]strap on your sandals.” And he did so. And he *said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.” And he went out and continued to follow, and yet he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing (E)a vision. 10 Now when they had passed the first and second guard, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which (F)opened for them by itself; and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel departed from him. 11 When Peter (G)came [c]to himself, he said, “Now I know for sure that (H)the Lord has sent forth His angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all [d]that the Jewish people were expecting.” 12 And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of (I)John, who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and (J)were praying. 13 When he knocked at the door of the gate, (K)a slave woman named Rhoda came to answer. 14 When she recognized Peter’s voice, (L)because of her joy she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter was standing in front of the gate. 15 They said to her, “You are out of your mind!” But she kept insisting that it was so. They said, “It is (M)his angel.” 16 But Peter continued knocking; and when they had opened the door, they saw him and were amazed. 17 But (N)motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had led him out of the prison. And he said, “Report these things to [e](O)James and (P)the brothers.” Then he left and went to another place.

18 Now when day came, there was no small disturbance among the soldiers as to [f]what could have become of Peter. 19 When Herod had searched for him and had not found him, he examined the guards and ordered that they (Q)be led away to execution. Then he went down from Judea to (R)Caesarea and was spending time there.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. Acts 12:6 Lit that night
  2. Acts 12:8 Lit bind
  3. Acts 12:11 Lit in himself
  4. Acts 12:11 Lit the expectation of the people of the Jews
  5. Acts 12:17 Or Jacob
  6. Acts 12:18 Lit what therefore had become

That very night, before Herod was going to bring him out, Peter, bound with two chains, was sleeping between two soldiers, and guards in front of the door were watching the prisoners. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He tapped Peter on his side, woke him up, and said, “Get up quickly!” His chains fell from his wrists. Then the angel told him, “Tuck in your shirt and put on your sandals!” He did this. Then the angel[a] told him, “Put on your coat and follow me!” So Peter[b] went out and began to follow him, not realizing that what was being done by the angel was real; he thought he was seeing a vision. 10 They passed the first guard, then the second, and came to the iron gate that led into the city. It opened by itself for them, and they went outside and proceeded one block when the angel suddenly left him.

11 Then Peter came to himself and said, “Now I’m sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from[c] Herod and from everything the Jewish people were expecting!”

12 When Peter[d] realized what had happened, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was also called Mark, where a large number of people had gathered and were praying. 13 When he knocked at the outer gate, a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer it. 14 On recognizing Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed that she didn’t open the gate but ran back inside and announced that Peter was standing at the gate. 15 The other people[e] told her, “You’re out of your mind!” But she kept insisting that it was so. Then they said, “It’s his angel.”

16 Meanwhile, Peter kept on knocking and knocking. When they opened the gate, they saw him and were amazed. 17 He motioned to them with his hand to be quiet, and then he told them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. He added, “Tell this to James and the brothers.” Then he left and went somewhere else. 18 When morning came, there was a great commotion among the soldiers as to what had become of Peter. 19 Herod searched for him but didn’t find him, so he questioned the guards and ordered them to be executed. Then he left Judea, went down to Caesarea, and stayed there for a while.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

  1. Acts 12:8 Lit. he
  2. Acts 12:9 Lit. he
  3. Acts 12:11 Lit. from the hands of
  4. Acts 12:12 Lit. he
  5. Acts 12:15 Lit. They