Theme: Jesus Christ is ruling from God’s right hand; trust him to build his church and depend on him in prayer

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Herod Agrippa
Herod Agrippa I ruled over Judea from 41-44 AD as a puppet king of the Roman Emperor. He was the grandson of Herod the Great, the king who sought to kill Jesus when he was a baby (Matthew 2:7-19). Carrying a dual Jewish and Roman identity, he played the role of intercessor on behalf of the Jews with the Roman authorities and, on the domestic level, gave hope to some of his Jewish subjects for the restoration of an independent kingdom.

James the apostle
James was one of the Twelve Apostles (Luke 6:14; Acts 1:13). Otherwise known as the Son of Zebedee, he was the brother of John and belonged to the inner circle of disciples. He is the first apostle to be martyred (Acts 12:2). Since he died by the sword, it is commonly assumed that he was beheaded (cf. Luke 9:7-9) following charges of rebellion. This suggests that the Christian population was very small so that the death of James would not result in any significant loss of political support for Herod.

James the brother of Jesus
In Acts 12:17, the apostle Peter instructs those who were praying to give news of his escape to ‘James and the brothers.’ The James he has in view is most likely the brother of Jesus (cf. Mark 6:3). He surfaces in Acts 15:13-21 and 21:18 as a leading figure in the Jerusalem church (cf. Galatians 1:19, 2:9, 12). He was a witness to Jesus’ resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:7).

Peter’s angel
The Jews commonly believed that every person has a guardian angel (cf. Psalm 91:11; Matthew 18:10; Hebrews 1:14). These angels were thought to bear the image of the person which they were protecting, making a visible appearance after their death. Thinking that Peter has been killed, Rhoda assumes that the voice she heard was that of his ‘guardian angel.’

Peter’s escape and future
Whilst in prison, Peter had four soldiers watching over him. Two by his side and two at the door. These soldiers would keep watch in three hour shifts. The extensive number of guards is due to the fact that Peter was known to have previously escaped from prison (cf. Acts 5:17-26). We do not know where Peter went after he spoke with the church, but he did go on to do intensive and extensive missionary work in different regions (Galatians 2:11-15; 1 Corinthians 9:5).