Acts 12:4

Acts 12:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people.
• New International Version (NIV)After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And when he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people.
• New King James Version (NKJV)So when he had arrested 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.

Context of Acts 12:4

2And he killed James the brother of John with the sword. 3And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread.) And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after the Passover to bring him forth to the people. 5Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing by the church to God for him. 6And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison.

Acts 12:4 word by word

ὃν καὶ πιάσας ἔθετο εἰς φυλακὴν παραδοὺς τέσσαρσιν τετραδίοις στρατιωτῶν φυλάσσειν αὐτόν, βουλόμενος μετὰ τὸ πάσχα ἀναγαγεῖν αὐτὸν τῷ λαῷ.¶Read the interlinear

• Andὅςhos hē ho · whichG3739
• Andκαίkai · andG2532
• apprehendedπιάζωpiazō · to arrest/catchG4084
• putτίθημιtithēmi · to placeG5087
• inεἰςeis · towardG1519
• prisonφυλακήphulakē · prison/watch: prisonG5438
• deliveredπαραδίδωμιparadidōmi · to deliverG3860
• fourτέσσαρεςtessares tessara · fourG5064
• quaternionsτετράδιονtetradion · squad of fourG5069
• soldiersστρατιώτηςstratiōtēs · soldierG4757
• keepφυλάσσωphulassō · to keep/guard: guardG5442
• himαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• intendingβούλομαιboulomai · to planG1014
• afterμετάmeta · with/afterG3326
• Passoverπάσχαpascha · Passover lambG3957
• bringἀνάγωanagō · to leadG321
• peopleλαόςlaos · a peopleG2992

Cross-references for Acts 12:4

• Acts 4:3And they laid hands on them, and put them in custody to the next day: for it was now evening.
• Acts 5:18And laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison.
• Acts 8:3As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering into every house, and dragging off men and women committed them to prison.
• Matthew 24:9Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated by all nations for my name’s sake.
• Luke 21:12But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name’s sake.
• Luke 22:33And he said to him, Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison, and to death.
• John 13:36Simon Peter said to him, Lord, where goest thou? Jesus answered him, Where I go, thou canst not follow me now; but thou shalt follow me afterwards.
• John 21:18Verily, verily, I say to thee, When thou wast young, thou didst gird thyself, and didst walk where thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee where thou wouldest not.
• Acts 16:23And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely:
• Matthew 27:64Command therefore that the sepulchre be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say to the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first.
• Acts 4:28To do whatever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.
• Esther 3:6And he disdained to lay hands on Mordecai alone; for they had made known to him the people of Mordecai: therefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews that were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus, even the people of Mordecai.
• Proverbs 19:21There aremany devices in a man’s heart; nevertheless the counsel of the LORD, that shall stand.
• Proverbs 27:1Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.
• Lamentations 3:37Who is he that saith, and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commandeth it not?
• Matthew 26:5But they said, Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar among the people.

Commentaries on Acts 12:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4Four quaternions of soldiers - That is, sixteen, or four companies of four men each, who had the care of the prison, each company taking in turn one of the four watches of the night. Intending after Easter to bring him forth - , After the passover. Perhaps there never was a more unhappy, not to say absurd, translation than that in our text. But, before I come to explain the word, it is necessary to observe that our term called Easter is not exactly the…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4And when he had apprehended him - When he had taken or arrested him. He put him in prison - During the solemnities of this religious festival, it would have been deemed improper to have engaged in the trial of a supposed criminal. The minds of the people were expected to be devoted solely to the services of religion; and hence, Herod chose to retain him in custody until the Passover had ended. To four quaternions of soldiers - A “quaternion” was a company…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4Herod had Peter guarded by four squads of soldiers, making it impossible for the apostle to escape (compare 12:6). God was in control, even though the circumstances seemed impossible for humans to overcome (compare 4:27–31; Genesis 18:14; Jeremiah 32:17, 27; Matthew 19:26; Mark 10:27; Luke 1:37; 18:27).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers--that is, to four parties of four each, corresponding to the four Roman watches; two watching in prison and two at the gates, and each party being on duty for the space of one watch. intending after Easter--rather, "after the Passover"; that is, after the whole festival was over. (The word in our King James Version is an ecclesiastical term of later date, and ought not to have been employed here). to bring…Read the comment

Topics related to Acts 12:4

• Criminals
• Easter (A.v.)
• Herod
• Imprisonment
• Jerusalem
• Minister, Christian
• Persecution
• Peter
• Prison
• Prisoners
• Quaternion
• Rulers
• Soldiers

In the dictionaries

• Agrippa I.
• Constantly
• Drusilla
• Easter
• Guard
• Herod Agrippa I.
• Multiply
• Prayer
• Quaternion
• Raise

Commentaries on Acts 12

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings