1 About that time Herod the king laid violent hands upon some who belonged to the church.
2 He killed James the brother of John with the sword;
3 and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. This was during the days of Unleavened Bread.
4 And when he had seized him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people.
5 So Peter was kept in prison; but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church.
6 The very night when Herod was about to bring him out, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison;
7 and behold, an angel of the Lord appeared, and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter on the side and woke him, saying, "Get up quickly." And the chains fell off his hands.
8 And the angel said to him, "Dress yourself and put on your sandals." And he did so. And he said to him, "Wrap your mantle around you and follow me."
9 And he went out and followed him; he did not know that what was done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision.
10 When they had passed the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate leading into the city. It opened to them of its own accord, and they went out and passed on through one street; and immediately the angel left him.
11 And Peter came to himself, and said, "Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting."
12 When he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose other name was Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying.
13 And when he knocked at the door of the gateway, a maid named Rhoda came to answer.
14 Recognizing Peter's voice, in her joy she did not open the gate but ran in and told that Peter was standing at the gate.
15 They said to her, "You are mad." But she insisted that it was so. They said, "It is his angel!"
16 But Peter continued knocking; and when they opened, they saw him and were amazed.
17 But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, "Tell this to James and to the brethren." Then he departed and went to another place.
18 Now when day came, there was no small stir among the soldiers over what had become of Peter.
19 And when Herod had sought for him and could not find him, he examined the sentries and ordered that they should be put to death. Then he went down from Judea to Caesare'a, and remained there.
20 Now Herod was angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon; and they came to him in a body, and having persuaded Blastus, the king's chamberlain, they asked for peace, because their country depended on the king's country for food.
21 On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and made an oration to them.
22 And the people shouted, "The voice of a god, and not of man!"
23 Immediately an angel of the Lord smote him, because he did not give God the glory; and he was eaten by worms and died.
24 But the word of God grew and multiplied.
25 And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had fulfilled their mission, bringing with them John whose other name was 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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