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An Angel Frees Peter from Prison

¹ Now about that time ^(F1)Herod the king laid hands on some who belonged to the church in order to harm them.² And he ^(C1)had James the brother of John ^(C2)put to death with a sword.³ And when he saw that it ^(C1)pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. Now ^(F1)it was during ^(C2)the days of Unleavened Bread.⁴ When he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him to four ^(F1)(C1)squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after ^(C2)the Passover to bring him out before the people.⁵ So Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God.

⁶ Now on ^(F1)the very night when Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, ^(C1)bound with two chains, and guards in front of the door were watching over the prison.⁷ And behold, ^(C1)an angel of the Lord suddenly ^(C2)appeared and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter's side and woke him up, saying, "Rise up quickly." And ^(C3)his chains fell off his hands.⁸ And the angel said to him, "Gird yourself and ^(F1)put on your sandals." And he did so. And he ^(*)said to him, "Wrap your garment around yourself and follow me."⁹ And he went out and continued to follow, and he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but was thinking he was seeing ^(C1)a vision.¹⁰ And when they had passed the first and second guard posts, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which ^(C1)opened for them by itself; and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel departed from him.¹¹ When Peter ^(C1)came ^(F1)to himself, he said, "Now truly I know that ^(C2)the Lord has sent His angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all ^(F2)that the Jewish people were expecting."¹² And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of ^(C1)John who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and ^(C2)were praying.¹³ And when he knocked at the door of the gate, ^(C1)a servant-girl named Rhoda came to answer.¹⁴ And when she recognized Peter's voice, ^(C1)because of her joy she did not open the gate. But she ran in and reported that Peter was standing in front of the gate.¹⁵ And they said to her, "You are out of your mind!" But she kept insisting that it was so. They kept saying, "It is ^(C1)his angel."¹⁶ But Peter continued knocking, and when they opened the door, they saw him and were astounded.¹⁷ But ^(C1)motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he recounted to them how the Lord had led him out of the prison. And he said, "Report these things to ^(C2)James and ^(C3)the brothers." Then he left and went to another place.

¹⁸ Now when day came, there was no small disturbance among the soldiers as to what ^(F1)had become of Peter.¹⁹ And when Herod had searched for him and had not found him, he examined the guards and ordered that they ^(C1)be led away to execution. Then he went down from Judea to ^(C2)Caesarea and was spending time there.

The Death of Herod

²⁰ Now he was very angry with the people of ^(C1)Tyre and Sidon; and with one accord they came to him, and having won over Blastus the king's chamberlain, they were asking for peace, because ^(C2)their country was fed by the king's country.²¹ And on an appointed day Herod, having put on his royal apparel and sitting on the judgment seat, began delivering an address to them.²² And the assembly kept crying out, "The voice of a god and not of a man!"²³ And immediately ^(C1)an angel of the ^(F1)Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.

²⁴ But ^(C1)the word of the Lord continued to grow and to be multiplied.

²⁵ And ^(C1)Barnabas and ^(C1)Saul ^(F1)returned ^(F2)to Jerusalem, ^(C2)fulfilling their ministry, taking along with them ^(C3)John, who was also called Mark.