Acts 5:17–29

In and Out of Prison

¹⁷Then the high priest took action. He and all his colleagues, those who belonged to the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. ^f18So they arrested ^gthe apostles and put them in the city jail. ^h19But an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail during the night, brought them out, and said, ⁱ²⁰“Go and stand in the temple complex, and tell the people all about this life.” ^j21In obedience to this, they entered the temple complex at daybreak and began to teach.

The Apostles on Trial Again

When the high priest and those who were with him arrived, they convened the Sanhedrin—the full Senate of the sons of Israel—and sent orders to the jail to have them brought. ^k22But when the temple police got there, they did not find them in the jail, so they returned and reported, ²³“We found the jail securely locked, with the guards standing in front of the doors, but when we opened them, we found no one inside!” ²⁴As ^lthe commander of the temple police and the chief priests heard these things, they were baffled about them, as to what could come of this.

²⁵Someone came and reported to them, “Look! The men you put in jail are standing in the temple complex and teaching the people.” ²⁶Then the commander went with the temple police and brought them in without force, because they were afraid the people might stone them. ^m27After they brought them in, they had them stand before the Sanhedrin, and the high priest asked, ²⁸“Didn’t we strictly order you not to teach in this name? ⁿAnd look, you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to bring this man’s blood on us!” ^o

²⁹But Peter and the apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than men.