Acts 12

Acts 12:1

Whenever Herod’s name appears in Scripture, it’s easy to get confused. “Wasn’t Herod the one who killed the infants when Jesus was born? Didn’t he die in Matthew 2? What’s he doing here?” The answer to those questions lies in the fact that “Herod” is a family name. Herod the Greatthe one who slaughtered the infants at Jesus’ birthwas an Idumeana descendant of Esau, who married Mariamnea descendant of the Maccabeans. Mariamne was one of Herod’s eight wives, and one of at least six he killed. But before she died, Mariamne gave Herod a son named Aristobulus.

Aristobulus was one of at least fifteen sons Herod killed. But before he died, Aristobulus fathered a son named Herod Agrippa. Realizing it was dangerous living in Jerusalem with people getting butchered right and left, Aristobulus’ mother shipped her son to Romewhere he became friends with a man named Caligula. You might remember Caligula from your history lessons. He was a terribly depraved man, who, when he came into power, said, “I’m going to put my buddy Herod Agrippa on the throne in Jerusalem.” Thus, it is Herod Agrippa of whom we read here in Acts 12.

Acts 12:2

Herod Agrippa, Idumean on his father’s side, Jewish on his mother’s, was very interested in Jewish culture and deeply desirous of Jewish acceptance. But, although he was circumcised and followed Jewish customs and rituals, the Jews never embraced him as one of their own because they considered him a half-breed at best. Here in Acts 12, Herod Agrippa finallyalthough perhaps quite accidentallygained the approval of the Jews by ordering James sawn in half lengthwise. At last I’ve found a way to get the Jews to like me, he must have thought and decided to go after Peter next.

Acts 12:4

Four quaternions is literally four soldiers. The worst criminal would have had two soldiersone chained to each arm. But Herod ordered four soldiers chained to Peter to make sure he wouldn’t escape. “After Easter” should have been translated “after Passover.” Knowing it was against Jewish law to kill a man during Passover, Herod Agrippa intended to wait until after Passover to execute Peter.

Acts 12:5

Prayer was made on Peter’s behalf, and what a difference it would make! What would have happened had the believers prayed when James was in prison? I wonder. Why didn’t the church pray for James? Perhaps they thought, Why pray? God’s will is going to be done anyway. The Bible says we have not because we ask not (Jas_4:2). Why are we so dumb? Why do we have to learn the hard way? Why does there have to be difficulty, sadness, and tragedy before we say, “You know what? I better pray”? What difference does it make if you pray? All I know is this: The church didn’t pray for James, and he was sawn in half. They prayed for Peter, and he is about to be spared. You see, the Lord has sovereignly chosen to work through the avenue of prayer in order to teach us how to talk to Him, and depend on Him, so that in the ages to come when we rule on behalf of Him, and we will already have established communication with Him.

Acts 12:6

This cracks me up! Here’s Petersleeping again! Luke tells us that while Jesus talked with Moses and Elijah on the Mount of Transfiguration, Peter slept (Luk_9:32). Matthew writes that while Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, Peter slept (Mat_26:40). And here in Acts 12, we see Peter asleep on the night before his execution. But this time it’s different. On the Mount of Transfiguration, Peter slept because he didn’t expect anything to happen. In the Garden of Gethsemane, he slept in disobedience to the Lord’s command to pray with Him. In prison, he slept because he was totally at peace. Put yourself in Peter’s chains. If you were bound to two soldiers and knew you were going to be killed the next morning, what would you do? I know what Peter did: Blanketed with the “peace that passeth understanding” (see Php_4:7), he slept.

Acts 12:7

Throughout Scripture, angels are almost always pictured as being in a hurry. Conversely, God is seen hurrying only oncein the person of the father who ran down the road to welcome home his prodigal son (Luk_15:20). Why do angels always seem to be rushing around? Perhaps it’s because angels understand human nature so well that they just want to come on the scene, do their work, and get out before men get caught up in worshiping them.

Acts 12:8

I’m dreaming, thought Peter. What a trip!

Acts 12:10

What if Peter, sitting in prison, had said, “Wow, what a dream,” and then continued sitting there? He would have been dead before his time. You see, even though Peter wasn’t sure what he was seeing was reality, he acted on it as if it were. I wonder how many of us remain imprisoned because, although we hear teachings and exhortations, prophecies and illuminationsalthough we take notes and nod our heads in agreement, we just sit in our cells thinking they must be dreams. Our culture says, “Take it easy.” Christianity says, “Take a chance.” We’ll never experience what God intends us to enjoy until we follow what He lays on our hearts by stepping out in faith. Now, sometimes when we step out, we find it was only a vision after all. That’s okay. Proverbs says an empty stable stays clean, but an empty stable brings no profits (Pro_14:4). Some people say, “I’ve never messed up. I’ve never made the mistake of following a vision. Look how clean my barn is. The floor is spotless.” But the farmer who has some meadow muffins on the floor and a few flies swarming around is the one who is productive. Follow the Lord’s leading even if it seems like only a vision. The worst that could happen is that a pasture patty or two could appear in your barn. But the best that could happen is, like Peter, you could be set free!

Acts 12:12

This was probably the same upper room used for the Last Supper and on the Day of Pentecost. “Rhoda” means “Rose.”

Acts 12:14

Oh, Rose. You’re a blooming idiot, the believers must have thought. That can’t be Peter. Don’t you know he’s in prison? Then they returned to their praying: “Lord, free Peter in Jesus’ Name. Oh, Lord, we look to You to free Peter.” Isn’t this a great story? Aren’t these early believers just like you and me? I mean, here they are, praying fervently for Peter’s release, while he’s standing right outside their door! This intrigues me because evidently these early believers were so accustomed to seeing angels, they didn’t even bother to get up to see this one. It seems the early church had the awareness that angels were always around. We’ve lost that awareness. Our eyes have become dull. As a result, I think we’re missing something because we don’t really believe angels are here right now.

Acts 12:16

This is James, the half brother of Jesus, author of the Book of James, leader of the church in Jerusalem. This story encourages me a whole bunch because it shows that the Lord responds to prayer even when it’s not accompanied by a great deal of faith. These believers were praying fervently and intensely, but you cannot say they were praying the prayer of faith, since they didn’t even have enough faith to believe Peter was free when he was knocking at their gate! I like this story because I find myself praying a whole lot like them. I pray fervently, even intenselybut a lot of times I’m not sure anything’s going to happen. This story tells me that’s okay. God can still work through a tiny smattering of faith. Jesus said faith the size of a mustard seedjust a tiny bit of faithcan move mountains (Mat_17:20). If you have faith enough just to pray, things can happen. Doors can open. Ask Peter! You who feel imprisoned, boxed in, and as though nothing’s happening, in your job, in your family, in your ministrytake heart and take hope and pray anyway. Sometimes it takes only enough faith to pray for a miracle to happen. Peter would later write these words: For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.1Pe_3:12 The eyes of the Lord are over the righteousthat’s why Peter had peace. The ears of the Lord are open to prayerthat’s why the church could pray. But the face of the Lord is against evilthat’s why Herod was about to perish.

Acts 12:18

Infuriated by the news of Peter’s escape, Herod left Jerusalem for the seacoast city of Caesarea, the resort town of the day. A beautiful city built by the Romans on the beach of the Mediterranean Sea, Caesarea was opulent and luxurious.

Acts 12:20

Tyre and Sidon were two cities located in present-day Lebanon. We do not know why Herod was displeased with them, but we do know his displeasure would have been bad news for them, since non-agrarian communities such as theirs were totally dependent upon Herod for food. When the delegation from Tyre and Sidon arrived in Caesarea, they somehow persuaded Blastus, Herod’s chief of staff, to make an appointment for them with his boss. Jewish historian Josephus tells us Herod’s royal robes were actually made of pure silver threadsa gown that would have made even Elton John envious! In need of Herod’s bread, what did the delegation from Tyre and Sidon do? They buttered him up. “You’re a god! You’re a god,” they shouted. Folks, flattery is like bubble gumyou can enjoy it for a moment, but don’t swallow it. More often than not, when someone flatters you, he is attempting to get something from youwhich is exactly what was happening here. Here, Herodarrayed in silver splendor, glistening in the Mediterranean sun, drinking in the praise of the peoplewas suddenly eaten by worms. Now whether worms actually began to eat his fleshor whether, as Josephus suggests, Herod, struck with severe intestinal pains, died five days later, and, during the autopsy, his insides were found to be full of wormswe can’t be sure. Whether the worms ate him from inside out, or from outside ineither way, it was gross! But the Lord doesn’t tell us this to gross us out. He tells us this to fill us in, for I believe the purpose of this account is to teach us the absolute necessity of giving God glory. What’s Eating You? A Topical Study of Act_12:20-23 When we talk about giving God glory, people get very confused. Why are we to give God glory? Is He insecure? Does He have a poor self-image? Does He need us to gather together and tell Him how wonderful He is so He’ll feel better about Himself? No. God doesn’t need usbut He does love us. And He knows that, although He doesn’t need our praise, we need to praise. He knows it is in thanksgiving and in glorifying Him that we are de-wormed. He knows that, like Herod, if we do not honor Him, worms will destroy us. Following are three worms that will torment us, gnaw on us, and ultimately devour us if we do not give God glory and thanksgiving continually. The Worm of Anxiety Paul wrote that in everything we are to give thanks to the Lord (Eph_5:20). Why? Because, as James wrote, every good and perfect gift comes from above (Jas_1:17). If I think the job I have, the house in which I live, the family I enjoy are mine because I have worked hard and have been clever and diligent, I will eventually be eaten up by the worm of anxiety because I will either be worried about maintaining what I have or attaining what I don’t. If I say, “I have health because of my commitment to physical fitness, success because of my business acumen, and a place on the baseball team because of my athletic prowess,” I will be consumed by worry because if I strived to attain these things, I’ll have to strive to maintain them. If you believe you are where you are today because of your diligence, your ability, your personality, or your creativityyou will be eaten up with anxiety. On the other hand, if you believe every good gift comes from above, you realize you neither earned nor deserve the blessings in your life. And since you didn’t work for them, since they are yours by God’s grace, you can trust in Him and give thanks to Him for where you are today. Then, if the job doesn’t work out, if the relationship goes kaput, if you get cut from the team, you can say, “Lord, You gave it to me in the first place. And if You’re taking it away from me now, then I know it’s ultimately for my good and Your glory.” And when you thank the Lord for whatever situation you’re in and give Him glory for everything you’ve enjoyed, you’ll be at peacewonderful peace that passes understanding (Php_4:7). Miriam led the children of Israel in praise and worship as they danced and celebrated after God miraculously parted the Red Sea (Exo_15:20). But do you recall what the children of Israel were doing before the Lord parted the Sea? They were complaining and murmuring (Exo_14:11-12). They were stressed out. They were uptight. They were eaten up. How much better it would have been for the people to dance before the Lord and give glory to Him before the Red Sea partedwhile they were trapped and boxed in by the Sea in front of them and the Egyptians behind them. It’s relatively easy to give thanks after the answer has come. But how much better for your health, your faith, your witness, if you’ll take up the tambourine in faith before you see the Red Sea partand watch the worm of anxiety drown in the waters of praise! The Worm of Perversity Romans 1 gives us the pathway to perversion… For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen. For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature: and likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.Rom_1:18-27 When a man, a woman, or a society stops glorifying God and giving Him thanks, perversion is the ultimate result. Oh, we might not make idols of men and birds of wood and stone as they did in Paul’s daybut we fashion rock idols, Hollywood idols, and political idols. We might not worship creeping things and four-footed animals anymorebut we teach our kids that they came from primordial slime and evolved into monkeys. We are surrounded in this country by perversity that leads to homosexuality and God’s judgment inevitably. And, according to Rom_1:21, it all began when we stopped giving God thanks. I’m so sorry about our culture. I take responsibility for it and repent to the Lord concerning it. Like Herod, our society is being devoured by the worm of perversity because, as a nation, we refuse to glorify God. The Worm of Negativity A man or woman who does not continually give thanks in everything becomes vulnerable to the worm of negativity. He or she will become grumpy, grouchy, and cynical. The way to escape from the worm of negativity is to give thanks to God continually. In the late 1800s, when cotton was undisputed king of the South, every cotton plantation in Coffee County, Alabama, was wiped out by the boll weevil. The economic fallout was disastrous, causing the Christians in the little town of Enterprise to meet together and pray, “We thank You, Lord, that You have blessed us for so many years with cotton. Now it’s gone, but we know You work all things together for good. So we trust You.” Following their prayer meeting, the town of Enterprise decided to change crops from cotton to peanuts. Now, although peanuts at that time were virtually unknown, there was a man of exceptional intelligenceone of the greatest thinkers in our country’s historywho in the same year the folks of Enterprise felt the Lord nudging them to plant peanuts, was also talking to the Lord. A wonderful believer, with a deep interest in astronomy, he prayed, “Father, teach me the secrets of the universe.” Then he hung his head and said, “Lord, I know that’s too presumptuous to ask. Just teach me about the peanut.” The man’s name, of course, was George Washington Carverand how the Lord answered his prayer! Beginning in 1895, Carver developed over three hundred products from the lowly peanutof which the primary discovery, as far as I’m concerned, was peanut butter! As a result of George Washington Carver’s discoveries, suddenly there was an unexpected, unprecedented demand for peanuts. And Coffee County began to prosper beyond belief. What had been a disaster became a blessing. What had been adversity became prosperityall because instead of being eaten up by the worm of negativity, the people of Enterprise glorified God. If you go to Enterprise today, you will see a monument in the town square with a boll weevil on top and this inscription underneath: In profound appreciation for the boll weevil and what he has done as the herald of prosperity, this monument is erected by the grateful citizens of Coffee County, Alabama. All things work together for good (see Rom_8:28). Gang, you and I can be de-wormed by giving God glory. May He give us wisdom and application. And may this be the most un-wormy congregation in the whole country!

Acts 12:24

Herod was struck downbut the Word of God grew and multiplied. I like that!

Acts 12:25

After delivering the offering of the believers in Antioch to the believers in Jerusalem, Barnabas and Saul returned to Antioch, bringing John Mark with them. John Mark, the nephew of Barnabas and the son of the woman whose upper room was used by the disciples for the Last Supper and on the Day of Pentecost, was a young man who had a rich Christian heritage. He also had a lot to learn, as we will see in chapter 13.