Study

a Bible passage

Click a verse to see commentary

Select a resource above

12. Peter's Escape From Prison

¹ It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them. ² He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword. ³ When he saw that this met with approval among the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Festival of Unleavened Bread. ⁴ After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover.

⁵ So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.

⁶ The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance. ⁷ Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists.

⁸ Then the angel said to him, “Put on your clothes and sandals.” And Peter did so. “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me,” the angel told him. ⁹ Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision. ¹⁰ They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself, and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him.

¹¹ Then Peter came to himself and said, “Now I know without a doubt that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from Herod’s clutches and from everything the Jewish people were hoping would happen.”

¹² When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying. ¹³ Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer the door. ¹⁴ When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, “Peter is at the door!”

¹⁵ “You’re out of your mind,” they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, “It must be his angel.”

¹⁶ But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. ¹⁷ Peter motioned with his hand for them to be quiet and described how the Lord had brought him out of prison. “Tell James and the other brothers and sisters about this,” he said, and then he left for another place.

¹⁸ In the morning, there was no small commotion among the soldiers as to what had become of Peter. ¹⁹ After Herod had a thorough search made for him and did not find him, he cross-examined the guards and ordered that they be executed.

Herod’s Death

Then Herod went from Judea to Caesarea and stayed there. ²⁰ He had been quarreling with the people of Tyre and Sidon; they now joined together and sought an audience with him. After securing the support of Blastus, a trusted personal servant of the king, they asked for peace, because they depended on the king’s country for their food supply.

²¹ On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne and delivered a public address to the people. ²² They shouted, “This is the voice of a god, not of a man.” ²³ Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.

²⁴ But the word of God continued to spread and flourish.

Barnabas and Saul Sent Off

²⁵ When Barnabas and Saul had finished their mission, they returned from Some manuscripts to Jerusalem, taking with them John, also called Mark.

12. Into the house of Mary It appeareth that she was a matron of rare godliness, whose house was, as it were, a certain temple of God, where the brethren did use to meet together. And Luke saith that there were many assembled there, because, seeing they could not all meet together in one place without fear of some tumult, they came together in diverse places of the city in companies, as they could conveniently. For, doubtless, there were other companies gathered together elsewhere, because it is not to be thought that (at such times as many of the faithful did give themselves to prayer) the apostles were not in like sort occupied, and one house could not hold so many. And we must always mark the circumstance of time, because, even in the heat of the enemy’s cruelty, the godly were, notwithstanding, assembled together. For if, at any time, this exercise be profitable, then is it most necessary when hard conflicts approach.

15. When he did knock at the gate. Whereas they think that the maid is mad, which telleth them that Peter was come; we gather by this, that they did not hope or look for Peter’s deliverance, and yet we will not say that they prayed without faith; because they looked for some other success, to with that Peter being armed with power from heaven, should be ready, whether it were by life or death, to glorify God, ⁷⁵⁹⁷⁵⁹ “Christi nomen,” the name of Christ. that the flock being terrified with the violent invasion of wolves might not be scattered abroad, that those that were weak might not faint, that the Lord would put away that whirlwind of persecution. But in that the Lord granteth them more than they hoped for, he surpasseth their desires with his infinite goodness. And now that which was done seemeth to them incredible, that they may be the more provoked to praise his power.

It is his angel. They call him his angel, who was by God appointed to be his keeper and the minister of his safety. In which sense Christ saith that the angels of little ones do always see the face of his Father, (Matthew 18:10.) And what do they gather hence commonly? that every particular man hath a particular angel, which taketh charge of him; but it is too weak. For the Scripture doth sometimes testify (Exodus 14:10) that there is one angel given to a great people, and to one man only a great host. For Elizeus [Elisha] his servant had his eyes opened, so that he saw in the air chariots of fire, which were appointed to defend the prophet, (2 Kings 6:17.) And in Daniel there is but one angel of the Persians, and one of the Grecians named, (Daniel 10:5, 12.) Neither doth the Scripture promise to every man a certain and peculiar angel, but rather that the Lord hath charged his angels to keep all the faithful, (Psalm 91:11;) also that they pitch their tents about the godly, (Psalm 34:8.) Therefore, that vain surmise which is common touching the two angels of every man is profane. Let this be sufficient for us, that the whole host of heaven doth watch for the safety of the Church; and that as necessity of time requireth sometimes one angel, sometimes more do defend us with their aid. Assuredly, this is inestimable goodness of God, in that he saith that the angels, who are the beams of his brightness, are our ministers.