From: Acts 12:1-11
Persecution by Herod. Peter's Arrest and Deliverance
[1] About that time Herod the king laid violent hands upon some who
belonged to the church. [2] He killed James the brother of John with
the sword; [3] and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded
to arrest Peter also. This was during the days of Unleavened Bread.
[4] And when he had seized him, he put him in prison, and delivered him
to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover
to bring him out to the people. [5] So Peter was kept in prison; but
earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church.
[6] The very night when Herod was about to bring him out, Peter was
sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries
before the door were guarding the prison; [7] and behold, an angel of
the Lord appeared, and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter
on the side and woke him, saying, "Get up quickly." And the chains fell
off his hands. [8] And the angel said to him, "Dress yourself and put
on your sandals." And he did so. And he said to him, "Wrap your mantle
around you and follow me." [9] And he went out and followed him; he did
not know that what was done by the angel was real, but thought he was
seeing a vision. [10] When they had passed the first and the second
guard, they came to the iron gate leading into the city. It opened to
them of its own accord, and they went out and passed on through one
street; and immediately the angel left him. [11] And Peter came to
himself, and said, "Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and
rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people
were expecting."
Commentary:
1-19. This is an account of persecution of the Church by Herod Agrippa
(37-44), which took place before the visit of Paul and Barnabas to the
Holy City(cf. 11:30).
The information given in this chapter about the latest persecution of
the Jerusalem community--more severe and more general than the earlier
crises (cf. 5:17; 8:1)--gives an accurate picture of the situation in
Palestine and describes events in chronological sequence. Prior to this
the Roman governors more or less protected the rights of the Jerusalem
Christians. Now Agrippa, in his desire to ingratiate himself with the
Pharisees, abandons the Christians to the growing resentment and hatred
the Jewish authorities and people feel towards them.
This chapter brings to an end, so to speak, the story of the first
Christian community in Jerusalem. From now on, attention is
concentrated on the church of Antioch. The last stage of the
Palestinian Judeo-Christian church, under the direction of James "the
brother of the Lord", will not experience the expansion enjoyed by
other churches, due to the grave turn which events take in the Holy
Land.
1. This Herod is the third prince of that name to appear in the New
Testament. He was a grandson of Herod the Great, who built the new
temple of Jerusalem and was responsible for the massacre of the Holy
Innocents (cf. Mt 2:16); he was also a nephew of Herod Antipas, the
tetrarch of Galilee at the time of our Lord's death. Herod Agrippa I
was a favorite of the emperor Caligula, who gradually gave him more
territory and allowed him to use the title of king. Agrippa I managed
to extend his authority over all the territory his grandfather had
ruled: Roman governors had ruled Judea up to the year 41, but in that
year it was given over to Herod. He was a sophisticated type of person,
a diplomat, so bent on consolidating his power that he had became a
master of intrigue and a total opportunist. For largely political
motives he practiced Judaism with a certain rigor.
2. James the Greater would have been martyred in the year 42 or 43. He
was the first Apostle to die for the faith and the only one whose death
is mentioned in the New Testament. The Liturgy of the Hours says of
him: "The son of Zebedee and the brother of John, he was born in
Bethsaida. He witnessed the principal miracles performed by our Lord
and was put to death by Herod around the year 42. He is held in special
veneration in the city of Compostela, where a famous church is
dedicated to his name."
"The Lord permits this death," Chrysostom observes, "to show his
murderers that these events do not cause the Christians to retreat or
desist" ("Hom. on Acts", 26).
5. "Notice the feelings of the faithful towards their pastors. They do
not riot or rebel; they have recourse to prayer, which can solve all
problems. They do not say to themselves: we do not count, there is no
point in our praying for him. Their love led them to pray and they did
not think along those lines. Have you noticed what these persecutors
did without intending to? They made (their victims) more determined to
stand the test, and (the faithful) more zealous and loving" ("Hom. on
Acts", 26).
St Luke, whose Gospel reports our Lord's words on perseverance in
prayer (cf. 11:13; 18:1-8), here stresses that God listens to the
whole community's prayer for Peter. He plans in his providence to save
the Apostle for the benefit of the Church, but he wants the outcome to
be seen as an answer to the Church's fervent prayer.
7-10. The Lord comes to Peter's help by sending an angel, who opens the
prison and leads him out. This miraculous freeing of the Apostle is
similar to what happened at the time of Peter and John's detention
(5:19f) and when Paul and Silas are imprisoned in Philippi (16:19ff).
This extraordinary event, which must be understood exactly as it is
described, shows the loving care God takes of those whom he entrusts
with a mission. They must strive to fulfill it, but they will "see" for
themselves that he guides their steps and watches over them.
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text
taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries
made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of
Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock,
Co. Dublin, Ireland.