Acts 12:20-25
Luke is fond of his “summary verses” (v. 24 today). We’ve already seen them in Acts 2:43-47, 4:32-35, 5:42, and we’ll see more in Acts 16:5, 19:20, 28:31.
(From yesterday: “He’ll get his.”) Today, Herod got his! An awful, excruciatingly painful five days (Josephus), then death. I know that Jesus loved him to the end, but I wonder at Jesus’ meeting with him at Herod’s personal judgment day. How does Jesus show love when one of our number has chosen to reject Him? Again, sad…
Earlier in this chapter we saw the first occurrence of the young man named “John Mark”, when Peter went to his mother’s house upon his miraculous escape from prison. We see him again today in verse 25: And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had completed their service, bringing with them John, whose other name was Mark. So here Mark begins his role as a traveling companion to Saul and his cousin, Barnabas. More on that in the next few days…
Slava Bohu!
I wondered about Tyre and Sidon. They were “free” trading cities but not really free since they were somehow tied economically to Judea (Israel, Galilee, Palestine??). They seem to be stroking Herod’s ego by praising him as a god, and his ego takes over. I wonder if they ever had early Christians coming in?