Discovery BoxActs 12:15 
Context12:15 But they said to her, “You’ve lost your mind!” 1 But she kept insisting that it was Peter, 2 and they kept saying, 3 “It is his angel!” 4
Acts 26:24
Context26:24 As Paul 5 was saying these things in his defense, Festus 6 exclaimed loudly, “You have lost your mind, 7 Paul! Your great learning is driving you insane!”
Acts 27:22
Context27:22 And now I advise 8 you to keep up your courage, for there will be no loss of life among you, but only the ship will be lost. 9
1 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.
2 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.
3 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.
4 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).
5 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 sn See the note on Porcius Festus in 24:27.
7 tn On the term translated “lost your mind” see BDAG 610 s.v. μαίνομαι, which has “you’re out of your mind, you’re raving, said to one whose enthusiasm seems to have outrun better judgment 26:24.”
sn The expression “You have lost your mind” would be said to someone who speaks incredible things, in the opinion of the hearer. Paul’s mention of the resurrection (v. 23) was probably what prompted Festus to say this.
8 tn The same verb is used for Paul’s original recommendation in Ac 27:9.
9 tn Grk “except the ship.” Here “but” is used to translate the improper preposition πλήν (plhn; see BDAG 826 s.v. πλήν 2) since an exception like this, where two different categories of objects are involved (people and a ship), is more naturally expressed in contemporary English with an adversative (“but”). The words “will be lost” are also supplied for clarity.
sn The “prophecy” about the ship serves to underscore Paul’s credibility as an agent of God. Paul addressed his audience carefully and drew attention to the sovereign knowledge of God.
