Acts 12:6-11

12:6 On that very night before Herod was going to bring him out for trial,¹ Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, while² guards in front of the door were keeping watch³ over the prison. 12:7 Suddenly⁴ an angel of the Lord⁵ appeared, and a light shone in the prison cell. He struck⁶ Peter on the side and woke him up, saying, “Get up quickly!” And the chains fell off Peter’s⁷ wrists.⁸ 12:8 The angel said to him, “Fasten your belt⁹ and put on your sandals.” Peter¹⁰ did so. Then the angel¹¹ said to him, “Put on your cloak¹² and follow me.” 12:9 Peter¹³ went out¹⁴ and followed him;¹⁵ he did not realize that what was happening through the angel was real,¹⁶ but thought he was seeing a vision. 12:10 After they had passed the first and second guards,¹⁷ they came to the iron¹⁸ gate leading into the city. It¹⁹ opened for them by itself,²⁰ and they went outside and walked down one narrow street,²¹ when at once the angel left him. 12:11 When²² Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued²³ me from the hand²⁴ of Herod²⁵ and from everything the Jewish people²⁶ were expecting to happen.”

¹tn Grk “was going to bring him out,” but the upcoming trial is implied. See Acts 12:4.

²tn 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.

³tn Or “were guarding.”

⁴tn 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.

⁵tn Or “the angel of the Lord.” See the note on the word “Lord” in 5:19.

⁶tn 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.

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

⁸tn Grk “the hands,” but the wrist was considered a part of the hand.

⁹tn 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.

¹⁰tn Grk “He”; the referent (Peter) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹¹tn Grk “he”; the referent (the angel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹²tn Or “outer garment.”

¹³tn Grk “And going out he followed.”

¹⁴tn Grk “Peter going out followed him.” The participle ἐξελθών (exelqwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

¹⁵tn 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.

¹⁶tn Grk “what was done through the angel was a reality” (see BDAG 43 s.v. ἀληθής 3).

¹⁷tn Or perhaps, “guard posts.”

¹⁸sn The iron gate shows how important security was here. This door was more secure than one made of wood (which would be usual).

¹⁹tn 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.

²⁰tn The Greek term here, αὐτομάτη (automath), indicates something that happens without visible cause (BDAG 152 s.v. αὐτόματος).

²¹tn Or “lane,” “alley” (BDAG 907 s.v. ῥύμη).

²²tn 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.

²³tn Or “delivered.”

²⁴sn Here the hand of Herod is a metaphor for Herod’s power or control.

²⁵sn King Herod was Herod Agrippa I, the grandson of Herod I (Herod the Great).

²⁶sn Luke characterizes the opposition here as the Jewish people, including their leadership (see 12:3).