Discovery BoxActs 12:12-17 
Context12:12 When Peter 1 realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John Mark, 2 where many people had gathered together and were praying. 12:13 When he knocked at the door of the outer gate, a slave girl named Rhoda answered. 3 12:14 When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed she did not open the gate, but ran back in and told 4 them 5 that Peter was standing at the gate. 12:15 But they said to her, “You’ve lost your mind!” 6 But she kept insisting that it was Peter, 7 and they kept saying, 8 “It is his angel!” 9 12:16 Now Peter continued knocking, and when they opened the door 10 and saw him, they were greatly astonished. 11 12:17 He motioned to them 12 with his hand to be quiet and then related 13 how the Lord had brought 14 him out of the prison. He said, “Tell James and the brothers these things,” and then he left and went to another place. 15
1 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Peter) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
2 tn Grk “John who was also called Mark.”
sn John Mark becomes a key figure in Acts 12:25; 13:5, 13; 15:37-39.
3 tn Or “responded.”
4 tn Or “informed.”
5 tn The word “them” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects in Greek were often omitted when clear from the context, but must be supplied for the modern English reader.
6 sn “You’ve lost your mind!” Such a response to the miraculous is not unusual in Luke-Acts. See Luke 24:11; Acts 26:25. The term μαίνομαι (mainomai) can have the idea of being “raving mad” or “totally irrational” (BDAG 610 s.v.). It is a strong expression.
7 tn Grk “she kept insisting that the situation was thus” (cf. BDAG 422 s.v. ἔχω 10.a). Most translations supply a less awkward English phrase like “it was so”; the force of her insistence, however, is that “it was Peter,” which was the point under dispute.
8 tn The two imperfect tense verbs, διϊσχυρίζετο (diiscurizeto) and ἔλεγον (elegon), are both taken iteratively. The picture is thus virtually a shouting match between Rhoda and the rest of the believers.
9 sn The assumption made by those inside, “It is his angel,” seems to allude to the idea of an attending angel (cf. Gen 48:16 LXX; Matt 18:10; Test. Jacob 1:10).
10 tn The words “the door” are not in the Greek text, but are implied (see Acts 12:13).
11 sn That they were greatly astonished is a common response in Luke-Acts to God’s work (Luke 8:56; Acts 2:7, 12; 8:13; 9:21; 10:45).
12 tn Or “He gave them a signal.” Grk “Giving them a signal…he related to them.” The participle κατασείσας (kataseisa") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
13 tc ‡ Most
14 tn Or “led.”
15 sn He…went to another place. This is Peter’s last appearance in Acts with the exception of the Jerusalem council in Acts 15.
