Peter’s rescue from prison is one of several miraculous escape stories in Acts. Dunn points out that this sort of story is almost a distinct genre in ancient literature (Beginning from Jerusalem, 408). There are several of these sorts of stories in Acts. Luke tells the story with intentional humor (Peter has to be roused by the angel, Rhoda plays the dizzy serving girl, etc.) But there is more going on in the story than an amusing anecdote about Peter escaping prison and execution at the hand of Herod Agrippa.
While Peter is in prison, people were gathered at Mary’s home praying. Mary is the mother of John Mark, and her home appears to be the location of a house church. Her husband is not mentioned so she may be another wealthy widow who supports a local church (like Tabitha, for example). John Mark may have some role as a leader in the church along with Peter. The evening that Peter is rescued, this community is gathered to pray.
What Luke does not tell us is what were they praying for. It is possible that this is simply a meeting of a house church for a prayer time. It is the Passover, so it is possible that these Jewish believers gathered at Mary’s house to share a Passover meal and then spend time in prayer after the meal. But given the context it is reasonable to assume that they were praying for Peter.
However, if they were praying for his release, then their response to Peter’s escape from prison is unusual. When Peter knocks at the door the servant Rhoda is so overjoyed that Peter is at the door she forgets to let him in to the house! When she reports that Peter is at the door the people gathered to pray think that she is “out of her mind” (μαίνομαι, literally, “you’re crazy”). They even suggest that she has seen “Peter’s angel.” Neither response sounds like they expected God to answer a prayer to rescue Peter.
No. Not Her.
John Polhill thinks that this might be a reference to the Jewish belief in guardian angels, or perhaps spirits of the recent dead who lurk for a time after death. Polhill cites Tobit 5:4-16, although this is not exactly the same sort of situation (Acts, 282) . Even when Peter finally gets into the house, the whole group is amazed by this escape. If they were praying for escape, they seem rather surprised by it.
It is more likely that the gathered church was praying that Peter would actually die for his faith and not deny Christ. It must have been well known by this point that Peter and the twelve all once denied Christ. Peter’s denial was most spectacular, denying his association with Jesus three times soon after he declared his loyalty to Jesus. With the apostle James dead, perhaps this group is worried that Peter will not be able to withstand the pressure and he will deny that Jesus was in fact raised from the dead. A denial of this sort would be a disaster for the Jewish Church in Jerusalem.
This story underscores the importance of fa faithful witness in Acts. The gathered believers want Peter to be that faithful witness, willing to continue to declare his faith even if he pays with his life. Peter is a changed man after the resurrection and he has already stood up to the Sanhedrin on several occasions.
This story demonstrates that faithful witness may be required not simply to live for Christ, but also to die for him.
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February 20, 2013 at 10:13 am
Mike
I have never heard anyone pray that a person imprisoned for Christ would die and not be released. In fact it sounds so strange and even wrong. But is that because we are just too comfortable?
February 20, 2013 at 12:05 pm
Phillip J. Long
I think that the average pastor uses this passage as a model for prayer (not Luke’s point at all). You have to pray and believe that God will answer your prayer, and Mary’s household becomes a bad example! I really do think that the early apostolic community expected to die for their faith, mostly because Jesus told them that they would suffer just like he did.
February 20, 2013 at 2:03 pm
irishanglican ~ Fr. Robert
Indeed the Apostolic Church! WE are so far from this community, “in spirit”! The FIRE of the Gospel, i.e. the Kerygma message, must renew us in the historical church! As Paul wrote to Timothy, “For which cause I remind you to rekindle the gift of God which is in you… for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but of power and of love and of self-discipline!” (2 Tim. 1: 6-7) But only the Gospel and Good-News of Christ can light this fire!
February 20, 2013 at 5:58 pm
Mike
Faithful to the point of death makes a lot of sense. In parts of the world where persecution is worse what a great prayer to pray. What a great testimony that people stay faithful to Christ even when they are not rescued from the trouble. Thanks for this fresh take on this passage.
February 20, 2013 at 2:00 pm
annalange
It is amazing that the people in Mary’s house church were praying for Peter to be faithful to the cause of Christ. They had no idea what was going to happen to Peter or to them in the future. They were praying for Peter, but probably for themselves also that they might remain faithful to the name of Christ. They were not expecting God to do a miracle with Peter. They assumed that they would never see Peter again. Then, when God performed a miracle by rescuing Peter from prison, they were astonished. They did not believe Rhoda when she told them that Peter was at the door (Acts 12:15). They thought that it was his angel (Acts 12:15). It is very interesting that they thought that they person at the door was Peter’s angel. That seemed like no big deal that Peter’s angel was at the door. If I would have been there, I would have been a little startled to think that it was Peter’s angel, and much more thankful to see that it was really Peter. Once they heard more knocking they opened the door, and Peter came in and told them how he was released from prison. This experience strengthened the faith of this house church. It was only by the power and work of God. God was not done with Peter yet.
February 20, 2013 at 3:11 pm
lvinton
It is a unique story of Peter and the church’s reaction to his escape from prison (Acts 12:12-17). I always assumed that the people gathered at Mary’s home were praying for Peter, but that may have not been the case. It is definitely interesting that people were all amazed at Peter’s escape. I think it is important to remember that we must read the Bible within the cultural context, and I enjoyed reading about the Jewish belief in guardian angels. I did not think that people would know about Peter previously denying Christ three times. It brings about a whole other perspective of being open and honest with people whom you share the same belief with and letting others know your flaws so that they may pray for you. I think today in churches we our ashamed of our flaws and want people to think we have it all together, but I think we must learn from example. Peter, clearly respected and a witness of Jesus, had denied him in the past and it is probable that the church was praying for him in his time of need.
February 20, 2013 at 4:37 pm
heatherjoyy
I also find it rather disturbing that they were praying for Peter to die in prison. Maybe there is some hint of a good intention in that the believers at Mary’s house prayed for encouragement where Peter had previously faltered before. I speculate that maybe the believers were surprised by Peter’s release from prison because they had “hoped” for his release. (12:16) Therefore, they prayed specifically for encouragement rather than his release.The emphasis here is in the term “hope.” Many people in the Church today pray in the hope that their prayer will answered. Many times when God fulfills a request, people react in much the same way that the believers responded when they heard that Peter had been released. What we really need to do is pray with the expectation that God will fulfill our requests in His own timing. The fact that Peter comes back to this house of believers and tells them of how the Lord released him is astounding, and his witness continues to all of the surrounding areas. (12:17)
February 20, 2013 at 5:05 pm
nfisher2013
This is an interesting situation here. I’m not sure what stance to take on this topic. The idea that the group was praying for Peter to remain steadfast in the faith is an understandable conclusion. P. Long brings in a good point in referencing the astonishment of the group upon Peter’s return. This does seem to point to the fact that they weren’t expecting his release. However, I do believe that there is a third point of view that has not been proposed
It is possible that the group did in fact pray for Peter’s release, and they did in fact expect God to do it. The other point of view is that they may not have expected it so soon. This would explain the astonishment of the group at Peter’s return. When we pray, do we expect it? Sure, sometimes. Do we expect it soon? Not really. We expect God to make us wait for a prolonged period of time. This is what causes most of us to refrain from trusting god with our greatest desires. We don’t think that He will answer quickly. It is possible that this group who prayed for Peter didn’t think that it would happen soon.
February 20, 2013 at 7:54 pm
arenberg93
Romans 12:1 says that we need to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice to Jesus Christ. This verse is a huge challenge as it calls us to give up everything that we hold on for ourselves, and to live as Christ wants us to live. But sometimes this is not enough. Sometimes God calls us to give up even our own lives in service of Him. I believe that this culture has put such an emphasis on never having to sacrifice anything, that giving our lives for something is a difficult concept. But in the culture of the day, martyrdom was not all to uncommon. We see Christians being persecuted mercilessly at this point which leads to many of their deaths. So i could see how it wouldn’t be all that uncommon for Christians in this time to pray that Peter remains faithful, even unto death. This brings up a lot of questions for me about the faith of Christians today, specifically in the US. Are we truly living as sacrifices when we only tithe and show up for Sunday services? Or is our faith running deep enough that we would be willing to die for it? We can really learn from the faith of Peter and the believers in this passage knowing that in the face of death, we can welcome it and give praise that we are going to be going home to be with the Lord.
February 20, 2013 at 9:53 pm
taczhompson
I have heard this passage many times used to speak about prayer, and even about trusting in God’s response to prayer. I had never though that it could possibly have been just regular meeting of prayer, and it was a sort of “happy coincidence” that Peter showed up at this time. I think that it is right, however, to emphasize the idea of a “faithful witness”, especially in death for the faith. I don’t know the importance of what they were praying for, when Peter arrive, but I’m willing to assume that it had something to do with Peter’s imprisonment, and possible death. It is astonishing to think that they could have been, almost, hoping for his death. But, the cause of my astonishment may stem from the difference in culture between then and now. In our current state of life, dying for our faith seems honorable, to a point, but it is for people who belong to the “persecuted church”. However, at this time, the whole church was the “persecuted church”, and as such, death would be considered “great joy”, as Paul calls it in his later letters. It is a hard for me to grasp this concept of “joy in suffering”, but I think it can really be applied. I would challenge believers with finding joy in any opportunity to be a witness for the Gospel, even if that opportunity comes through your own death.
February 20, 2013 at 9:58 pm
April Lorenz
This passage also surprises me, and the idea that the believers were gathered to pray that Peter dies faithfully. I guess I would have been praying that he be released from prison(12:16) or that God would put his angels over him to protect him. Christians today are too comfortable with church and serving God. We don’t give our everything and our comfortableness to help others out. When I think about suffering for Christ, I think about people serving in other countries who are actually suffering with their lives on the line. There definitely is a movement starting and we who are called aren’t just sitting around waiting for something to happen. I can’t even imagine what it would be like to give up my life for the sake of Christ, but I have wondered what it would be like to suffer like that. Passages like this are good to study so that we can know what others have gone through and also to encourage us that pray and petition works and the Lord watches over his faithful.
February 20, 2013 at 9:59 pm
Hilary Rolff
I always heard the typically reason for the believers’ “astonishment” was due to a lack of praying with expectancy and faithfulness. After reading this post about praying for Paul’s faithfulness and resist denying Christ, their responses seems much more appropriate. For, if they were praying for his escape, how faithful was their praying if they thought someone was crazy for mentioning Peter was at the door? Somehow I do not think these early Christians, who have already possibly suffered for the name of Jesus and have witnessed firsthand God’s miracles, would pray with such little expectancy. But they are only human.
Although, we do see evidence they were praying for Peter, “earnest prayer for him was made to God by the Church” (Acts 12:8). If they did not pray for his release, then why did they not pray for it? In the story, the need for God’s divine intervention is without question. This is emphasized in the detailed telling of Peter’s imprisonment. He had TWO soldiers on either side, tied down with TWO chains and even multiple keepers before the door. I do not know much about Roman prisons but this circumstance seems to be under higher surveillance than with Paul and Silas later in Acts 16:24. Perhaps, like stated in the post, believers may be required to “die for him,” but why not pray also for the end of suffering? “On him (God) we have set our hope that he will deliver us again” (2 Corinthians 1:11). It would not be just wishful thinking; it would be hope and faithfulness because they have seen the power of God in the past.
February 20, 2013 at 10:41 pm
Chris A
It is reasonable to take this in the direction that you have P. Long, and I would agree that the people who not praying for Peter’s release. In fact, it seems more noble that they would pray that Peter be able to withstand the temptation to deny Christ for the fourth time. This would also explain why they are surprised when he comes knocking on their door. They are praying or him to die honorable and God one ups them by completely releasing him!
The idea of people dying for their faith is nothing new at this point either. Stephan has been killed and as you mention James has been killed as well. Peter probably either expected to die, or expected to be released as well. I would imagine that everyone was preparing for the worst, hoping for the best, and ecstatic when he was released!
February 21, 2013 at 12:33 am
Denise VanBeek
A very real theme in my life has recently been to ask God. God wants to take away our trash, our burdens and He already has! This post reminds me that we need to pray expecting God to answer because He will. It might not be in our timing or with the response that we want but God does answer prayers. I love the verses in James 1:2-3 “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sister, whenever you face trials of man kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.”
I believe that the men and women praying in Mary’s home were praying for Peter to be able to see the joy in these trials to make him a better man.Though I don’t know if I would go as far to say that they prayed for him to die in jail.
James 1:6 says “But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind”
The people praying for Peter were probably praying for him to find joy a midst the situation which is why I am not surprised by their reaction to him when he showed up at the door. They didn’t doubt that God would answer their prayer but as many of us react in our lives today, they did not expect God to answer in this way.
February 21, 2013 at 12:53 am
leviwood138
I had honestly never thought that the believers in Mary’s home were not praying for the release of Peter. It just seemed almost as an automatic that they would be praying for him to get out of jail safely. Your bringing up how surprised they were makes a lot of sense, to the fact that the believers in that day had seen miracles with their own eyes. So why would they be surprised at Peter being rescued if that was what they were praying for. If they were in fact praying for Peter to be strong in persecution. I would hope that my peers would do the same for me if I was ever seized in that fashion. If my life were to ever take a turn that I would be in a place that I could be persecuted. I hope my friends would pray that I stand strong for my faith and die willingly like a strong Christian. I actually believe that would be a worthy reason to die, and that I would be rewarded for standing strong in my faith even if it comes to my end.