What does Acts 5:27 mean?

The previous day, religious officials had arrested the apostles for breaking the priests' direct order not to teach or speak in Jesus' name (Acts 4:18; 5:28). When the officers go this morning to bring the men before the council, the cells are empty. An angel had come in the night, rescued the apostles, and told them to return to the temple courtyard and continue with their ministry. The guards again arrest the apostles, but quietly. The people like both the apostles' ability to heal and their message. If the guards are too forceful, the people might turn against them (Acts 5:12–26).

The apostles now face the Sanhedrin. The Sanhedrin was the court of Jewish religious leaders. Its members included chief priests, elders of the people, and teacher-lawyers called scribes. They could be of any Jewish sect; most were Sadducees while the minority party were Pharisees. The Roman government provided civil law enforcement. The Sanhedrin enforced the Mosaic law on any Jew, whether in Judea or beyond (Acts 9:1–2).

For the most part, members of the Sanhedrin were antagonistic toward Jesus and His message. It was the Sanhedrin who condemned Jesus (Matthew 26:57). Later, the Sanhedrin will authorize Saul to chase Jesus-followers hundreds of miles away to Damascus and bring them to Jerusalem for trial (Acts 9:1–2). After Saul becomes a Christian, the Sanhedrin will authorize and abet an assassination attempt against him (Acts 23:12–15). This antagonism is partly because Jesus had several disagreements with the Sadducees about the resurrection of the dead, and with Pharisees about their extra, abusive laws (Mark 12:18–27; Matthew 23:1–36). Mostly, however, they were jealous of His followers (Matthew 27:18; Acts 5:17). The message of repentance, reconciliation, and resurrection is far more compelling than guilt trips about donating to the temple and following the Law.