Acts 12:12

12 And [when he] realized [this], he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John (who is also called Mark), where many [people] were gathered together and were praying.

Acts 12:12 Meaning and Commentary

Acts 12:12

And when he had considered the thing
The whole of the salvation wrought for him; or rather, where he should go, to what house he should betake himself; ere he was aware,

he came to the house of Mary the mother of John, whose surname was
Mark.
This good woman seems to be a widow, no mention being made of her husband, and was sister to Barnabas, ( Colossians 4:10 ) . She is described by a son she had, whose name was John Mark, because of the frequent mention made of him hereafter; her house being large, and her heart as large as her house, the saints met here, and were welcome, and where they were at this time, though so late:

where many were gathered together, praying;
the Ethiopic version adds, "for him"; and there were some in other places, for one place could not hold them all; see ( Acts 12:17 ) they held out to the end in prayer; this was their last effort in this way, and in this they were no doubt exceeding vehement and importunate, and they succeeded; so true is that observation in ( James 5:16 ) .

Acts 12:12 In-Context

10 And [after they] had passed the first and second guard, they came to the iron gate that leads to the city, which opened for them by itself, and they went out [and] went forward [along] one narrow street, and at once the angel departed from him.

11 And [when] Peter came to himself, he said, "Now I know truly that the Lord has sent out his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and all {that the Jewish people expected}!"

12 And [when he] realized [this], he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John (who is also called Mark), where many [people] were gathered together and were praying.

13 And [when] he knocked at the door of the gateway, a female slave {named} Rhoda came up to answer.

14 And recognizing Peter's voice, because of [her] joy she did not open the gate, but ran in [and] announced [that] Peter was standing at the gate.

Footnotes

• [a] *Here "[when]" is supplied as a component of the participle ("realized") which is understood as temporal
• [b] *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation