Acts 12:8

8 Then the angel said, "Tighten your belt and put on your sandals." Peter did so, and the angel said, "Put your cloak around you and come with me."

Acts 12:8 Meaning and Commentary

Acts 12:8

And the angel said unto him, gird thyself
He slept in his inner garment loose about him; wherefore the angel bids him gird it up with his girdle, and prepare to walk out after him:

and bind on thy sandals;
which were a sort of shoes that covered only the soles of the feet, and were fastened to the leg, with strings:

and so he did;
he did not ask any question, or the reason of these orders; he did not dispute the matter, but at once obeyed:

and he saith unto him, cast thy garment about thee;
meaning his upper garment, or cloak, which lay by him:

and follow me;
suggesting hereby, that he should take care of him, and show him his way, and bring him safe out of the prison.

Acts 12:8 In-Context

6 The night before Herod was going to bring him out to the people, Peter was sleeping between two guards. He was tied with two chains, and there were guards on duty at the prison gate.
7 Suddenly an angel of the Lord stood there, and a light shone in the cell. The angel shook Peter by the shoulder, woke him up, and said, "Hurry! Get up!" At once the chains fell off Peter's hands.
8 Then the angel said, "Tighten your belt and put on your sandals." Peter did so, and the angel said, "Put your cloak around you and come with me."
9 Peter followed him out of the prison, not knowing, however, if what the angel was doing was real; he thought he was seeing a vision.
10 They passed by the first guard station and then the second, and came at last to the iron gate that opens into the city. The gate opened for them by itself, and they went out. They walked down a street, and suddenly the angel left Peter.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.