HEROD OR THE APOSTLE PETER? The contention inside the Church of Jerusalem ended up to offering sacrifices of thanksgiving to God, Who opened the gates of faith to the Gentiles. The ministry in Antioch flourished by the hands of St. Barnabas and St. Paul; and Antioch became a support to Jerusalem for its material needs. Now, war came from outside, when Herod the king stretched out his hand and killed the apostle James. And thinking that he could also kill the rest of the apostles, he put Peter in prison, during the days of unleavened bread, to kill him after the feast. But the Lord saved Peter through the constant prayers offered for him by the Church; and an angel of the Lord struck the arrogant Herod dead. 1- The apostle James killed by King Herod 1– 2 2- The apostle Peter put in prison 3– 5 3- St. Peter saved from prison 6– 11 4- St. Peter in the upper room 12– 17 5- A stir among the guards of the prison 18– 19 6- The angel of the Lord striking Herod dead 20– 25 1- THE APOSTLE JAMES KILLED BY KING HEROD Heaven moved to open the gates of faith before the Gentiles, for the whole world to enjoy salvation. The apostle Peter enjoyed a heavenly vision, to get him out of the Jewish literality and to let him go to preach Cornelius, a Gentile Centurion, together with his household. Saul of Tarsus enjoyed an encounter with the Lord Christ Himself, who made of him a chosen vessel to preach among the Gentiles. The devil, displeased with all that, provoked King Herod to stretch out his hand to kill the apostle James the Bishop of Jerusalem, intending to do the same to the rest of the apostles. Since the conversion of Saul of Tarsus, we did not hear of any severe wave of persecution, by the religious leaders, against the saints in Jerusalem. Now a wave from another front appeared, from the civil authorities. “Now about that time Herod the king stretched out his hand to harass some from the Church” (Acts 12: 1). “Herod Agrippas”: the son of Aristobulus the grandson of Herod the Great from Mariammne, a Heshmonite princess1. He was born in 11AD. He was sent to Rome with his mother to learn after the execution of his father Aristobulus in the year 7 AD. There he became a friend of certain individuals in the Imperial family, especially with Gais Caligula, the nephew of Emperor Tiberius. When Gais Caligula became Emperor in the year 47 AD, he granted Herod the provinces that were under the authority of Philips and Lysianus in northern Syria (Luke 3: 1). He granted him as well the title of ‘king’, and added to him the provinces of Galilee and Peraeus. After Gais Caligula was killed, Claudius Caesar became the Emperor in the year 41 AD, and added to King Herod Agrippas the province of Judea and the lands of Batania and Trachonitis, as well as Galilee and Samaria. The Mishnah says that he managed to draw the feelings of the Jews to himself, when, in the feast of the tabernacles, in the seventh year, a Sabbath for the rest of the land (Lev 25: 1-7), he stood and read the statute of governing the kingdom (Deut 17: 14-20). 1 The Heshmonites is the family name of the Maccabees. They are named after one of their prominent figures 554 And when he came to the verse, saying, “You may no set a foreigner (a king) over you” (Deut 17: 15), he wept loudly, because he belonged to an Edomite family – that of the Herodisians. Then, remembering that he also belonged to a Jewish Heshmonite Maccabee family, the people sympathetically cried out, ‘Don’t be disturbed! You are also our brother’. His reign spread to cover all the land that was governed by his grandfather Herod the Great. Archelaus (Matt 2: 22), and Herod Antipas, who cut the head of John the Baptist (Matt 14: 1-12), were his uncles, and Herodea the dancer was his sister. Herod stretched out his hand to harass some of the saints, mostly of the common people, to test the reaction of the Jews; and seeing it to be favorable, he dared to commit the crime of killing the apostle James with the sword. "Lo, a different sort of trial-and mark what I said in the beginning, how things are blended, how rest and trouble alternate in the whole texture of the history-not now the Jews, nor the Sanhedrin, but the king. Greater the power, the warfare more severe, the more it was done to obtain favor with the Jews. O excessive wickedness!" 1. St. John Chrysostom “Then he killed James the brother of John with the sword” (Acts 12: 2). The apostle St. James was the first martyr among the apostles. His pious life drew his guard to believe in the Lord Christ and to become a martyr together with him2. (He is not James the son of Alpheus, called ‘Little James’, who also died a martyr during the reign of Nero, by the hand of Anan). The words of the Lord Christ to him and his brother John were realized, “You will indeed drink the cup that I drink, and with the baptism I am baptized with you will be baptized” (Mark 10: 39). He was one of the prominent three pillars of the Church, “Peter, James, and John”. His flaring zeal to testify to the Lord Christ, risen from the dead, to preach the gospel of salvation and his unfailing shepherding work might have provoked Herod to kill him by the sword. The Evangelist St. Luke did not mention the details of his martyrdom, as he did in the case of that of St. Stephen. The Jews used to execute those condemned to die by one of four ways: stoning, burning, by the sword, or by hanging. Killing by the sword has been practiced by both the Jews and the Romans. It is referred to by the Talmud3. "though he had numberless warnings in the case of both his grandfather and his father Herod, how the former in consequence of his putting the children to death suffered the greatest calamities, and the latter by slaying John raised up against himself a grievous war" 4. St. John Chrysostom 2- THE APOSTLE PETER PUT IN PRISON “And because he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to seize Peter also. Now it was during the days of unleavened bread” (Acts 12: 3). St. James, the brother of St. John, was killed by the sword in the year 44 AD, the same year in which Herod died. Seeing that the Jews were pleased by the killing of the 1Hom. On Acts. Hom. 26. 2 Eusebius. H.E. 2.9. 3 Sanhedr., Fol. 4Hom. On Acts. Hom. 26. 555 apostle James and intending to make his reign stronger through their support, he proceeded further to seize Peter also, during the days of the unleavened bread, as though to purify the Jewish nation from the leaven of evil and to give them the chance to celebrate the Passover with joy. But God did not allow him to execute his plan. Although God allowed for the martyrdom of the apostle James, the time was not yet ripe for that of the apostle Peter, who still had a mission before his martyrdom by the hand of Nero. Shedding the blood of St. James did not satisfy the criminal nature of Herod, but enhanced his thirst for blood, so he started to plan a series of killing of the rest of the Church’s leaderships, beginning with St. Peter. This is the feature of all sins: There is no sin that realizes a fulfillment of the soul; but with the beginning of practicing sin, even in a preliminary way, it becomes its right to draw all the energies of man, to an incessant series of practices. And with every practice, sin confirms its right to have the authority over man’s heart and mind, to direct his will according to its will. Every sin brings man down, to deliver him to another sin and continues to tumble, unless God’s grace saves him by true repentance. “So when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison and delivered him to four squads of soldiers to keep him, intending to bring him before the people after Passover” (Acts 12: 4). Because it was the days of unleavened bread, and the city was packed with those coming, not only from Judea, but from several countries as well, Herod feared that the foreign Jews who had some kind of freedom from the letter of the law would sympathize with Peter especially that he was planning to try him publicly before the people. For fear that some of the staff of the prison might help him to escape, Herod delivered Peter to four squads of soldiers to keep him. Yet, as strong as the orders for watching him were, the salvation was amazing. "For the servant of God had not got away, but stood firm without a thought of fear. The Church prayed for him, but the Apostle slept in prison, a proof that he was not in fear. An angel was sent to rouse him as he slept, by whom Peter was led forth out of prison, and escaped death for a time" 1. St. Ambrose “Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the Church” (Acts 12: 5). What could the prison and the strong watching do? Peter was justified as a brave man who joyfully received affliction for the sake of the Lord. The Church enjoyed the fervent life of prayer, and heaven moved to work. The benefit was amazing to the account of the kingdom of God. Feeling that Herod had a serious intention to kill him, the heart of the Church flared, not for fear of Peter’s death, but for the completion of his mission. Feeling that the battle was not between the king and St. Peter, as much as it was between the kingdom of Christ and that of the forces of darkness, the Church fervently prayed to God. The Greek word means (flaring zeal), or (persistence). That is the strong weapon of the Church: the collective fervent and persistent prayer, especially that, together with faith in God’s work and His ability to save; it bears the fragrance of love for God and for one another. 1 Sermon against Auxentius. 12. 556 "It was the prayer of (filial) affection: it was for a father they asked, a father mild" 1. St. John Chrysostom St. John Chrysostom says that all prayed without entering into any debates or contentions. Although no one of them saw himself as worthy to pray for such a great apostle, love does not allow for such thoughts to come to their minds. When Daniel prayed, the mouths of lions were shut (Dan. 6) before the body and bones of that righteous man. His prayers also brought the captivity of Israel to an end after seventy years (Dan 9: 23). Every one of our early fathers carried the weapon of prayer to face and overcome afflictions and tribulations2. Father Ephrahat We ought not to limit our prayers to certain hours of the day. The apostle instructs us to pray all the time (Eph 6: 18) with the Spirit and to keep persistently watchful. And he adds, "For your supplications to be known to God” , and “continuing steadfastly in prayer” (Rom 12: 12), and, “Be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord” (Eph 5: 18, 19). Everywhere in his epistles, he strongly provokes us to continue praying, as he certainly knows that prayer is the weapon provided by God to Christians and a stronghold by which they become strong by God. Prayer does what you want according to the will of God. It issues commands on earth, then goes back to heaven3. Father Martyrius It is fitting for us to refer to the obvious line in the gospel of St. Luke and in the Acts of the Apostles, which is prayer. The Evangelist St. Luke presents Jesus Christ as a Friend to all mankind, that friendship whose price our Christ paid by His blood on the cross, and for which we are committed to keep talking to Him. As examples we mention: During the Baptism of the Lord Christ: “While he prayed, the heaven was opened” (Luke 3: 21). * Before choosing the twelve disciples: “He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God” (Luke 6: 12). * In His transfiguration: “He went up on the mountain to pray, and as he prayed the appearance of His face was altered” (Luke 9: 28-29). * The Lord Christ presented three parables that dealt with prayer The midnight friend (Luke 11: 5-13), the unjust judge and the widow (Luke 18: 1-8) and the Pharisee and the tax-collector who went to the temple to pray (Luke 18: 9-13). * In His speech about the end of times, He ended it with saying, “Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21: 36). As to the Book of Acts, it is the book of the Church, persistent on prayer: * “These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication” (Acts 1: 14). * “And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers” (Acts 2: 42). 1Hom. On Acts. Hom. 26. 2 Aphrahat. Demonstration 4, on prayer, 9. 3Martyrius. Book of Perfection. 39-40. 557 * “So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, praising God” (Acts 2: 46- 47). * “Your prayers and your alms have come up for a memorial before God” (Acts 10: 4). * “Constant prayer was offered to God for him by the Church” (Acts 12: 5). * “Many were gathered together praying” (Acts 12: 12). 3- THE APOSTLE PETER SAVED FROM PRISON “And when Herod was about to bring him out, that night Peter was sleeping bound with two chains between two soldiers, and the guards before the door were keeping the prison” (Acts 12: 6). According to the Roman tradition, a prisoner was usually bound by a chain on the wrist of his right hand, with its other end bound to the wrist of a soldier’s left hand, but his other hand was left free. However, in the case of dangerous prisoners, he is bound with two chains between two soldiers, beside guards watching the door of his cell. In St. Peter’s case, this precaution was recommended by the chief priest, as he previously did when he recommended sealing Jesus’ tomb, lest His disciples come and steal his body. That was how the forces of darkness felt their weakness and how they did their best to stop and to keep in check the work of God. Yet the apostle Peter was sleeping in peace, not preoccupied with what was to happen to him. Although he was one step away from death, he bore within himself the Grantor of resurrection and the Giver of exalted peace. “Now behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the prison, and he struck Peter on the side and raised him up, saying, ‘Arise quickly! And his chains fell off his hands” (Acts 12: 7). The Church was praying fervently and did not know that God has heard her prayers; that heaven has moved; and that an angel of the Lord caused heavenly light to shine in the dark prison cell. The angel of the Lord provoked Peter to hurry up, striking him with compassion on the side to wake him up and to rise quickly to enjoy the amazing work of God. “Shall not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though he bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily” (Luke 18: 7-8). The Lord put a spell on the two soldiers to sleep deeply, not to feel the angelic light, or the falling of the two chains from Peter’s hands. The tight chains fell off his hands, as the chains of iron could not come in the way before God’s command to liberate the captive. He, who sets the dead free from their tombs and grants them life, who loosens the bitter bonds of sin, It is not difficult for him to loosen the chains off the hands of His apostle, while letting them binding those of the guards. The apostle in those moments enjoyed God’s work, to grant freedom to his soul. Neither the iron locks, nor the armed guards could limit him to a cell, but went out free led by an angel of the Lord. “Then the angel said to him, ‘Gird yourself and tie on your sandals’, and so he did. And he said to him, ‘Put on your garment and follow me’” (Acts 12: 8). The angel instructed him to gird himself, to tie on his sandals and to put on his garment, while the two guards were laying on his right and left sides with their hands bound in chains. 558 That was his first and last night in prison, and yet, in complete peace he took off his girdle, garment, and sandals, to sleep comfortably between the two guards, not preoccupied with anything in the world. The angel instructed him to follow him, to remove before him the dense walls, the iron gates and locks, and to cross over from the prison, as though he was a spirit with no body, or an angel, not a man. Indeed they become “like angels of God in heaven” (Matt 22: 30). St. Peter had magnificently experienced the deposit of Resurrection. St. John Cassian1 states in his work on the systems of cenobitic (community) life, that the Egyptian monks used to put on a girdle, as a symbol of a spiritual girdle and to be always ready for any task in the monastery, with nothing to hinder their movements. In that, they are like the apostle Peter who was instructed by the angel to girdle himself; and to the apostle Paul to whom the prophet Agabus said, "He who owns this belt will pass through tribulations in Jerusalem" (Acts 21: 11). “So he went out and followed him, and did not know that what was done by the angel was real, but thought that he was seeing a vision” (Acts 12: 9). St. Peter did not believe that what he was going through was real, but thought that he was seeing a vision. Whereas those in prison were overwhelmed by a dense darkness and saw nothing, or felt any movement in the quietness of the night. “When they were past the first and the second guard posts, they came to the iron gate that leads to the city, which opened to them of its own accord, and they went out and went down one street, and immediately the angel departed from him” (Acts 12: 10). This description of the route they took until they were out of the prison conforms to the citadel of Antonia. Were the guards awake, but unable to see the angel or St. Peter, Or a spell fell upon them and they went into a deep sleep, not feeling even the opening of the huge outer iron gate that opened to them of its own accord, by a divine power? Once St. Peter breathed the aroma of freedom and became one street far from the prison, there was no more need for an angel to accompany him any further, so the angel departed from him. God gives a visible angelic help to believers according to their needs. Then they have to strive on their own, supported by God’s care, accompanied by the angel invisibly. “And when Peter had come to himself, he said, ‘Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent His angel, and has delivered me from the hand of Herod and from all the expectations of the Jewish people’” (Acts 12: 11). St. Peter came to himself, as though he has experienced a state of divine trance, during which he enjoyed an exalted vision and an amazing heavenly work. Then the apostle praised God from his heart, glorifying his Savior who delivered him from the hand of Herod, as though he was uttering the words of Nebuchadnezzar, ”Blessed be the Lord of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, Who sent his Angel and delivered His servants who trusted Him” (Dan 3: 28); the word of Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, “Blessed be the Lord who has delivered you out of the hand of Pharaoh, and who has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians” (Exod 18: 10); and those of the priest Zechariah, “Blessed is the Lord, God of Israel, for He has visited and redeemed His people that we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all who hate us” (Luke 1: 68-71). 1De institutis caeoborum. 1.1.8. 559 What all of those enjoyed presents a living portrait of God’s interventions along the history of the Church, as well as in the life of every believer, publicly or secretly. “From all the expectations of the Jewish people”: The Jews who assembled to celebrate the Passover were expecting Herod’s present for them, the killing of St. Peter. Yet the hand of God intervened to deliver him. Some scholars believe that the deliverance of Peter from prison, his inner praise and the assembly of the Church were all connected to the Passover. And all happened in the last day of the festivities. In the Madras, concerning the night of the people’s exodus from the land of Egypt (Exod 12: 42), it came that it was a night of watching, during which God used to do marvels with His saints: Like what He did to His people in the days of Moses. During that night, the Lord saved King Hezekiah and Daniel from the den. In that night also Christ will demonstrate His power and Elijah too (in the second coming of Christ). The Passover in the minds of the Jews is always connected to God’s amazing acts of deliverance in the life of the Church along the years, and in the life of every believer, sanctified to the Lord. They also believe that it is a night of praise and joy by the people and men of God, and praises of thanksgiving to God the Redeemer. In it, Joshua praised God when he conquered the five Canaanite kings; Deborah and Barak when they conquered Sisra; Hezekiah when God delivered him from the siege by Senechrib; the three young men when they were saved from the fire; Daniel from the lions; and Esther and Mordechai when God delivered His people from the evil plot of Haman to wipe them out. It is as though the salvation works of God along the years were always connected to the sacrifice of the Passover, to the great salvation by the cross and its coronation by the resurrection. 4- ST. PETER IN THE UPPER ROOM “So, when he had considered this, he came to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together praying” (Acts 12: 12). St. Peter went to the upper room to tell them about God’s amazing work with him and the exalted care for His Church. The iron gate of the prison was opened to him of its own accord, And yet he stood before that of the Church knocking, while the Church unfortunately doubted that it was him indeed and said that it was “His angel”, (as the believers assumed that there is a guardian angel for every believer). Amid that marvelous spiritual atmosphere of prayer, Peter stood to tell them how he experienced the deposit of resurrection; how God sends His angels to release those in prison and shines with a heavenly light on them; and while forsaking the forces of darkness chained inside the prison, He opens the doors before the believers. "Not for this was the night made, that we should sleep all through it and be idle. To this bear witness the artisans, the carriers, and the merchants (to this), the Church of God rising up in the midst of the night. Rise you up also, and behold the quire of the stars, the deep silence, the profound repose: contemplate with awe the order (oikonomian) of your Master's household. Then is your soul purer: it is lighter, and subtler, and soaring disengaged: the darkness itself and the profound silence are sufficient to lead you to compunction. 560 It (sleep) is the image of death, the image of the end of all things. If you (look out of window and) lean over into the street, you will not hear even a sound: if you look into the house, you will see all lying as it were in a tomb. All this is enough to arouse the soul, and lead it to reflect on the end of all things. He (God) is more moved by prayers in the night, when you make the time for rest a time for mourning (repentance). Remember what words that king uttered, “I am weary with my groaning, all night I make my bed swim, I drench my couch with my tears” (Ps 6: 6)" 1. "Let the house be a Church, consisting of men and women. For do not think because you are the only man, or because she is the only woman there, that this is any hindrance. He says, “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, I am there in the midst of them” (Matt. 18.20). Where Christ is in the midst, there is a great multitude. Where Christ is, there must be Angels, Archangels also and the other Powers must be there. Then you are not alone, seeing you have Him Who is Lord of all. Hear again the prophet also saying, “Whoever does the will of God is better than thousands” (Sir 16: 3). Nothing weaker than a multitude of unrighteous men, nothing stronger than one man who lives according to the law of God" 2. St. John Chrysostom The words “I get up in the middle of the night” are not without significance, as in that hour the firstborn of the Egyptians were killed; the chains of Peter, Paul and Silas were loosened in prison; and “At midnight, the Bridegroom is coming” (Matt 25: 6) 3. Father Cassiodorus “And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a girl named Rhoda came to answer” (Acts 12: 13). The outer gate was most probably far from the house, as the large houses at that time were usually surrounded by a yard with walls and a corridor leading from the outer gate and the inner door. “When she recognized Peter’s voice, because of her gladness she did not open the gate, but ran in and announced that Peter stood before the gate” (Acts 12: 14). Some see in this incident a portrait of a shadow of the Passover of Christ, His passion and resurrection, as He desires that the Church would enjoy the fellowship of His passion and would experience the joy of His Passover, namely, His resurrection. The apostle in prison, was as though buried in the tomb together with the Lord Christ, was surrounded by guards and tightly closed gates, like when the Lord Christ was in His tomb surrounded by guards and a large stone was rolled against its door which was also sealed. As the angel of the Lord appeared to Peter, so also angels were there inside the tomb of the Lord. And as Peter did not perish, but got back to the people to proclaim the glory of God; so also the body of the Lord Christ did not see corruption, but arose alive to proclaim His presence among His people. And like Rhoda (meaning a rose) who came to recognize Peter’s voice and hastened to extend the good news to the Church, the Marys came to the tomb, 1Hom. On Acts. Hom. 26. 2Hom. On Acts. Hom. 26. 3 Cassiodorus. Expositions of the Psalms. 118.20. He is one of the founders of monasticism in the west, about (485-540 AD). 561 encountered with the Lord Christ risen from the dead, heard His voice and hastened to preach resurrection. And as they said to her “You are beside yourself”, even the apostles and the disciples did not believe what the Marys said about the resurrection of Christ (Matt 28: 7- 8). “But they said to her, ‘You are beside yourself’. Yet she kept insisting that it was so. So they said, ‘It is his angel’” (Acts 12: 15). The Jews believe that angels protect and help the righteous, and that two angels: one good and the other evil accompany man on his way back home from the Synagogue, on the Sabbath evening1. This teaching concerning the guardian angel appears in the early Christian writings: It is mentioned in Barnabas,2 in The Shepherd by Hermas,3 and in the works of St. Clement of Alexandria4 and Origen,5 and has some basis in the Holy Book (Gen 48: 16; Tob 3: 25; Matt 18: 10; Acts 12: 15). According to the Lord Christ Himself, the angels of those little ones behold the face of the heavenly Father. In the book of Acts, it came that the people inside said to the maid, concerning the one knocking at the door, that it is his angel. The apostle Paul advised women to have their head covered for the angels’ sake. The saying of the Psalmist, “The angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him, and delivers them” (Ps 34: 7). The saying of Jacob the son of Isaac that the angel of the Lord used to nourish him and to lead him in his youth. We should believe that angels who are ministers to the Lord and guards designated by Him are present with the man who prays, to join him in what he seeks. Actually the angel designated to each of us, even to the little ones among us, who always behold the face of the Father Creator, is praying together with us and supports us as much as possible in what we seek. "That as each believer, although the humblest in the Church, is said to be attended by an angel, who is declared by the Savior always to behold the face of God the Father" 6. We have to admit that the human soul is under the subjection of a guardian angel as a father to it7. When man accepts faith, Christ, who redeemed him by His blood from the evil one, entrusts him to a holy angel, who, according to the Savior, because of his purity, beholds the face of God the Father8. 1 The Jewish Encyclopedia, Angelology. 2 Pseudo-Barn. 18.1. 3 Vis. 5.1-4. 4 Ecl. 41.48. 5Hom. On Num. 11.4; see also 20.3. 6De Principiis. 2.20.7. 7 Comm. in Matt. 13.5. 8 Comm. in Matt. 13.28. 562 That the evil spirits would find no place in the human soul, the wisdom of God and His care saw it fitting to provide the little ones, those who are but little sucklings in Christ, and those who are defenseless against the temptation of the devil and the attacks of the evil spirits, with angels and heroic guards, designated by Him as guides and mentors (1 Cor 3: 1; Eph 6: 11; Gal 4: 2) 1. Being aware of the free will of every man, God cared to ordain for every one an angel according to his worthiness, to pray for his sake. …Concerning him who has this or that characteristic, God would say, 'Let us send a guardian angel to work with him on his salvation, starting from a designated time, and staying with him to a certain time'. And for another, of a higher status, he would say, 'I will send to him another angel of a higher rank'. and for a third one who, after dedicating himself to exalted teaching, was weakened and returned to material things, He would say, 'I will deprive him of his strong helper. By his departure of him – according to what he deserves – he would be taken over by a certain evil power that would benefit from his weakness, to draw him – if he shows readiness – to commit this or that sin2. Every one is moved by two angels: An evil one who exhorts him to do evil, and a good one who exhorts him to do good. When we have a good thought in our mind, it is no doubt the good angel who talks to us. But if we get evil thoughts in our heart, it is the evil one who talks to us3. The scholar Origen The Fathers of the fourth century believed in such dogma. According to St. Basil, an angel is dedicated to guard each believer like an army, if he does not drive him away by sin4. "For Holy Scripture bears witness that two angels, a good and a bad one, cling to each one of us. And of the good ones the Savior says, “Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven” (Matt 18: 19), and this also: “The angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him, and delivers them” (Ps 34: 7). Moreover this also which is said in the Acts of the Apostles, of Peter, that "It is his angel."" (Acts 12: 15).5. Abbot Serenus “Now Peter continued knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished” (Acts 12: 16). The iron gate of the prison opened of its own accord, when the situation was critical, but as Peter was already rescued, he was then committed to keep knocking until they opened the door for him. In case of affliction, God’s care intervenes to help at the right moment; but in the time of joy, man is allowed to stand and wait, until a friend opens the door for him. 1 Comm. on the Song of Songs. Book 2.3 (ACW). 2 on Prayer. 6.4 (ACW). 3De Principiis. 3.2.4; Boniface Ramsey. Beginning to Read the Fathers, Paulist Press, 1985, p. 12. 4Hom. On Ps. 33.6. 5 St. John Cassian. Conferences. 8.17. 563 “But motioning to them with his hand to keep silent, he declared to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, ‘Go tell these things to James and to the brethren’. And he departed and went to another place” (Acts 12: 17). When they saw him, a great chaos and noise prevailed, together with joy and rejoicing, every one asking the other, “What is going on?” That is why he motioned them with his hand to keep silent, started to declare to them how the Lord brought him out of the prison, and asked them to go and tell James (most probably the little James, who was the Bishop of Jerusalem), and to the brethren (most probably his fellow apostles). 5- A GREAT STIR AMONG THE GUARDS “Then, as soon as it was day, there was no small stir among the soldiers about what had become of Peter. But when Herod had searched for him and not found him, he examined the guards and commanded that they should be put to death. And he went down from Judea to Caesarea, and stayed there” (Acts 12: 18-19). “He examined the guards”: Herod intended to know whether the guards have been slothful, or there was treason or bribery. St. John Chrysostom believed that Herod got furious, assuming that the guards have mocked him, as the Magi did to his grandfather, when they did not return to him as they promised, after they worshiped the little Child Jesus. Assuming that the guards were slothful, he commanded to put them to death; yet, having departed from Judea to Caesarea, where the angel of the Lord struck him to death (Acts 12: 23), we do not know if that sentence of death on the guards was ever brought into effect. 6- THE ANGEL OF THE LORD STRIKING HEROD DEAD “Now Herod had been angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon, but they came to him with one accord, and having made Blastus the king’s chamberlain their friend, they asked for peace, because their country was supplied with food by the king’s country” (Acts 12: 20). Herod Agrippas I threatened to cut the food supplies from Tyre and Sidon, because the people of those two cities made the king angry for some reasons that St. Luke did not mention. They came asking for peace and forgiveness, with a help from Blastus the king’s chamberlain, who was very close to his heart. Josephus told the same story in detail that conformed to what came in this book. “So on a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat on his throne and gave an oration to them. And the people kept shouting, ‘The voice of a god and not of a man!’ Then immediately an angel of the Lord struck him, because he did not give glory to God. And he was eaten by worms and died” (Acts 12: 21-23). He shamefully died on the spot, not only for persecuting Peter, but also for accepting that vain glory, believing that he was indeed worthy of being worshipped as a god. It was as well a divine quick lesson to those, who flattered him by claiming that he was a god, with the hope that they might return to God with repentance. God allowed this to reveal the Person of Jesus Christ. If that king who did not utter a single word, but in his arrogance, the people shouted that his voice was the voice of a god and not of a man, died on the spot, …For Jesus Christ, who has many times proclaimed His equality to God the Father, who raised Him from the dead, it is impossible to be considered a Blasphemer, when He proclaims His Godhead. 564 “He was eaten by worms and died”: The Holy Book often gives this description for those who die instantly as a sign of God’s wrath, like Antiochus the fourth (2 Mac 9: 9), Herod the Great,1 Judas Iscariot (According to Pabius, quoted by Olinarius), Galerius,2 and Julian the heathen3. “But the word of God grew and multiplied” (Acts 12: 24). While Herod Agrippas was plotting against the Church, God was watching over His word. Every time there has been affliction and shedding of the blood of martyrs, the arm of God was proclaimed and his kingdom grew on earth. The gate of the temple was closed before the face of the believers, for the Gentiles to open their gates and become the holy temple of God, dwelt by the Spirit of the Lord. The Evangelist St. Luke mentioned nothing about what happened between the death of Herod and the beginning of the first preaching journey by the apostle Paul, together with Barnabas and Mark. That period was about two years. Herod died in 44 AD, while that journey started in the year 46 AD. “And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had fulfilled their ministry, and they also took with them John whose surname was Mark” (Acts 12: 25). “John whose surname was Mark”: The apostle St. Mark was the nephew of St. Barnabas (1 Cor 4: 10). It seems that the close friends Barnabas and Paul stayed, while in Jerusalem, in the house of John Mark, where the disciples used to assemble. 1 Josephus. Antiq. 7.6.5. 2 Eusebius. H.E. 8.16. 3 Theodoret. H.E. 3.9 565 AN INSPIRATION FROM THE BOOK OF ACTS 12 HOW MISERABLE IS HEROD OF EVERY AGE What an idiot, O Herod the Great! You thought that you could catch Jesus, by killing the children of Bethlehem. You destroyed yourself and lost everything. And how miserable is Herod your son, the murderer of St. John the Baptist, Who thought he would realize happiness by getting rid of him! But his life turned into a hell of terror. And what an idiot was Herod your grandson, Who, to please those who crucified Jesus, intended to rid of all His apostles! There is a Herod in every age, opposing the kingdom of light, Assuming that he could shut it in, But it is him, who gets corrupted and loses his kingdom. What has Herod done? He assumed that he killed James, whose soul rejoiced to depart. He assumed that he terrified Peter, who was justified before God and people. The prison with all its strongholds testifies to its collapse before God. Peter was delivered from the hands of the guards with all their might. Heaven moved and sent the angel of the Lord to minister to Peter. The Church in affliction turned into an assembly of fervent and strong prayer. Herod believed the vain flattering of the people of Tyre and Sidon. He thought that he was a god, so he turned into a meal for the worms. Herod died and the Church set forth to continue her mission.
Welcome