1 At that time King Herod caused terrible suffering for some members of the church.
2 He ordered soldiers to cut off the head of James, the brother of John.
3 When Herod saw that this pleased the Jewish people, he had Peter arrested during the Festival of Thin Bread.
4 He put Peter in jail and ordered four squads of soldiers to guard him. Herod planned to put him on trial in public after the festival.
5 While Peter was being kept in jail, the church never stopped praying to God for him.
6 The night before Peter was to be put on trial, he was asleep and bound by two chains. A soldier was guarding him on each side, and two other soldiers were guarding the entrance to the jail.