1 About that time King Herod laid hands upon some members of the church to harm them.
2 He had James, the brother of John, killed by the sword,
3 and when he saw that this was pleasing to the Jews he proceeded to arrest Peter also. (It was (the) feast of Unleavened Bread.)
4 He had him taken into custody and put in prison under the guard of four squads of four soldiers each. He intended to bring him before the people after Passover.
5 Peter thus was being kept in prison, but prayer by the church was fervently being made to God on his behalf.
6 On the very night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter, secured by double chains, was sleeping between two soldiers, while outside the door guards kept watch on the prison.
7 Suddenly the angel of the Lord stood by him and a light shone in the cell. He tapped Peter on the side and awakened him, saying, "Get up quickly." The chains fell from his wrists.
8 The angel said to him, "Put on your belt and your sandals." He did so. Then he said to him, "Put on your cloak and follow me."
9 So he followed him out, not realizing that what was happening through 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 leading out to the city, which opened for them by itself. They emerged and made their way down an alley, and suddenly the angel left him.
11 Then Peter recovered his senses and said, "Now I know for certain that (the) Lord sent his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people had been expecting."
12 When he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who is called Mark, where there were many people gathered in prayer.
13 When he knocked on the gateway door, a maid named Rhoda came to answer it.
14 She was so overjoyed when she recognized Peter's voice that, instead of opening the gate, she ran in and announced that Peter was standing at the gate.
15 They told her, "You are out of your mind," but she insisted that it was so. But they kept saying, "It is his angel."
16 But Peter continued to knock, and when they opened it, they saw him and were astounded.
17 He motioned to them with his hand to be quiet and explained (to them) how the Lord had led him out of the prison, and said, "Report this to James and the brothers." Then he left and went to another place.
18 At daybreak there was no small commotion among the soldiers over what had become of Peter.
19 Herod, after instituting a search but not finding him, ordered the guards tried and executed. Then he left Judea to spend some time in Caesarea.
20 He had long been very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon, who now came to him in a body. After winning over Blastus, the king's chamberlain, they sued for peace because their country was supplied with food from the king's territory.
21 On an appointed day, Herod, attired in royal robes, (and) seated on the rostrum, addressed them publicly.
22 The assembled crowd cried out, "This is the voice of a god, not of a man."
23 At once the angel of the Lord struck him down because he did not ascribe the honor to God, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.
24 But the word of God continued to spread and grow.
25 After Barnabas and Saul completed their relief mission, they returned to Jerusalem, taking with them John, who is called Mark.
Versículos relacionados com Acts, 12:
Acts of the Apostles 12 reports the arrest of Peter and his subsequent supernatural liberation by the angels of God. Also mentioned is the death of James, John's brother, at the hands of Herod. The selected verses are:
Isaiah 43:2: "When I pass through the waters, I will be with you, and when through the rivers they will not submerge you; when you pass through fire, you will not burn you, nor the flame will burn in you." Peter went through a moment of great danger and anguish as he was arrested and placed in prison, but the Lord was with him, protecting him from Herod's wrath.
Psalm 34:19: "There are many afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him from all." Peter was a fair man who was unjustly arrested. However, the Lord delivered him from Herod's hands and freed him from prison.
Proverbs 21:1: "The King's heart is in the hand of the Lord as deep waters; He tilts it wherever you want." Herod was determined to kill Peter, but God had other plans. He used an angel to free him from prison and frustrate the king's plans.
John 16:33: "In the world, you will have afflictions; but it tends good courage; I have overcome the world." James' death and Peter's arrest are examples of the afflictions that the disciples of Jesus faced. However, Jesus gave them the promise that they would have peace in the midst of tribulations, for he had won the world.
Acts of the Apostles 12:24: "But the Word of God grew and multiplied." Despite persecution and attempts to silence the Gospel message, God's Word continued to spread and reach more people. Peter's arrest and James' death failed to stop the advance of the Kingdom of God.
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