James Killed, Peter Imprisoned 1 UDB It was about this time that King Herod Agrippa sent soldiers to arrest some of the leaders of the group of believers in Jerusalem. The soldiers put them in prison. He did that because he wanted to make the believers suffer. BSB BSB: About that time, King Herod reached out to harm some who belonged to the church.
2 UDB He commanded a soldier to cut off the head of the apostle James, the older brother of the apostle John. So the soldier did that. BSB BSB: He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword.
3 UDB When Herod realized that he had pleased the leaders of the Jewish people, he commanded soldiers to arrest Peter also. This happened during the festival when the Jewish people ate bread without yeast. BSB BSB: And seeing that this pleased the Jews, Herod proceeded to seize Peter during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
4 UDB After they arrested Peter, they put him in prison. They commanded four groups of soldiers to guard Peter. Each group had four soldiers. Herod wanted to bring Peter out of prison and judge him in front of the Jewish people after the Passover Festival was finished. He then planned to execute Peter. BSB BSB: He arrested him and put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out to the people after the Passover.
The Rescue of Peter 5 UDB So for several days Peter stayed in prison. But the other believers in their group in Jerusalem were praying earnestly to God that he would help Peter. BSB BSB: So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was fervently praying to God for him.
6 UDB The night before Herod planned to bring Peter out from prison to have him publicly executed, Peter was sleeping in the prison between two soldiers, with two chains binding him. Two other soldiers were guarding the prison doors. BSB BSB: On the night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, with sentries standing guard at the entrance to the prison.
7 UDB Suddenly an angel from the Lord stood beside Peter, and a bright light shone in his cell. The angel poked Peter in the side and woke him up and said, "Get up quickly!" While Peter was getting up, the chains fell off his wrists. However, the soldiers were not aware of what was happening. BSB BSB: Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He tapped Peter on the side and woke him up, saying, “Get up quickly.” And the chains fell off his wrists.
8 UDB Then the angel said to him, "Fasten your belt around you and put on your sandals!" So Peter did that. Then the angel told him, "Wrap your cloak around you and follow me!" BSB BSB: “Get dressed and put on your sandals,” said the angel. Peter did so, and the angel told him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.”
9 UDB So Peter put on his cloak and sandals and followed the angel out of the prison cell, but he had no idea that all this was really happening. He thought that he was dreaming. BSB BSB: So Peter followed him out, but he was unaware that what the angel was doing was real. He thought he was only seeing a vision.
10 UDB Peter and the angel walked by the soldiers who were guarding the two doors, but the soldiers did not see them. Then they came to the iron gate that led into the city. The gate opened by itself, and Peter and the angel walked out of the prison. After they had walked some distance along one street, the angel suddenly disappeared. BSB BSB: They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city, which opened for them by itself. When they had gone outside and walked the length of one block, the angel suddenly left him.
11 UDB Then Peter finally realized that what had happened to him was not a vision, but that it had really happened. So he thought, "Now I really know that the Lord sent an angel to help me. He rescued me from what Herod planned to do to me and also from all the things that the Jewish leaders expected would happen." BSB BSB: Then Peter came to himself and said, “Now I know for sure that the Lord has sent His angel and rescued me from Herod’s grasp and from everything the Jewish people were anticipating.”
12 UDB When Peter realized that God had rescued him, he went to Mary's house. She was the mother of John (her son was also called Mark). Many believers had assembled there, and they were praying that God would help Peter somehow. BSB BSB: And when he had realized this, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered together and were praying.
13 UDB When Peter knocked at the outer entrance, a servant girl named Rhoda came to find out who was outside the door. BSB BSB: He knocked at the outer gate, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer it.
14 UDB When Peter answered her, she recognized his voice, but she was so happy and excited that she did not open the door! Instead, she ran back into the house. She announced to the other believers that Peter was standing outside the door. BSB BSB: When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed that she forgot to open the gate, but ran inside and announced, “Peter is standing at the gate!”
15 UDB But one of them said to her, "You are crazy!" But she continued saying that it was really true. They kept saying, "No, it cannot be Peter. It is probably his angel." BSB BSB: “You are out of your mind,” they told her. But when she kept insisting it was so, they said, “It must be his angel.”
16 UDB But Peter continued knocking on the door. So when someone finally opened the door, they saw that it was Peter, and they were completely amazed! BSB BSB: But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astounded.
17 UDB Peter motioned with his hand for them to be quiet. Then he told them exactly how the Lord had led him out of the prison. He also said, "Tell James and our other fellow believers what has happened." Then Peter left and went to another place. BSB BSB: Peter motioned with his hand for silence, and he described how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. “Send word to James and to the brothers,” he said, and he left for another place.
18 UDB The next morning the soldiers who had been guarding Peter became terribly upset because they did not know what had happened to him. BSB BSB: At daybreak there was no small commotion among the soldiers as to what had become of Peter.
19 UDB Then Herod heard about it. So he commanded soldiers to search for Peter, but they did not find him. Then he questioned the soldiers who had been guarding Peter and commanded them to be led away to be executed. Afterwards, Herod went from the province of Judea down to the city of Caesarea, where he stayed for some time. BSB BSB: After Herod had searched for him unsuccessfully, he examined the guards and ordered that they be executed. Then he went down from Judea to Caesarea and spent some time there.
The Death of Herod 20 UDB King Herod had been furiously angry with the people who lived in the cities of Tyre and Sidon. Then one day some men who represented them came together to the city of Caesarea in order to meet with Herod. They persuaded Blastus, who was one of Herod's important officials, to tell Herod that the people in their cities wanted to make peace with him. They wanted to be able to trade with the people that Herod ruled because they needed to buy food from those regions. BSB BSB: Now Herod was in a furious dispute with the people of Tyre and Sidon, and they convened before him. Having secured the support of Blastus, the king’s chamberlain, they asked for peace, because their region depended on the king’s country for food.
21 UDB On the day that Herod had planned to meet with them, he put on very expensive clothes that showed that he was king. Then he sat on his throne and formally addressed all the people who had gathered there. BSB BSB: On the appointed day, Herod donned his royal robes, sat on his throne, and addressed the people.
22 UDB Those who were listening to him shouted repeatedly, "The one who is speaking is a god and not a man!" BSB BSB: And they began to shout, “This is the voice of a god, not a man!”
23 UDB So, because Herod let the people praise him instead of praising God, immediately an angel from the Lord caused Herod to become seriously ill. Many worms ate his intestines, and soon he died very painfully. BSB BSB: Immediately, because Herod did not give glory to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.
24 UDB The believers continued telling God's message to people in many places, and the number of people who believed in Jesus was continually increasing. BSB BSB: But the word of God continued to spread and multiply.
25 UDB When Barnabas and Saul finished delivering the money to help the believers in the province of Judea, they left Jerusalem and returned to the city of Antioch, which was in the province of Syria. They took with them John, whose other name was Mark. BSB BSB: When Barnabas and Saul had fulfilled their mission to Jerusalem, they returned, bringing with them John, also called Mark.
Select verses for actions: Enter goes to them and Escape comes back.