Albert Barnes Commentary Acts 12:1

"Now about that time Herod the king put forth his hands to afflict certain of the church." — Acts 12:1 (ASV)

Now about that time. That is, during the time the famine existed; or the time when Barnabas and Saul went up to Jerusalem. This was probably about the fifth or sixth year of the reign of Claudius, not far from A.D. 47.

Herod the king. This was Herod Agrippa. The Syriac version expressly states this, and the chronology requires us to understand it this way. He was a grandson of Herod the Great and one of the sons of Aristobulus, whom Herod put to death (Josephus, Antiquities, Book 18, Chapter 5). Herod the Great left three sons, between whom his kingdom was divided: Archelaus, Philip, and Antipas (see Barnes on Matthew 2:19).

Iturea and Trachonitis were left to Philip ; Galilee and Perea to Antipas; and Judea, Idumea, and Samaria to Archelaus. Archelaus, being accused of cruelty, was banished by Augustus to Vienna in Gaul, and Judea was reduced to a province and united with Syria.

When Philip died, this region was granted by the emperor Caligula to Herod Agrippa. Herod Antipas was also driven as an exile into Gaul and then into Spain, and Herod Agrippa also received his tetrarchy. In the reign of Claudius, the dominions of Herod Agrippa were still further enlarged.

When Caligula was slain, Herod Agrippa was at Rome. Having ingratiated himself with Claudius, Claudius also conferred Judea and Samaria on him, so that his dominions were equal in extent to those of his grandfather, Herod the Great (see Josephus, Antiquities, Book 19, Chapter 5, Section 1).

Stretched forth his hands. This is a figurative expression, denoting that he laid his hands on them or that he endeavored violently to oppress the church.

To vex. This means to injure, to do evil to (Greek: kakwsai).

Certain. This refers to some of the church. The writer immediately specifies who they were.