Note 2 at Ac 12:4: A quaternion was four soldiers. Four soldiers were watching Peter on each three-hour shift, or a total of sixteen soldiers who guarded him (see note 2 at Ac 12:6) throughout the four watches of the night (see note 2 at Mt 14:25).

Note 3 at Ac 12:4: This seems like unusually heavy security for a preacher. It is possible that Herod had been told of the disciples' previous miraculous escape from prison, and he wanted to make sure that no one rescued Peter and attributed it to God as a miracle. At any rate, just as when the priests sealed Jesus' tomb (see note 2 at Mt 27:64), Herod's precautions were useless against the power of God, and they served only to verify the miracle that God performed.

Note 4 at Ac 12:4: The Greek word "PASCHA," translated "Easter" here, was translated "passover" twenty-eight times in the New Testament. This is the only time it was translated "Easter" and reflects the customs of the translators, not the first-century Christians. Easter was a pagan festival at the time of this occurrence and was not celebrated by the Christians.