Acts 12:9

12:9 Peter ¹  went out ²  and followed him; ³  he did not realize that what was happening through the angel was real, ⁴  but thought he was seeing a vision.

Acts 12:14-16

12:14 When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed she did not open the gate, but ran back in and told ⁵  them ⁶  that Peter was standing at the gate. 12:15 But they said to her, “You’ve lost your mind!” ⁷  But she kept insisting that it was Peter, ⁸  and they kept saying, ⁹  “It is his angel!” ¹⁰  12:16 Now Peter continued knocking, and when they opened the door ¹¹  and saw him, they were greatly astonished. ¹² 

[12:9]  ¹ tn Grk “And going out he followed.”

[12:9]  ² tn Grk “Peter going out followed him.” The participle ἐξελθών (exelqwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[12:9]  ³ tn The word “him” is not in the Greek text. Direct objects in Greek were often omitted when clear from the context, but must be supplied for the modern English reader.

[12:9]  ⁴ tn Grk “what was done through the angel was a reality” (see BDAG 43 s.v. ἀληθής 3).

[12:14]  ⁵ tn Or “informed.”

[12:14]  ⁶ tn The word “them” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects in Greek were often omitted when clear from the context, but must be supplied for the modern English reader.

[12:15]  ⁷ sn “You’ve lost your mind!” Such a response to the miraculous is not unusual in Luke-Acts. See Luke 24:11; Acts 26:25. The term μαίνομαι (mainomai) can have the idea of being “raving mad” or “totally irrational” (BDAG 610 s.v.). It is a strong expression.

[12:15]  ⁸ tn Grk “she kept insisting that the situation was thus” (cf. BDAG 422 s.v. ἔχω 10.a). Most translations supply a less awkward English phrase like “it was so”; the force of her insistence, however, is that “it was Peter,” which was the point under dispute.

[12:15]  ⁹ tn The two imperfect tense verbs, διϊσχυρίζετο (diiscurizeto) and ἔλεγον (elegon), are both taken iteratively. The picture is thus virtually a shouting match between Rhoda and the rest of the believers.

[12:15]  ¹⁰ sn The assumption made by those inside, “It is his angel,” seems to allude to the idea of an attending angel (cf. Gen 48:16 LXX; Matt 18:10; Test. Jacob 1:10).

[12:16]  ¹¹ tn The words “the door” are not in the Greek text, but are implied (see Acts 12:13).

[12:16]  ¹² sn That they were greatly astonished is a common response in Luke-Acts to God’s work (Luke 8:56; Acts 2:7, 12; 8:13; 9:21; 10:45).