25  The Folly  of Fighting God (12:1-25)

Now about that time Herod the king laid hands on some who belonged to the church, in order to mistreat them. And he had James the brother of John put to death with a sword. And when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. Now it was during the days of Unleavened Bread. And when he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out before the people. So Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God. And on the very night when Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains; and guards in front of the door were watching over the prison. And behold, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared, and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter’s side and roused him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And his chains fell off his hands. And the angel said to him, “Gird yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did so. And he said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.” And he went out and continued to follow, and he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. And when they had passed the first and second guard, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened for them by itself; and they went out and went along one street; and immediately the angel departed from him. And when Peter came to himself, he said, “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.” And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying. And when he knocked at the door of the gate, a servant-girl named Rhoda came to answer. And when she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her joy she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter was standing in front of the gate. And they said to her, “You are out of your mind!” But she kept insisting that it was so. And they kept saying, “It is his angel.” But Peter continued knocking; and when they had opened the door, they saw him and were amazed. But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had led him out of the prison. And he said, “Report these things to James and the brethren.” And he departed and went to another place. Now when day came, there was no small disturbance among the soldiers as to what could have become of Peter. And when Herod had searched for him and had not found him, he examined the guards and ordered that they be led away to execution. And he went down from Judea to Caesarea and was spending time there. Now he was very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon; and with one accord they came to him, and having won over Blastus the king’s chamberlain, they were asking for peace, because their country was fed by the king’s country. And on an appointed day Herod, having put on his royal apparel, took his seat on the rostrum and began delivering an address to them. And the people kept crying out, “The voice of a god and not of a man!” And immediately an angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died. But the word of the Lord continued to grow and to be multiplied. And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had fulfilled their mission, taking along with them John, who was also called Mark. (12:1–25)

Throughout the universe, war rages on every front. God, the holy angels, and elect men battle Satan, his demonic hosts, and fallen men. Although the outcome of the war has never been in doubt, the battles are no less real.

The war began on the angelic level when Lucifer, highest of all created beings, rebelled against his Creator. Lucifer, more commonly known as Satan (“adversary”), was cast from heaven, taking with him one-third of the angels (Rev. 12:4). From that moment until the present, war has raged between Satan and God, engulfing angels and men.

On the human front, the battle began when Adam and Eve rebelled against God in Eden. When they sampled the forbidden fruit (at the instigation of Satan) the war of the ages spread to the human realm. Through the centuries since then, men have shaken their fists in defiance at God. And though the folly of fighting Him is self-evident, that does not stop each succeeding generation from trying. They pit their impotence against His omnipotence, shattering themselves like raw eggs thrown against granite.

Solomon well expressed the hopelessness of fighting God when he wrote, “There is no wisdom and no understanding and no counsel against the Lord” (Prov. 21:30). Though sinful men often hail those who fight against God as wise, in reality they are fools. True wisdom lies in being on God’s side.

History is strewn with the wreckage of the broken lives of those foolish enough to fight God. The nineteenth-century German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche despised Christianity as the religion of weaklings. Fighting God eventually pushed him over the brink, and he spent the last several years of his life insane.

Novelist Sinclair Lewis, winner of the 1930 Nobel Prize for literature, also thought he could fight God. His novel Elmer Gantry mocked Christianity. Its leading character was an evangelist who was also an alcoholic and an unceasing fornicator. Lewis’s fight against God cost him his sobriety, and he died a hopeless alcoholic in a clinic near Rome.

Another Nobel-Prize-winning author, Ernest Hemingway, considered himself living proof that one could successfully fight God. He boasted of fighting in revolutions, tumbling women, and leading a life of sin without apparent consequences. His sins eventually found him out, however, and he put a shotgun to his head and killed himself. Fighting God cost him his life.

In biblical times, just as in our own, there were those who tried vainly to battle God. Many of them were kings or other rulers, whose immense earthly power deceived them into thinking they could successfully oppose heaven. In reality, they and their kingdoms “are like a drop from a bucket, and are regarded as a speck of dust on the scales; behold, He lifts up the islands like fine dust. All the nations are as nothing before Him, they are regarded by Him as less than nothing and meaningless” (Isa. 40:15, 17).

One of the first in the long line of rulers who fought God was the pharaoh who ruled Egypt at the time of the Exodus. Fighting God cost him and his people dearly as horrible plagues, culminating in the death of every firstborn Egyptian male, lashed their land. Still Pharaoh fought on, until his army drowned in the Red Sea. The Canaanite king of Arad’s part in the war against God resulted in the destruction of his people and their cities (Num. 21:1–3). Sihon of the Amorites (Num. 21:21–31) and Og of Bashan (Num. 21:33–35) suffered similar fates. Balak, king of Moab, was clever enough to avoid a direct frontal assault. Instead he used that prophet-for-hire Balaam in an attempt to curse Israel (Num. 22–24). Balak’s strategy backfired, however, as God intervened and had Balaam bless Israel instead. The king of Ai fought God and was hanged for his trouble (Josh. 8:29). The thirty-one Canaanite kings listed in Joshua 12:7–24 suffered similar defeats. Sennacherib, proud leader of the feared and powerful Assyrian army, saw that army decimated in battle against God (2 Kings 19:35). Soon afterward, he himself was dead, murdered by two of his own sons (Isa. 37:38).

Sadly, even many leaders of God’s own people fought Him. Every one of the kings of Israel, and many of those of Judah, opposed God. The result was the destruction of the northern kingdom by Assyria and the southern kingdom by Babylon. God does not tolerate rebellion even among the ranks of His own people.

In the New Testament era one family of rulers stands out in the battle against God: the Herods. The patriarch of the family was known in all modesty as Herod the Great. He ruled Judea from 47 B.C. to 37 B.C. Then, having been dubbed “King of the Jews” by Antony, Octavius, and the Roman Senate, he ruled all of Palestine from 37 B.C. until his death shortly after Christ’s birth (Matt. 2:15).

Herod the Great was a particularly bloodthirsty ruler. He executed one of his wives, Mariamne, her mother, and three of his sons (the last one five days before his own death). Shortly before his death, he lured prominent Jewish leaders to Jericho where he imprisoned them. Knowing the people would not mourn his death, he ordered that these leaders be executed after he died. That way, he reasoned, there would at least be mourning going on at the time of his death. Fortunately, his mad scheme was not carried out. Most barbaric of all was Herod’s slaughter of all the innocent young male children near Bethlehem (Matt. 2:16). He sought vainly by this cruel act to kill the true King of the Jews, who was safely in Egypt with His parents.

The Herod the king of this chapter was Herod Agrippa I, who reigned from A.D. 37 to A.D. 44. He was the grandson of Herod the Great, who had murdered his father, Aristobulus. The apostle Paul would one day stand trial before his son, Herod Agrippa II. Despite being raised and educated in Rome, Agrippa I was always on shaky ground with the Romans. He ran up numerous debts in Rome, then fled to Palestine, leaving angry creditors behind him. Unwise comments he made got back to the Roman emperor Tiberius, who promptly imprisoned him. Released from prison following Tiberius’s death, he was made ruler of northern Palestine (Luke 3:1), to which Judea and Samaria were eventually added in A.D. 41. He ruled the largest territory of Palestine since Herod the Great nearly fifty years earlier. Because of his tenuous relationship with Rome, it was imperative that he maintain the loyalty of his Jewish subjects.

One way to win favor with the resident Jewish authorities was to persecute the hated sect of the Christians, especially the apostles. Accordingly, about the time of the famine mentioned in chapter 11, Agrippa laid hands on some who belonged to the church in order to mistreat them. One of those was the beloved apostle James the brother of John, whom Agrippa ordered put to death with a sword. James thus became the first of the apostles to suffer martyrdom. That he was executed with a sword suggests the charges against him included leading the people astray after false gods (cf. Deut. 13:12–15). As his Lord had predicted, he drank of the same cup as did Jesus (Matt. 20:23). He was the first apostle to die (apart from Judas), and the only one whose death is recorded in the New Testament.

Agrippa’s ploy was a resounding success. When he saw that James’s arrest and execution pleased the Jews, he decided to go all out. He reasoned that the arrest and execution of Peter, the acknowledged leader of the Christians, would forever endear him to his Jewish subjects. Therefore, during the days of Unleavened Bread, the weekly feast following Passover, Agrippa proceeded to arrest Peter (for the third time, cf. 4:3; 5:18). He cunningly chose the Passover season, when Jerusalem would be thronged with devout Jewish pilgrims. That would ensure his act maximum coverage.

Having seized Peter, Agrippa put him in prison, delivering him to four squads of soldiers, intending after the Passover to bring him out before the people. Agrippa knew that during Passover itself the people would be busy. He therefore intended to wait until after the Passover to bring him out before the people. He would have his showy public trial of Peter after the busyness of the holiday ended but before the crowds left Jerusalem.

Meanwhile, Peter remained in prison, securely guarded by four squads of soldiers, likely because someone remembered that the last time he escaped (5:19). These squads, consisting of four soldiers each, rotated the watch on Peter. At any given time, two were in the cell with him, chained to him, and two more were stationed outside the cell door (v. 6). Peter was definitely in the maximum security wing of Agrippa’s prison.

Like so many before him, Agrippa was to learn the hard way the folly of fighting God. He would have been wise to heed Gamaliel’s warning to the Sanhedrin not to be “found fighting against God” (Acts 5:39). Such a foolhardy course of action is dangerous, if not fatal and eternally terrible, because God fights back. In Jeremiah 21:5, God warns His enemies that “I Myself shall war against you with an outstretched hand and a mighty arm, even in anger and wrath and great indignation.” He warned the hypocrites in the church at Pergamum, “Repent therefore; or else I am coming to you quickly, and I will make war against [you] with the sword of My mouth” (Rev. 2:16).

Three reasons for not fighting God stand out in Acts 12: God’s power cannot be contested, His punishment cannot be avoided, and His purposes cannot be frustrated.

GOD’S POWER CANNOT BE CONTESTED

So Peter was kept in the prison, but prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God. And on the very night when Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains; and guards in front of the door were watching over the prison. And behold, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared, and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter’s side and roused him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And his chains fell off his hands. And the angel said to him, “Gird yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did so. And he said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.” And he went out and continued to follow, and he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. And when they had passed the first and second guard, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened for them by itself; and they went out and went along one street; and immediately the angel departed from him. And when Peter came to himself, he said, “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.” And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying. And when he knocked at the door of the gate, a servant-girl named Rhoda came to answer. And when she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her joy she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter was standing in front of the gate. And they said to her, “You are out of your mind!” But she kept insisting that it was so. And they kept saying, “It is his angel.” But Peter continued knocking; and when they had opened the door, they saw him and were amazed. But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had led him out of the prison. And he said, “Report these things to James and the brethren.” And he departed and went to another place. Now when day came, there was no small disturbance among the soldiers as to what could have become of Peter. And when Herod had searched for him and had not found him, he examined the guards and ordered that they be led away to execution. And he went down from Judea to Caesarea and was spending time there. (12:5–19)

While Peter was kept in the prison, the church responded as they usually did when facing persecution: prayer for him was being made fervently by the church to God (cf. 4:23–31). They knew only God had the power to release Peter. The adverb ektenōs (fervently) is related to ektenēs, a medical term describing the stretching of a muscle to its limits. Ektenōs is used in Luke 22:44 to describe our Lord’s prayer in Gethsemane, when “being in agony He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground.” The church poured the maximum effort they were capable of into their prayers for Peter. They knew the truth James was later to express, that “the effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much” (James 5:16). The ektenōs word group describes three essential elements of the Christian life: love (1 Peter 4:8), service (Acts 26:7), and, in the present passage, prayer.

Herod thought he had the situation well in hand. God had other plans, however. On the very night when Herod was about to bring him forward, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains; and guards in front of the door were watching over the prison. Despite his appalling circumstances, Peter was sound asleep. Neither the presence of the guards, the hardness of the cell floor, the wretchedness of the prison, nor the imminent threat of execution could disturb his rest. In fact, so soundly was he sleeping that the angel had to prod him to wake him up.

Our sleeping pill and tranquilizer saturated society could take a lesson from Peter on how to trust God. First, he trusted in the Lord Jesus’s promise to him that he would die later, when he was old (John 21:18). Since he was not yet an old man, he had nothing to fear. Further, each time he had been in jail before, he had been released. God had a perfect track record. All this enabled Peter to advise believers to cast “all your anxiety upon Him, because He cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7). Believers who learn, like Peter, to trust God’s promises and past performance, usually sleep soundly.

In Herod’s plans to curry favor with the Jewish people there was a major, fatal flaw—he neglected to consider what God might do. God had more ministry for Peter and did not want him executed yet. Therefore an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared, and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter’s side and roused him, saying, “Get up quickly.” As already noted, Peter was sound asleep. Not even the brilliant light that shone in the cell aroused him. Finally, the angel struck Peter’s side and roused him, saying, “Get up quickly.”

As Peter finally woke up, his chains fell off his hands. Still half asleep and not knowing what to make of the situation, Peter had to be reminded that if he was leaving, he needed to get dressed. The angel commanded Peter, “Gird yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did so. The angel then said to Peter, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.”

Peter obediently went out of the cell after the angel and continued to follow him. Still groggy, however, he did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. In a series of wonderful miracles, they made their way past the first and second guard, and came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened for them by itself; and they went out and went along one street. Having seen Peter out of the cell and then out of the prison and safely away, immediately the angel departed from him. His duty was done (cf. Heb. 1:14). Herod learned the same truth as had the Sanhedrin before him (cf. Acts 5:17ff.), that no prison can hold those whom God wants out.

Only then did Peter fully realize what was happening. He finally came to himself and 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,” namely his execution. This was not a dream; he really was free.

It suddenly dawned on Peter that it was not wise for a well-known, easily recognizable escaped prisoner to remain standing there in the street. When he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was also called Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying. He went to be with the believers and to inform them of his freedom. Peter encouraged them that they were also safe because God was still in control and had answered their zealous prayers.

The house of Mary, the mother of Peter’s companion John Mark, was where many of the believers were gathered together praying for Peter’s release. She was evidently a wealthy woman, since she had servants (v. 13), and her house was large enough to accommodate all the believers present. Before going into hiding, Peter made his way to her house. That he knew to go there suggests that believers gathered there regularly.

When Peter got to Mary’s house, he knocked at the door of the gate and a servant-girl named Rhoda came to answer. She, naturally, asked who was there at that hour of the night. Peter identified himself, but instead of opening the gate for him, when she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her joy she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter was standing in front of the gate. Mustering up all the faith behind their prayers, they said to her, “You are out of your mind!” They knew perfectly well that Peter was still in jail! Undaunted, she kept insisting that it was so. Despite her insistence, they still were not ready to accept the fact that God had answered their prayers. If Rhoda had not taken leave of her senses, then perhaps what she had heard was Peter’s angel, someone suggested. In Jewish thought, each person had a guardian angel who could assume the form of that person.

Meanwhile, the real Peter was left in an awkward and dangerous position. With no other option, he continued knocking, hoping he did not attract attention to himself and get arrested again. Finally, Rhoda was able to persuade the others to come and see for themselves. When they finally opened the door (much to Peter’s relief), they saw him and were amazed. His inability to enter without their opening may show something of the fear of arrest that gripped these believers.

The noise made by the overjoyed believers threatened to do what Peter’s knocking had not: to arouse the neighbors and get Peter recaptured. Hurriedly motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had led him out of the prison. And he said, “Report these things to James and the brethren.” And he departed and went to another place. Peter quickly told the amazing story of his escape, which no doubt greatly encouraged his listeners. Peter then commanded them to report the news to James (not the martyred apostle but the Lord’s brother, Matt. 13:55). From Acts 15 we learn that he was the head of the Jerusalem church at this time. Having done that, Peter prudently departed and went to another place. He didn’t want to put all his fellow believers in jeopardy, and he knew Agrippa would soon be looking for him. Luke does not tell us where he went. The suggestion of those who want to identify him as the first pope, that he went to Rome at this early date, is not likely, especially since Acts 15 finds him back in Jerusalem after Agrippa’s death.

Regardless of where he went, Peter fades from the scene as far as the record of Acts is concerned. Apart from his brief appearance at the Jerusalem council (Acts 15), this is the last we see of Peter. From here on out, the story revolves around Paul and his ministry.

Peter’s sudden, mysterious disappearance from a securely guarded cell caused an uproar among the guard force. When the next day came, Luke informs us, there was no small disturbance among the soldiers as to what could have become of Peter. They frantically turned the prison upside down searching for him, since they knew all too well what fate awaited a soldier who lost a prisoner (cf. 16:27; 27:42).

They could not find Peter, however, and eventually were forced to report that to Herod. Their worst fears were realized, for Herod, having searched for Peter unsuccessfully, turned his fury on the hapless guards. He examined the guards and ordered that they be led away to execution. Herod was a suspicious man, and the guards could have proffered no reasonable explanation for Peter’s escape.

After court martialing and executing the offending guards, Herod in a huff went down from Judea to Caesarea and was spending time there. His plan had blown up in his face, and he needed a vacation to pull himself together. Unfortunately for him, he still failed to learn that he could not fight God. That mistake, which cost him Peter and his prestige with the Jews, was shortly to cost him his life.

GOD’S PUNISHMENT CANNOT BE AVOIDED

Now he was very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon; and with one accord they came to him, and having won over Blastus the king’s chamberlain, they were asking for peace, because their country was fed by the king’s country. And on an appointed day Herod, having put on his royal apparel, took his seat on the rostrum and began delivering an address to them. And the people kept crying out, “The voice of a god and not of a man!” And immediately an angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died. (12:20–23)

Several months had passed since Peter’s escape when, for reasons unknown to us, Herod became very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon. They were outside Herod’s jurisdiction, but since Old Testament times their country had been fed by the region ruled by Herod (cf. 1 Kings 5:11; Ezra 3:7; Ezek. 27:17).

Realizing the danger of having Herod irate with them, with one accord they came to him, and having won over Blastus the king’s chamberlain, they were asking for peace. Herod’s economic blockade was crippling them, and they needed to make peace with him quickly. They persuaded (possibly with money) Blastus the king’s chamberlain to act as an intermediary.

Herod agreed to terms, but to further demonstrate his prowess, he subjected the ambassadors from the two cities to a spectacle. On an appointed day (according to the Jewish historian Josephus the occasion was a feast in honor of Herod’s patron, the Roman Emperor Claudius), Herod, having put on his royal apparel, took his seat on the rostrum and began delivering an address to them. They met in the amphitheater built by Agrippa’s grandfather, Herod the Great. Josephus describes the scene: “[Herod] put on a garment made wholly of silver, and of a contexture truly wonderful, and came into the theatre early in the morning; at which time the silver of his garment being illuminated by the fresh reflection of the sun’s rays upon it, shone out after a surprising manner” (Antiquities XIX, vii, 2).

Overwhelmed by his splendor (or, more likely, seeking to flatter him), the people kept crying out, “The voice of a god and not of a man!” Josephus notes that Herod “did neither rebuke them, nor reject their impious flattery” (Antiquities XIX, vii, 2).

God’s response was swift. Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died. Dr. Jean Sloat Morton comments,

According to Josephus, Herod lingered on for five days, in terrible pain. Amid all his pomp and majesty, he suffered an ignominious and shameful death. So ended the reign and life of the man who had dared to touch two of God’s apostles. His crime for which he was executed (A.D. 44) was that he did not give God the glory, the very crime for which all the unregenerate who reject God will be condemned (Rom. 1:18–23).

GOD’S PURPOSES CANNOT BE FRUSTRATED

But the word of the Lord continued to grow and to be multiplied. And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had fulfilled their mission, taking along with them John, who was also called Mark. (12:24–25)

Again Luke keeps us on track with the church’s growth by reporting that despite the furious opposition of men, the word of the Lord continued to grow and to be multiplied. They could no more stop its spread than King Canute could stop the tide from coming in.

After stating the fact that God’s purposes cannot be frustrated, Luke cites as an example Barnabas and Saul, who returned from Jerusalem when they had fulfilled their mission. They had completed their mission of bringing famine relief to the Jerusalem church (11:30). That mission took place after Herod’s death. He died, but the church he persecuted lived on.

Luke notes that John, who was also called Mark, accompanied them. From Colossians 4:10 we learn that he was Barnabas’s cousin. As he accompanied them on their relief mission to Jerusalem, so he would accompany them on their first missionary journey (13:5). His defection during that journey (13:13) would eventually lead to a rift between Paul and Barnabas (15:36–40).

Verses 24–25 mark an important transition in Acts. They introduce again the apostle Paul, with whose ministry the rest of the book will be primarily concerned.