Acts 12:9 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And he went out and followed him. He did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision.

NIV: 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.

NASB: 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 a vision.

CSB: So he went out and followed, and he did not know that what the angel did was really happening, but he thought he was seeing a vision.

NLT: So Peter left the cell, following the angel. But all the time he thought it was a vision. He didn’t realize it was actually happening.

KJV: And he went out, and followed him; and wist not that it was true which was done by the angel; but thought he saw a vision.

NKJV: So he went out and followed him, and did not know that what was done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision.

A moment ago, Peter was fast asleep, sitting in chains in a prison in Jerusalem, flanked by Roman soldiers. Herod Agrippa I had waited until the Feast of Unleavened Bread was complete, but now he is ready to do the Sanhedrin a favor that will ensure their goodwill: execute Peter as he has James, the brother of John (Acts 12:1–2). An angel appears, nudges Peter until he awakens, and tells him to dress. By this time, Peter has no fear of death, but he has had experience with visions, so though he obeys, he's not exactly sure what's going on (Acts 12:3–8).

Not long before, Peter had a vision of a sheet that lowered from heaven displaying an assortment of animals. A voice told Peter to kill and eat even though some of them were banned by the Mosaic law. Still, the voice told him "What God has made clean, do not call common" (Acts 10:15). After a few back-and-forth interactions and a trip to Caesarea Maritima, Peter came to realize the animals represented people, and it was time for Jesus' story to come to the Gentiles (Acts 10).

So, Peter thinks, God must have another significant message for him. It's not clear why Peter doesn't assume the obvious—that a real angel is really helping him escape—as it's happened before (Acts 5:19). But Peter so trusts God's plan for him that he's able to sleep the night of his execution and accept a vision of escape rather than the real thing.

Acts 12:6–11 describes Peter's angelic rescue from a Roman prison. Herod Agrippa I arrested and killed the apostle James, brother of John. When he realized how much local religious leaders approved, he arrested Peter with plans to kill him after the Feast of Unleavened Bread. The church has been praying, however, and Peter's ministry is not over. God answers their prayer by sending an angel to rescue him from prison. Peter will stop by and update members of the church and then go into hiding. We won't see him again until the meeting of church leaders in Acts 15.

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.

When Acts 12 opens, at least some of the apostles are in Jerusalem, and Barnabas and Saul are in Syrian Antioch, collecting support so the church in Jerusalem can survive the coming famine (Acts 11:27–30). The church is established in Jerusalem and growing in the regions on the east coast of the Mediterranean Sea. When the chapter closes, Barnabas and Saul are poised for their missionary trip in modern-day Asia Minor. Saul will take on the Greek version of his name, Paul, and the story of Jesus will spread to Rome and beyond.

The summary of the book of Acts is provided in Jesus' words in Acts 1:8: ''But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.'' In Acts 2:1–13, the Christ-followers receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:14—7:60 describes the rapid growth of the church in Jerusalem. Chapters 8—12 find Jewish persecution inadvertently spreading the gospel throughout Judea and Samaria. And in chapters 13—28, Paul and his companions spread the good news throughout the Roman Empire.