What does Acts 12:24 mean?
Herod Agrippa I beheaded the apostle James (Acts 12:1–2). The Sanhedrin is still out to get the church. But Jesus' commission to the apostles—to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the end of the earth—is still going strong (Acts 1:8)."Word" is from the Greek root word logos. It can mean speech or an idea, a doctrine, or a message. For believers, Jesus is "The Word," and in a similar sense, so is the Bible, although at this point the Bible was not completed. So, "word" means the idea, doctrine, and message of Jesus: that He is God and that He was born into a human form, crucified for our sins, and rose again on the third day for our salvation.
"Increased" is from the Greek root word auxano. It may mean the word spreads geographically or grows in the hearts of each believer as they come to know God better and allow the Holy Spirit to work in them. We call this "sanctification"—the lifelong practice of growing in spiritual maturity. In the High Priestly Prayer, Jesus said, "Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth" (John 17:17). Just knowing and accepting Jesus as the logos—the true message—changes us.
"Multiplied" is from the Greek root word plethuno, which refers to the spread of something to others, rather than an internal growth. The understanding of salvation through Jesus grew in His followers and spread to other people.
The church prospers as the murderer of an apostle dies in agony (Acts 12:1–2, 23).
Acts 12:24–25 marks the official transition from the story of Peter and the church in Jerusalem to the story of Paul, formerly Saul, and his missionary journeys. We will see Peter only once more—in a meeting requested by Barnabas and Paul (Acts 15:7–11). The rest of the book of Acts is dedicated to Paul's first three missionary journeys (Acts 13—14; 15:36—20:38), his arrest in Jerusalem (Acts 21:1—23:22) and imprisonment in Caesarea Maritima (Acts 23:23—26:32), and his journey to Rome to have his case tried before Caesar (Acts 27—28). Because of Paul, Jesus' story will spread all over the northern Mediterranean.
Acts 12 starts with the first death of an apostle and ends with the death of a king. Herod Agrippa I beheads James and imprisons Peter. An angel rescues Peter and he quickly lets the church in Jerusalem know before he goes into hiding. Agrippa, grandson of Herod the Great and friend to the Pharisees, accepts glory due only to God and dies, likely a few days later, of internal worms. Meanwhile, the church continues to grow, and Barnabas and Saul return to Syrian Antioch. The scene is set for Paul's extensive ministry to the Gentiles.
