Acts 12:20-25·~1 min

The Death of Herod

Herod is angrily at odds with Tyre and Sidon, but on an appointed day he sits in royal robes and addresses the people, who acclaim him as a god and not a man. Because he does not give God glory, an angel of the Lord strikes him, and he dies under a terrible judgment.

N²⁰ow Herod was in a furious dispute with the people of Tyre and Sidon, and they convened before him. Having secured the support of Blastus, the king’s chamberlain, they asked for peace, because their region depended on the king’s country for food. ²¹On the appointed day, Herod donned his royal robes, sat on his throne, and addressed the people. ²²And they began to shout, “This is the voice of a god, not a man!” ²³Immediately, because Herod did not give glory to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.

By contrast, the word of God continues to spread and multiply. Barnabas and Saul complete their mission to Jerusalem and return, bringing John called Mark with them.

²⁴But the word of God continued to spread and multiply. ²⁵When Barnabas and Saul had fulfilled their mission to Jerusalem, they returned, bringing with them John, also called Mark.

Section summaryHerod sits in royal robes before the people of Tyre and Sidon, receives their cry that his voice is divine, and is immediately struck down because he does not give glory to God. Against that backdrop the word of God continues to spread and multiply, and Barnabas and Saul return from Jerusalem with John Mark.

Role in the chapterThis closing movement places Herod's self-exaltation under sudden judgment while the word keeps moving on. The contrast is deliberate: royal display collapses, but God's work continues and the mission line leading back toward Antioch resumes.