Acts 12:1-11 - Peter's arrest and miraculous rescue

Acts 12:1-11 -  Peter's arrest and miraculous rescue

Luke continues here to share about Peter's ministry which was left off from Acts 11:8, to narrate about the work at Antioch. It was about this time that King Herod Agrippa I went after the leaders of the church. King Herod Agrippa I was the grandson of Herod the Great mentioned in Luke 1:5.

In Agrippa's attempts to please the Jews, he had James, the son of Zebedee, one of the 12, killed by the sword. This was illegal and high handed.  But nonetheless he did it.

James was the first of the apostles  that was martyred. Realizing that he gained favor with the Jews by doing this, Agrippa I set out to kill the other leaders. So he had Peter arrested.

He had to delay the trial of Peter because of the Feast of Unleavened Bread (The Passover). His intention was to bring Peter out for trial after the feast, and do to Peter what he did with James. Unlike Saul's earlier persecution of the entire body of believers, his was targeted at selected leaders.

Meanwhile, Peter arrested, bound in chains, imprisoned and heavily guarded by soldiers. Four of them would be on duty to guard him day and night. Two at the gate and one on each side of him. The reason for the extra precaution could be due to his miraculous rescue recorded in Acts 5:19. However, it's likely that Luke was setting the backdrop to show the power of prayer.

Verse 6 tells us that on the very night when Herod was about to bring Peter forward for trail, (remember he was in chains and heavily guarded), an angel of The Lord came to his rescue.

The description, "the very night" tells us that God is always on time. He is never late. It was at this precise moment that God chose to answer the prayers being offered on Peter's behalf. Notice that Peter was sleeping. This tells us that when a person is resting in Christ, he can sleep in the toughest of circumstances.  

In a bright shinning light, the angel appeared to Peter, woke him up firmly with a single blow. Suddenly awakened he was still in a daze. But the chains that bound his wrists were loosed. And he was commanded to get dressed quickly. He was also ordered by the angel to wrap his cloak around him and follow him.

Everything seemed so unreal to Peter. He thought he was seeing a vision.
Following the angel he passed through the guards unnoticed. And when they came to the main gate of the prison, it just swung open. When Peter exited into the main street, the angel departed immediately

What Peter experienced was not just a vision. In verse 11, he affirmed that it was a real experience. So he exclaimed, “Now I know for sure that the Lord has sent forth His angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.”

How Peter was rescued stands as a testimony to tell us that God has the ability to deliver us out of what seemed like the  toughest moments of our lives. We need to be convinced that he has the power to save and deliver. Nothing is too difficult for the Lord to take us through. Regardless of our circumstances, the Lord can deliver us anytime. Truly we can completely rest in Him and His constant and unchanging power.