Psalms 102:17

102:17 when he responds to the prayer of the destitute, ¹ 

and does not reject ²  their request. ³ 

Isaiah 65:24

65:24 Before they even call out, ⁴  I will respond;

while they are still speaking, I will hear.

Acts 4:24-31

4:24 When they heard this, they raised their voices to God with one mind ⁵  and said, “Master of all, ⁶  you who made the heaven, the earth, ⁷  the sea, and everything that is in them, 4:25 who said by the Holy Spirit through ⁸  your servant David our forefather, ⁹ 

‘Why do the nations ¹⁰  rage, ¹¹ 

and the peoples plot foolish ¹²  things?

4:26 The kings of the earth stood together, ¹³ 

and the rulers assembled together,

against the Lord and against his ¹⁴  Christ.’ ¹⁵ 

4:27 “For indeed both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, assembled together in this city against ¹⁶  your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, ¹⁷  4:28 to do as much as your power ¹⁸  and your plan ¹⁹  had decided beforehand ²⁰  would happen. 4:29 And now, Lord, pay attention to ²¹  their threats, and grant ²²  to your servants ²³  to speak your message ²⁴  with great courage, ²⁵  4:30 while you extend your hand to heal, and to bring about miraculous signs ²⁶  and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” 4:31 When ²⁷  they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken, ²⁸  and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak ²⁹  the word of God ³⁰  courageously. ³¹ 

Acts 12:5-19

12:5 So Peter was kept in prison, but those in the church were earnestly ³²  praying to God for him. ³³  12:6 On that very night before Herod was going to bring him out for trial, ³⁴  Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, while ³⁵  guards in front of the door were keeping watch ³⁶  over the prison. 12:7 Suddenly ³⁷  an angel of the Lord ³⁸  appeared, and a light shone in the prison cell. He struck ³⁹  Peter on the side and woke him up, saying, “Get up quickly!” And the chains fell off Peter’s ⁴⁰  wrists. ⁴¹  12:8 The angel said to him, “Fasten your belt ⁴²  and put on your sandals.” Peter ⁴³  did so. Then the angel ⁴⁴  said to him, “Put on your cloak ⁴⁵  and follow me.” 12:9 Peter ⁴⁶  went out ⁴⁷  and followed him; ⁴⁸  he did not realize that what was happening through the angel was real, ⁴⁹  but thought he was seeing a vision. 12:10 After they had passed the first and second guards, ⁵⁰  they came to the iron ⁵¹  gate leading into the city. It ⁵²  opened for them by itself, ⁵³  and they went outside and walked down one narrow street, ⁵⁴  when at once the angel left him. 12:11 When ⁵⁵  Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued ⁵⁶  me from the hand ⁵⁷  of Herod ⁵⁸  and from everything the Jewish people ⁵⁹  were expecting to happen.”

12:12 When Peter ⁶⁰  realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John Mark, ⁶¹  where many people had gathered together and were praying. 12:13 When he knocked at the door of the outer gate, a slave girl named Rhoda answered. ⁶²  12:14 When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed she did not open the gate, but ran back in and told ⁶³  them ⁶⁴  that Peter was standing at the gate. 12:15 But they said to her, “You’ve lost your mind!” ⁶⁵  But she kept insisting that it was Peter, ⁶⁶  and they kept saying, ⁶⁷  “It is his angel!” ⁶⁸  12:16 Now Peter continued knocking, and when they opened the door ⁶⁹  and saw him, they were greatly astonished. ⁷⁰  12:17 He motioned to them ⁷¹  with his hand to be quiet and then related ⁷²  how the Lord had brought ⁷³  him out of the prison. He said, “Tell James and the brothers these things,” and then he left and went to another place. ⁷⁴ 

12:18 At daybreak ⁷⁵  there was great consternation ⁷⁶  among the soldiers over what had become of Peter. 12:19 When Herod ⁷⁷  had searched ⁷⁸  for him and did not find him, he questioned ⁷⁹  the guards and commanded that they be led away to execution. ⁸⁰  Then ⁸¹  Herod ⁸²  went down from Judea to Caesarea ⁸³  and stayed there.

Acts 12:1

James is Killed and Peter Imprisoned

12:1 About that time King Herod ⁸⁴  laid hands on ⁸⁵  some from the church to harm them. ⁸⁶ 

Acts 3:12

3:12 When Peter saw this, he declared to the people, “Men of Israel, ⁸⁷  why are you amazed at this? Why ⁸⁸  do you stare at us as if we had made this man ⁸⁹  walk by our own power or piety?

[102:17]  ¹ tn The Hebrew adjective עַרְעָר (’arar, “destitute”) occurs only here in the OT. It is derived from the verbal root ערר (“to strip oneself”).

[102:17]  ² tn Heb “despise.”

[102:17]  ³ tn The perfect verbal forms in vv. 16-17 are functioning as future perfects, indicating future actions that will precede the future developments described in v. 15.

[65:24]  ⁴ tn The verb that introduces this verse serves as a discourse particle and is untranslated; see note on “in the future” in 2:2.

[4:24]  ⁵ sn With one mind. Compare Acts 1:14.

[4:24]  ⁶ tn Or “Lord of all.”

[4:24]  ⁷ tn Grk “and the earth, and the sea,” but καί (kai) has not been translated before “the earth” and “the sea” since contemporary English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

[4:25]  ⁸ tn Grk “by the mouth of” (an idiom).

[4:25]  ⁹ tn Or “ancestor”; Grk “father.”

[4:25]  ¹⁰ tn Or “Gentiles.”

[4:25]  ¹¹ sn The Greek word translated rage includes not only anger but opposition, both verbal and nonverbal. See L&N 88.185.

[4:25]  ¹² tn Or “futile”; traditionally, “vain.”

[4:26]  ¹³ tn Traditionally, “The kings of the earth took their stand.”

[4:26]  ¹⁴ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[4:26]  ¹⁵ sn A quotation from Ps 2:1-2.

[4:27]  ¹⁶ sn The application of Ps 2:1-2 is that Jews and Gentiles are opposing Jesus. The surprise of the application is that Jews are now found among the enemies of God’s plan.

[4:27]  ¹⁷ sn A wordplay on “Christ,” v. 26, which means “one who has been anointed.”

[4:28]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “hand,” here a metaphor for God’s strength or power or authority.

[4:28]  ¹⁹ tn Or “purpose,” “will.”

[4:28]  ²⁰ tn Or “had predestined.” Since the term “predestine” is something of a technical theological term, not in wide usage in contemporary English, the translation “decide beforehand” was used instead (see L&N 30.84). God’s direction remains as the major theme.

[4:29]  ²¹ tn Or “Lord, take notice of.”

[4:29]  ²² sn Grant to your servants to speak your message with great courage. The request is not for a stop to persecution or revenge on the opponents, but for boldness (great courage) to carry out the mission of proclaiming the message of what God is doing through Jesus.

[4:29]  ²³ tn Grk “slaves.” See the note on the word “servants” in 2:18.

[4:29]  ²⁴ tn Grk “word.”

[4:29]  ²⁵ tn Or “with all boldness.”

[4:30]  ²⁶ tn The miraculous nature of these signs is implied in the context.

[4:31]  ²⁷ tn Grk “And when.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[4:31]  ²⁸ sn The place where they were assembled…was shaken. This signifies that God is in their midst. See Acts 16:26; Exod 19:18; Ps 114:7; Isa 6:4.

[4:31]  ²⁹ tn The imperfect verb has been translated as an ingressive imperfect (“began to speak”). Logical sequencing suggests that their speaking began after they were filled with the Spirit. The prayer was answered immediately.

[4:31]  ³⁰ tn Or “speak God’s message.”

[4:31]  ³¹ tn Or “with boldness.”

[12:5]  ³² tn Or “constantly.” This term also appears in Luke 22:14 and Acts 26:7.

[12:5]  ³³ tn Grk “but earnest prayer was being made by the church to God for him.” The order of the clauses has been rearranged to follow English style, and the somewhat awkward passive “prayer was being made” has been changed to the simpler active verb “were praying.” Luke portrays what follows as an answer to prayer.

[12:6]  ³⁴ tn Grk “was going to bring him out,” but the upcoming trial is implied. See Acts 12:4.

[12:6]  ³⁵ tn Grk “two chains, and.” Logically it makes better sense to translate this as a temporal clause, although technically it is a coordinate clause in Greek.

[12:6]  ³⁶ tn Or “were guarding.”

[12:7]  ³⁷ tn Grk “And behold.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here. The interjection ἰδού (idou), often difficult to translate into English, expresses the suddenness of the angel’s appearance.

[12:7]  ³⁸ tn Or “the angel of the Lord.” See the note on the word “Lord” in 5:19.

[12:7]  ³⁹ tn Grk “striking the side of Peter, he awoke him saying.” The term refers to a push or a light tap (BDAG 786 s.v. πατάσσω 1.a). The participle πατάξας (pataxa") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[12:7]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “his”; the referent (Peter) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:7]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “the hands,” but the wrist was considered a part of the hand.

[12:8]  ⁴² tn While ζώννυμι (zwnnumi) sometimes means “to dress,” referring to the fastening of the belt or sash as the final act of getting dressed, in this context it probably does mean “put on your belt” since in the conditions of a prison Peter had probably not changed into a different set of clothes to sleep. More likely he had merely removed his belt or sash, which the angel now told him to replace. The translation “put on your belt” is given by L&N 49.14 for this verse. The archaic English “girdle” for the sash or belt has an entirely different meaning today.

[12:8]  ⁴³ tn Grk “He”; the referent (Peter) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:8]  ⁴⁴ tn Grk “he”; the referent (the angel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:8]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “outer garment.”

[12:9]  ⁴⁶ tn Grk “And going out he followed.”

[12:9]  ⁴⁷ 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]  ⁴⁸ 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]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “what was done through the angel was a reality” (see BDAG 43 s.v. ἀληθής 3).

[12:10]  ⁵⁰ tn Or perhaps, “guard posts.”

[12:10]  ⁵¹ sn The iron gate shows how important security was here. This door was more secure than one made of wood (which would be usual).

[12:10]  ⁵² tn Grk “which.” The relative pronoun (“which”) was replaced by the pronoun “it,” and a new sentence was begun in the translation at this point to improve the English style, due to the length of the sentence in Greek.

[12:10]  ⁵³ tn The Greek term here, αὐτομάτη (automath), indicates something that happens without visible cause (BDAG 152 s.v. αὐτόματος).

[12:10]  ⁵⁴ tn Or “lane,” “alley” (BDAG 907 s.v. ῥύμη).

[12:11]  ⁵⁵ tn Grk “And when.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[12:11]  ⁵⁶ tn Or “delivered.”

[12:11]  ⁵⁷ sn Here the hand of Herod is a metaphor for Herod’s power or control.

[12:11]  ⁵⁸ sn King Herod was Herod Agrippa I, the grandson of Herod I (Herod the Great).

[12:11]  ⁵⁹ sn Luke characterizes the opposition here as the Jewish people, including their leadership (see 12:3).

[12:12]  ⁶⁰ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Peter) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:12]  ⁶¹ tn Grk “John who was also called Mark.”

[12:13]  ⁶² tn Or “responded.”

[12:14]  ⁶³ tn Or “informed.”

[12:14]  ⁶⁴ 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]  ⁶⁵ 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]  ⁶⁶ 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]  ⁶⁷ 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]  ⁶⁸ 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]  ⁶⁹ tn The words “the door” are not in the Greek text, but are implied (see Acts 12:13).

[12:16]  ⁷⁰ 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).

[12:17]  ⁷¹ tn Or “He gave them a signal.” Grk “Giving them a signal…he related to them.” The participle κατασείσας (kataseisa") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[12:17]  ⁷² tc ‡ Most mss, including some of the most important ones (B D E Ψ Ï sy), read αὐτοῖς (autoi", “to them”) here, while some excellent and early witnesses (Ì^45vid,74vid א A 33 81 945 1739 pc) lack the pronoun. Although it is possible that the pronoun was deleted because it was seen as superfluous, it is also possible that it was added as a natural expansion on the text, strengthening the connection between Peter and his listeners. Although a decision is difficult, the shorter reading is slightly preferred. NA²⁷ puts the pronoun in brackets, indicating some doubts as to its authenticity.

[12:17]  ⁷³ tn Or “led.”

[12:17]  ⁷⁴ sn He…went to another place. This is Peter’s last appearance in Acts with the exception of the Jerusalem council in Acts 15.

[12:18]  ⁷⁵ tn BDAG 436 s.v. ἡμέρα 1.a has “day is breaking” for ἡμέρα γίνεται (Jhmera ginetai) in this verse.

[12:18]  ⁷⁶ tn Grk “no little consternation.” The translation given for τάραχος (taraco") in this verse by BDAG 991 s.v. τάραχος 1 is “mental agitation.” The situation indicated by the Greek word is described in L&N 25.243 as “a state of acute distress and great anxiety, with the additional possible implications of dismay and confusion – ‘great distress, extreme anxiety.’” The English word “consternation” is preferred here because it conveys precisely such a situation of anxiety mixed with fear. The reason for this anxiety is explained in the following verse.

[12:19]  ⁷⁷ sn King Herod was Herod Agrippa I, the grandson of Herod I (Herod the Great).

[12:19]  ⁷⁸ tn Or “had instigated a search” (Herod would have ordered the search rather than conducting it himself).

[12:19]  ⁷⁹ tn “Questioned” is used to translate ἀνακρίνας (anakrina") here because a possible translation offered by BDAG 66 s.v. ἀνακρίνω for this verse is “examined,” which could be understood to mean Herod inspected the guards rather than questioned them. The translation used by the NIV, “cross-examined,” also avoids this possible misunderstanding.

[12:19]  ⁸⁰ tn The meaning “led away to execution” for ἀπαχθῆναι (apacqhnai) in this verse is given by BDAG 95 s.v. ἀπάγω 2.c. Although an explicit reference to execution is lacking here, it is what would usually occur in such a case (Acts 16:27; 27:42; Code of Justinian 9.4.4). “Led away to torture” is a less likely option (Pliny the Younger, Letters 10, 96, 8).

[12:19]  ⁸¹ tn Grk “and,” but the sequence of events is better expressed in English by “then.” A new sentence is begun in the translation because of the length of the sentence in Greek, which exceeds normal English sentence length.

[12:19]  ⁸² tn Grk “he”; the referent (Herod) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Since Herod has been the subject of the preceding material, and the circumstances of his death are the subject of the following verses (20-23), it is best to understand Herod as the subject here. This is especially true since according to Josephus, Ant. 19.8.2 [19.343-352], Herod Agrippa I died at Caesarea in a.d. 44, and vv. 20-23 here describe his death. Thus the end of v. 19 provides Luke’s transition to explain how Herod got from Jerusalem to Caesarea where he died. In spite of all this evidence, the NRSV translates this phrase “Then Peter went down from Judea to Caesarea and stayed there,” understanding the referent to be Peter rather than Herod Agrippa I.

[12:19]  ⁸³ sn Caesarea was a city on the coast of Palestine south of Mount Carmel (not Caesarea Philippi). See the note on Caesarea in Acts 10:1.

[12:1]  ⁸⁴ sn King Herod was Herod Agrippa I, the grandson of Herod I (Herod the Great). His mediocre career is summarized in Josephus, Ant. 18-19. This event took place in a.d. 42 or 43.

[12:1]  ⁸⁵ tn Or “King Herod had some from the church arrested.”

[12:1]  ⁸⁶ tn Or “to cause them injury.”

[3:12]  ⁸⁷ tn Or perhaps “People of Israel,” since this was taking place in Solomon’s Portico and women may have been present. The Greek ἄνδρες ᾿Ισραηλῖται (andre" Israhlitai) used in the plural would normally mean “men, gentlemen” (BDAG 79 s.v. ἀνήρ 1.a).

[3:12]  ⁸⁸ tn Grk “or why.”

[3:12]  ⁸⁹ tn Grk “him”; the referent (the man) has been specified in the translation for clarity.