Acts 12 (2)

vv. 1-10

This is one of my favorites, but it is also sad.

Now, Luke introduces a king for the first time in his letter, Herod Agrippa 1st.

How do we know this?

A big thanks to a guy named Josephus who wrote these historical events that took place.

Josephus writes about this Herod and we know this is Herod Agrippa 1st who is the grandson of Herod the Great and this is happening around 41-44 AD so maybe a decade after Christ’s death.

So at this time, Herod is attacking the church, so he does have some members including James and John.

We have James and John who were in the hands of Herod and he beheaded James who is not only the brother of John, but also the son of Zebedee.

Some people ask why was Peter saved and not James?

If you remember in Matthew, James and John as a question to Jesus, their mother asked Jesus for the privilege of sitting at His right and left hand in His kingdom.

What did Jesus tell them?

First, He said, “you do not know what you’re asking for. Are you really able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?”

They said, “Yes we are” and Jesus said, “Okay. You will.”

Second, He also said, “I don’t give places to sit on My right and left. My Father is able to do this.”

What cup was Jesus about to drink? Death.

Now James and John asked for it, and they’re getting it.

James is beheaded and John is kicked out to an island where he writes Revelation.

Both James and John faced persecution by the rulers.

Be careful what you ask for.

Now he does have Peter and he is going to bring him out after the Passover, which followed sevens days of the Unleavened Bread.

Now, if Peter did die, that would be a lot for the church to lose James and Peter.

But let’s note something, notice how scared Herod is: how does Luke tell us that Herod is afraid?

4 squads of soldiers; Peter is important, and Herod understands it.

The angel shows up, and I am convinced that angels do not have patients for humans, however, he hits Peter because he’s sleep.

But the one is a blessing that we shouldn’t over look is the church praying for Peter; God listened and He answered.

While Peter is half asleep and probably thinking its a dream, the angel took him to the city gates and they just open.

And as soon as he get in the street, the angel is gone.

vv. 11-19

Peter fully wakes up and probably is cold and has to figure out what he is going to do.

Remember that all of this is back in Jerusalem.

Peter goes to the house of Mary, John Mark’s mother (everyone is named Mary).

These people are in the house and praying in the middle of the night.

He knocks at the door and it may seem that she had a good decent size house and she has a servant girl and gates at her house so she might have some money.

Rhoda is a young girl and she got excited and left Peter outside.

The reason why we know she is young, because the word servant girl, means young girl or maiden.

But she tells everyone he is outside, while Peter is probably trying to be quiet by saying, “hello” or he might be looking around.

She is the only who believes that God answered the prayer.

They actively praying that Peter will get out, but when they hear about it, they don’t believe.

But once they believed and opened the door for him, he had to tell to quiet it down, “I’m out of prison but report these things to James.”

What James is he talking about? The brother of Jesus.

The same James who wrote the epistle.

He’s offend reffed to with no qualifiers; which means he needs no introduction just like in Acts 15 and Galatians 1:19.

James was very important in Jerusalem and one of the leaders as well.

He was one who didn’t believe that Jesus rose from the grave, but he believed after he knew and saw.

So Peter leaves and goes to another place, why?

He still needs to spread the word and he doesn’t want Mary and the others to get locked up either.

So the sun rise up, everybody trying to find Peter, Herod came and try to see what happens, and his soldiers don’t have any answers so we all know what happens after that and then Herod goes to Caesarea.

Caesarea is the capital for Rome and Jerusalem was the capital for Jews.

The political capital was in Caesarea which is on the coast.

vv. 20-25

He was angry with people of Tyre and Sidon and they came to him, they had won over Blastus, who worked for the king and they wanted an audience with him, and because their country was fed by the king’s country.

Josephus helps us out and why all this happened, but here, Herod get’s all the people together and puts on this ridiculous outfit and he addressed them and they continued to say, “a voice of God, and not of a man.”

Josephus (book 19 chapter 8) verse 2

We know why these people were crying out to him, because he cut off their food supply.

He made it illegal to make a trade with Tyre and Sidon and that’s why they really wanted to hear him speak and wanted to make amends because he was starving them to death.

(Continue reading)

Now Josephus gives us a little bit more details

Someone used a phrase when talking about people who be obsessed over politics, someone from the church or not, may say, “wow wasn’t that a great speech, listen to how beautiful he or she sounds.” The first thing we should remember its still happening today just like these people saying the same thing, “oh a voice of a God and not of a man.”

Now, it says, “immediately the angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory and he was eaten by worms and died,” however he didn’t die so quickly.

He was struck quickly, but later on he does die because of the worms.

Even though he died, the word of the Lord kept spreading.

Barnabas and Saul returned to Jerusalem and taking with them, John who was also called Mark and they go to Antioch.

Now we have to major churches one in Jerusalem and Antioch.