September 12, 2024
The Church rises spiritually no more than the level of its prayer life. Throughout both his Gospel and Acts, Luke emphasizes the importance of prayer. King Herod violently attacked the Church. Herod did not have the best relationship with the Jewish religious leaders, but he found that persecution of the Church pleased the Jews (v. 3). The imprisonment of Peter motivated the Church to pray fervently (v. 5).
Herod took extra precautions in his imprisonment of Peter. The Jewish king assigned 16 guards to Peter. Perhaps he thought that the other apostles would attempt to free Peter from his imprisonment. Peter was also bound with two chains and slept between two soldiers. Why was Herod so afraid of Peter? He had successfully executed James — John’s brother — and there were no consequences for the king. Herod planned to bring Peter before a legal tribunal to execute the apostle. How could Peter sleep the night before his possible execution, particularly after the death of James? The angel of the Lord appeared to Peter, shined a light into the cell and struck Peter on the side to wake him. The language suggests that God caused the chains to fall off Peter’s wrists. The angel commanded Peter to dress and put on his sandals. The sandals that Peter wore could have had a wooden sole. If that is correct, Peter tromped out while the guards slept. The iron gate opened to them by itself. Peter’s freedom occurred during the Festival of Unleavened Bread that was celebrated at the same time as Passover — a celebration of the freedom the Hebrews experienced during the first Passover in Egypt. Peter was free.
Peter may have thought he was dreaming. Verse 12 says that Peter came to himself; he was not dreaming. “Unrighteous rulers like Herod cannot stop the progress of the gospel,” writes Charles H. Talbert on page 112 of Reading Acts: A Literary and Theological Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles. Peter immediately walked to the house of Mary, the mother of John Mark, believed to be the author of the second gospel. Later Church tradition says John Mark wrote down the memories of Peter. The believers gathered at Mary’s house were undoubtedly praying for Peter in prison as he faced probably martyrdom. Peter knocked on the door, and a servant girl named Rhoda answered the door. The individuals assembled in the house of Mary refused to believe her good news. Some thought she was out of her mind, while others thought she had seen Peter’s angel. Some Jews believed that angels could assume a person’s appearance.
Peter persisted knocking, and they opened the door and expressed amazement. The church gathered there did not believe the prayers were answered. Peter described the miracle of his release from prison. He commanded others to tell of this event to James — Jesus’ half brother — and the other apostolic leaders. Peter departed to another place Luke does not mention. Herod thought the soldiers abandoned their responsibilities and executed them.
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This lesson was written by Mark Rathel, professor at the Baptist College of Florida in Graceville, Fla., and originally published by The Baptist Paper. This study is based on the Explore the Bible curriculum from Lifeway Christian Resources.
