Acts 12:18-25. When morning comes and it is found that Peter is gone from prison, Herod is furious and questions each of the guards, then has them all put to death. Then he goes from Judea to Cesarea, where he is approached by the people of Tyre and Sidon in a bid for peace. Herod has been angry with these people, and they rely on him for food, so they are seeking peace. Herod then appoints a day in which he dresses in his royal robes, makes an oration to the people, and sits upon the throne. The people then shout "The voice of a god and not of man!" At this, an angel of the Lord smites Herod, "because he did not give God the glory;" and he is eaten by worms and dies. "But the word of God grew and multiplied." Barnabas and Saul return from Jerusalem and bring with them John, whose other name was Mark.

What an ignoble end for Herod Agrippa! Because it is so close in timing, it may seem like Herod's death is retribution for imprisoning Peter, but the Bible does not make that connection. It seems, rather, that the angel smote Herod (maybe giving him the infection from which he would ultimately die?) for accepting the praise of his people as a god. Rulers and kings called themselves gods all the time - Caesar himself was supposed to be a god. God didn't go around smiting all of them, but he smote Herod because Herod is the king of the Jews - Herod knows there is only one God, and he knows he is not Him. He has let power and human pride go to his head so that, while the people of Tyre and Sidon suffer due to his petulance and anger, he demands honor and worship from his people, even allowing them to proclaim him a god.

In the mean time, while Herod is being eaten by worms, the word of God is spreading and Paul and Barnabas are about to spread it even further. There is no stopping God, nor appropriating his power. He accomplishes all he intends and woe to the man, like Herod, who confuses God's power with his own.