Acts 12:5–12
Peter is in prison, and the community prays for him without ceasing
Study it word by word5So Peter was being kept in the prison; but prayer was being made earnestly by the assembly to God for him.
6And when Herod was about to bring him out, on that night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and guards before the door were keeping watch over the prison.
7And look, an angel of the Lord stood by, and a light shone in the cell; and striking Peter’s side he woke him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And the chains fell off his hands.
8And the angel said to him, “Fasten your belt and tie on your sandals.” And he did so. And he says to him, “Put on your cloak and follow me.”
9And going out he was following, and he did not know that what was happening through the angel was real, but he thought he was seeing a vision.
10And passing a first guard and a second, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened for them by itself; and going out they went along one street, and at once the angel left him.
11And Peter, coming to himself, said, “Now I know truly that the Lord has sent out his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews.”
12And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was called Mark, where many were gathered together and praying.
In its context
3And when he saw that it was pleasing to the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also (and these were the days of Unleavened Bread).
4When he had seized him, he also put him in prison, handing him over to four squads of four soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people.
…
13And when he knocked at the door of the gateway, a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer.
14And recognizing Peter’s voice, for joy she did not open the gateway, but ran in and reported that Peter was standing before the gateway.
Its words in the original
- ΠέτροςPetros· Peter
Peter, "rock": the name Jesus gave to Simon.
- ἐτηρεῖτοetēreito· keep
Keep, obey; also guard, preserve.
- φυλακῇphylakēi· prison, watch
Prison; also guard, and each of the watches of the night.
- προσευχὴproseuchē· prayer
Prayer.
- ἦνēn· be
Be, exist.
- ἐκτενῶςektenōs· earnestly
Earnestly, fervently, without ceasing.
- γινομένηginomenē· become, happen
Become, happen, come about; be born.
- ἐκκλησίαςekklēsias· assembly
Assembly: the people God calls together and gathers. It is the word usually translated “church.”
- θεὸνtheon· God, god
God. In the plural or in another sense, "gods".
- ἤμελλενēmellen· be about to
Be about to, be going to do something.
- προαγαγεῖνproagagein· go ahead
To go ahead, to lead.
- ἩρῴδηςHērōidēs· Herod
Herod, the name of several rulers of one family under Rome: Herod the Great, king of Judea when Jesus was born; his son Herod Antipas, who ruled Galilee; and his grandson Herod Agrippa I.
- νυκτὶnykti· night
Night. "By night".
- κοιμώμενοςkoimōmenos· sleep, fall asleep
Sleep; also die.
- μεταξὺmetaxy· between, meanwhile
Between; "in the meantime".
- δύοdyo· two
Two.
- στρατιωτῶνstratiōtōn· soldier
Soldier.
- δεδεμένοςdedemenos· bind, tie
Bind, tie.
- ἁλύσεσινhalysesin· chain
Chain.
- φύλακέςphylakes· guard
Guard, sentry.
- θύραςthyras· door
Door, gate.
- ἄγγελοςangelos· messenger, angel
Messenger. When sent from heaven, an angel.
- κυρίουkyriou· Lord, lord
Lord, master, owner. Said of God, the Lord; in Old Testament quotations it stands for the name YHWH.
- ἐπέστηepestē· stand by, come upon
Stand by, appear suddenly beside someone; come upon, arrive; of an event, be at hand, come on.
- φῶςphōs· light
Light.
- ἔλαμψενelampsen· shine
Shine, give light.
- οἰκήματιoikēmati· cell, room
Room, dwelling; a prison cell.
- πατάξαςpataxas· strike
Strike, hit; strike down.
- πλευρὰνpleuran· side
Side, the part of the body over the ribs.
- ἤγειρενēgeiren· raise
Raise, wake up; get up; raise from the dead.
- λέγωνlegōn· say
Say, speak; in the passive, "be called".
- ἈνάσταAnasta· rise, raise
Get up, stand up; also rise from the dead.
- τάχειtachei· speed
Speed, quickness; "in speed", quickly, soon.
- ἐξέπεσανexepesan· fall, fail
Fall off, fall from; also fail, come to nothing.
- χειρῶνcheirōn· hand
Hand.
- ΖῶσαιZōsai· fasten a belt
Fasten a belt around oneself; gird up one's clothes to walk or work.
- ὑπόδησαιhypodēsai· wear sandals
Put on footwear, wear sandals.
- σανδάλιάsandalia· sandal
Sandal.
- ἐποίησενepoiēsen· do, make
Do, make, produce.
- ΠεριβαλοῦPeribalou· clothe, put around
Clothe, put a garment around; dress oneself.
- ἱμάτιόνhimation· cloak, clothes
Cloak, the outer garment; in the plural, clothes.
- ἀκολούθειakolouthei· follow
Follow, go after someone; follow him as a disciple.
- ἐξελθὼνexelthōn· go out
Go out, come out.
- ᾔδειēidei· know
Know, understand; also see.
- ἀληθέςalēthes· true, truthful
True, truthful.
- ἐδόκειedokei· think, seem
Think, suppose, seem; also be held in high regard.
- ὅραμαhorama· vision, sight
Vision, sight, what one sees.
- βλέπεινblepein· see, look
See, look; watch out.
- διελθόντεςdielthontes· pass through
Pass through, go through, travel through.
- πρώτηνprōtēn· first
First, foremost.
- δευτέρανdeuteran· second
Second.
- ἦλθανēlthan· come, go
Come, arrive; go.
- πύληνpylēn· gate
Gate: a large gate, such as that of a city.
- σιδηρᾶνsidēran· iron
Made of iron.
- φέρουσανpherousan· carry, bring
Carry, bring.
- πόλινpolin· city, town
City, town.
- αὐτομάτηautomatē· by itself
By itself, with no one making it happen.
- ἠνοίγηēnoigē· open
Open.
- προῆλθονproēlthon· go ahead
Go on ahead; go before.
- ῥύμηνrhymēn· lane, street
Lane, narrow street.
- μίανmian· one
One.
- εὐθέωςeutheōs· immediately
Immediately, at once.
- ἀπέστηapestē· withdraw, depart
Withdraw, go away, depart from; also fall away; in the active, cause to revolt.
- ἀληθῶςalēthōs· truly
Truly, really.
- ἐξαπέστειλενexapesteilen· send out
Send out, send away.
- ἐξείλατόexeilato· take out, rescue
Take out, tear out; also rescue, deliver; choose.
- προσδοκίαςprosdokias· expectation
Expectation, anxious waiting.
- λαοῦlaou· people
People. Often the people of Israel.
- ἸουδαίωνIoudaiōn· Jew, Judean
Jew, Judean: one of the people of Judah; in the New Testament it often means the leaders of the people.
- οἰκίανoikian· house
House, home.
- ΜαρίαςMarias· Mary
Mary, the name of several women in the New Testament: Mary the mother of Jesus, Mary Magdalene, Mary the sister of Martha and Lazarus, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and others.
- μητρὸςmētros· mother
Mother.
- ἸωάννουIōannou· John
John. In the Gospels, John the Immerser (the Baptist) or John son of Zebedee, one of the Twelve.
- ἐπικαλουμένουepikaloumenou· call on, name
Call, give a name or surname; in the middle, call upon, invoke, appeal to.
- ΜάρκουMarkou· Mark
Mark, the surname of John, a companion of Barnabas and Paul.
- οὗhou· where
"Where", "to where".
- ἱκανοὶhikanoi· enough, worthy
Sufficient, fit, worthy; also many, a large number.
- συνηθροισμένοιsynēthroismenoi· gather
Gather, assemble.
- προσευχόμενοιproseuchomenoi· pray
Pray: speak with God.