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Bible Commentaries
1 Peter

JamesJas Book List 2 Peter2Pe

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5

- 1 Peter

by Gary H. Everett

STUDY NOTES ON THE HOLY SCRIPTURES

Using a Theme-based Approach

to Identify Literary Structures

By Gary H. Everett

THE EPISTLE OF 1 PETER

January 2013 Edition

All Scripture quotations in English are taken from the King James Version unless otherwise noted. Some words have been emphasized by the author of this commentary using bold or italics.

All Old Testament Scripture quotations in the Hebrew text are taken from Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia: With Westminster Hebrew Morphology, electronic ed., Stuttgart; Glenside PA: German Bible Society, Westminster Seminary, 1996, c1925, morphology c1991, in Libronix Digital Library System, v. 2.1c [CD-ROM] Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2000-2004.

All New Testament Scripture quotations in the Greek text are taken from Greek New Testament, Fourth Revised Edition (with Morphology), eds. Kurt Aland, Matthew Black, Carlo M. Martini, Bruce M. Metzger, M. Robinson, and Allen Wikgren, Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft (United Bible Societies), c1966, 1993, 2006, in Libronix Digital Library System, v. 2.1c [CD-ROM] Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2000-2004.

All Hebrew and Greek text for word studies are taken from James Strong in The New Strong's Dictionary of Hebrew and Greek Words, Nashville: Thomas Nelson, c1996, 1997, in Libronix Digital Library System, v. 2.1c [CD-ROM] Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2000-2004.

The Crucifixion image on the book cover was created by the author’s daughter Victoria Everett in 2012.

Foundational Theme The Perseverance of the Saints (from Persecutions without)

And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake:

but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

Matthew 10:22

Structural Theme The Hope in God the Father’s Redemption

Imperative Theme Placing Our Hope in Heaven’s Inheritance While We Submit to the Authorities of This World (Perseverance of the Mind)

INTRODUCTION TO THE EPISTLE OF 1 PETER

Study Notes on the Holy Scriptures supports the view of the verbal, plenary inspiration of the biblical text of the Holy Scriptures, meaning that every word originally written down by the authors in the sixty-six books of the Holy Canon were God-breathed when recorded by men, and that the Scriptures are therefore inerrant and infallible. Any view less than this contradicts the testimony of the Holy Scriptures themselves. For this reason, the Holy Scriptures contain both divine attributes and human attributes. While textual criticism engages with the variant readings of the biblical text, acknowledging its human attributes, faith in His Word acknowledges its divine attributes. These views demand the adherence of mankind to the supreme authority of the Holy Scriptures above all else. The Holy Scriptures can only be properly interpreted by the guidance of the Holy Spirit, an aspect of biblical scholarship that is denied by liberal views, causing much misunderstanding and misinterpretation of the Holy Scriptures.

The Message of the Epistle of 1 Peter - The apostle Peter was the most vocal apostle of Jesus Christ in opposing the Saviour’s announcement about the need to suffer on the Cross and be resurrected the third day. He was the most violent in fighting against those who had come to seize His Lord by cutting off the ear of the servant of the high priest in the Garden of Gethsemane. We now move forward thirty-four years in Peter’s ministry, towards the end of his life, and we find ourselves in Peter’s first epistle as he explains suffering from the Saviour’s standpoint, and no longer his own, immature view that opposed such persecutions. He will be testifying in the epistle of 1 Peter of the need to endure such suffering for the kingdom’s sake, just as His Master testified to him on several occasions before His Passion. This apostle of circumcision had to go through a transformation into maturity in order to fulfill Jesus’ words to him as a young man about Peter’s impending suffering, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not.” (John 21:18) Early Church tradition tells us that Peter followed His Master in the ultimate sacrifice for his faith, being crucified upside down at the hands of the mad man Nero, the Emperor of Rome. The epistle of 1 Peter will take us on this very same journey of maturity and perseverance that Peter choose to take if we will decide to submit to God’s divine plan of election for our lives. It is a message of submission and suffering in light of our future blessed hope of a certain heavenly reward.

Introductory Material - The introduction to the epistle of 1 Peter will deal with its historical setting, literary style, and theological framework. [1] These three aspects of introductory material will serve as an important foundation for understanding God’s message to us today from this divinely inspired book of the Holy Scriptures.

[1] Someone may associate these three categories with Hermann Gunkel’s well-known three-fold approach to form criticism when categorizing the genre found within the book of Psalms: (1) “a common setting in life,” (2) “thoughts and mood,” (3) “literary forms.” In addition, the Word Biblical Commentary uses “Form/Structure/Setting” preceding each commentary section. Although such similarities were not intentional, but rather coincidental, the author was aware of them and found encouragement from them when assigning the three-fold scheme of historical setting, literary style, and theological framework to his introductory material. See Hermann Gunkel, The Psalms: A Form-Critical Introduction, trans. Thomas M. Horner, in Biblical Series, vol. 19, ed. John Reumann (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Fortress Press, 1967), 10; see also Word Biblical Commentary, eds. Bruce M. Metzger, David A. Hubbard, and Glenn W. Barker (Dallas, Texas: Word Incorporated, 1989-2007).

HISTORICAL SETTING

“We dare not divorce our study from understanding the historical setting of every passage of Scripture

if we are going to come to grips with the truth and message of the Bible.”

(J. Hampton Keathley) [2]

[2] J. Hampton Keathley, III, “Introduction and Historical Setting for Elijah,” (Bible.org) [on-line]; accessed 23 May 2012; available from http://bible.org/seriespage/introduction-and-historical-setting-elijah; Internet.

Each book of the Holy Scriptures is cloaked within a unique historical setting. An examination of this setting is useful in the interpretation of the book because it provides the context of the passage of Scripture under examination. The section on the historical setting of the epistle of 1 Peter will provide a discussion on its historical background, authorship, date and place of writing, recipients, and occasion. This discussion supports the early Church tradition that the apostle Peter wrote his first epistle to the Jews of the Diaspora of northern Asia Minor around A.D. 62-64 because these Jewish converts were experiencing trials and hardships as they endeavoured conduct a Christian lifestyle in the midst of a society that was ignorant and even hostile to their faith

I. Historical Background

The early Church of the first century did not have a legal basis for existing within the boundaries of the Roman Empire. Paul the apostle made his appeal unto Caesar and his defense before the highest court in Rome in order give Christianity legal recognition, but without success. B. F. Westcott gives us a quote of the Roman law of this period of early Church history: the Law of the Twelve Tablets, the heart of the constitution of the Roman Republic, said, “No one shall have gods for himself alone at his own pleasure, and men shall not worship in private new of foreign gods unless they are adopted by the state.” (Cicero, de Legibus) [3] William Ramsey says regarding this period in history, “At that time, treason was interpreted in a wide sense and was very severely punished. Anything that could be construed as disrespect to the Emperor was treason, and to speak of another Emperor or King was an unpardonable crime.” [4] Although the pagan temples and their gods continued to be worshipped throughout the cities of the Empire, it was a criminal offence not to worship the State and its leader, the Roman emperor. There appeared to be a delicate balance between Rome’s tolerance for local religions and a denial of the Emperor as a god. This explains why Judaism was a legal religion while a heavy deployment of Roman soldiers was posted throughout troubled areas, such as Palestine. Eventually, the Jewish revolt of A.D. 66 let to the destruction of Jerusalem under Titus in A.D. 70. In other words, the Romans could not change the multi-ethnic superstitions and religions of the diversity of its people, but they could implement measures to control those particular groups that offered the most resistance against Roman rule. It was just such Imperial measures that arose against the early Church during the time of Nero (c A.D. 64). Tertullian tells us of Nero’s decree condemning Christianity during his reign as Emperor. [5]

[3] Brooke Foss Westcott, The Epistles of St John: The Greek Text with Notes and Essays (Cambridge: Macmillan and Co., 1886), 258. Westcott cites from Cicero, de Legibus, book 2. See The Political Works of Marcus Tullius Cicero: Comprising the Treatise on the Commonwealth; and His Treatise on the Laws, vol. 2, trans. Francis Barham (London: Edmund Spettique, 1842), 96.

[4] William M. Ramsay, Pictures of the Apostolic Church: Its Life and Thought (Philadelphia: The Sunday School Times Company, 1910), 217; Cited by John Cameron McEwan, The First Letter of Peter (Perth: Western Australia: New Start Bible Ministries, 2001.) [on-line]; accessed 4 September 2010; available from http://www.newstartbibleministries.org.au/ Books/Commentaries/1Peter.pdf; Internet.

[5] Tertullian writes, “This name of ours took its rise in the reign of Augustus; under Tiberius it was taught with all clearness and publicity; under Nero it was ruthlessly condemned.” ( Ad Nationes 1.7)

It is in the midst of this uncertainty and intimidation that the early Church grew and prospered, and it was in this environment that Peter exhorted the churches of Asia Minor to maintain their faith in their blessed hope of an eternal inheritance in the midst of temporal persecutions. Peter appears to have written his first epistle to the churches of Asia Minor during a time of persecution while he himself was in Rome, which began during the time of Nero, the Roman Emperor. The Roman historian Tacitus tells us about the great fire in Rome, said to be caused by Nero himself on July 19, A.D. 64. As a result, this depraved Emperor laid the blame upon the Christians out of spite and began a persecution that eventually influenced the way Christians were to be treated throughout the Empire for the next few centuries, until the time of Emperor Constantine. Thus, Tacitus (A.D. 56-117) referred to Christianity as “a pernicious superstition”; [6] and Suetonius (A.D. 70-130) described the Christian faith of this time as “a new and mischievous superstition.” [7] The Jews in Rome told Paul that the “sect” of Christianity was “every where spoken against” (Acts 28:22). Clement of Rome (fl. A.D. 96) tells us about the terrible persecutions against the Church during the mid to late first century ( 1 Clement 5-6). We also know that persecutions against believers were widespread from the statement by Peter, “knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world,” (1 Peter 5:9). Thus, it is generally believed by scholars that the numerous passages in 1 Peter mentioning persecutions may well be referring to this period in early Church history when Christians were viewed as a problem in society rather than a blessing (see 1 Peter 1:6; 1 Peter 2:12; 1 Peter 2:15; 1 Peter 3:16-17; 1 Peter 4:1; 1 Peter 4:12-16; 1 Peter 5:8-11).

[6] Tacitus writes, “But neither human help, nor imperial munificence, nor all the modes of placating Heaven, could stifle scandal or dispel the belief that the fire had taken place by order. Therefore, to scotch the rumour, Nero substituted as culprits, and punished with the utmost refinements of cruelty, a class of men, loathed for their vices, whom the crowd styled Christians. Christus, the founder of the name, had undergone the death penalty in the reign of Tiberius, by sentence of the procurator Pontius Pilatus, and the pernicious superstition was checked for a moment, only to break out once more, not merely in Judaea, the home of the disease, but in the capital itself, where all things horrible or shameful in the world collect and find a vogue. First, then, the confessed members of the sect were arrested ; next, on their disclosures, vast numbers were convicted, not so much on the count of arson as for hatred of the human race.” ( Annals, 15.44) See Tacitus: The Histories, trans. Clifford H. Moore, The Annals, trans. John Jackson, vol. 4, in The Loeb Classical Library, eds. T. E. Page, E. Capps, and W. H. D. Rouse (London: William Heinemann, 1952), 283.

[7] Suetonius writes, “Punishment was inflicted on the Christians, a class of men given to a new and mischievous superstition.” ( Life of Nero, 16.2) See Suetonius, vol. 2, trans. J. C. Rolfe, in The Loeb Classical Library, eds. T. E. Page, E. Capps, and W. H. D. Rouse (London: William Heinemann, 1959), 111.

Beside the government turning against these local congregations, we can imagine the response from the Greek citizens to a group of believers who no longer participated in their pagan rituals. They would have been blamed for natural disasters and other hardships encountered by these pagans; and Christians would have had little legal recourse to these hostile encounters, since the government had also rejected them. In addition, the Jewish converts to the faith found themselves excommunicated from their own synagogues and even their own families. Such a hostile environment would have caused Christians to see themselves as pilgrims and strangers upon this earth with no safe dwelling place. Thus, Peter felt compelled as a leader over the Church to exhort these pilgrims on earth to persevere despite their persecutions in light of their blessed hope in Heaven.

Little did the apostle Peter know in the coming years after he wrote his Epistle to the churches of Asia Minor that these early Christians would face an astonishing series of persecutions as Rome attempted to eradicate Christianity from its Empire. The Neronic (A.D. 64), Domitianic (AD 90-100), and Trajanic (AD 111) persecutions against the Church are a few of at least ten documented efforts by the Emperors in secular history to destroy Christians. In the midst of these years of persecutions the Church prospered. A letter by Pliny the Young (A.D. 61-122) as governor of Bithynia on the Christians addressed to Trajan discussed the punishment of Christians to the Emperor Trajan. In this epistle, Pliny notes that there were a great number of Christians in the cities and towns, so much so that the temples and deserted and pagan sacrifices discontinued. [8] Thus, Peter left the early Church with the divine principles on how to overcome persecutions by setting one’s hope on our blessed eternal inheritance reserved in Heaven for those who believe.

[8] Pliny the Younger writes, “For this contagious superstition is not confined to the cities only, but has spread through the villages and rural districts.” ( Letters 10.96) See Pliny: Letters, vol. 1, trans. William Melmoth, in The Loeb Classical Library, eds. T. E. Page, E. Capps, and W. H. D. Rouse (London: William Heinemann, 1915), 405.

II. Authorship and Canonicity

In establishing the authorship of the New Testament writings, one must also deal with the issue of canonicity, since apostolic authority was the primary condition for a book to be accepted into the biblical canon of the early Church. This section will evaluate three phases in the development of the canonicity of the epistle of 1 Peter: apostolic authority, church orthodoxy, and catholicity. The first phase of canonization is called apostolic authority and is characterized by the use of the writings of the apostles by the earliest Church father in the defense of the Christian faith (1 st and 2 nd centuries). The second phase of canonization is called church orthodoxy and is characterized by the collection of the apostolic writings into the distinctive groups of the Gospels, the Pauline epistles, and the Catholic epistles, and their distribution among the churches as the rules of the Christian faith (late 2 nd century thru 3 rd century). The third phase of canonization is characterized by the general acceptance and use of the books of the New Testament by the catholic church, seen most distinctly in the early Church councils (4 th century).

A. Apostolic Authority - Scholars generally agree that the New Testament canon went through several phrases of development in Church history prior to its solidification in the fourth century. F. B. Westcott says the earliest phase is considered the apostolic age in which “the writings of the Apostles were regarded from the first as invested with singular authority, as the true expression, if not the original source, of Christian doctrine and Christian practice.” He says the “elements of the Catholic faith” were established during this period in Church history. [9] At this time, the early Christian Greek apologists defended the catholic faith during the rise of the heresies of the second century using the writings that carried the weight of apostolic authority. The Church clung to the books that were either written by the apostles themselves, such as Matthew, John, Peter, and Paul, or directly sanctioned by them, such as Mark and Luke, the assistances of Peter and Paul respectively, and the epistles of James and Jude, the brothers of the Lord Jesus Christ. Thus, scholars believe apostolic authority was the primary element in selecting the canonical books. This phase is best represented by evaluating the internal evidence of the authorship of these New Testament books and by the external witnesses of the early Church fathers who declare the book’s apostolic authorship and doctrinal authority over the Church.

[9] Brooke Foss Westcott, A General History of the Canon of the New Testament (London: Macmillan and Co., 1875), 21. The Muratorian Canon (c. A.D. 200) alludes to the criteria of apostolic authority for the New Testament writings, saying, “The Pastor, moreover, did Hermas write very recently in our times in the city of Rome, while his brother bishop Pius sat in the chair of the Church of Rome. And therefore it also ought to be read; but it cannot be made public in the Church to the people, nor placed among the prophets, as their number is complete, nor among the apostles to the end of time.” ( Fragments of Caius 3.3) ( ANF 5); Corey Keating says, “In the first two centuries, ‘apostolic authority’ was the important factor in deciding to keep or reject a particular writing.” See Corey Keating, The Criteria Used for Developing the New Testament Canon in the First Four Centuries of the Christian Church (2000); accessed 15 April 2012; available from http://www.ntgreek.org/SeminaryPapers/ ChurchHistory/Criteria for Development of the NT Canon in First Four Centuries.pdf; Internet.

Everett Harrison says, “Among the Catholic Epistles none has been more widely used and highly respected during the history of the Church than this one attributed to Simon Peter.” [10] Internal and external evidence gives strong support to Petrine authorship for this Epistle.

[10] Everett F. Harrison, Introduction to the New Testament (Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, c1964, 1971), 394.

1. Internal Evidence - Internal evidence overwhelmingly supports Petrine authorship of 1 Peter.

a) The Author Reveals His Identity - The author’s identity is clearly identified within the epistle of 1 Peter.

i) His Name is Peter - The opening salutation of the Epistle declares Peter, one of the twelve apostles of the Lord Jesus Christ, as the author. We know of only one Peter in the New Testament, and he was one of the Twelve. Thus, there is no other candidate to be considered fitting the description of this opening verse.

1 Peter 1:1, “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,”

ii) His Indirect Identity The epistle of 1 Peter is full of first person statements that indirectly identify the author as Simon Peter the apostle of Jesus Christ.

(1) The Author Makes a Reference to Silvanus - The author states that he has sent this letter by the hands of Silvanus (Silas), a well-known individual in Acts and the Pauline Epistles. He was out from Jerusalem by Simon Peter and the apostles in Acts 15:22, and he became a co-worker with Paul the apostle to the Gentile churches (1 Thessalonians 1:1).

1 Peter 5:12, “By Silvanus, a faithful brother unto you, as I suppose, I have written briefly, exhorting, and testifying that this is the true grace of God wherein ye stand.”

Acts 15:22, “Then pleased it the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; namely, Judas surnamed Barsabas, and Silas, chief men among the brethren:”

1 Thessalonians 1:1, “Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

(2) The Author Makes a Reference to John Mark - The author also claims to have been with Mark, “his son,” when writing this Epistle. John Mark, who is most likely the person referred to in this Epistle, was someone whom Simon Peter was close to according to Acts 12:12, because he went to Mark’s house when the angel miraculously released him from prison.

1 Peter 5:13, “The church that is at Babylon, elected together with you, saluteth you; and so doth Marcus my son.”

Acts 12:12, “And when he had considered the thing, he came to the house of Mary the mother of John, whose surname was Mark; where many were gathered together praying.”

(3) The Author was Probably Jewish Albert Barnes notes that the Jewish language of 1 Peter implies a Jewish writer. [11]

[11] Albert Barnes, 1 Peter, in Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database (Seattle, WA: Hendrickson Publishers Inc., 1997), in P.C. Study Bible, v. 3.1 [CD-ROM] (Seattle, WA: Biblesoft Inc., 1993-2000), “Introduction.”

(4) The Author Was An Eyewitness of Christ’s Passion The author claims to have been an eyewitness of the Passion of Christ (1 Peter 5:1). We know that Peter was an eyewitness of at least some of the sufferings of Christ. In addition, the author of 1 Peter makes a number of references to Christ’s suffering on the Cross (1 Peter 3:18; 1 Peter 4:1), and His scourging (1 Peter 2:24), and exhorts his readers to be willing to partake of these sufferings (1 Peter 4:13), and to commit their souls unto Him as unto a Faithful Creator (1 Peter 4:19), reminding us of Jesus cry, “Father, into Thy hands I commend My spirit.” The author focuses again on the passion in 1 Peter 2:19-24 as he describes details from the scene of Christ’s suffering. These detailed descriptions lead many scholars to suggest that the author of 1 Peter was indeed an eye-witness of these events.

1 Peter 5:1, “The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed:”

1 Peter 3:18, “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:”

1 Peter 4:1, “Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin;”

1 Peter 2:24, “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.”

1 Peter 4:13, “But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.”

1 Peter 4:19, “Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator.”

(5) The Author Makes Similar Statements to Peter’s Sermon’s in Acts - We can find a number of similar statements to Peter’s sermons in Acts and his first Epistle.

(a) Peter claimed to have been a witness of the sufferings of Christ in his sermon on Pentecost (Acts 2:32), as does the author in 1 Peter 5:1.

Acts 2:32, “This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.”

1 Peter 5:1, “The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed:”

(b) In Peter’s sermon in the Temple and in his first epistle he refers to the prophets speaking of the sufferings of Christ.

Acts 3:18, “But those things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled.”

1 Peter 1:10-11, “Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.”

(c) In Peter’s sermon to the Sanhedrin he referred to the stone which the builders rejected (Acts 4:11), as he also does in 1 Peter 2:7-8.

Acts 4:11, “This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner.”

1 Peter 2:7-8, “Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.”

(d) In Peter’s second sermon to the Sanhedrin he referred to Jesus being hung on a tree (Acts 5:30), as he also does in 1 Peter 2:24.

Acts 5:30, “The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree.”

1 Peter 2:24, “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.”

(e) We find Peter declaring God the Father as no respecter of persons in his speech in the house of Cornelius (Acts 10:34) and in 1 Peter 1:17.

Acts 10:34, “Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons:”

1 Peter 1:17, “And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear:”

(f) Peter’s phrase, “the judge of the quick and the dead,” is employed in his sermon to Cornelius (Acts 10:42) and in 1 Peter 4:5.

Acts 10:42, “And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead.”

1 Peter 4:5, “Who shall give account to him that is ready to judge the quick and the dead.”

(g) We find similar statements of “purifying their hearts” (Acts 15:9) and “purifying your souls” (1 Peter 1:22).

Acts 15:9, “And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.”

1 Peter 1:22, “Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:”

(h) The author also makes references to the Old Testament prophets, as did Peter in his sermons in Acts. We find examples of this in 1 Peter 1:10-12 as well as in Acts 1:16; Acts 10:43 and in Peter’s sermons in Acts 2:3.

(5) There is A Reference to 1 Peter in Peter’s Second Epistle - We also have a witness that Peter wrote his first epistle by what is stated in 2 Peter 3:1, which says that he is now writing his second epistle to these recipients.

2 Peter 3:1, “This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance:”

b) Its Style and Structure is Apostolic JFB notes that “t he energy of the style harmonizes with the warmth of Peter’s character”; and, JFB refers to Erasmus, who says that “this Epistle is full of apostolic dignity and authority and is worthy of the leader among the apostles.” [12]

[12] Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown, 1 Peter, in A Commentary, Critical and Explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments, in e-Sword, v. 7.7.7 [CD-ROM] (Franklin, Tennessee: e-Sword, 2000-2005), “Introduction.”

c) Its Doctrinal Themes are Reminiscent of the Teachings of Jesus Christ The many similarities of the teachings of 1 Peter to those teachings of Jesus Christ in the Gospels suggests that he was one of His disciples.

It is easy to see how canonicity is a testimony to apostolic authorship when we understand that the debates of the early Church fathers to accept the general epistles of 2 Peter , 2 and 3 John, and Jude was simply a debate about their authorship. Apostolic authorship meant that the works were authentic, and thus, authoritative. It was the writing’s apostolic authority that granted its inclusion into the New Testament canon. Therefore, canonicity was based upon apostolic authority, and this apostolic authority was based upon the authenticity of the writing, and its authenticity was based upon the fact that it was a genuine work of one of the apostles or one who was serving directly under that apostolic authority.

B. Church Orthodoxy - The second phase in the development of the New Testament canon placed emphasis upon Church orthodoxy, or the rule of faith for the catholic Church. F. B. Westcott says, “To make use of a book as authoritative, to assume that it is apostolic, to quote it as inspired, without preface or comment, is not to hazard a new or independent opinion, but to follow an unquestioned judgment.” [13] The early Church fathers cited these apostolic writings as divinely inspired by God, equal in authority to the Old Testament Scriptures. They understood that these particular books embodied the doctrines that helped them express the Church’s Creed, or generally accepted rule of faith. As F. B. Westcott notes, with a single voice the Church fathers of this period rose up from the western to the eastern borders of Christendom and became heralds of the same, unified Truth. [14] This phase is best represented in the writings of the early Church fathers by the collection of the apostolic writings into the distinctive groups of the Gospels, the Pauline epistles, and the Catholic epistles, and their distribution among the churches as the rules of the Christian faith (late 2 nd century thru 3 rd century). These collected works of the apostles were cited by the church fathers as they expounded upon the Christian faith and established Church orthodoxy. We will look at two aspects of the development of Church Orthodoxy: (1) the Patristic Support of Authenticity, Authority, and Orthodoxy and (2) Early Versions.

[13] Brooke Foss Westcott, A General History of the Canon of the New Testament (London: Macmillan anc Co., 1875), 12.

[14] Brooke Foss Westcott, A General History of the Canon of the New Testament (London: Macmillan anc Co., 1875), 331.

1. Patristic Support of Authenticity, Authority, and Orthodoxy - The authorship of 1 Peter was never contested by the early Church fathers. External evidence gives overwhelming support to Petrine authorship of 1 Peter. The reception of 1 Peter by the earliest Church fathers provides unquestionable support to the view of Petrine authorship. The early Church fathers make direct statements declaring Petrine authorship, as well as direct quotes, strong allusions and weak allusions to the epistle of 1 Peter. Direct quotes are word for word citations from this book, strong allusions are apparent paraphrases, and weak allusions are words or phrases that appear to come from this book. There is no epistle that has earlier or stronger attestation to authority than this Epistle. Many scholars believe that there are probably traces and allusions to 1 Peter in the early writings of Clement of Rome, Hermas, Barnabas, and Ignatius. We then have direct quotes from Papias, Polycarp, and most all subsequent Church fathers. Thus, the epistle of Romans was used by the Church fathers to establish Church orthodoxy.

Here are a few of the earliest quotes from the epistle of 1 Peter: [15]

[15] There are many other citations available from the early Church fathers that I have not used to support the traditional views of authorship of the books of the New Testament. Two of the largest collections of these citations have been compiled by Nathaniel Lardner (1684-1768) in The Works of Nathaniel Lardner, 10 vols. (London: Joseph Ogle Robinson, 1829, 1838), and by Jacques Paul Migne (1800-1875) in the footnotes of Patrologia Latina, 221 vols. (Parisiis: Excudebat Migne, 1844-55) and Patrologia Graecae, 161 vols. (Parisiis: Excudebat Migne, 1857-66).

a) Clement of Rome (c. A.D. 96) B. C. Caffin suggests that there are as many as fifteen allusions to 1 Peter in the epistle of Clement of Rome to the Corinthians, perhaps the most recognizable being the phrase “His marvellous light.” [16]

[16] Benjamin Charles Caffin, 1 Peter, in The Pulpit Commentary, eds. H. D. M. Spence and Joseph Exell (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 1950), in Ages Digital Library, v. 1.0 [CD-ROM] (Rio, WI: Ages Software, Inc., 2001), “Introduction: 1. Authenticity of the Epistle 2. External Evidence.”

“By Him we behold, as in a glass, His immaculate and most excellent visage. By Him are the eyes of our hearts opened. By Him our foolish and darkened understanding blossoms up anew towards His marvellous light .” ( 1 Clement 36)

1 Peter 2:9, “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light :”

Charles Bigg [17] and Everett Harrison [18] tell us that J. B. Lightfoot [19] found twelve parallels to 1 Peter and Adolf von Harnack [20] claims to have found twenty. An example of one of these allusions is to the precious blood of Christ. Charles Bigg lists other examples.

[17] Charles Bigg, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Epistles of St. Peter and St. Jude, in The International Critical Commentary on the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, eds. Charles A. Briggs, Samuel R. Driver, and Alfred Plummer (New York: Charles Scribners Son’s, 1903), 8.

[18] Everett F. Harrison, Introduction to the New Testament (Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, c1964, 1971), 395.

[19] J. B. Lightfoot, The Apostolic Fathers, Part 1: S. Clement of Rome, vol. 1 (London: MacMillan and Co., 1890), 353; J. B. Lightfoot, The Apostolic Fathers, Part 1: S. Clement of Rome, vol. 2 (London: MacMillan and Co., 1890).

[20] Adolf Harnack, Die Chronologie der Altchristlichen Litteratur Bis Eusebius, Band 1 (Leipzig: J. C. Hinrich’s Sche Buchhandlung, 1897), 251-255.

“Let us look stedfastly to the blood of Christ, and see how precious that blood is to God , which, having been shed for our salvation, has set the grace of repentance before the whole world.” ( 1 Clement 7)

1 Peter 1:19, “But with the precious blood of Christ , as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:”

Charles Bigg notes the similarity in the salutations of 1 Clement and 1 Peter. [21]

[21] Charles Bigg, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Epistles of St. Peter and St. Jude, in The International Critical Commentary on the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, eds. Charles A. Briggs, Samuel R. Driver, and Alfred Plummer (New York: Charles Scribners Son’s, 1903), 8.

“Grace unto you, and peace, from Almighty God through Jesus Christ, be multiplied.” ( 1 Clement 1)

1 Peter 1:2, “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.”

1 Clement alludes to 1 Peter 3:20.

“Noah, being found faithful, preached regeneration to the world through his ministry; and the Lord saved by him the animals which, with one accord, entered into the ark.” ( 1 Clement 9)

1 Peter 3:20, “Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.”

b) The Epistle of Barnabas (c. A.D. 70 to 100) The Epistle of Barnabas makes possible allusions to the epistle of 1 Peter.

“Let us be spiritually-minded: let us be a perfect temple to God. As much as in us lies, let us meditate upon the fear of God, and let us keep His commandments, that we may rejoice in His ordinances. The Lord will judge the world without respect of persons. Each will receive as he has done:” ( The Epistle of Barnabas 4)

1 Peter 1:17, “And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear:”

“For to this end the Lord endured to deliver up His flesh to corruption, that we might be sanctified through the remission of sins, which is effected by His blood of sprinkling.” ( The Epistle of Barnabas 5)

“The prophets, having obtained grace from Him, prophesied concerning Him.” ( The Epistle of Barnabas 5)

“But it shall be built, observe ye, in the name of the Lord, in order that the temple of the Lord may be built in glory...This is the spiritual temple built for the Lord.” ( The Epistle of Barnabas 16)

1 Peter 2:5, “Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.”

“The Lord of glory and of all grace be with your spirit. Amen.” ( The Epistle of Barnabas 21)

1 Peter 5:10, “But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.”

c) Ignatius of Antioch (A.D. 35 to 107) - Ignatius of Antioch quotes frequently from of 1 Peter. Here are some examples:

“For it is written, ‘God resisteth the proud.’ Let us be careful, then, not to set ourselves in opposition to the bishop, in order that we may be subject to God.” ( The Epistle of Ignatius to the Ephesians 5:0)

1 Peter 5:5, “Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.”

“‘Wherefore, girding up your loins,’ ‘serve the Lord in fear’ and truth, as those who have forsaken the vain, empty talk and error of the multitude, and ‘believed in Him who raised up our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead, and gave Him glory,’ and a throne at His right hand. To Him all things in heaven and on earth are subject. Him every spirit serves. He comes as the Judge of the living and the dead. His blood will God require of those who do not believe in Him. But He who raised Him up from the dead will raise up us also, if we do His will, and walk in His commandments, and love what He loved, keeping ourselves from all unrighteousness, covetousness, love of money, evil speaking, false witness; “not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing,” ( The Epistle of Ignatius to the Philippians 8)

1 Peter 1:13, “Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;”

1 Peter 1:21, “Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.”

1 Peter 3:9, “Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.”

“Let us then continually persevere in our hope, and the earnest of our righteousness, which is Jesus Christ, ‘who bore our sins in His own body on the tree,’ ‘who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth,’” ( The Epistle of Ignatius to the Philippians 8)

1 Peter 2:24, “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.”

1 Peter 2:22, “Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth:”

d) Papias (A.D. 60 to 130) Eusebius tells us that Papias used quotes from 1 Peter in his writings.

“These things are related by Papias concerning Mark. But concerning Matthew he writes as follows: ‘So then Matthew wrote the oracles in the Hebrew language, and every one interpreted them as he was able.’ And the same writer uses testimonies from the first Epistle of John and from that of Peter likewise .” ( Ecclesiastical History 3.39.15-16)

e) Polycarp (A.D. 69 to 155) The earlier definite references to 1 Peter come from Polycarp, who quotes frequently from this Epistle in his letter to the church at Philippians. Polycarp also quotes the Pauline epistles numerous times and refers to Paul’s teachings as the “words of truth.” Thus, the fact that Polycarp quotes both apostles within the same letter elevates the Petrine epistles to the same authority as the Pauline epistles.

“In whom, though now ye see Him not, ye believe, and believing, rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory.” ( The Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians 1:0)

1 Peter 1:8, “Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:”

“‘ Wherefore, girding up your loins ,’ ‘serve the Lord in fear’ and truth, as those who have forsaken the vain, empty talk and error of the multitude, and ‘ believed in Him who raised up our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead, and gave Him glory ’, and a throne at His right hand. To Him all things in heaven and on earth are subject . Him every spirit serves. He comes as the Judge of the living and the dead. His blood will God require of those who do not believe in Him. But He who raised Him up from the dead will raise up us also, if we do His will, and walk in His commandments, and love what He loved, keeping ourselves from all unrighteousness, covetousness, love of money, evil speaking, false witness; ‘ not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing ,’” ( The Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians 2:0)

1 Peter 1:13, “Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;”

1 Peter 1:21, “Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.”

1 Peter 3:9, “Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.”

1 Peter 3:22, “Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.”

“For it is well that they should be cut off from the lusts that are in the world, since ‘ every lust warreth against the spirit ;’ and ‘neither fornicators, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, shall inherit the kingdom of God,’ nor those who do things inconsistent and unbecoming.” ( The Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians 5)

1 Peter 2:11, “Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;”

“…let us return to the word which has been handed down to us from the beginning; ‘watching unto prayer…’” ( The Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians 7)

1 Peter 4:7, “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.”

“‘Let us then continually persevere in our hope, and the earnest of our righteousness, which is Jesus Christ, ‘ who bore our sins in His own body on the tree ,’ ‘ who did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth ,’ but endured all things for us, that we might live in Him. Let us then be imitators of His patience; and if we suffer for His name’s sake, let us glorify Him. For He has set us this example in Himself,” ( The Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians 8)

1 Peter 2:22, “Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth:”

1 Peter 2:24, “Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.”

1 Peter 4:16, “Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf.”

1 Peter 2:21, “For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:”

“Stand fast, therefore, in these things, and follow the example of the Lord, being firm and unchangeable in the faith, loving the brotherhood, and being attached to one another, joined together in the truth, exhibiting the meekness of the Lord in your intercourse with one another, and despising no one. When you can do good, defer it not, because ‘alms delivers from death.’ Be all of you subject one to another having your conduct blameless among the Gentiles,” ( The Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians 10)

1 Peter 2:17, “Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.”

Eusebius also tells us that Polycarp made use of the First Epistle of Peter in his letter to the Philippians.

“‘There is also a very powerful epistle of Polycarp written to the Philippians, from which those that wish to do so, and that are concerned for their own salvation, may learn the character of his faith and the preaching of the truth.’ Such is the account of Irenaeus. But Polycarp, in his above-mentioned epistle to the Philippians, which is still extant, has made use of certain testimonies drawn from the First Epistle of Peter.” ( Ecclesiastical History 4.14.8-9)

f) Shepherd of Hermas (2 nd century) Barry Smith gives us a list of weak allusions to 1 Peter in the Shepherd of Hermas, of which several are listed below. [22]

[22] Barry D. Smith, The New Testament and its Context: The First Letter of Peter (Crandall University, 2009) [on-line]; accessed 5 September 2010; available from http://www.abu.nb.ca/courses/ ntintro/1Pet.htm; Internet.

“Hear now with regard to the stones which are in the building. Those square white stones which fitted exactly into each other, are apostles, bishops, teachers, and deacons, who have lived in godly purity, and have acted as bishops and teachers and deacons chastely and reverently to the elect of God.” ( Visions 3.5)

1 Peter 2:5, “Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.”

“You have escaped from great tribulation on account of your faith, and because you did not doubt in the presence of such a beast. Go, therefore, and tell the elect of the Lord.” ( Visions 4.3)

1 Peter 1:7, “That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:”

“…they who suffered for the name of the Son of God, and who also suffered cheerfully with their whole heart, and laid down their lives... And ye who suffer for His name ought to glorify God, because He deemed you worthy to bear His name, that all your sins might be healed.” ( Similitudes 9.28)

1 Peter 4:14, “If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.”

1 Peter 4:9, “Use hospitality one to another without grudging.”

g) Irenaeus (A.D. 130 to 200) - Irenaeus is the first to refer to Peter by name as the author of his first epistle. He refers to the first epistle of Peter on two occasions without challenging its authorship or acceptance into the New Testament canon.

“...and Peter says in his Epistle: ‘Whom, not seeing, ye love; in whom, though now ye see Him not, ye have believed, ye shall rejoice with joy unspeakable;’” ( Against Heresies 4.9.2)

“On this account Peter says that we have not liberty as a cloak of maliciousness, but for the proof and manifestation of the faith.” ( Against Heresies 4.16.5)

1 Peter 2:16, “As free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the servants of God.”

Eusebius later confirmed that Irenaeus drew from the First Epistle of Peter in his writings.

“In the fifth book he speaks as follows concerning the Apocalypse of John, and the number of the name of Antichrist: ‘As these things are so, and this number is found in all the approved and ancient copies, and those who saw John face to face confirm it, and reason teaches us that the number of the name of the beast, according to the mode of calculation among the Greeks, appears in its letters....’ And farther on he says concerning the same: ‘We are not bold enough to speak confidently of the name of Antichrist. For if it were necessary that his name should be declared clearly at the present time, it would have been announced by him who saw the revelation. For it was seen, not long ago, but almost in our generation, toward the end of the reign of Domitian.’ He states these things concerning the Apocalypse in the work referred to. He also mentions the first Epistle of John, taking many proofs from it, and likewise the first Epistle of Peter .” ( Ecclesiastical History 5.8.5-7)

h) The Epistle of Mathetes to Diognetus (2 nd or 3 rd c.) The Epistle of Mathetes to Diognetus makes an allusion to 1 Peter 2:11

“The flesh hates the soul, and wars against it, though itself suffering no injury, because it is prevented from enjoying pleasures.” ( The Epistle of Mathetes to Diognetus 6) ( ANF 1)

1 Peter 2:11, “Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;”

i) Clement of Alexandria (A.D. 150 to 215) Clement of Alexander testifies to Peter’s authorship of his first epistle by frequently quoting from 1 Peter. Here are a few examples.

“For as it is enjoined on them, ‘to be subject to their masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward,’ as Peter says; so fairness, and forbearance, and kindness, are what well becomes the masters. For he says: ‘Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another; love as brethren, be pitiful, be humble," and so forth, "that ye may inherit a blessing," excellent and desirable…’” ( The Instructor 3.12)

“‘But if we also suffer for righteousness' sake,’ says Peter, ‘blessed are we. Be not afraid of their fear, neither be troubled. But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to him that asks a reason of the hope that is in you, but with meekness and fear, having a good conscience; so that in reference to that for which you are spoken against, they may be ashamed who calumniate your good conversation in Christ. For it is better to suffer for well-doing. if the will of God, than for evil-doing.’ ( The Stromata 4.7)

“And one aim and one end, as far as regards perfection, being demonstrated to belong to the man and the woman, Peter in his Epistle says, ‘Though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations; that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than that of gold which perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise, and honour, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ; whom, having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see Him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable, and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith, the salvation of your souls.’” ( The Stromata 4.20)

j) Tertullian (A.D. 160 to 225) Tertullian testifies to Peter’s authorship of his first epistle.

“Addressing the Christians of Pontus, Peter, at all events, says, "How great indeed is the glory, if ye suffer patiently, without being punished as evildoers! For this is a lovely feature, and even hereunto were ye called, since Christ also suffered for us, leaving you Himself as an example, that ye should follow His own steps.’ And again: ‘Beloved, be not alarmed by the fiery trial which is taking place among you, as though some strange thing happened unto you. For, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings, do ye rejoice; that, when His glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. If ye are reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; because glory and the Spirit of God rest upon you: if only none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evil-doer, or as a busybody in other men's matters; yet (if any man suffer) as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God on this behalf.’” ( Scorpiace 12)

1 Peter 2:20-21, “For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God. For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:”

“Peter, no doubt, had likewise said that the king indeed must be honoured, yet so that the king be honoured only when he keeps to his own sphere, when he is far from assuming divine honours; because both father and mother will be loved along with God, not put on an equality with Him.” ( Scorpiace 14)

1 Peter 2:13, “Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme;”

1 Peter 2:17, “Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.”

k) Origen (A.D. 185 to 254) Origen frequently quotes from the first epistle of Peter.

“They do not read what is written respecting the hope of those who were destroyed in the deluge; of which hope Peter himself thus speaks in his first Epistle: ‘That Christ, indeed, was put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit, by which He went and preached to the spirits who were kept in prison, who once were unbelievers, when they awaited the long-suffering of God in the days of Noah, when the ark was preparing, in which a few, i.e., eight souls, were saved by water. Whereunto also baptism by a like figure now saves you.’” ( de Principiis 2.5.3)

“But perhaps this question is asked, If it be the understanding which prays and sings with the spirit, and if it be the same which receives both perfection and salvation, how is it that Peter says, ‘Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls?’” ( de Principiis 2.8.3)

“…as the Apostle Peter says, ‘that our adversary the devil goes about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.’” ( de Principiis 3.3.5)

“according to the things mentioned in the catholic epistle according to Peter, in which He went and preached to those spirits in prison who had formerly been disobedient.” ( Commentary on Psalms 3:6) ( PG 12 cols. 1128D-1129A) (author’s translation)

As quoted by Eusebius, Origen tells us that Peter wrote the first epistle, but the authorship of the second epistle was doubtful.

“And Peter, on whom the Church of Christ is built, 'against which the gates of hell shall not prevail,' has left one acknowledged epistle; perhaps also a second, but this is doubtful.” ( Ecclesiastical History 6.25.8)

Origen mentions his two epistles in his Commentary on Joshua.

“Peter speaks aloud through the two trumpets of the prophet.” [23] ( Homilies in Joshua 7:1) ( PG 12 col. 858B)

[23] P.J. Gloag, 2 Peter, in The Biblical Illustrator, ed. Joseph S. Exell (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Pub. House, 1954), in Ages Digital Library, v. 1.0 [CD-ROM] (Rio, WI: Ages Software, Inc., 2002), “Introduction.”

l) Cyprian (d. A.D. 258) J. R. Lumby says Cyprian, bishop of Carthage, quotes often from the epistle of 1 Peter. [24]

[24] J. R. Lumby, 1 and 2 Peter, in The Expositor’s Bible, eds. William R. Nicoll and Oscar L. Joseph (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1956), in Ages Digital Library, v. 1.0 [CD-ROM] (Rio, WI: Ages Software, Inc., 2001), “Introduction.”

“Peter also, showing this, set forth that the Church is one, and that only they who are in the Church can be baptized; and said, ‘In the ark of Noah, few, that is, eight souls, were saved by water; the like figure where-unto even baptism shall save you;’ proving and attesting that the one ark of Noah was a type of the one Church.” ( Epistle s 75) ( ANF 5)

m) Eusebius (A.D. 260 to 340) - The writings of Eusebius, the ancient church historian, reveal to us that the earliest Church fathers fully agreed without dispute to Peter as the author of this first epistle.

“Peter appears to have preached in Pontus, Galatia, Bithynia, Cappadocia, and Asia to the Jews of the dispersion. And at last, having come to Rome, he was crucified head-downwards.” ( Ecclesiastical History 3.1.2)

“ One epistle of Peter, that called the first, is acknowledged as genuine. And this the ancient elders used freely in their own writings as an undisputed work . But we have learned that his extant second Epistle does not belong to the canon; yet, as it has appeared profitable to many, it has been used with the other Scriptures. The so-called Acts of Peter, however, and the Gospel which bears his name, and the Preaching and the Apocalypse, as they are called, we know have not been universally accepted, because no ecclesiastical writer, ancient or modern, has made use of testimonies drawn from them.” ( Ecclesiastical History 3.3.1-2)

“And in how many provinces Peter preached Christ and taught the doctrine of the new covenant to those of the circumcision is clear from his own words in his epistle already mentioned as undisputed , in which he writes to the Hebrews of the dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia. But the number and the names of those among them that became true and zealous followers of the apostles, and were judged worthy to tend the churches rounded by them, it is not easy to tell, except those mentioned in the writings of Paul.” ( Ecclesiastical History 3.4.2)

“Since we are dealing with this subject it is proper to sum up the writings of the New Testament which have been already mentioned. First then must be put the holy quaternion of the Gospels; following them the Acts of the Apostles. After this must be reckoned the epistles of Paul; next in order the extant former epistle of John, and likewise the epistle of Peter , must be maintained. After them is to be placed, if it really seem proper, the Apocalypse of John, concerning which we shall give the different opinions at the proper time. These then belong among the accepted writings.” ( Ecclesiastical History 3.25.1-2)

“But concerning Matthew he (Papias) writes as follows: ‘So then Matthew wrote the oracles in the Hebrew language, and every one interpreted them as he was able.’ And the same writer uses testimonies from the first Epistle of John and from that of Peter likewise.” ( Ecclesiastical History 3.39.16)

“And Peter, on whom the Church of Christ is built, ‘against which the gates of hell shall not prevail,’ has left one acknowledged epistle; perhaps also a second, but this is doubtful. ( Ecclesiastical History 6.25.8)

n) Athanasius (A.D. 296 to 373) - St. Athanasius, the bishop of Alexandria, supported Petrine authorship of both his epistles.

“Again it is not tedious to speak of the [books] of the New Testament. These are, the four Gospels, according to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Afterwards, the Acts of the Apostles and Epistles (called Catholic), seven , viz. of James, one; of Peter, two ; of John, three; after these, one of Jude. In addition, there are fourteen Epistles of Paul, written in this order. The first, to the Romans; then two to the Corinthians; after these, to the Galatians; next, to the Ephesians; then to the Philippians; then to the Colossians; after these, two to the Thessalonians, and that to the Hebrews; and again, two to Timothy; one to Titus; and lastly, that to Philemon. And besides, the Revelation of John” ( Letters 39.5)

o) Cyril of Jerusalem (A.D. 315 to 386) - Cyril of Jerusalem quotes from 1 Peter 3:21-22 by saying that Peter wrote these words.

“For in the Gospel according to Matthew it is written, Nevertheless, I say unto you, Henceforth ye shall see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of power, and the rest: in accord-once with which the Apostle Peter also writes , By the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, who is on the right hand of God, having gone into heaven. And the Apostle Paul, writing to the Romans, says, It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God” ( Catechetical Lectures 14.29)

h. Gregory of Nazianzus (A.D. 329 to 389) Gregory Naziansen, the Church theologian, supported Petrine authorship of both of his epistles. He says after listing the books of the Old Testament canon, “And already for me, I have received all those of the New Testament. First, to the Hebrews Matthew the saint composed what was according to him the Gospel; second, in Italy Mark the divine; third, in Achaia Luke the all-wise; and John, thundering the heavenlies, indeed preached to all common men; after whom the miracles and deeds of the wise apostles, and Paul the divine herald fourteen epistles; and catholic seven, of which one is of James the brother of God, and two are of Peter the head, and of John again the evangelist, three, and seventh is Jude the Zealot. All are united and accepted; and if one of them is found outside, it is not placed among the genuine ones.” ( PG 38 col. 845) (author’s translation) [25]

[25] Cited by Philip Schaff, History of the Christian Church, vol. 1: Apostolic Christianity A.D. 1-100 (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1955), 582.

He makes a similar statement again:

“Indeed Matthew wrote to the Hebrews (the) miracles of Christ, and Mark to Italy, Luke to Achaia, and above all, John, a great preacher who walked in heaven, then the Acts of the wise apostles, and fourteen epistles of Paul, and seven catholic epistles, being of James, one, and two of Peter, and three of John again, and Jude is seven. You have all. And if there is some (other than) these seven, not (are they) among the genuine ones.” ( Carminum 1) ( PG 37 col. 474) (author’s translation)

B. F. Westcott says, “After enumerating the four Gospels, the Acts, fourteen Epistles of St Paul, and seven Catholic Epistles, Gregory adds: ‘In these you have all the inspired books; if there be any book besides these, it is not among the genuine [Scriptures];’ and thus he excludes the Apocalypse with the Eastern Church, and admits all the Catholic Epistles with the Western.” [26]

[26] Brook Foss Westcott, A General Survey of the History of the Canon of the New Testament, Cambridge and London: Macmillian and Company, 1881, 445.

p) Jerome (A.D. 342 to 420) Jerome tells us that Peter wrote two epistles, the second of which was still disputed during his day.

“He [Peter] wrote two epistles which are called Catholic, the second of which, on account of its difference from the first in style, is considered by many not to be by him.” ( Lives of Illustrious Men 1)

Jerome calls the seven catholic epistles “canonical.”

Jerome says, “…seven epistles which are called canonical…one James, Peter two, John three, and Jude one…” ( Prologue to the Seven Canonical Epistles) ( PL 29 cols. 821-825) (author’s translation)

We also find references to the epistle of 1 Peter in the writings of some early heretics. J. R. Lumby says Basilides, Theodotus, and the Marconsians cited from 1 Peter. [27]

[27] J. R. Lumby, 1 and 2 Peter, in The Expositor’s Bible, eds. William R. Nicoll and Oscar L. Joseph (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1956), in Ages Digital Library, v. 1.0 [CD-ROM] (Rio, WI: Ages Software, Inc., 2001), “Introduction.”

q) Basilides (2 nd century) Basilides, a theologian with Gnostic tendencies, who taught at Alexandria, wrote a biblical commentary, which was called Exegetica, consisting of twenty-four books, and included comments on the epistle of 1 Peter. Thus, Basilides knew and cited from 1 Peter. [28] Paul Mirecki notes where Clement of Alexandria refers to Basilides’ comments on religious persecutions, citing from his twenty-third book of his commentaries, saying it reflects 1 Peter 4:12-19. [29]

[28] “Basilides,” in The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, revised, eds. F. L. Cross and E. A. Livingstone (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1983), 141.

[29] Paul Allan Mirecki, “Basilides,” in Anchor Bible Dictionary, vol. 1, ed. David Noel Freeman, (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1992), 624.

Clement of Alexandria writes, “Basilides, in the twenty-third book of the Exegetics, respecting those that are punished by martyrdom, expresses himself in the following language: “For I say this, Whosoever fall under the afflictions mentioned, in consequence of unconsciously transgressing in other matters, are brought to this good end by the kindness of Him who brings them, but accused on other grounds; so that they may not suffer as condemned for what are owned to be iniquities, nor reproached as the adulterer or the murderer, but because they are Christians; which will console them, so that they do not appear to suffer. And if one who has not sinned at all incur suffering a rare case yet even he will not suffer aught through the machinations of power, but will suffer as the child which seems not to have sinned would suffer.” ( Stromata 4.12)

r) Valentinus (2 nd Century) Valentinus, a heretic, wrote “The Gospel of Truth” before his break with the Church. [30] This ancient document may have traces of the epistle of 1 Peter in it. [31]

[30] Valentinus, “The Gospel Truth,” trans. Robert M. Grant, in The Nag Hammadi Library, in The Gnostic Society Library [on-line]; accessed 5 September 2010; available from http://www.gnosis.org/ naghamm/got.html; Internet; See also Robert M. Grant, Gnosticism (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1961).

[31] J. R. Lumby, 1 and 2 Peter, in The Expositor’s Bible, eds. William R. Nicoll and Oscar L. Joseph (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1956), in Ages Digital Library, v. 1.0 [CD-ROM] (Rio, WI: Ages Software, Inc., 2001), “Introduction.”

s) The Marcosians (2 nd century) Irenaeus refers to the Marcosians, followers of a Gnostic named Marcus, who was a disciple of Valentinus, a group that flourished during the second century. He says, “Further, they [the Marcosians] declare that the arrangement made with respect to the ark in the Deluge, by means of which eight persons were saved, most clearly indicates the Ogdoad which brings salvation,” ( Against Heresies 1.18.3) which refers to 1 Peter 3:20. Thus, the Marcosians were familiar with the epistle of 1 Peter.

t) Theodotus (2 nd century) Theodotus, a follower of Valentinus and a Gnostic, cited from the epistle of 1 Peter. He uses the phrases “the elect seed” (Clement of Alexandria, Excerpta ex Scriptis Theodoti, PG 9 col. 653A), and “which is the elect generation” (Clement of Alexandria, Excerpta ex Scriptis Theodoti, PG 9 col. 656A), both alluding to 1 Peter 2:9. He cites from 1 Peter 1:12, using the phrase, “which things the angels desire to look into.” (Clement of Alexandria, Excerpta ex Scriptis Theodoti, PG 9 col. 697B-C) (author’s translations).

1 Peter 1:12, “Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.”

2. Manuscript Evidence A number of early third and fourth century manuscripts, such as p23, containing the epistle of James, and p72 (the Bodmer papyrus), containing the epistles of 1 and 2 Peter, and Jude, reveal that the Catholic Epistles were being circulated as a collected corpus by the early Church. [32] These ancient manuscripts containing the collective body of General Epistles testify to the fact that the Church at large circulated these writings as a part of its orthodox faith.

[32] The Bodmer Papyrus (p72) contains 1 Peter 1:1-14; 2 Peter 1:1-18; Jude 1:1-25. See Philip W. Comfort and David P. Barrett, eds., The Text of the Earliest New Testament Greek Manuscripts (Wheaton, Illinois: Tyndall House Publishers, 1999, 2001).

3. Early Versions The earliest translations of books of the New Testament testify to their canonization. Perhaps as early as the second century, the New Testament was translated into Old Syriac and Old Latin. While the disputed epistles of Jude, 2 Peter, 2 John, and 3 John were found in the Old Latin text, they are absent in the Old Syriac. [33] The Old Latin versions were later standardized into the Latin Vulgate by Jerome in the fourth century, which represent the canon as we know it today. The Syrian church has an unusual history regarding the development and acceptance of the New Testament Canon. While the Catholic epistles of James, 1 Peter, and 1 John are found in the old Syriac, the lesser Catholic Epistles of 2 Peter , 2 and 3 John, Jude, and the Apocalypse are omitted from its canon. [34] This canon of 22 New Testament books is reflected in the “Doctrine of Addai” (A.D. 250-300) in which the clergy of Edessa are instructed to read from the Law, the Prophets, the Gospels and Acts and the Pauline Epistles, but not from the General Epistles. [35] Perhaps this comment was made because the Syriac versions only accepted three of the seven Catholic Epistles as canonical. The Old Syriac was soon formalized into the translation known as the Peshitta. The New Testament was translated in the Coptic languages of Egypt (Sahidic and Bhoairic) as early as the third century, representing the entire New Testament canon. The New Testament was soon translated into the languages of the Armenian (5 th c), the Georgian (5 th c), and the Ethiopic (6 th c). [36] The Catholic Epistles would not have been translated with the other New Testament writings unless it was considered a part of the orthodox beliefs of the Church at large.

[33] A. E. Brooke, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Johannine Epistles, in The International Critical Commentary on the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, eds. Charles A. Briggs, Samuel R. Driver, and Alfred Plummer (Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1912), 220-223.

[34] Bruce M. Metzger, “Important Early Translations of the Bible,” in Bibliotheca Sacra, vol. 150:597 (Jan 1993) (Dallas, TX: Dallas Theological Seminary): 44, in Libronix Digital Library System, v. 3.0b [CD-ROM] Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2004.

[35] The Doctrine of Addai, the Apostle, trans. George Phillips (London: Trübner and Co. 1876), 44.

[36] The Old Latin Bible manuscripts of the fifth century, Codex Bezae (Gospels, Acts, Catholic epistles), Codex Claromontanus (Pauline epistles), and Codex Floriacensis (Acts, Catholic epistles, Revelation) were used prior to Jerome’s Vulgate (beginning A. D. 382), and these Old Latin manuscripts testify to the canonization of the twenty-seven books of the New Testament at an early date. See Kurt Aland, Matthew Black, Carlo M. Martini, Bruce M. Metzger, M. Robinson, and Allen Wikgren, eds, The Greek New Testament, Third Edition (United Bible Societies, c1966, 1968, 1975), xxxi-xxxiv.

C. Catholicity - The third and final phase of New Testament canonicity placed emphasis upon the aspect of catholicity, or the general acceptance of the canonical books. F. B. Westcott says, “The extent of the Canon, like the order of the Sacraments, was settled by common usage, and thus the testimony of Christians becomes the testimony of the Church.” [37] This phase is best represented in the period of Church councils of the fourth century as bishops met and agreed upon a list of canonical books generally accepted by the catholic Church. However, approved canons were listed by individual Church fathers as early as the second century. These books exhibited a dynamic impact upon the individual believers through their characteristic of divine inspiration, transforming them into Christian maturity, being used frequently by the church at large. We will look at two testimonies of catholicity: (1) the Early Church Canons, and (2) Early Church Councils.

[37] Brooke Foss Westcott, A General History of the Canon of the New Testament (London: Macmillan and Co., 1875), 12.

1. Early Church Canons - Early Church canons support the epistle of 1 Peter as a part of the body of the accepted New Testament Epistles. It is not listed in Marcion’s Instrumentum (A.D. 140) since he only listed the Pauline Epistles. Neither is 1 Peter found in the Muratorian Canon (A.D. 180); but this document is mutilated and does not contain the last portion of the New Testament. 2 Peter is found in the Apostolic canon (c. 300), [38] and the Cheltenham canon (c. 365-390). [39] Some of the early Church fathers provided canonical lists in their writings. Athanasius gives us a canonical list includes it (c. 367). [40] Cyril of Jerusalem (A.D. 315-386) includes it in his list. [41]

[38] See Constitutions of the Holy Apostles 7.47.85 ( ANF 7)

[39] Glen Davis, “The Cheltenham Canon,” [on-line]; accessed 9 May 2010; available from http://www.ntcanon.org/ Cheltenham_Canon.shtml; Internet; See Erwin Preuschen, Analecta: Kürzere texte zur Geschichte der Alten Kirche und des Kanons, zusammengestellt von Erwin Preuschen (Leipzig: Mohr, 1893), 138-40; See Bruce M. Metzger, The Canon of the New Testament: Its Origin, Development, and Significance (Oxford: University Press, 1987), 231-232.

[40] Athansius, Festal Letters 39.5 (Easter, 367) ( NPF2 4)

[41] See Cyril of Jerusalem, Catechetical Lectures 4.36 ( NPF2 7)

2. Early Church Councils - The Church councils of the fourth century eventually named the General Epistles as authentic writings. This would not have been done unless the church at large believed them to be canonical.

During the fourth century, the Roman emperor Constantine was converted to Christianity and ordered Eusebius to produce fifty copies of the Scriptures. [42] The production and distribution of these Bibles, along with the Church synods that followed, served to confirm the twenty-seven books of the New Testament as canonical and authoritative. The early Church traditions of authorship and authenticity became firmly embedded within their canonicity. Therefore, citations of the New Testament Scriptures and later manuscript evidence after this period of Church history only serve to repeat traditions that had already become well-known and established among the churches of the fourth century.

[42] Brooke Foss Westcott, A General Survey of the History of the Canon of the New Testament, fourth edition (London: Macmillan and Co., 1875), 422-426.

Arguments Against Petrine Authorship - As a result of these strong internal and external testimonies, the Church has traditionally upheld Petrine authorship of 1 Peter without question until the rise of modern criticism. When evaluating the list of modern objections, it becomes clear that no single argument carries much weight so that these objections are not taken seriously by most scholars.

A. The Literary Style is of Higher Degree than Peter’s Training Perhaps the most popular argument today against Petrine authorship of the epistle of 1 Peter is its literally style. Scholars agree that the Epistle is written with a high degree of knowledge in the Greek language. In other words, it reflects fluent, idiomatic Greek, with the Old Testament reflecting someone familiar with the LXX. The Epistle’s vocabulary is full and its sentences flow together better than the Pauline Epistles. This has led some scholars to question its Petrine authorship by arguing that Simon Peter was “unlearned and ignorant” (Acts 4:12). However, there are a number of reasons for countering this argument against Petrine authorship:

1. Peter May Have Been Competent in the Greek Language - It is argued that this description applied by the Pharisees may have meant that he simply lacked a theological education. Many Palestinian Jews were competent in the Greek language and culture of their day, so that Peter could have been as fluent in Greek as in Aramaic.

2. The Author’s Audience was Familiar with the LXX - The author’s choice to use the LXX rather than the Hebrew text could be because his Gentiles recipients were more familiar with this version of the Scriptures;

3. Peter Used an Amanuensis - The fact that Silvanus served as the amanuensis, or secretary, for Peter in writing this Epistle explains its literally style (1 Peter 5:12), so the fact that Peter may not have written the Epistle himself weakens any argument against Petrine authorship using the issue of language and style. In fact, we find in Acts 15:22-23 that Judas and Silas were employed to write the letter to the Gentile churches. Silas’ close companionship with Paul further supports his knowledge of Greek language and culture. This would explain the high quality of Greek reflected in 1 Peter.

1 Peter 5:12, “By Silvanus, a faithful brother unto you, as I suppose, I have written briefly, exhorting, and testifying that this is the true grace of God wherein ye stand.”

Acts 15:22-23, “Then pleased it the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; namely, Judas surnamed Barsabas, and Silas , chief men among the brethren: And they wrote letters by them after this manner ; The apostles and elders and brethren send greeting unto the brethren which are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia:”

We have further testimony from the early Church fathers of Peter’s use of interpreters, namely Mark [43] and Glaucias, [44] to support the fact that Peter did not necessarily write his own epistles, but used one of his interpreters.

[43] Eusebius writes, “‘This also the presbyter said: Mark having become the interpreter of Peter, wrote down accurately, though not in order, whatsoever he remembered of the things said or done by Christ.’” ( Ecclesiastical History 3.39.15)

[44] Clement of Alexandria writes, “…though he claims (as they boast) for his master, Glaucias, the interpreter of Peter.” ( The Stromata 7.17)

B. The Doctrinal Influence Within the Epistle Does Not Reflect the Apostle Peter Some argue that 1 Peter contains much Pauline theology, so much so that the Epistle does not reflect a person directly impacted by the teachings of Jesus Christ, as would have been expected by Peter. Rather, it reflects a dependence upon Pauline doctrine, which does not characterize one of the apostles. However, there are a number of reasons for countering this argument against Petrine authorship:

1. Peter and Paul Held Similar Doctrinal Views - Peter and Paul exchanged much communication during the course of their ministry, and they held many views and doctrines in common. Harrison, quoting W. C. van Unnik, explains Peter’s relationship to Paul’s writings as “not one of dependence but of parallelism.” [45]

[45] Everett F. Harrison, Introduction to the New Testament (Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, c1964, 1971), 406.

2. The Epistle Reflects the Gospels - A close examination of the epistle of 1 Peter shows many words and thoughts of the Lord Jesus Christ contained in the Gospels themselves.

C. The Persecutions Discussed Within the Epistle Do Not Reflect Peter’s Era Some argue that the descriptions of persecutions found in 1 Peter do not reflect the period of Roman history in which Peter lived. For example, there is no historical evidence that such persecutions recorded in 1 Peter occurred in Asia Minor during the life of Peter; rather, they best reflect the later Domitianic (A. D. 90-100) or Trajanic (A. D. 111) persecutions. However, there are a number of reasons for countering this argument against Petrine authorship:

1. The Epistle Reflects the Era of Nero’s Assault Upon Christians - It can be objected that the sporadic persecutions suggested by this Epistle could well be the result of Nero’s assault upon the believers in Rome in A.D. 64, which was well before the most severe persecutions officially began under the reigns of Domitian and Trajan. Tertullian tells us of Nero’s decree condemning Christianity during his reign as Emperor. [46]

[46] Tertullian writes, “This name of ours took its rise in the reign of Augustus; under Tiberius it was taught with all clearness and publicity; under Nero it was ruthlessly condemned.” ( Ad Nationes 1.7)

2. There is No Evidence of Widespread Persecutions Under Domitian and Trajan - The Epistle of 1 Peter does not necessarily favor a later period of history since there is no actual evidence of widespread persecutions under Domitian or Trajan.

D. Miscellaneous Arguments Guthrie mentions additional arguments that carry little weight of support by scholars today. (1) One relatively minor argument states that there is no historical evidence linking Peter to the Churches of Asia Minor. He further notes how these districts should naturally come under Paul’s apostolic authority. (2) Some object to Peter having used the term “fellow-elder,” when he was actually an apostle. (3) Others deny that Peter was an eyewitness of the sufferings of Christ, as stated in this Epistle, because he was not present during all of the events of the Passion. (4) Finally, some suggest that a genuine Petrine document would have contained numerous references to his personal contacts with the Lord Jesus Christ, which is lacking in 1 Peter. [47]

[47] Donald Guthrie, New Testament Introduction (Downers Grover, Illinois: Intervarsity Press, 1990), 765.

C. Peter’s Biography We have enough internal evidence from the Scriptures and external evidence from the early Church fathers to put together a relatively good biography of the life of Simon Peter, the apostle of Jesus Christ. His Hebrew name was “Simeon”, a name that was used to identify him on only two occasions (Acts 15:14, 2 Peter 1:1), which is transliterated into Greek from Aramaic as “Simon” (used 26 times), His most frequently used name is “Peter” a Greek word meaning “rock” (used 139 times). We find the combination of these two names, “Simon Peter,” used 18 times (1 in Matthew , 1 in Luke , 15 in John , 1 in 2 Peter). He is also called Cephas (used 6 times), a Greek transliteration of the Aramaic word for “rock.”

Peter’s Background Before His Calling - The earliest account we have of Peter is found in John 1:37-42, in which John records the events that took place the day after Jesus’ baptism, when Andrew his brother brings Simon to Jesus. At this time the Lord said to Simon, “Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas.” This was an Aramaic surname which means, “rock” or “stone.” Its Greek equivalent is “ Petros,” or “Peter,” as he came to be called. Thus, he became one of the earliest followers of Jesus Christ. We also know from this passage in John’s Gospel that he had a brother named Andrew, who became one of the Twelve, but is never mentioned after the Day of Pentecost. We also know that his father’s name was either “Jonah” from the Authorized Version, or “John” from other reliable ancient Greek manuscripts. This individual is never mentioned in Scriptures outside his designation as Peter’s father.

Peter and his brother Andrew were fishermen by trade (Matthew 4:18, Mark 1:16, Luke 1:3), originally from Bethsaida of Gaulanitis (John 1:44), located on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee, who were living in Capernaum, located about five kilometers to the west, with his wife and in-laws when they met Jesus (Matthew 8:14 Mark 1:30, Luke 4:38, 1 Corinthians 9:5), perhaps because it also lay near the Sea of Galilee where his family made a living as fishermen. We know that Peter spoke with a strong northern, Galilean accent (Mark 14:70). Clement of Alexandria says he had children. [48] Church tradition also suggests that Peter’s wife may have travelled with him, [49] which is also alluded to in 1 Corinthians 9:5, “Have we not power to lead about a sister, a wife, as well as other apostles, and as the brethren of the Lord, and Cephas?’ Clement of Alexandria tells us that his wife also suffered martyrdom. [50] Hiley Ward says the tradition that his wife’s name was Concordia or Perpetua, mentioned by JFB, [51] lacks historical support. [52]

[48] Clement of Alexandria writes, “Peter and Philip had children, and Philip gave his daughters in marriage.” ( The Stromata 3.6). See John Ernest Leonard Oulton, Alexandrian Christianity: Selected Translations of Clement and Origen with Introductions and Notes, in The Library of Christian Classics, vol. 2 (Philadelphia PA: The Westminster Press, 1954), 64.

[49] One tradition credited to Clement of Rome reads, “And the next day she journeyed with us, sitting with Peter’s wife…” ( Pseudo-Clementine Literature: Recognitions of Clement 7.25) ( ANF 8)

[50] Clement of Alexandria writes, “They say, accordingly, that the blessed Peter, on seeing his wife led to death, rejoiced on account of her call and conveyance home, and called very encouragingly and comfortingly, addressing her by name, ‘Remember thou the Lord.’” ( The Stromata 7.11)

[51] Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown, 1 Peter, in A Commentary, Critical and Explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments, in e-Sword, v. 7.7.7 [CD-ROM] (Franklin, Tennessee: e-Sword, 2000-2005), “Introduction.”

[52] Hiley H. Ward, Peter’s Rock: The Story of the Courageous and Influential Wife of the Great Apostle (Longwood Florida: Xulon Press, 2005), 337. He believes the earliest tradition to the names of Peter’s wife is found in the writings of Gerhard Wolter Molanus (1633-1722), a German theologian.

Peter During Jesus’ Earthly Ministry We read in Luke 5:1-11 how Peter surrendered himself to become a follower of Jesus Christ after the large catch of fish. This miracle had such an impact upon him that he immediately left his trade as a fisherman and fully devoted himself to the Saviour. When Jesus chose twelve disciples to train as apostles after spending all night in prayer, Peter’s name is always listed first in the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew 10:2, Mark 3:16, Luke 6:14). This indicates that Simon Peter emerged as the leader of the twelve disciples, perhaps because he was older than the others, or because of his strong personality, or because of his great zeal. The Lord selected him along with James and John as His inner circle to be closest to Him. His zeal stood out above the other disciples on numerous occasions, and is revealed in many of the narrative accounts of the Gospels: in his attempt to walk in the water (Matthew 14:28), in his asking, “Lord, to whom shall we go” (John 6:68), in his declaration that Jesus was Christ, the Son of the Living God (Matthew 16:16), in his willingness to lay down his life for Jesus (John 13:37), in his cutting off the ear of the high priest’s servant (John 18:10), and in his rush to the garden tomb with John (John 20:3-4).

Perhaps the lowest point in his service to the Lord was the night he betrayed his Master. However, Jesus visited him early one morning along the shores of the Sea of Galilee and reconciled Peter back into Christian service (John 21:1-23). He was also the only apostle that Jesus prophesied of his death (John 21:18-19).

Peter and the Early Church - After the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, Peter received a special visitation before the other apostles (1 Corinthians 15:5). On the shores of the Sea of Galilee he received his divine commission to shepherd those disciples who had believed in Jesus as the Messiah (John 21:15-22). During the earliest years of the Church Peter became its head due to his boldness and dynamic sermons, which converted thousands of Jews into the faith (Acts 1-10). He was the one who preached on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:14-36), and his boldness to preach in the Temple and around Jerusalem resulted in him being the first apostle to be imprisoned by the Sanhedrin (Acts 4:1-23; Acts 5:17-42).

Although he was called as an apostle to the circumcision (Galatians 2:8), it was Peter’s task to take the Gospel and proclaim it first to the Gentiles. He was taken to the house of Cornelius and led them to faith in Jesus Christ (Acts 10:9-48). He did visit Antioch approximately fourteen years after Paul’s conversion, where he waiver in his understanding of how he should minister to the Gentiles, and was rebuked by Paul on one occasion for this (Galatians 2:11-14). He was considered a “pillar” of the early Church (Galatians 2:9), but never did he portray himself as the leader of the church in Jerusalem, a position that seems to have been taken by James the Lord’s brother (Acts 15:1-29).

Peter’s Ministry Beyond Palestine - As Peter traveled beyond Jerusalem and Judea, tradition tells us that James, the brother of the Lord, took over as bishop of the church in Jerusalem. We have no biblical, narrative records of Peter’s travels beyond Palestine. From his epistles addressed to the regions of Asia Minor it is supposed that Peter traveled numerous times to these provinces. Therefore, we must rely upon the early Church fathers to put together a biography of Peter’s life outside the land of Palestine. We have various testimonies from them that tell us how Peter served as bishop of the church of Antioch, assisted Paul in planting the church at Corinth, then preached in Pontus, Galatia, Bithynia, Cappadocia, and Asia to the Jews of the dispersion, and at last, came to Rome during the second year of the reign of Claudius to help Paul establish the church there. Many scholars believe that Peter did not reach Rome until after A.D. 63, when Paul had already been released from his first Roman imprisonment. It was in this city that church tradition tells us he was crucified upside down by the Emperor Nero, perhaps A. D. 63-64.

1. Clement of Rome (c. A.D. 96) Clement of Rome tells us that Peter suffered martyrdom.

“But not to dwell upon ancient examples, let us come to the most recent spiritual heroes. Let us take the noble examples furnished in our own generation. Through envy and jealousy, the greatest and most righteous pillars [of the Church] have been persecuted and put to death. Let us set before our eyes the illustrious apostles. Peter, through unrighteous envy, endured not one or two, but numerous labours and when he had at length suffered martyrdom, departed to the place of glory due to him. Owing to envy, Paul also obtained the reward of patient endurance, after being seven times thrown into captivity, compelled to flee, and stoned. After preaching both in the east and west, he gained the illustrious reputation due to his faith, having taught righteousness to the whole world, and come to the extreme limit of the west, and suffered martyrdom under the prefects. Thus was he removed from the world, and went into the holy place, having proved himself a striking example of patience.” ( 1 Clement 5)

2. Irenaeus (A.D. 130 to 200) Irenaeus tells us that Peter and Paul preached the Gospel in Rome and served to lay the foundations for the early Church. He says Mark later committed to writing what had been preached by Peter, which is recorded in the Gospel of Mark.

“We have learned from none others the plan of our salvation, than from those through whom the Gospel has come down to us, which they did at one time proclaim in public, and, at a later period, by the will of God, handed down to us in the Scriptures, to be the ground and pillar of our faith. For it is unlawful to assert that they preached before they possessed ‘perfect knowledge,’ as some do even venture to say, boasting themselves as improvers of the apostles. For, after our Lord rose from the dead, [the apostles] were invested with power from on high when the Holy Spirit came down [upon them], were filled from all [His gifts], and had perfect knowledge: they departed to the ends of the earth, preaching the glad tidings of the good things [sent] from God to us, and proclaiming the peace of heaven to men, who indeed do all equally and individually possess the Gospel of God. Matthew also issued a written Gospel among the Hebrews in their own dialect, while Peter and Paul were preaching at Rome, and laying the foundations of the Church. After their departure, Mark, the disciple and interpreter of Peter, did also hand down to us in writing what had been preached by Peter. Luke also, the companion of Paul, recorded in a book the Gospel preached by him. Afterwards, John, the disciple of the Lord, who also had leaned upon His breast, did himself publish a Gospel during his residence at Ephesus in Asia.” ( Against Heresies 3.1.1)

Irenaeus lists the succession of the earliest bishops of Rome, stating that the church was founded by Peter and Paul, saying:

“…by indicating that tradition derived from the apostles, of the very great, the very ancient, and universally known Church founded and organized at Rome by the two most glorious apostles, Peter and Paul; as also [by pointing out] the faith preached to men, which comes down to our time by means of the successions of the bishops.” ( Against Heresies 3.1.1)

3. Clement of Alexandria (A.D. 150-212) - Clement of Alexandria tells us that Peter preached in Rome.

“Mark, the follower of Peter, while Peter publicly preached the Gospel at Rome before some of Caesar’s equites…” ( Fragments of Clemens Alexandrinus: I - Comments On the First Epistle of Peter) ( ANF 2)

“Again, in the same books Clement has set down a tradition which he had received from the elders before him, in regard to the order of the Gospels, to the following effect. He says that the Gospels containing the genealogies were written first, and that the Gospel according to Mark was composed in the following circumstances: Peter having preached the word publicly at Rome, and by the Spirit proclaimed the Gospel, those who were present, who were numerous, entreated Mark…” ( Fragments of Clemens Alexandrinus: IV - From the Books of the Hypotyposes Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 6.14) ( ANF 2)

4. Tertullian (A.D. 160 to 225) - Tertullian testifies to Peter’s ministry in Rome and of his martyrdom there.

“Let us see what milk the Corinthians drank from Paul; to what rule of faith the Galatians were brought for correction; what the Philippians, the Thessalonians, the Ephesians read by it; what utterance also the Romans give, so very near (to the apostles), to whom Peter and Paul conjointly bequeathed the gospel even sealed with their own blood.” ( Against Marcion 4.5)

“For this is the manner in which the apostolic churches transmit their registers: as the church of Smyrna, which records that Polycarp was placed therein by John; as also the church of Rome, which makes Clement to have been ordained in like manner by Peter.” ( The Prescription Against Heretics 32)

“Since, moreover, you are close upon Italy, you have Rome, from which there comes even into our own hands the very authority (of apostles themselves). How happy is its church, on which apostles poured forth all their doctrine along with their blood! where Peter endures a passion like his Lord's! where Paul wins his crown in a death like John’s where the Apostle John was first plunged, unhurt, into boiling oil, and thence remitted to his island-exile!” ( The Prescription Against Heretics 36)

5. Pseudo-Tertullian: Poem Against the Marcionites (A.D. 267) The Poem Against the Marcionites refers to Peter’s leadership over the Roman church and his martyrdom.

“Of whom the first whom Peter bade to take his place and sit Upon this chair in mightiest Rome where he Himself had sat, was Linus, great, elect, And by the mass approved. And after him Cletus himself the fold’s flock undertook; As his successor Anacletus was By lot located: Clement follows him; Well known was he to apostolic men: Next Evaristus ruled without a crime The law. To Sixtus Sextus Alexander Commends the fold: who, after he had filled His lustral times up, to Telesphorus Hands it in order: excellent was he, And martyr faithful.” ( Five Books in Reply to Marcion 3.359-373) ( ANF 4)

6. Hippolytus (A.D. 170 to 236) Hippolytus tells us the tradition that was handed down to him, which describes Peter’s widespread apostolic ministry as well as his death at the hands of Nero in Rome.

“Peter preached the Gospel in Pontus, and Galatia, and Cappadocia, and Betania, and Italy, and Asia, and was afterwards crucified by Nero in Rome with his head downward, as he had himself desired to suffer in that manner.” ( The Extant Works and Fragments of Hippolytus, Pt 2.49: On the Twelve Apostles Where Each of Them Preached, and Where He Met His End)

7. Peter of Alexandria (d.c.311) Peter, bishop of Alexandria, tells us that Peter and Paul were martyred in the city of Rome.

“Thus, Peter, the preferred of the apostles, having been apprehended and imprisoned often and disgraced, was later crucified in Rome. And the preferred Paul, often handed over and being endangered unto death, many times indeed having contended and boasted in much persecution and affliction, in the same city also he himself was beheaded with a sword.” ( Epistola Canonica, canon 9) (author’s translation) ( PG 18 cols. 484D-485A)

8. Lactantius (A.D. 240-320) Lactantius tells us that Peter ministered in Rome, where he was crucified and Paul killed.

“And while Nero reigned, the Apostle Peter came to Rome, and, through the power of God committed unto him, wrought certain miracles, and, by turning many to the true religion, built up a faithful and stedfast temple unto the Lord… He [Nero] it was who first persecuted the servants of God; he crucified Peter, and slew Paul…” ( Of the Manner in Which the Persecutors Died 2)

9. Eusebius (A.D. 260 to 340) Eusebius quotes Papias as having said that Mark became Peter’s interpreter, who wrote down the things that Peter preached about the Lord Jesus Christ, thus authoring the Gospel by his name.

“‘This also the presbyter said: Mark having become the interpreter of Peter, wrote down accurately, though not in order, whatsoever he remembered of the things said or done by Christ. For he neither heard the Lord nor followed him, but afterward, as I said, he followed Peter, who adapted his teaching to the needs of his hearers, but with no intention of giving a connected account of the Lord's discourses, so that Mark committed no error while he thus wrote some things as he remembered them. For he was careful of one thing, not to omit any of the things which he had heard, and not to state any of them falsely.’ These things are related by Papias concerning Mark. But concerning Matthew he writes as follows: ‘So then Matthew wrote the oracles in the Hebrew language, and every one interpreted them as he was able.’ And the same writer uses testimonies from the first Epistle of John and from that of Peter likewise. And he relates another story of a woman, who was accused of many sins before the Lord, which is contained in the Gospel according to the Hebrews. These things we have thought it necessary to observe in addition to what has been already stated.” ( Ecclesiastical History 3.39.15-16)

Eusebius quotes Dionysius, bishop of Corinth, to say that Peter and Paul planted the church at Rome, an issue that is strongly debated, and that both were martyred in Rome at the same time.

“And that they both suffered martyrdom at the same time is stated by Dionysius, bishop of Corinth, in his epistle to the Romans, in the following words: ‘You have thus by such an admonition bound together the planting of Peter and of Paul at Rome and Corinth. For both of them planted and likewise taught us in our Corinth. And they taught together in like manner in Italy, and suffered martyrdom at the same time.’ I have quoted these things in order that the truth of the history might be still more confirmed.” ( Ecclesiastical History 2.25.8)

Eusebius also quotes Tertullian to say that Peter was crucified under Nero.

“It is, therefore, recorded that Paul was beheaded in Rome itself, and that Peter likewise was crucified under Nero. This account of Peter and Paul is substantiated by the fact that their names are preserved in the cemeteries of that place even to the present day.” ( Ecclesiastical History 2.25.5)

Eusebius tells us that Peter was the first bishop of Rome in a long succession of bishops.

“For they say that all the early teachers and the apostles received and taught what they now declare, and that the truth of the Gospel was preserved until the times of Victor, who was the thirteenth bishop of Rome from Peter, but that from his successor, Zephyrinus, the truth had been corrupted.” ( Ecclesiastical History 5.28.3)

Eusebius tells us that Peter left Antioch and ministered in Rome for twenty-five years.

“The Apostle Peter, after he has established the church in Antioch, is sent to Rome, where he remains as a bishop of that city, preaching the gospel for twenty-five years" ( The Chronicle: Olympiad 205) ( PG 19 cols. 539-540) [53]

[53] Peter Kirby, “Was Peter Crucified in Rome Under Nero?,” ([email protected]) 16 Jun 1997 [on-line]; accessed 3 April 2010; available from http://www.blondguys.net/ 1997/jun97/0194.html; Internet.

10. Cyril of Jerusalem (A.D. 315-386) - Cyril of Jerusalem tells us that Peter and Paul were over the church at Rome.

“And he so deceived the City of Rome that Claudius set up his statue, and wrote beneath it, in the language of the Romans, ‘Simoni Deo Sancto,’ which being interpreted signifies, ‘To Simon the Holy God .’ As the delusion was extending, Peter and Paul, a noble pair, chief rulers of the Church, arrived and set the error right…” ( Catechetical Lectures 6.14-15)

11. Epiphanius (A.D. 315-403) Epiphanius, bishop of Salamis, tells us that Peter and Paul were the heads of the church at Rome.

“For the bishops at Rome were, first, Peter and Paul, the apostles themselves who were also bishops then Linus, then Cletus, then Clement, a contemporary of Peter and Paul whom Paul mentions in the Epistle to the Romans.” ( The Panarion of Ephiphanius of Salamis Heresy 27: Against Carpocratians 6.2) [54]

[54] The Panarion of Ephiphanius of Salamis, Book I (Sects 1-46), trans. Frank Williams (Leiden, The Netherlands: Koninklijke Brill, c1987), 104; See S. Epiphanii Episcopi Constantiensis Panaria Eorumque Anacephalaeosis, tomi prioris, pars prior, ed. Franciscus Oehler, in Corporis Haereseogolici, tomus secundus (Berolini:Apud A. Asher et Socios, 1859), 210.

“At Rome the first Apostles and bishops were Peter and Paul, then Linus, then Cletus, then Clement, the contemporary of Peter and Paul.”" [55] ( The Panarion of Ephiphanius of Salamis, Heresy 27: Against Carpocratians 6.5) [56]

[55] Peter Kirby, “Was Peter Crucified in Rome Under Nero?,” ([email protected]) 16 Jun 1997 [on-line]; accessed 3 April 2010; available from http://www.blondguys.net/ 1997/jun97/0194.html; Internet.

[56] The Panarion of Ephiphanius of Salamis, Book I (Sects 1-46), trans. Frank Williams (Leiden, The Netherlands: Koninklijke Brill, c1978, 1987), 103-104; S. Epiphanii Episcopi Constantiensis Panaria Eorumque Anacephalaeosis, tomi prioris, pars prior, ed. Franciscus Oehler, in Corporis Haereseogolici, tomus secundus (Berolini:Apud A. Asher et Socios, 1859), 211.

“In any case, the order of the succession of bishops at Rome is Peter and Paul, Linus and Cletus, Clement, Evaristus, Alexander, Xystus, Telesphorus, Hyginus, Pius, and Anicetus, whom I mentioned above, on the list.” ( The Panarion of Ephiphanius of Salamis, Heresy 27: Against Carpocratians 6.7) [57]

[57] The Panarion of Ephiphanius of Salamis, Book I (Sects 1-46), trans. Frank Williams (Leiden, The Netherlands: Koninklijke Brill, c1987), 104; See S. Epiphanii Episcopi Constantiensis Panaria Eorumque Anacephalaeosis, tomi prioris, pars prior, ed. Franciscus Oehler, in Corporis Haereseogolici, tomus secundus (Berolini:Apud A. Asher et Socios, 1859), 212.

12. The Apostolic Constitutions (late 4 th c.) - The Apostolic Constitutions, a collection of ecclesiastical law that is believed to have been compiled during the latter half of the fourth century, gives us a list of the earliest bishops, mentions the fact that Paul and Peter ordained the first bishops over the church in Rome.

“Now concerning those bishops which have been ordained in our lifetime, we let you know that they are these…Of the church of Rome, Linus the son of Claudia was the first, ordained by Paul; and Clemens, after Linus' death, the second, ordained by me Peter” ( Constitutions of the Holy Apostles 7.4.46)

13. Opatus of Milevis (fl. A.D.370) Opatus tells us that Peter was the first bishop of Rome.

“You cannot deny that you are aware that in the city of Rome the Episcopal chair was given first to Peter; the chair in which Peter sat, the same who was head--that is why he is also called Cephas ["Rock"]--of all the apostles; the one chair in which unity is maintained by all" ( The Schism of the Donatists 1 Peter 2:2 [A.D. 367]) ( PL 11 cols. 947-948) [58]

[58] Peter Kirby, “Was Peter Crucified in Rome Under Nero?,” ([email protected]) 16 Jun 1997 [on-line]; accessed 3 April 2010; available from http://www.blondguys.net/ 1997/jun97/0194.html; Internet.

14. Jerome (A.D. 342 to 420) - Jerome tells us the tradition that Peter went to Rome during the second year of Claudius and headed the church there for twenty-five years, (a length of time that appears chronologically impossible) at which time he was martyred at the hands of Nero in A.D. 68, being nailed upside down.

“Simon Peter the son of John, from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, brother of Andrew the apostle, and himself chief of the apostles, after having been bishop of the church of Antioch and having preached to the Dispersion--the believers in circumcision, in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia--pushed on to Rome in the second year of Claudius to over-throw Simon Magus, and held the sacerdotal chair there for twenty-five years until the last, that is the fourteenth, year of Nero. At his hands he received the crown of martyrdom being nailed to the cross with his head towards the ground and his feet raised on high, asserting that he was unworthy to be crucified in the same manner as his Lord. He wrote two epistles which are called Catholic, the second of which, on account of its difference from the first in style, is considered by many not to be by him. Then too the Gospel according to Mark, who was his disciple and interpreter, is ascribed to him. On the other hand, the books, of which one is entitled his Acts, another his Gospel, a third his Preaching, a fourth his Revelation, a fifth his “Judgment” are rejected as apocryphal. Buried at Rome in the Vatican near the triumphal way he is venerated by the whole world.” ( Lives of Illustrious Men 1)

Jerome also tells us that Peter died around A.D. 68 on the same day as Paul.

“He then, in the fourteenth year of Nero on the same day with Peter, was beheaded at Rome for Christ's sake and was buried in the Ostian way, the twenty-seventh year after our Lord's passion.” ( Lives of Illustrious Men 5)

15. John Chrysostom (A.D. 347-407) John Chrysostom believed that Peter and Paul were buried in Rome, thus implying that they died as martyrs in that city.

“Not so bright is the heaven, when the sun sends forth his rays, as is the city of Rome, sending out these two lights into all parts of the world. From thence will Paul be caught up, from thence Peter. Just bethink you, and shudder ( φριξατε ) at the thought of what a sight Rome will see, when Paul ariseth suddenly from that deposit, together with Peter, and is lifted up to meet the Lord.” ( Homilies on the Epistle of St. Paul to the Romans, Homily 32)

16. Prudentius (A.D. 348-410) Prudentius, the Roman Christian poet, describes Peter’s death at the hands of Nero:

“First the sentence of doom carried off Peter, when under the orders of Nero it was commanded that he should hang on a high tree. But he, because he feared to court the glory of his great Master by emulating the honour of being lifted up to die, insisted that they should set his head down, his feet upwards, so that the top of his head should look towards the bottom of the post. So he had his hands fastened below and his feet towards the top, his spirit nobler in proportion to the humbling posture.” ( Crowns of Martyrdom 12) [59]

[59] See Prudentius II, trans. H. J. Thomson, in The Loeb Classical Library, eds. T. E. Page, E. Capps, and W. H. D. Rouse (London: William Heinemann, 1953), 323-325.

17. Eucherius, Bishop of Lyons (d. c. A.D. 449) - Eucherius says Peter ministered in Cappadocia, Galita, Bithynia and Pontus as Peter testifies in his first epistle (1 Peter 1:1). [60]

[60] Eucherius writes, “Bartholomew in India, Thomas stretched to Parthia, Matthew Ethopia, Andrew preaching softenly in Scythia, divine John set right sermons in Asia, Peter in Cappadocia and Galatia, Bithynia together with Pontus.” ( Instructions 1:.2, in Actibus Apostolorum) See PL 50 col. 809C.

18. Augustine of Hippo (A.D.353-430) Augustine believed that Peter was the first bishop of Rome.

“However, if all men throughout all the world were of the character which you most vainly charge them with, what has the chair done to you of the Roman Church, in which Peter sat, and which Anastasius fills to-day…” ( In Answer to the Letters of Petilian, the Donatist, Bishop of Cirta 2:118) ( NPF1 4)

19. Isho’dad of Merv (c. A.D. 850) Isho’dad of Merv, the Syriac bishop of Hadatha, records the tradition that Peter founded the church at Rome before being martyred by Emperor Nero.

“Then Peter at once planted a church in Rome, and ruled it for twenty-five years. But at the time that the wicked Nero Caesar commanded him to be crucified head downwards,.” [61]

[61] Margaret Dunlop Gibson, ed. and trans., The Commentaries of Isho’dad of Merv Bishop of Hadatha (c. 850 A.D.) in Syriac and English, in Horae Semiticae, vol. 5 (Cambridge: The University Press, 1911), 123-125.

III. Date and Place of Writing

It is most likely that the General Epistles were written during the time when the early Church experienced its first large-scale persecutions at the hands of the Roman Emperors Nero (A.D. 54-68) and Domitian (A.D. 81-96). It was this season of persecutions that occasioned the need to write and encourage these early believers to hold fast to their faith in Christ, even at the cost of their lives. It is widely agreed by conservative scholarship that Peter wrote his first epistle from Rome as early as A.D. 62-64, and no later than A.D. 67.

A. Date of Writing We have no direct evidence within the epistle of 1 Peter that indicates the time of writing. We do know that Peter was in Jerusalem up to the time of the first Jerusalem council in Acts 15:0 (c. A.D. 48-50). We also find testimony in Galatians 2:1-9 that Peter visited Antioch fourteen years after Paul’s conversion (c. A.D. 44-45). We also have various testimonies from the early Church fathers that tell us how Peter served as bishop of the church of Antioch, assisted Paul in planting the church at Corinth, then preached in Pontus, Galatia, Bithynia, Cappadocia, and Asia to the Jews of the dispersion, and at last, came to Rome during the second year of the reign of Claudius to help Paul establish the church there. Thus, scholars refer to several historical events that help us date the writing of 1 Peter into a short time-frame.

1. The Neronian Persecutions Early Church tradition tells us that Peter died at the hands of Nero in Rome, being crucified upside down. We know that the Neronian persecutions began in A.D. 64, so if Peter was referring to these persecutions in his Epistle, then the date of writing was shortly before his death, perhaps A.D. 62-64. We also know that the Neronian persecutions were limited to Rome. However, such events would certainly have repercussions within the churches scattered through the entire Roman Empire. We sense such negative agitation against the churches of Asia Minor in Peter’s epistle.

2. Paul Makes No Mention of Peter Being in Rome in His Prison Epistles It can be assumed that since Paul makes no mention of Peter being in Rome when he wrote his prison epistles (Ephesians, Colossians, Philemon, Philippians) in A.D. 61-62, then Peter would have arrived some time later.

3. Peter Makes No Reference to Paul Being in Rome in His Epistles We can note that Peter makes no reference to Paul being in Rome during the time of writing his epistle. He does mention Silvanus and Mark, so he would have certainly mentioned Paul if he were with them. This suggests that Peter wrote his first epistle after A.D. 62.

4. Peter Wrote Both Epistles Within a Relatively Short Period of Time - We can reasonably assume from 2 Peter 3:1 that since Peter wrote both of his epistles to the same audience, then they were written within a relatively short period of time, which was towards the end of Peter’s live. If these two Petrine epistles were written ten or twenty years apart, then the people he was addressing would be different.

2 Peter 3:1, “This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance:”

5. Peter’s Conciliatory Approach to the Role of the State Some have suggested that Peter’s discussion of the role of the State and the believer’s submission to it are so conciliatory that it is difficult believing that Peter would have made such comments in the midst of intense persecutions. Therefore, many scholars believe that Peter wrote these statements prior to the Neronian persecutions. But this is not a strong argument, since Peter could have written in the midst of severe persecutions.

In summary, we can conclude that Peter wrote his first epistle between A.D. 62 to 67, which is the view that is commonly held by modern scholarship.

B. Place of Writing We do have evidence within the epistle of 1 Peter as to the place of writing. Peter closes his epistle by sending greetings from the believers in Babylon (1 Peter 5:13).

1 Peter 5:13, “The church that is at Babylon, elected together with you, saluteth you; and so doth Marcus my son.”

Thus, we are left with the evaluation of whether Peter was using this name literally or metaphorically. The majority of scholars believe that Peter used this name metaphorically. The arguments in favor of Rome are strong.

1. The Early Church Fathers A number of the early Church fathers, such as Papias, Clement of Alexandria, Eusebius, and Jerome, favored Rome as its place of writing. Thus, ancient Church tradition favored a metaphorical interpretation of the word “Babylon.” For example, Eusebius tells us Papias and Clement of Alexandria testify that Peter wrote his first epistle while in Rome.

“Clement in the eighth book of his Hypotyposes gives this account, and with him agrees the bishop of Hierapolis named Papias. And Peter makes mention of Mark in his first epistle which they [Papias and Clement] say that he wrote in Rome itself, as is indicated by him, when he calls the city, by a figure, Babylon, as he does in the following words: ‘The church that is at Babylon, elected together with you, saluteth you; and so doth Marcus my son.’” ( Ecclesiastical History 2.15.2)

Jerome agrees with this interpretation of Babylon.

“Peter also mentions this Mark in his first epistle, figuratively indicating Rome under the name of Babylon “She who is in Babylon elect together with you saluteth you and so doth Mark my son.” ( Lives of Illustrious Men 8)

This was the accepted view until the time of the Reformation, when the first views emerged that Peter wrote from Babylon on the Euphrates. At this time Calvin suggested that the early Church fathers also came to the rash conclusion of Rome as the place of origin and gave Babylon an allegorical interpretation because of the tradition that Peter sat over the first episcopate of the Roman church. Calvin favored Babylon as the place of where Peter wrote his epistle. [62]

[62] John Calvin, Commentaries on the First Epistle of Peter, trans. John Owen, in Commentaries on the Catholic Epistles (Edinburgh: The Calvin Translation Society, 1855), 22-23.

2. There is No Evidence that Peter Ever Visited Babylon - It is improbable that Peter ever visited Babylon, since there is no historical account of such a visit. Although the ancient city Babylon held a prominent role in Old Testament history, it held little importance during the Roman era. According to Josephus there was a large Jewish population that lived in ancient Babylon, located along the Euphrates River in Mesopotamia ( Antiquities 15.2.2; 15.3.1), which is somewhat confirmed by Philo of Alexandria; [63] but it was probably disseminated toward the end of the reign of Caligula around A.D. 40 ( Antiquities 18.9.1-9). In addition, there is no evidence that a church was ever located in Babylon. However, many scholars who argue for a literal interpretation believe that Babylon did have a significant amount of Jews residing there, and that it served as the center of the Eastern Jewish Diaspora.

[63] Philo writes, “I say nothing of the countries beyond the Euphrates, for all of them except a very small portion, and Babylon, and all the satrapies around, which have any advantages whatever of soil or climate, have Jews settled in them.” ( On the Virtues and Office of Ambassadors 36) See C. D. Yonge, The Works of Philo Judaeus, the Contemporary of Josephus, vol. 4 (London: Henry G. Bohn, 1855), 161.

3. The Name “Babylon” Was Used Metaphorically in Ancient Times - The name “Babylon” was used as a designation for the city of Rome on numerous occasions, both in the Scriptures, in the Old Testament Apocrypha and by the early Church fathers. For example, we note that John the apostle used the term “Babylon” metaphorically of the city of Rome in his book of Revelation (Revelation 14:8; Revelation 16:19; Revelation 17:5; Revelation 18:2; Revelation 18:10; Revelation 18:21), in which he also used the term “Sodom and Egypt” metaphorically to refer to Jerusalem (Revelation 11:8). We can also note that Paul likened Hagar and Mount Sinai to Jerusalem (Galatians 4:25). When we look in the Old Testament, we find Isaiah calling Jerusalem by the figurative names “Sodom” and “Gomorrah” (Isaiah 1:10). Jeremiah compares Jerusalem to Sodom and Gomorrah (Jeremiah 23:14). In addition, Barry Smith provides a list of metaphorical uses of the word Babylon in the Old Testament Apocryphal writings (2 Bar 10:1-2; 11:1; 67:7; 4 Ezra 3:1-2, 28, 31; Sib. Or. 5.143, 158-59). [64] One reason for Peter using the term “Babylon” metaphorically is because of the danger he may have placed the church at Rome in danger by identifying their existence in the city of Rome.

[64] Barry D. Smith, The New Testament and its Context: The First Letter of Peter (Crandall University, 2009) [on-line]; accessed 5 September 2010; available from http://www.abu.nb.ca/courses/ ntintro/1Pet.htm; Internet.

However, many scholars believe that a literal interpretation should be accepted within the text because there is no suggestion of figurative language within Peter’s first epistle. Yet, we can object to this statement because Peter does use the phrase “Diaspora” in a broad since to refer to the Church rather than the Jews who were dispersed abroad.

The term “Babylon” was most likely applied to Rome because this city was the seat of the Roman Empire where the center of widespread opposition and persecution against Christianity began, much like Babylon in ancient times was the seat of persecutions and destruction upon Jerusalem. In addition, for the Jews the term “Babylon” represented a place of exile, which would have appropriately applied to the early Church in the hostile environment of the Roman Empire. Thus, Peter could have accurately called his readers “strangers and pilgrims” living in a land of exile and persecutions.

According to the Greek historian Strabo (63 B.C. to A.D. 24), there was also a lesser known city called Babylon, located near modern-day Cairo in Egypt, which served as a Roman military outpost in ancient times; [65] but because this city played no significant role in ancient history, and because there is no indication of a church in this location for the first four centuries, this place is not seriously considered by modern scholarship.

[65] Strabo writes, “And, having sailed farther up the river [the Nile], one comes to Babylon, a stronghold, where some Babylonians had withdrawn in revolt and then successfully negotiated for permission from the kings to build a settlement; but now it is an encampment of one of the three legions that guard Aegypt.” ( Geography 17.1.30) See The Geography of Strabo, vol. 8, trans. Horace Leonard Jones, in The Loeb Classical Library, eds. T. E. Page, E. Capps, and W. H. D. Rouse (London: William Heinemann, c1932, 1967), 85-86.

In summary, it is widely believed by modern scholarship that Peter was using the term “Babylon” as a symbolic name for Rome, who became the persecutor of the Church during this period in history. However, there are still credible scholars who understand the name to be used in a literal sense.

IV. Recipients

The early Church fathers tell us that Peter addressed his first epistle to the Jews of the Diaspora in northern Asia Minor. However, most scholars today believe that internal evidence indicates that Peter, the apostle to the circumcision, was addressing to the Gentiles as well as Jewish converts, which was the makeup of the early churches outside of Palestine. This view means that Peter’s ministry was not limited to Palestinian Jews. Although he avoided overlapping into the ministry of Paul the apostle, Peter probably did extensive travels in order to reach the Jews of Roman Empire. As a result of the internal evidence conflicting with the external evidence, there is strong argument for both views, and conservative scholarship can be found on both sides.

A. Internal Evidence The author declares in his opening verse that he was writing to “the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia.” We know this geographical region to be northern Asia Minor. Perhaps Peter evangelized this region while Paul focused primarily in the south. However, 1 Peter 1:12 implies that Peter was writing to churches he did not plant by saying, “the things which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you.” Peter may have visited these churches founded by Paul in order to minister particularly to the Jews within these mixed congregations.

There are certainly a number of verses within the Epistle that indicate that Peter was writing to the Jewish Christians of the Diaspora.

1. The Jewish Diaspora - Peter refers to his readers as strangers and pilgrims of the “Diaspora” ( διασπορα ́ ), a Greek word that is used only three times within the New Testament (John 7:35, James 1:1, 1 Peter 1:1), and refers specifically to the Jewish Diaspora in the other two references. However, Harrison notes that the lack of the definite article before διασπορα ́ in 1 Peter 1:1 eliminates this phrase from being a definite reference to “the Jewish Diaspora”; rather, it implies a broader usage. [66] The definite article can be found in the other two uses.

[66] Everett F. Harrison, Introduction to the New Testament (Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, c1964, 1971), 402.

John 7:35, “Then said the Jews among themselves, Whither will he go, that we shall not find him? will he go unto the dispersed among the Gentiles, and teach the Gentiles?”

James 1:1, “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad , greeting.”

1 Peter 1:1, “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,”

2. Jewish Ancestry - 1 Peter 1:18 clearly reflects the Jewish ancestry of the readers. The Gentiles kept no such particular ancient records of genealogies and traditions, but were led about in vain idol worship. 1 Peter 1:19 refers to the Jewish sacrificial lamb under the Mosaic Law. Thus, his readers were Jewish converts.

1 Peter 1:18-19, “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:”

3. Contrasts Between Jews and Gentiles - In 1 Peter 2:12 Peter contrasts his Jewish recipients with the Gentiles.

1 Peter 2:12, “having your conversation honest among the Gentiles : that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation.”

4. “Daughters of Abraham” - In 1 Peter 3:6 the author calls his female readers “daughters” of Abraham, implying Jewish people.

1 Peter 3:6, “Even as Sara obeyed Abraham, calling him lord: whose daughters ye are, as long as ye do well, and are not afraid with any amazement.”

However, there is strong evidence that Peter was also addressing Gentile converts.

1. Quotations From Hosea - In 1 Peter 2:9-10 Peter identifies his recipients with the Gentiles who were previously not God’s people by quoting Hosea 2:23. Peter also says that they have been “called out of darkness,” a phrase that would not likely be used of Jews who were basing their lives upon the Mosaic Law, but rather pagans in their sins. Since the Jews already understood themselves to be a “chosen generation, and a holy nation,” it was seem more appropriate that Peter intended this to apply to the Church in general, which included the Gentiles.

1 Peter 2:9-10, “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.”

2. Gentile Converts - 1 Peter 1:14; 1 Peter 4:3-4 suggest that some of the recipients were Gentiles being converted from pagan lifestyles. So, we know that many of his recipients must have been Gentile Christians.

1 Peter 1:14, “As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:”

1 Peter 4:3-4, “For the time past of our life may suffice us to have wrought the will of the Gentiles, when we walked in lasciviousness, lusts, excess of wine, revellings, banquetings, and abominable idolatries: Wherein they think it strange that ye run not with them to the same excess of riot, speaking evil of you:”

We also have evidence that Peter was addressing a broad audience of both Jews and Gentiles.

1. Similar Audience in Both Petrine Epistles - We can clearly conclude from 2 Peter 3:1 that the author was writing to the same audience as his First Epistle.

2 Peter 3:1, “This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance:”

2. All-inclusive Phrase - The closing greeting in 1 Peter 5:14 is addressed to “all that are in Christ Jesus,” a term that appears to be all inclusive of every believer, Jew and Gentile.

1 Peter 5:14, “Greet ye one another with a kiss of charity. Peace be with you all that are in Christ Jesus. Amen.”

3. The Second Epistle Has a Mixed Audience - It is generally believed that the recipients of 2 Peter were Jews and Gentiles as they are addressed as “them that have obtained like precious faith” (1 Peter 1:1).

2 Peter 1:1, “Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:

With all of this evidence, we must conclude that Peter’s opening salutation to “the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia” (1 Peter 1:1) must be understood in a figurative sense to refer to all believers as exiles in a pagan world of persecutions. In summary, internal evidence favors the view that Peter wrote to both Jews and Gentiles, with the Jews perhaps being his primary recipients, but including the Gentiles in the Church as well out of respect for Church unity.

B. External Evidence External evidence supports the view that Peter wrote to the Jews of the Diapora. The ancient church historian Eusebius tells us that Peter wrote his first epistle to the Hebrews who were living in the regions of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia.

Peter was an apostle to the Jews, and this statement by Eusebius (A.D. 260 to 340) confirms his ministry to them even outside of Jerusalem. Jerome also tells us that Peter wrote his first epistle to the Jews.

Summary - In summary, it would be safe to conclude that Peter, the apostle of circumcision, was addressing churches in Asia that were made up largely of Gentiles with a number of Jewish converts. Therefore, his epistle to the Jews of the Diaspora would not be limited to the Jews in the congregation only, but of necessity to the Gentile converts also. His epistle would have been received in much the same way that the Church receives it today, which is as an epistle to the entire body of Christ, both Jews and Gentiles. The reason that Peter opens his epistle by carefully addressing his Jewish brothers is so that he would not be intentionally intruding into the ministry of Paul the apostle to the Gentiles.

V. Occasion

Peter’s first epistle is addressed to a large group of congregations located in northern Asia Minor. They all shared many things in common, such as their faith in Jesus and their hope of His Return. They also experiences trials and hardships as they endeavoured conduct a Christian lifestyle in the midst of a society that was ignorant and even hostile to their faith. Thus, Peter makes references in his Epistle to the need to endure these persecutions and maintain their faith in Christ.

They were experiencing manifold temptations, described as “trials of faith” (1 Peter 1:6-7); they were called to be willing to suffer as Christ suffered (1 Peter 2:21; 1 Peter 4:1; 1 Peter 4:19); they were suffering for righteousness sake (1 Peter 3:14); they were falsely accused of being evildoers (1 Peter 3:16-17; 1 Peter 4:4; 1 Peter 4:14); they were experiencing “fiery trials” as their way of “partaking of Christ’s sufferings” (1 Peter 4:12-13). It is possible that being a Christian had become a crime at the time of writing, or at least, hostility towards them had increased; but we find no confirmed references to the Neronian persecutions that began in A.D. 64 within this Epistle.

LITERARY STYLE

“Perhaps the most important issue in interpretation is the issue of genre.

If we misunderstand the genre of a text, the rest of our analysis will be askew.”

(Thomas Schreiner) [67]

[67] Thomas R. Schreiner, Interpreting the Pauline Epistles, second edition (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, c1990, 2011), 11.

Within the historical setting of the early church, the authors of the New Testament epistles chose to write to various groups of believers using the literary style of the formal Greco-Roman epistle, which contains a traditional salutation, the body, and a conclusion. Thus, the New Testament epistles are assigned to the literary genre called “epistle genre,” In the introductory section of literary style, a comparison will be made of the New Testament epistles, as well as a brief look at the grammar and syntax of the epistle of 1 Peter.

VI. Comparison of the New Testament Epistles

The Petrine Epistles have their own unique characteristics apart from the epistles of Paul and John the apostle.

A. Comparison of Content: It is More Practical than Doctrinal As is characteristic of all of the General Epistles, 1 Peter is more practical than doctrinal. However, we find many doctrinal statements and similarities in them to the teachings of Christ Jesus and of Paul.

B. Comparison of Content: The Teachings of Jesus Christ - The author of 1 Peter clearly makes numerous statements reminiscent of Christ’s teachings, suggesting that he was with our Lord during His earthly ministry and filled with His teachings.

Peter’s statements, “Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing,” (1 Peter 3:9), “be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer,” (1 Peter 4:7), “If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye,” (1 Peter 4:14), “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you,” (1 Peter 5:7), “Be sober, be vigilant” (1 Peter 5:8) are reminiscent of statements made by Jesus Christ recorded in the Gospels.

Peter opens his first epistle with the word “elect,” a term used that Jesus used to describe the Church in Mark 13:20; Mark 13:22; Mark 13:27, a Gospel authored by Mark as a record of Peter’s teachings on the Lord.

In 1 Peter 1:8 Peter appears to be paraphrasing Jesus’ words in John 20:29 when he says, “having not seen, yet believe.”

1 Peter 1:8, “Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:”

John 20:29, “Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.”

Peter charges his readers to gird up the loins of their mind (1 Peter 1:13), a phrase similar to Jesus’ statement in Luke 12:35.

1 Peter 1:13, “Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;”

Luke 12:35, “Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning;”

Peter tells us readers to be sober and vigilant against the devil (1 Peter 5:8). This reminds us of Jesus’ warning to watch and pray lest we enter into temptations (Mark 14:38).

1 Peter 5:8, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:”

Mark 14:38, “Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.”

Jesus told Peter that He came to give His life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45), reminding us of 1 Peter 1:18.

1 Peter 1:18, “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;”

Mark 10:45, “For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.”

John the Baptist taught his disciples that Jesus Christ was the “Lamb of God” (John 1:29; John 1:36), an analogy also used by Peter (1 Peter 1:19).

1 Peter 1:19, “But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:”

John 1:36, “And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God!”

Both Jesus and Peter taught about rejoicing in the midst of persecutions.

1 Peter 1:6, “Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:”

Matthew 5:12, “Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.”

Jesus and Peter taught about being empowered by the Holy Ghost to become witnesses of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Luke 24:48-49, “And ye are witnesses of these things. And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.”

Jesus and Peter mentioned the redemptive work of Jesus and the kingdom of God being prepared before the foundation of the world.

1 Peter 1:20, “Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,”

Matthew 25:34, “Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:”

Jesus and Peter taught that believers are to love one another.

1 Peter 1:22, “Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:”

John 15:12, “This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.”

Peter’s exhortation to “feed the flock of God” (1 Peter 5:1) is reminiscent of Jesus’ charge to Peter to “Feed my sheep” by the Sea of Galilee in the last chapter of John’s Gospel. Also, Peter calls Jesus the “Chief Shepherd” (1 Peter 5:4).

1 Peter 5:2, “Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;”

John 21:16, “He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep.”

1 Peter 5:4, “And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.”

Peter compares the Church to living stones (1 Peter 2:4-5), which is parallel to Jesus giving Peter his surname, which means “rock” (Matthew 16:18).

1 Peter 2:4-5, “To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.”

Matthew 16:18, “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”

Both Jesus and Peter quote from Psalms 118:22-23 about the stone which the builders rejected.

Psalms 118:22-23, “The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner. This is the LORD'S doing; it is marvellous in our eyes.”

Mark 12:10-11, “And have ye not read this scripture; The stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner: This was the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?”

1 Peter 2:7, “Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner,”

Jesus and Peter both mention a “day (or time) of visitation.”

1 Peter 2:12, “Having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation.”

Luke 19:44, “And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.”

Jesus and Peter taught believers to endure wrongful suffering (Matthew 5:39, 1 Peter 2:19).

Matthew 5:39, “But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.”

1 Peter 2:19, “For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully.”

Jesus and Peter use similar terms of thankworthy (Luke 6:32) and “what thank have ye” (1 Peter 2:19).

Luke 6:32, “For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them.”

1 Peter 2:19, “For this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully.”

Jesus and Peter speak of the example that our Saviour left us to follow (John 13:15, 1 Peter 2:21).

John 13:15, “For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you.”

1 Peter 2:21, “For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:”

Peter’s words in 1 Peter 3:9 and 1 Peter 3:14 about not rendering evil for evil and suffering for righteousness’ sake are reminiscent of Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:39; Matthew 5:10).

1 Peter 3:9, “Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.”

1 Peter 3:14, “But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled;”

Matthew 5:39, “But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.”

Matthew 5:10, “Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

Jesus and Peter refer to Noah’s Flood (Matthew 24:37-38, 1 Peter 3:20), in which few were saved, reminding us of Luke 13:23.

Matthew 24:37-38, “But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,”

Luke 13:23, “Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And he said unto them,”

Jesus and Peter refer to the need to be good stewards (Luke 12:42, 1 Peter 4:10).

Luke 12:42, “And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season?”

1 Peter 4:10, “As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”

In summary, it appears that the author of 1 Peter was very familiar with the words of the Lord Jesus Christ.

C. Comparison of Content: The Pauline Literature Scholars note that there is a clear similarity between Peter’s teachings and that of Paul. The disciple named Cephas was surnamed Peter by Jesus Christ and was told that upon this rock He would build His church. Peter certainly served as a rock and a pillar in the early Church. But the doctrinal foundation laid of the Church was laid by Jesus Christ with His foundational teachings in the Gospels (Hebrews 6:1-2), and He is called the chief cornerstone of this foundation. However, it was the nine Church Epistles of Paul the apostle that primarily laid the rest of the foundational doctrines of the early Church. Thus, we see Peter drawing upon his experiences with Christ Jesus as well as upon Paul’s Church Epistles when writing his two epistles. Therefore, we find parallel passages between these two apostles. McEwan tells us that there are eleven references to Romans and ten to Ephesians with Peter’s first epistle.

1. Comparison to Romans - As we read Peter’s first epistle, especially in the Greek text, it become apparent that there are some very clear comparisons between the words, phrases and topics found here and those found in Paul’s epistles. Peter’s discussion of spiritual sacrifices and a building of God (1 Peter 1:13 to 1 Peter 2:11) can also be found in Paul’s epistles, such as Romans 12:1-3 and Romans 12:4-5 and 1 Corinthians 3:9. In fact, Peter uses several Greek words and phrases in his first epistle that can only be found here and in Romans 12:1-2. For example, the Greek word “to be conformed” ( συσχηματι ́ ζω ) (G4964) is used only two times in the New Testament, being found in Romans 12:2 and 1 Peter 1:14. The Greek word “spiritual, reasonable” ( λογικο ́ ς ) (G3050) is also used only two times, being found in Romans 12:1 and 1 Peter 2:2. The phrase “spiritual sacrifice” in 1 Peter 2:5 can be compared to “living sacrifice” in Romans 12:1. The phrase “acceptable to God by Jesus Christ” in 1 Peter 2:5 can be compared to “that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God” (Romans 12:2). Thus, it is very likely that Peter was familiar with Paul’s epistle to the Romans and was borrowing his thoughts in Romans 12:1-2 and further expounding upon them in his epistle.

2. Comparison to Ephesians There are a number of apparent parallel phrases in Ephesians and 1 Peter. We find the similar phrase “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” in Ephesians 1:3 and 1 Peter 1:3. In addition, Peter spends a greater part of his first epistle discussing the theme of submission to one another in all areas of the family and in society, which compares very clearly to Ephesians 5:22 to Ephesians 6:9. In fact, we can note that the categories of submission to government, to employers, to husbands and wives can all be found in Paul’s epistles.

In addition, Peter refers to his knowledge of Paul’s epistles in 2 Peter 3:15-16.

2 Peter 3:15-16, “And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; As also in all his epistles , speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.”

Some scholars also suggest that allusions to 1 Corinthians, Galatians and 2 Thessalonians can be found in 1 Peter, but to much less degree that Romans and Ephesians.

D. Comparison of Content: The Epistle of James Many scholars describe James and 1 Peter as companion epistles in that they both address Christians of the Diaspora. They also share the same message for the need to persevere under persecutions. For example, John McEwan says that there are eight references to James’ letter in 1 Peter. [68]

[68] John Cameron McEwan, The First Letter of Peter: A Study (Perth: Western Australia: New Start Bible Ministries, 2001) [on-line]; accessed 9 September 2010; available from http://www.newstartbibleministries.org.au/ Books/Commentaries/1Peter.pdf; Internet, 9.

E. Comparison of Content: The Usage of the Old Testament 1 Peter contains many quotes to the Old Testament, primarily from the LXX (1 Peter 1:16; 1 Peter 1:24-25; 1 Peter 2:6-9 a, 1 Peter 2:9 b, 1 Peter 2:9 c, 1 Peter 2:22; 1 Peter 3:10-12; 1 Peter 3:14-15; 1 Peter 4:18, 1 Peter 5:5) and allusions (1 Peter 2:3-4; 1 Peter 2:10; 1 Peter 2:23-24; 1 Peter 3:13; 1 Peter 4:8; 1 Peter 4:17; 1 Peter 5:7). The author was so filled with the Old Testament Scriptures that he preferred to express his thoughts from this reference point.

F. Comparison of Style: Warm and Friendly - The epistle of 1 Peter is written in a warm, friendly style intended to encourage his readers to persevere amidst hardships and trials.

VII. Grammar and Syntax

G. Grammar and Syntax: The Greek is of High Quality The epistle of 1 Peter is written with a high degree of knowledge in the Greek language. Donald Guthrie explains that scholars generally agree to its fairly polished style. It reflects fluent, idiomatic Greek, with the Old Testament reflecting someone familiar with the LXX. The Epistle’s vocabulary is full and its sentences flow together better than the Pauline Epistles. [69]

[69] Donald Guthrie, New Testament Introduction (Downers Grover, Illinois: Intervarsity Press, 1990), 763.

H. Grammar and Syntax: The Most Frequent Use of the Words It is possible to identify the underlying theme of perseverance by following good works and submitting to those in authority in the midst of persecutions within 1 Peter by observing some of the most frequently uses the word.

anastrophe ( ἀναστροφή ) ("way of life," "conduct," "behavior") 6 times.

pascho ( πάσχω ) ("suffer"), 12 times.

hypotasso ( ὑποτάσσω ) ("subject," "subordinate"), 6 times.

agathopoieo ( ἀγαθοποιέω ) ("do good"), 4 times.

A word used frequently throughout Peter’s first epistle is the word “conduct, lifestyle or behavior.” It is used six times in its noun form (1 Peter 1:15; 1 Peter 1:18; 1 Peter 2:12; 1 Peter 3:1-2; 1 Peter 3:16) and once as a verb (1 Peter 1:17). Peter uses this word to expound upon the Christian lifestyle of holiness in contrast to their former foolish and ignorant lifestyle in the world. He will follow an orderly exhortation within his first Epistle by telling us how to conduct our behaviour in 1 Peter 1:13 to 1 Peter 2:10 as Christians who have been elected and chosen by God (1 Peter 1:3-12), and then give us practical applications of a lifestyle of sanctification in 1 Peter 2:11 to 1 Peter 4:11. Thus, we see from this list that Peter places a lot of emphasis upon the Christian’s call to suffer for righteousness sake while submitting to others in a lifestyle of good works.

I. Grammar and Syntax: Unique Words There are about sixty unique words used in the epistle of 1 Peter, giving it originality.

THEOLOGICAL FRAMEWORK

“Scholarly excellence requires a proper theological framework.”

(Andreas Kösenberger) [70]

[70] Andreas J. Kösenberger, Excellence: The Character of God and the Pursuit of Scholarly Virtue (Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2011), 161.

Based upon the historical setting and literary style of the epistle of 1 Peter, an examination of the purpose, thematic scheme, and literary structure to this book of the Holy Scriptures will reveal its theological framework. This introductory section will sum up its theological framework in the form of an outline, which is then used to identify smaller units or pericopes within the epistle of 1 Peter for preaching and teaching passages of Scripture while following the overriding message of the book. Following this outline allows the minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to take his followers on a spiritual journey that brings them to the same destination that the author intended his readers to reach.

VIII. Purpose

A. Hortatory The primary purpose of the General Epistles is hortatory. The message of the epistle of 1 Peter is hortatory in that Peter exhorts his readers to patient endurance under trials. He acknowledges their trials, while turning their minds towards their faith in Christ as their eternal hope, so that they could view these sufferings as temporal when compared to the promise given to them of an eternal hope in Heaven, which was far more precious than the perishable things of earth. He exhorts them to endure sufferings while being doers of good works and not as evil doers. He charges them to maintain a life of good moral conduct and submission within society and towards the state despite their ill treatments. Peter uses the sufferings of Christ Jesus as their ultimate example to follow.

Why would Peter be writing to a region that was partially, or largely, evangelized by Paul the apostle? Some scholars suggest that Paul may have already died before Peter wrote his two Epistles to these churches, or, Peter could have considered himself within his apostolic authority by writing primarily to the Jews in churches made up largely of Gentile converts.

The hortatory purpose reflects the primary theme of the epistle of 1 Peter, which is the perseverance in the faith against persecutions from without the Church.

B. Doctrinal - The General Epistles contain some doctrinal teachings along with hortatory instructions regarding perseverance. The epistle of 1 Peter teaches about the divine election of God the Father.

The doctrinal purpose reflects the second theme of the epistle of 1 Peter, which is the doctrine of divine election, which gives us hope in our eternal salvation.

C. Practical The epistle of 1 Peter also contains some practical instructions on conduct in light of Peter’s exhortation. Believers are told to endure suffering and to submit to one another, knowing that they have an enduring hope of eternal life at the coming of Jesus Christ.

The practical purpose reflects the third theme of the epistle of 1 Peter, which is to told to endure suffering and to submit to one another.

IX. Thematic Scheme

Introduction - Each book of the Holy Scriptures contains a three-fold thematic scheme in order to fulfill its intended purpose, which is to transform each child of God into the image of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:29). The primary, or foundational, theme of a book offers a central claim that undergirds everything written by the author. The secondary, or structural theme, of the book supports its primary theme by offering reasons and evidence for the central “claim” made by the author as it fully develops the first theme. Thus, the secondary theme is more easily recognized by biblical scholars than the other two themes because they provide the literary content of the book as they navigate the reader through the arguments embedded within the biblical text, thus revealing themselves more clearly. [71] The third theme is imperative in that it calls the reader to a response based upon the central claim and supporting evidence offered by the author. Each child of God has been predestined to be conformed into the image and likeness of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Scriptures, and they alone, have the power to accomplish this task. This is why a child of God can read the Holy Scriptures with a pure heart and experience a daily transformation taking place in his life, although he may not fully understand what is taking place in his life. In addition, the reason some children of God often do not see these biblical themes is because they have not fully yielded their lives to Jesus Christ, allowing transformation to take place by the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Without a personal relationship with the Holy Spirit, a child of God is not willing to allow Him to manage his life and move him down the road that God predestined as his spiritual journey. This journey requires every participant to take up his cross daily and follow Jesus, and not every believer is willing to do this. In fact, every child of God chooses how far down this road of sacrifice he is willing to go. Very few of men and women of God fulfill their divine destinies by completing this difficult journey. In summary, the first theme drives the second theme, which develops the first theme, and together they demand the third theme, which is the reader’s response.

[71] For an excellent discussion on the use of claims, reasons, and evidence in literature, see Wayne C. Booth, Gregory G. Colomb, and Joseph M. Williams, The Craft of Research (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2003).

A. Primary Theme (Foundational) - The Perseverance of the Saints Against Persecutions from Without - Introduction - The central theme of the Holy Bible is God’s plan of redemption for mankind. This theme finds its central focus in the Cross, where our Lord and Saviour died to redeem mankind. The central figure of the Holy Scriptures is the Lord Jesus Christ. Thus, the Cross is the place where man meets God and where we die to our selfish ambitions and yield our lives to the God who created all things. Therefore, the Holy Scriptures are not intended to be a precise record of ancient history. Rather, its intent is to provide a record of God’s divine intervention in the history of mankind in order to redeem the world back to Himself through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on Calvary.

Every book of the Holy Bible makes a central claim that undergirds the arguments or message contained within its text. For example, the central claim of the Pentateuch is found in Deuteronomy 6:4, “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD,” to which all additional material is subordinate. The bulk of the material in the Old Testament is subordinate in that it serves as reasons and evidence to support this central claim. This material serves as the secondary theme, offering the literary structure of the book. In addition, the central claim calls for a response, which is stated in the following verse, “And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” (Deuteronomy 6:5) Such a response is considered the third, imperative theme that runs through every book of the Holy Scriptures.

This central claim is the primary, or foundational, theme and is often obscured by the weight of evidence that is used to drive the central message, which weight of evidence makes up the secondary theme; and thus, it contains more content than the primary theme. Therefore, the secondary themes of the books of the Holy Scripture are generally more recognizable than the primary theme. Nevertheless, the central claim, or truth, must be excavated down to the foundation and made clearly visible in order to understand the central theme driving the arguments contained within the book. Only then can proper exegesis and sermon delivery be executed.

1. The Central Themes of the New Testament Epistles: Sanctification of the Believer - There are twenty-one epistles in the New Testament, which the early Church recognized as having apostolic authority so that they were collected into one body, circulated among the churches, an eventually canonized. While the Gospels emphasize the redemptive work of the Lord Jesus Christ in the process justification of the believer, New Testament epistles emphasize the redemptive plan of the Holy Spirit as He works in the process of sanctification for each believer. Thus, the work of sanctification serves as the underlying theme of all twenty-one epistles. In addition, each one emphasizes a different aspect of this divine process of sanctification and they are organized together so that the New Testament is structured to reflect the part of our spiritual journey called sanctification In order to express this structure, each of these epistles have different themes that are woven and knitted together into a unified body of teachings which will bring the believer through the process of sanctification and ready for the rapture of the Church into a place of rest in the glorious hope revealed in the book of Revelation. Therefore, the New Testament epistles were collected together by topic by the early Church.

Of the twenty-one epistles, there are thirteen Pauline epistles and eight designated as General, or Catholic, epistles. We can organize these twenty-one epistles into three major categories: (1) there are epistles that emphasize Church doctrine, which are the nine Pauline epistles of Romans to 2 Thessalonians; (2) there are those that deal with Church order and divine service, which are 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus and Philemon; [72] and (3) there are those that stress perseverance in the Christian faith, which are Hebrews and the seven General Epistles. [73] Within Hebrews and the General Epistles, we note that the first three epistles exhort the believer to persevere under persecutions, which come from without the Church (Hebrews, James, 1 Peter), while the other five epistles emphasis perseverance against false doctrines, which come from within (2 Peter , 1, 2, 3 John, Jude).

[72] For the sake of developing thematic schemes, the epistle of Philemon will be grouped with the Pastoral Epistles as did the Church fathers.

[73] For the sake of developing thematic schemes, the epistle of Hebrews will be grouped with the General Epistles, although many of the early Church fathers followed the tradition of grouping it with the Pauline epistles.

2. The Central Theme of the Catholic, or General, Epistles: Perseverance in the Christian Faith We know that the nine Pauline “Church” epistles, Romans to 2 Thessalonians, serve to lay the doctrinal foundation of the Church. In addition, the Pastoral Epistles establishes the order of the Church, and how the Body of Christ functions in this world. This leaves us to consider the eight remaining epistles, seven of which are called the “Catholic Epistles” because they are addressed to a much broader group of believers than the Pauline Epistles. Although the seven Catholic, or General, Epistles include James , 1, 2 Peter , 1, 2, 3, John, and Jude, for the sake of this evaluation of thematic schemes, the book of Hebrews is included. As Paul’s Church Epistles establish the doctrines of the Church, the Catholic Epistles deal with the practical struggles that each believer has in fulfilling the Christian life. Thus, these Epistles tend to be more practical and ethical than doctrinal or theological.

The early church faced two great challenges that attacked their sacred doctrines. They experienced persecutions from without, as addressed in Hebrews, James and 1 Peter; and, they endured heresies from within, as dealt with in 2 Peter , 1, 2, and 3 John and Jude. [74] The underlying theme of Hebrews and the Catholic Epistles is the perseverance in the Christian faith, [75] exhorting the saints to persevere amidst persecutions from without the Church as well as false doctrines from within the Church. [76] The books of Hebrews, James and 1 Peter address the particular issue of perseverance under persecutions from without the church, a theme popularly referred to as the “pilgrim motif.” [77] 2 Peter, the three epistles of John and Jude deal with the particular issue of false ministers and doctrines that attack the church from within (2 Peter 3:1-4, 1 John 2:26, Jude 1:3-4). Thus, there are three witnesses of perseverance under persecutions (Hebrews, James and 1 Peter) and three witnesses of perseverance under false doctrines (2 Peter , 1, 2, 3 John, and Jude). As with two epistles to the Corinthians and Thessalonians, the three epistles of John serve as one witness because they share similar themes among themselves.

[74] J. B. Lightfoot recognized this two-fold aspect of Christian perseverance, saying, “The armoury of this epistle [Galatians] has furnished their keenest weapons to the combatants in the two greatest controversies which in modern times have agitated the Christian Church; the one a struggle for liberty within the camp, the other a war of defence against assailants from without; the one vitally affecting the doctrine, the other the evidences of the Gospel.” See J. B. Lightfoot, Saint Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians (London: Macmillian and Co., Limited, 1910), 67.

[75] I do not adhere to the doctrine popularly referred to as “Once saved, always saved,” or “the perseverance of the saints,” a belief that has emerged in the modern church among several denominations, which has its apparent roots in Calvinist theology.

[76] P. P. Saydon offers this theme for the epistle of Hebrews. See P. P. Saydon, “The Master Idea of the Epistle to the Hebrews,” Melita Theologica XIII, no. 1-2 (1961) 19-26. See also George Salmon, “The Keynote to the Epistle of the Hebrews,” in The Expositor, second series, vol. 3, ed. Samuel Cox (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1882), 83.

[77] Philip Mauro, God’s Pilgrims: Their Dangers, Their Resources, Their Rewards (London: Samuel E. Roberts, 1921); Ernst Käsemann, The Wandering People of God: An Investigation of the Letter to the Hebrews, trans. Ray A. Harrisville and Irving L. Sandberg (Minneapolis, MN: Ausburg Publishing House, 1984); David J. MacLeod, “The Doctrinal Center of the Book of Hebrews,” Bibliotheca Sacra 146:583 (July 1989): 291-300, in Libronix Digital Library System, v. 2.1c [CD-ROM] (Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2000-2004), 297.

3. The Primary Theme of the Epistle of 1 Peter The epistle of 1 Peter clearly reflects the aspect of its primary theme, which is believers as pilgrims persevering in the midst of persecutions from without the Church, which may be referred to as the pilgrim motif. For example, the opening verse addresses Peter’s recipients as “strangers” or “sojourners,” words that reflect that idea of someone who is living in a strange land while looking for a better home in the future. He then refers to our “living hope” in 1 Peter 1:3 to describe these sojourners as a people who are hoping for something better in the future. We as pilgrims wander in a foreign land that assaults us with persecutions from without. The theme of perseverance in the midst of persecutions is clearly woven throughout the epistle. For example, Peter refers to their “manifold temptations” (1 Peter 1:6), “they speak against you as evildoers” (1 Peter 2:12), “put to silence the ignorance of foolish men” (1 Peter 2:15), “they speak evil of you” (1 Peter 3:16), “ye suffer for well doing” (1 Peter 3:17), “as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind” (1 Peter 4:1), “fiery trial” (1 Peter 4:12), “if you be reproached” (1 Peter 4:14), “your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about” (1 Peter 5:8), “the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren” (1 Peter 5:9), and “after that ye have suffered a while” (1 Peter 5:10), all of which reflect the theme of perseverance in the midst of persecutions (1 Peter 1:6; 1 Peter 2:12; 1 Peter 2:15; 1 Peter 3:16-17; 1 Peter 4:1; 1 Peter 4:12-16; 1 Peter 5:8-11). There are several key verses in 1 Peter that directly address the issue of persecutions in the epistle of 1 Peter.

1 Peter 1:6, “Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:”

1 Peter 4:12, “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:”

Peter explains that the way to overcome this world’s temptations is through an attitude of submission towards the plan of redemption of God the Father, who has given us hope of eternal peace. Thus, a key word in this general epistle is “submission.” Peter concludes his Epistle with a general summary statement that states the primary theme of his epistle. He tells us in 1 Peter 5:10-11 that as we suffer for His name’s sake God will strengthen us so that we will be able to persevere to the end and receive our inheritance into His eternal glory.

1 Peter 5:10-11, “But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.”

B. Secondary Theme (Structural) The Divine Election of God the Father Giving Us Hope in Our Salvation Introduction - The secondary themes of the books of the Holy Scriptures support the primary themes by offering reasons and evidence for the central “claim” of the book made by the author. Thus, the secondary themes are more easily recognized by biblical scholars than the other two themes because they provide the literary structure of the book as they navigate the reader through the arguments embedded within the biblical text, thus revealing themselves more clearly. For example, the central claim of the Pentateuch declares that the Lord God of Israel is the only God that man should serve, and man is to love the Lord God with all of his heart, mind, and strength, a statement found in the Shema of Deuteronomy 6:4-5, which is the foundational theme of the Old Testament. The books of Hebrew poetry provide evidence to this claim by expounding upon how man is to love God with all of his heart as its secondary theme. The books of the prophets provide evidence to this claim by expounding upon how man is to love God with all of his mind as its secondary theme, as he set his hope in the coming of the Messiah to redeem mankind. The historical books provide evidence to this claim by expounding upon how man is to love God with all of his strength as its secondary theme.

The central claim of the four Gospel writers is that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, which is the foundational theme of this division of the Holy Scriptures. In addition, each Gospel writer offers evidence as its secondary theme to support his claim. The Gospel of John offers the five-fold testimony of God the Father, John the Baptist, the miracles of Jesus, the Old Testament Scriptures, and the testimony of Jesus Christ Himself as its secondary theme. Matthew expounds upon the testimony of the Old Testament Scriptures as its secondary theme; Mark expounds upon the testimony of the miracles of Jesus as its secondary theme; Luke expounds upon the testimony of John the Baptist and other eye-witnesses and well as that of the apostles in the book of Acts as its secondary theme.

The central claim of the Pauline Church Epistles is that the Gospel of Jesus Christ alone how the power to redeem and transform man into the image of Jesus, which is the foundational theme of this division of the Holy Scriptures. The epistle of Romans supports this claim by offering evidence of mankind’s depravity and God’s plan of redemption to redeem him as its secondary theme. The epistles of Ephesians and Philippians expound upon the role of God the Father in His divine foreknowledge as their secondary theme; the epistles of Colossians and Galatians expound upon the role of Jesus Christ as the head of the Church as their secondary theme; the epistles of 1, 2 Thessalonians , 1, 2 Corinthians expound upon the role of the Holy Spirit in sanctifying the believers as their secondary theme.

The central claim of the Pastoral Epistles is that believers must serve God through the order of the New Testament Church. The epistles of 1, 2 Timothy expound upon how to serve the Lord within the Church with a pure heart, which is its secondary theme. The epistle of Titus expounds upon how to serve the Lord within the Church with a renewed mind, which is its secondary theme. The epistle of Philemon expounds upon how to serve the Lord within the Church with a genuine lifestyle, which is its secondary theme.

The central claim of the General Epistles is that believers must persevere in the Christian faith in order to obtain eternal redemption. The epistles of Hebrews, James, and 1 Peter modify this theme to reflect perseverance from persecutions from without the Church. The epistle of Hebrews expounds upon the High Priesthood of Jesus Christ, which is its secondary theme. The epistle of James expounds upon a lifestyle of perseverance through the joy of the Holy Spirit, which is its secondary theme. The epistle of 1 Peter expounds upon our hope of divine election through God the Father, which is its secondary theme. The epistles of 2 Peter , 1, 2, 3, John and Jude reflect perseverance from false doctrines from within. The epistle of 2 Peter expounds upon growing in the knowledge of God’s Word with a sound mind, which is its secondary theme. The epistles of 1, 2, 3 John expound upon walking in fellowship with God and one another with a pure heart, which is its secondary theme. The epistle of Jude expounds how living a godly lifestyle with our bodies, which is its secondary theme.

The Apocalypse of John, though not considered an epistle, emphasizes the glorification of the Church, giving believers a vision of the hope that is laid up before them as a source of encouragement for those who persevere until the end. The central claim of the book of Revelation is that Jesus Christ is coming to take His Bride the Church to Glory. The secondary theme supports this claim with the evidence of Great Tribulation Period.

1. The Secondary Themes of Hebrews, James, and 1 Peter - While the three epistles of Hebrew, James and 1 Peter share a common, foundational theme commonly called the pilgrim motif, they also carry secondary themes that give each of them a distinct emphasis upon one aspect of the believer’s perseverance in the Christian faith. The secondary themes of these three epistles are listed in 1 Peter 1:2, “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.” The epistles of Hebrew, James and 1 Peter and find the office and ministry of Jesus Christ the Son, the Holy Spirit, and God the Father emphasized within them respectively.

a) The High Priesthood of Jesus Christ (Our Hearts) - The author of the epistle of Hebrews unambiguously states his theme in Hebrews 8:1 saying, “Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;” John Ebrand says the Greek word κεφάλαιον can be translated “sum,” “central point,” or “key-stone.” [78] In other words, the author is saying that the central point of Hebrews is the High Priesthood of Jesus Christ, a view that is widely held among scholars. [79] The doctrinal discourses of the Epistle that follow the six exhortations of perseverance focus upon the Exaltation and High Priesthood of Jesus Christ as explanations on how to persevere in the Christian faith. This secondary theme emphasizes perseverance by faith within our hearts.

[78] John Henry Augustus Ebrand, “Exposition of the Epistle of Hebrews,” trans. A. C. Kendrick, in Biblical Commentary on the New Testament, vol. 6, ed. Dr. Hermann Olshausen (New York: Sheldon and Company, 1859), 472.

[79] David MacLeod says, “The traditional view, and the one most widely held, is that the epistle finds its center (its “keystone”) in the doctrine of the high priesthood of Christ.” He then offers a list of scholars in support of this view. See David J. MacLeod, “The Doctrinal Center of the Book of Hebrews,” Bibliotheca Sacra 146:583 (July 1989): 291-300, in Libronix Digital Library System, v. 2.1c [CD-ROM] (Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2000-2004), 291-292. For example, Marvin Vincent says, “Christ as the great high priest, who appears nowhere in the Pauline epistles, is the central figure in the Epistle to the Hebrews.” See Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament, vol. 4 (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1905), 364.

b) The Lifestyle of True Religion in the Holy Spirit (Our Bodies) - Within the epistle of James, we find emphasis being placed upon our need to walk in the light and truth of God’s Word as our basis for perseverance. This epistle emphasizes the office of the Holy Spirit as He leads us in a life of joy in the midst of our temptations. It teaches us that faith without works is dead, and that faith is perfected with patience endurance. Thus, the emphasis is placed upon our physical actions as the way to persevere.

c) God the Father’s Hope of Our Eternal Inheritance (Our Minds) - The epistle of 1 Peter takes a look at the foreknowledge of God the Father, and how He has called us to be a holy nation and given us a living hope of an eternal inheritance in Heaven. Thus, we are to gird up the loins of our minds as a means of persevering. In addition, we find these three themes of 1 Peter, James and Hebrews, stated in the opening verse of the first epistle of Peter.

Thus, our ability to persevere persecutions from without is based upon setting our minds and hope upon our eternal rewards (1 Peter) while endeavoring to walk in the light of God’s Word by the leading of the Holy Spirit (James) and coming to the throne of God and Jesus Christ our Great High Priest with our confession of faith when we are in need (Hebrews). Thus, Hebrews deals with the perseverance of the heart of the believer, James emphasizes the perseverance of the body, and Peter focuses upon perseverance of the mind.

2. The Secondary Theme of the Epistle of 1 Peter - The epistle of 1 Peter takes a look at God the Father’s divine election for the Church (1 Peter 1:2; 1 Peter 5:13), how He has called us to be a holy nation and given us a living hope of an eternal inheritance in Heaven. Thus, we are to gird up the loins of our minds as a means of persevering in hope of this eternal promise (1 Peter 5:10). [80] We find this theme of the office and ministry of God the Father reflected in the opening verse and closing verses of this Epistle.

[80] Charles Bigg agrees with this theme, saying, “The theme of 1 Peter is that hope of the promised land which sustains the pilgrim’s heart in his toilsome march through the desert. And to the eye of Hope the Last Day appears as a manifestation of the Lord’s glory.” See Charles Bigg, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Epistles of St. Peter and St. Jude, in The International Critical Commentary, eds. Charles A. Briggs, Samuel R. Driver, and Alfred Plummer (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1903), 235.

1 Peter 5:10, “But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.”

1 Peter 5:13, “The church that is at Babylon, elected together with you, saluteth you; and so doth Marcus my son.”

Thus, our ability to persevere persecutions from without is based upon setting our minds and hope upon our eternal rewards (1 Peter) while endeavoring to walk in the light of God’s Word by leading of the Holy Spirit (James) and coming to the throne of God and Jesus Christ our Great High Priest with our confession of faith when we are in need (Hebrews), which reflects the secondary themes of these three Epistles. Hebrews deals with the heart, James emphasizes the body and Peter focuses upon the mind.

C. Third Theme (Supportive) - The Crucified Life of the Believer (Perseverance Through Placing Our Hope in Heaven’s Inheritance While We Submit to the Authorities of This World) Introduction - The third theme of each book of the New Testament is a call by the author for the reader to apply the central truth, or claim, laid down in the book to the Christian life. It is a call to a lifestyle of crucifying the flesh and taking up one’s Cross daily to follow Jesus. Every child of God has been predestined to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:29), and every child of God faces challenges as well as failures in the pursuit of his Christian journey. For example, the imperative theme of the Old Testament is that God’s children are to serve the Lord God with all of their heart, mind, and strength, and love their neighbour as themselves (Deuteronomy 6:4-5).

The child of God cannot fulfill his divine destiny of being conformed into the image of Jesus without yielding himself and following the plan of redemption that God avails to every human being. This 4-fold, redemptive path is described in Romans 8:29-30 as predestination, calling, justification, and glorification. The phase of justification can be further divided into regeneration, indoctrination, divine service, and perseverance. Although each individual will follow a unique spiritual journey in life, the path is the same in principle for every believer since it follows the same divine pattern described above. This allows us to superimpose one of three thematic schemes upon each book of the Holy Scriptures in order to vividly see its imperative theme. Every book follows a literary structure that allows either (1) the three-fold scheme of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit: or (2) the scheme of spirit, soul, and body of man; or (3) the scheme of predestination, calling, justification (regeneration, indoctrination, divine service, and perseverance), and glorification in some manner.

1. The Third, Imperative Theme of the Epistle of 1 Peter - The third theme of each of the General Epistles is an emphasis on how to apply the doctrinal truths laid down in the Epistle to the Christian life. It is a life of crucifying the flesh and taking up our Cross daily to follow Him. In 1 Peter our crucified lifestyle is manifested as we put our hope in the heavenly inheritance that is awaiting us through God the Father’s divine election. This hope is manifested to the world by living a lifestyle of good works before them and submitting to those in authority, even when we are persecuted for righteousness sake. These good works become a testimony of our hope of eternal redemption to a lost and dying world. We endure persecutions with joy because we place our hope in God the Father’s eternal inheritance kept for each of us. It is interesting to note that Peter was the one that most resisted Jesus’ announcement of His pending suffering on Calvary; for at the time he did not understand its significance. Now, in his epistle, Peter makes a great deal of emphasis upon our need to follow Jesus’ example of suffering for righteousness sake. Every child of God has been predestined to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:29). The epistle of 1 Peter emphasizes one aspect of this conformity through the crucified life of faith and obedience in Him.

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Figure 1 The Themes of the General Epistles

D. Summary - Finally, it is important to note that the General Epistles do not establish Church doctrine, for this was laid down in the Pauline Church Epistles. They may refer to doctrine, but they do not establish or add to it.

X. Literary Structure

The literary structure of the epistle of 1 Peter must follow the thematic scheme of the book. It is important to note that such a breakdown of this book of the Holy Bible was not necessarily intended by the original author, but it is being used as a means of making the interpretation easier. It is hoped that this summary and outline can identify the underlying themes of the book, as well as the themes of its major divisions, sections and subsections. Then individual verses can more easily be understood in light of the emphasis of the immediate passages in which they are found.

The three-fold structure of 1 Peter is given in the second verse of its opening salutation, “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ.” We find emphasis upon the foreknowledge of God the Father’s divine plan of election for us in 1 Peter 1:3-12. This is followed by an emphasis on a life of holiness brought about by sanctification by the Holy Spirit (1 Peter 1:13 to 1 Peter 2:10). The third section of this epistle emphasizes a lifestyle of obedience to Jesus Christ by submitting to those in authority over us and enduring suffering for righteousness sake (1 Peter 2:11 to 1 Peter 4:11). We can better understand this emphasis when we interpret the phrase “sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ” to refer to daily cleansing of our sins when we are disobedient rather than as a reference to our initial salvation experience. Finally, Peter ends his epistle in sermon format with appropriate closing remarks encouraging us to rejoice in the midst of persecution in light of blessed hope in Heaven (1 Peter 4:12 to 1 Peter 5:9). Peter closes the epistle in standard epistolary style with a benediction and final greetings (1 Peter 5:10-14).

I. Introduction (1 Peter 1:1-12 ) After giving a customary salutation (1 Peter 1:1-2) Peter introduces his readers to the glorious theme of the Father’s divine election to the saints of God (1 Peter 1:3-12).

A. Salutation (1 Peter 1:1-2 ) 1 Peter 1:1-2 serves as the salutation to his first Epistle. Within these opening verses we clearly see the primary theme of the perseverance of the saints, as well as the secondary theme of God the Father’s role in equipping the saints for perseverance. After Peter carefully identifies his recipients so as not to intrude upon the ministry of Paul the apostle and others (1 Peter 1:1), he establishes the basis for his call to the perseverance of the saints by referring to their divine election (1 Peter 1:2).

B. Foreknowledge of the Father: The Believer’s Blessed Hope (1 Peter 1:3-12 ) The believer’s divine election is established upon the three-fold work of God the Father, Jesus Christ the Son and God the Holy Spirit (1 Peter 1:2). The Father’s role is discussed first. In 1 Peter 1:3-12 we are told that our blessed eternal hope is based upon the Father’s foreknowledge in electing us unto salvation. In His divine providence He has prepared for our election by making provision for us in the future (1 Peter 1:3-5), in the present (1 Peter 1:6-9) and in the past (1 Peter 1:10-12). The role of God the Father in divine election is found in the fact that He Himself has prepared a future inheritance for us, who have been saved and kept by His power (1 Peter 1:3-5). Our heavenly position with God is then quickly contrasted with our earthly circumstances, which involve temptations that try our faith (1 Peter 1:6-9). In other words, God the Father is keeping us as we walk in faith and He will one day send His Son Jesus Christ back to earth to gather the saints who are persevering in hope of this future event, which we refer to as the Second Coming (1 Peter 1:6-9). God the Father sent the Holy Spirit to speak through the prophets of old to testify of these future redemptive events for those who endure these trials of faith (1 Peter 1:10-12). This introductory passage is used to show us the enormous value of our election, being much more valuable than gold which perished, and valuable enough that the prophets of old inquired and sought diligently to understand these prophetic revelations.

1. Our Future Inheritance to Give Us Hope in Election (1 Peter 1:3-5 ) The base-line sentence of 1 Peter 1:3-5 is “Blessed (be) God the Father.” This passage will expound upon the blessedness of the Father in electing us unto eternal redemption through the sacrifice of His Son Jesus Christ. 1 Peter 1:3-5 tells us that the Father has provided us a future inheritance in Heaven as a part of His divine election for us. The base-line sentence of 1 Peter 1:3-5 is “Blessed (be) God the Father.” Therefore, these verses will expound upon the Father’s blessedness by showing us the inheritance He has prepared for us His children through His divine foreknowledge.

2. Our Present Trials of Faith Bring Us to Salvation in Election (1 Peter 1:6-9 ) Having declared our future hope (1 Peter 1:3-5) Peter then mentions in 1 Peter 1:6-9 our present condition of suffering in this life. The Father has also elected, or determined, that our faith must be tested in this present time, resulting in the salvation of our souls. These verses explain that our faith in God is more valuable that any material gain that man may achieve in this life. We are told in this passage that God will allow us to go through periods of testing so as to refine our faith in Him. Such trials become our opportunity to demonstrate our love and devotion to our Saviour. These tests teach us to place our faith in Him and help us to develop in maturity in the midst of our trials. The clearest examples in Scriptures of those whose faith was tried and proven genuine and whose faith brought them into their eternal glory is the list of men and women found in Hebrews 11:1-40. In these verses we read of Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Moses and Rahab who all endured trials of faith on this earth in order to obtain their eternal inheritance. This exhortation to persevere in hopes of our eternal glory is the message of 1 Peter 1:3-5.

3. Our Past Prophecies to Exhort Us to Persevere in Election (1 Peter 1:10-12 ) 1 Peter 1:10-12 explains that God the Father elected us by sending the Holy Spirit to speak through the prophets of old, who were elected to testify of these future redemptive events regarding our salvation. These prophecies were spoken to us in the past so that they could be preached to us now during our present trials as a way of exhorting us to persevere.

Peter will explain to his readers how the prophets of old desired to understand the redemptive work of Christ, and even today the angels desire to fully understand the same. It is now being revealed unto us.

II. The Body of the Sermon (1 Peter 1:13 to 1 Peter 5:9 ) - We should note that while Hebrews emphasized our need to have a pure heart in the midst of perseverance through the office of Jesus as our Great High Priest, and James emphasizes our physical works mixed with faith by the power of the Holy Spirit, the epistle of 1 Peter places emphasis upon our minds as we place our hope in the Father’s election. Therefore, 1 Peter offers three primary exhortations that appeal to the believer’s mind and will to make the decision to persevere. We can title these three divisions in the format of a sermon with explanation, illustration, and application.

EXPLANATION Peter first explains how we are to respond to the Father’s election (1 Peter 1:3-12) by choosing a lifestyle of sanctification through the indwelling the Holy Spirit by partaking of God’s Word (1 Peter 1:13 to 1 Peter 2:10).

ILLUSTRATION - Secondly, Peter illustrates his sermon by us illustrations of how we choose to obey Jesus Christ in the love walk by a life of good works and submission to authority, which is our “spiritual service,” even when it involved suffering for righteousness sake (1 Peter 2:11 to 1 Peter 4:11).

APPLICATON - Thirdly, Peter shows us how to apply our hope of divine election by exhorting us we to rejoice while fulfilling our spiritual duties in light of our blessed hope of Heaven (1 Peter 4:12 to 1 Peter 5:9).

All three of these choices are based upon the living hope that has been placed before us by the office and ministry of God the Father. We make these choices by “girding up the loins of our mind” with the Word of God (1 Peter 1:13), by “abstaining from fleshly lusts that war against the soul” and walking in love in order to enter into our spiritual duties (1 Peter 2:11), and by rejoicing in hope of eternal live in order to persevere in fulfilling our duties (1 Peter 4:7). This means that 1 Peter is emphasizing the mind of man in choosing to serve God in light of his understanding of the eternal hope his has in heaven. Thus, when Peter describes the former lifestyle of his readers as being foolish and ignorant, he is again emphasizing the mental realm of our spiritual makeup.

II. Sanctification by the Spirit (Explanation of Sermon): The Believer’s Response is to Decide to Sanctify Himself Through Partaking of God’s Word in Light of This Blessed Hope (1 Peter 1:13 to 1 Peter 2:10 ) Once we have been enlightened to our blessed hope of the Heavenly Father (1 Peter 1:3-12), Peter explains how we are in the position to make the choice to sanctify ourselves by growing in the Word of God through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit (1 Peter 1:13 to 1 Peter 2:10).

This passage of Scripture in 1 Peter 1:13 to 1 Peter 2:10 tells us that this work of sanctification is based upon our willingness to grow in the Word of God. We are first given the charge to become holy (1 Peter 1:14-16). Peter makes this appeal to be holy based upon the price that God the Father has paid for our redemption, which is the precious blood of His Son Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:17-21). Since our new birth came about when we partook of the eternal, living Word of God (1 Peter 1:22-25), then it means our spiritual growth into holiness is also accomplished by this same living Word of God (1 Peter 2:1-3). Peter then explains how we are a chosen people of God set apart, or sanctified, with a purpose, which is to effect redemption for mankind (1 Peter 2:4-10).

A. Summary Statement (1 Peter 1:13 ) Our glorious hope of an eternal inheritance has been described in 1 Peter 1:3-12, and summarized in 1 Peter 1:13 as an exhortation to be mindful this living hope. The rest of this Epistle will now take us on a journey to show us how to “hope fully until the end” (1 Peter 1:13).

B. Calling: The Charge to be Holy (1 Peter 1:14-16 ) We are exhorted to make the decision to live a holy lifestyle in this present time in 1 Peter 1:14 to 1 Peter 2:10. 1 Peter 1:14-16 exhorts us to this life of holiness based upon a charge from Moses to the people in Leviticus 11:44-45 to sanctify themselves. Therefore, Peter gives us our divine calling to a life of holiness.

C. Justification: The Price of our Redemption (1 Peter 1:17-21 ) - How is this process of sanctification, or holiness, implemented in our lives? It is the fear of the Lord that causes us to choose a lifestyle of holiness. Proverbs 16:6 says, “…and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.” Thus, 1 Peter 1:17 tells us to walk in the fear of the Lord. How is this fear instilled within our lives? The next verses in 1 Peter 1:18-21 gives us the answer. This fear is instilled by walking in the revelation and realization of the costly purchase of our redemption through the precious blood of God’s Son. Peter tells us the cost of our salvation, which was purchased by the blood of His dear Son. Thus, Peter’s takes a digression in 1 Peter 1:17-21 to lay a foundation for our need for sanctification based upon the cost of our initial salvation, which is called justification. But he describes this event from the perspective of God the Father’s role in bringing about our salvation by explaining how the Father prepared Jesus as our sacrificial lamb from the foundation of the world.

D. Sanctification: The Love Walk (1 Peter 1:22-25 ) In 1 Peter 1:22-25 Peter turns his discussion back to our call to be holy by describing it as the love walk. Our spiritual growth and sanctification come by the natural process of partaking of the living Word of God on a regular basis, which Word initially redeemed us. Our sanctification is manifested to others by walking in love with our brethren (1 Peter 1:22) as well as fearing the Lord (1 Peter 1:14-16). In other words, holiness is a process of being sanctified in our relationship with both God and man. For example, we can see this two-fold application within the Ten Commandments. The first four commandments are directed towards our relationship with God, while the other six commandments emphasize our relationship with men. Jesus explained it well in Matthew 22:37-40 in His reply to the Pharisees about the greatest commandment.

Matthew 22:37-40, “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”

Love is the goal of our sanctification (1 Timothy 1:5), and it becomes our testimony to the world that we are God’s children (John 13:35).

1 Timothy 1:5, “Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned:”

John 13:35, “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”

This spiritual growth is effected by partaking of the same Living and Eternal Word of God that brought us into salvation (1 Peter 1:23). Peter then quotes from Isaiah 40:6-8 to emphasize the living, eternal nature of God’s Word with the power to transform us into maturity (1 Peter 1:24-25).

E. Sanctification: Indoctrination: Spiritual Growth through Partaking of God’s Word (1 Peter 2:1-3 ) The topic of 1 Peter 2:1-3 is on spiritual growth through partaking of God’s Word. The previous passage of 1 Peter 2:22-25 has explained that the eternal nature of God’s Word transforms our lives. Since our new birth came about when we partook of the eternal, living Word of God (1 Peter 1:22-25), then it means our spiritual growth into holiness is accomplished by this same Word of God (1 Peter 2:1-3). 1 Peter 2:1-3 will now tell us that this living Word of God will produce spiritual growth as naturally as milk produces human growth (1 Peter 2:2). We must have a desire for His Word, which desire comes from tasting the goodness of God (1 Peter 2:3). Peter will further expound upon spiritual growth by partaking of God’s Word in his second Epistle.

In 1 Peter 2:1-3 Peter tells his readers that since they have tasted and experienced the Father’s loving grace in salvation (1 Peter 2:3), then they should be willing to lay aside the old man (1 Peter 2:1), and be renewed by Word of God (1 Peter 2:2). Note a similar verse about laying aside the old man and being renewed in God:

Ephesians 4:22-24, “That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.”

F. Sanctification: Spiritual Service (Peter Draws a Picture of a Spiritual Church from the Analogy of the Old Testament Priesthood and Temple Service) (1 Peter 2:4-10 ) Now, just as God called the children of Israel out of Egypt to be a holy nation unto Him, as Peter implies from quoting Leviticus 11:45, so does the Lord require the Church to be set apart and holy in its lifestyle. Thus, Peter calls the Church out to be a separate people in 1 Peter 2:4-10. Just as Peter’s revelation and acceptance and confession of Jesus as the Son of God resulted in Jesus separating him and calling him by the name “Peter,” “a rock,” so does Peter then use this same analogy for his readers in 1 Peter 2:4-8 by calling them “living stones.” We as “living stone” corporately makes up a spiritual temple, and we serve God in a holy priesthood. We find this analogy first alluded to by Jesus when He gave Simon his surnamed as Peter, meaning “rock” (Matthew 16:18). Thus, we can see how important these Old Testament quotes must have meant to Peter when he read and understood them by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

Matthew 16:18, “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”

Peter then uses a number of Old Testament phrases to describe the Church as a holy nation set apart to serve God (1 Peter 2:9-10).

As we partake of His Word (1 Peter 2:1-3), we come into a deeper understanding of how we are a chosen people of God with a purpose (1 Peter 2:4-10). Thus, in 1 Peter 2:4-10 Peter draws a picture of what a mature Church looks like when the believers corporately grow into spiritual maturity through the Word of God, which he exhorts in 1 Peter 2:1-3. Spiritual maturity is inseparable from communal identification, being joined to the community of believers in a unified love for one another.

Peter will then give practical examples of our “spiritual sacrifices” in the lengthy passage of submission. We are to do good works as a testimony to the Gentiles (1 Peter 2:11-12) by submitting to those in authority over us, believers to government (1 Peter 2:13-17), slaves to their masters (1 Peter 2:18-25), wives to husbands (1 Peter 3:1-6), and husbands honoring wives (1 Peter 3:7). This love walk will mean persecution and suffering (1 Peter 3:8-17), but Christ serves as our example (1 Peter 3:18-22).

III. Obedience to Christ Jesus (Illustration of Sermon): Perseverance - The Believer’s Response is to Decide to Walk in Love and Submission with His Fellow Man in Light of This Blessed Hope (1 Peter 2:11 to 1 Peter 4:11 ) Once we have been enlightened to our blessed hope of the Heavenly Father (1 Peter 1:3-12), and exhorted to choose to sanctify ourselves by growing in maturity through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit (1 Peter 1:13 to 1 Peter 2:10), Peter illustrates what a lifestyle of sanctification looks like as we obey to Jesus Christ with good works by submitting to authority and enduring persecution for righteousness sake (1 Peter 2:11 to 1 Peter 4:11).

In 1 Peter 2:11 to 1 Peter 4:11 we are told that our obedience to Christ is based upon our willingness to persevere in the midst of persecutions. Obedience requires some degree of suffering. Paul wrote in Hebrews, “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered,” (Hebrews 5:8). This is why the opening verse of this next section explains that we serve Him by “abstaining from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul,” (1 Peter 2:11). The preceding passage (1 Peter 2:4-10) explains that we as a people of God have been separated unto a holy calling. Thus, the believer’s next response to this blessed hope of election (1 Peter 1:3-12) and exhortation to holiness (1 Peter 1:13 to 1 Peter 2:10) is to serve Him in obedience. Within the context of 1 Peter our souls are “fully hoping in the grace being brought to us at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:13), so that our minds are to be focused upon our eternal inheritance, rather than worldly lusts. These fleshly lusts mentioned in 1 Peter 2:11 pull our focus away from Heaven and turns our hope towards the cares of this world.

Having exhorted us into a lifestyle of holiness by explaining that we are elected as a chosen people through the purchased blood of Christ (1 Peter 1:13 to 1 Peter 2:10), Peter then gives us practical advice on conducting ourselves in the fear of God and love towards mankind (1 Peter 2:11 to 1 Peter 4:11). In the previous passage of 1 Peter 2:4-10 Peter has drawn a picture of what a mature Church looks like when the believers corporately grow into spiritual maturity through the Word of God, which he exhorts in 1 Peter 2:1-3. Peter will then give practical examples of our “spiritual sacrifices” in the lengthy passage of submission. We are to do good works as a testimony to the Gentiles of our blessed hope (1 Peter 2:11-12) by submitting to those in authority over us: all believers to government (1 Peter 2:13-17), slaves to their masters (1 Peter 2:18-25), wives to husbands (1 Peter 3:1-6), and husbands honoring wives (1 Peter 3:7). In summary it is a walk of love from the heart (1 Peter 3:8-12). However, this love walk will mean persecution and suffering, but Christ serves as our example of suffering for righteousness sake (1 Peter 3:13 to 1 Peter 4:11). Our choice to submit to those in authority is actually our way of entrusting ourselves into the hands of a faithful creator (1 Peter 4:19).

A. Introductory Remarks about Believers Coexisting with Non-believers in a Pagan Society (1 Peter 2:11-12 ) In 1 Peter 2:11-12 Peter makes the introductory remarks to live a good lifestyle before the Gentiles in order to cause them to also glorify God. He will follow these remarks by expounding upon this divine principle as he teaches on a life of submission to those in authority over us in 1 Peter 2:13 to 1 Peter 4:11. This lengthy passage on submission within various roles of society (1 Peter 2:13 to 1 Peter 4:11) will serve as an application of how to conduct ourselves among the Gentiles with good works (1 Peter 2:11-12). These “good works” in the midst of persecutions and slander serve as our “spiritual sacrifices” (1 Peter 2:5) that we as a holy priesthood are to continually offer unto God, which analogy Peter makes in 1 Peter 2:4-10.

B. Submission to Authority within Society (1 Peter 2:13 to 1 Peter 3:12 ) - With this mindset of being chosen servants of a holy God to bring the Gentiles into a saving knowledge of God’s plan of redemption we will understand why we must submit ourselves to those in authority over us in the fear of God (1 Peter 2:13 to 1 Peter 3:12). It is important to note that Peter points out in particular the submissive roles of slaves and women in society, roles that are often abused by those in authority in these pagan societies.

1. Believers Submit to Government (1 Peter 2:13-17 ) In 1 Peter 2:13-17 Peter exhorts his readers to be submissive to government authorities who rule over them. He was simply expounding upon Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 22:15-22 when He said, “Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's,” (Matthew 22:21).

2. Slaves Submit to their Masters (1 Peter 2:18-25 ) In 1 Peter 2:18-25 Peter tells slaves to submit to their masters (1 Peter 2:18-21 a), then uses Christ Jesus as the supreme example of suffering under mistreatment (1 Peter 2:21-24), which frequently happened in slavery.

3. Duties of Marriage (1 Peter 3:1-7 ) 1 Peter 3:1-7 deals with the duties of a husband and wife within the institution of marriage. In 1 Peter 3:1-6 Peter charges the wives to be submissive to their husbands. In 1 Peter 3:2 Peter tells the wives how to win their husbands by good works without preaching the Word to them. He made a statement like this to the believers in general in 1 Peter 2:12, which tells them to walk in good works before unbelievers so that they may glorify God in the day of visitation. Thus, Peter applies this principle to a woman married to an unbeliever in 1 Peter 3:1-6.

Having just charged wives to be submissive to their husbands (1 Peter 3:1-6), it is important for Peter to explain the reciprocating role of husbands to submissive wives. The husband is to honor their wives as weaker vessels (1 Peter 3:7). In other words, when the wives humble themselves, the husbands are to exalt them.

4. Charge to All Believers Regarding Submission (1 Peter 3:8-12 ) In 1 Peter 3:8-12 Peter concludes this exhortation on good works towards all men by giving everyone the underlying rule to guide us, which is the love walk, and he quotes a passage about good works to support his statement from Psalms 34:12-16.

C. Walking in Love in the Midst of Persecutions (1 Peter 3:13-22 ) - This love walk will mean persecution and suffering. In 1 Peter 3:13-17 Peter explains how a lifestyle of submission and obedience to Christ brings suffering, and he gives Christ as our supreme example (1 Peter 3:18-22). He first dealt with submission to those in authority within society (1 Peter 2:11 to 1 Peter 3:12), and follows by an exhortation to endure suffering (1 Peter 3:13 to 1 Peter 4:6) because persecutions are often inflicted from a pagan society.

1 Peter 3:13 introduces a passage on suffering for righteousness sake. The passage in 1 Peter 3:13-19 explains that we are to be followers of that which is good. The statement is found as a reference to a previous passage on good works (1 Peter 2:13 to 1 Peter 3:12), which began by saying, “whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works , which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation.” (1 Peter 2:12) Thus, the underlying emphasis of 1 Peter 2:13 to 1 Peter 3:12 is about good works before the Gentiles as a testimony of God’s redemptive work in our lives and the future hope of our eternal inheritance.

D. Learning to Crucify the Flesh and Take Up Our Cross Daily (1 Peter 4:1-6 ) The underlying statement of 1 Peter 4:1-6 is for believers to follow Christ’s example of crucifying the flesh and taking up our cross daily. The opening verse (1 Peter 4:1) exhorts us to make the decision to suffer if need be. Our weapon in order to survive this battle is the decision to suffer in the flesh as Christ did and to lay down our lives if necessary. A good example of such devotion is seen in the Islamic war against Israel and the West when young men choose to become suicide bomber, strapping bombs their bodies and blowing themselves up in order to kill those around them. We see this same mindset during World War II when the Japanese soldiers committed many acts of suicide as “kamikaze” pilots crashing their planes in American ships. Such a decision to lay one’s life down for Christ makes him a formidable weapon against the kingdom of Satan. It involves a commitment to devote ones’ entire energies to doing the will of God and denying one’s own needs, regardless of the costs (1 Peter 4:2). However, such a lifestyle brings confusion and anger and persecution from the world (1 Peter 4:3-5).

This passage in 1 Peter 4:1-6 explains that we are to be followers of that which is good in the midst of persecutions. It opens with the statement, “Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin;” (1 Peter 4:1). The statement in 1 Peter 4:1 is found as a conclusion to the previous passages on good works (1 Peter 2:11 to 1 Peter 3:22), which began by saying, “whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works , which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation,” (1 Peter 2:12). Thus, the underlying emphasis of 1 Peter 2:11 to 1 Peter 4:11 is to conduct oneself in a lifestyle of good works before the Gentiles despite persecutions as a testimony of God’s redemptive work in our lives in order that they, too, may believe and obtain this future hope of an eternal inheritance. 1 Peter 5:1-9 will exhort us to apply this principle within the Church.

Just as Christ was obedient and submissive to His authority, the Heavenly Father, even unto death, so should we be willing to do the same. Since our obedience will also involve suffering for our faith, we should be willing to suffer to the same degree that Christ suffered. If Christ learned obedience by the things He suffered (Hebrews 5:8), then we too can only learn obedience by the same divine rule.

Hebrews 5:8, “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;”

It is interesting to note that Peter was the one that most resisted Jesus’ announcement of His pending suffering on Calvary; for at the time he did not understand its significance. Now, in his epistle, Peter makes a great deal of emphasis upon our need to follow Jesus’ example of suffering for righteousness sake. We are to follow His footsteps (1 Peter 2:21) by crucifying our flesh daily (1 Peter 4:1-6) in order to fulfill in our Christian duties.

E. Exhortation to Watch and Pray (1 Peter 4:7-11 ) After having exhorted us to Christian service by submitting ourselves to others, this section closes by encouraging us to continue to watch and pray (1 Peter 4:7), being most careful to walk in love with others (1 Peter 4:8). 1 Peter 4:8 reveals that the commandment of love, which we can call the “love walk”, is the fundamental commandment that our motives and actions are to be judged by. If we endeavor to measure our lives by love, we will not fail to enter into eternal life. This self-evaluation of our love walk is most easily done by watching and being alert with prayer (1 Peter 4:7). Peter then gives his readers examples of this love walk and shows them how to do this self-evaluation (1 Peter 4:9-11).

IV. Final Exhortation (Application of Sermon) (Glorification): The Believer Can Rejoice in the Midst of Persecutions in Light of This Blessed Hope (1 Peter 4:12 to 1 Peter 5:9 ) Once we have been enlightened to our blessed hope of the Heavenly Father (1 Peter 1:3-12), and make the choice to sanctify ourselves by growing in the Word of God through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit (1 Peter 1:13 to 1 Peter 2:10), and we are living obedient to Jesus Christ with good works by submitting to authority (1 Peter 2:11 to 1 Peter 4:11), Peter then shows us how to apply our blessed hope to this life. We are to make the final choice of fulfilling our duties through perseverance by learning to rejoice in the midst of persecutions (1 Peter 4:12 to 1 Peter 5:9). The basis of our joy is the blessed hope we have reserved in Heaven for us in our future glorification. On the basis of our future glory with Christ in Heaven we are exhorted to be willing to suffer like Him (1 Peter 4:12-19), and serve others as He served us (1 Peter 5:1-9).

A. Exhortation to Endure Suffering for Christ’s Sake (1 Peter 4:12-19 ) 1 Peter 4:12-19 serves as a closing exhortation to persevere until the end despite suffering for Christ’s sake based upon our future reward in Heaven.

B. Submission to Authority within the Church (1 Peter 5:1-9 ) - Peter then returns to his exhortation towards submission among the congregation and to God as Head of the Church (1 Peter 5:1-9). He earlier dealt with submission to those in authority within society (1 Peter 2:13 to 1 Peter 3:7), followed by an exhortation to endure suffering from these unbelievers (1 Peter 3:8 to 1 Peter 4:19), since persecutions are often inflicted from a pagan society. Now Peter deals with submission within the body of Christ as an expression of the love walk.

1. Submission as Elders to the Chief Shepherd (1 Peter 5:1-4 ) 1 Peter 5:1-4 contains Peter’s charge to church leaders, giving them guidelines on how to rule over God’s flock so that they will receive a reward for their stewardship. His charge is reminiscent of Jesus’ charge to Peter in John 21:21-25 to feed His sheep.

2. Submission as young people (1 Peter 5:5 a) The youth are to submit to the older believers.

3. Submission to one another (1 Peter 5:5 b, c) We are to submit to one another as an expression of true humility.

4. Submission to God to Resist the Devil (1 Peter 5:6-9 ) Once we learn submission to our fellow man, we are walking in the humility necessary to live humbly before the Lord so that we can resist the works of darkness. The Devil cannot touch those who walk in love (1 John 5:18).

1 John 5:18, “We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.”

V. Conclusion (1 Peter 5:10-14 ) - 1 Peter 5:10-14 serves as the conclusion of the epistle of 1 Peter. In his closing remarks he gives a benediction, which actually summarizes the theme of his epistle (1 Peter 5:10-11) and then gives his closing farewell greetings (1 Peter 5:12-14).

A. Benediction (1 Peter 5:10-11 ) In 1 Peter 5:10-11 we have a closing benediction.

B. Final Greetings (1 Peter 5:12-14 ) In 1 Peter 5:12-14 he gives final greetings to his recipients.

XI. Outline of Book

The following outline is a summary of the preceding literary structure; thus, it reflects the theological framework of the epistle of 1 Peter: its purpose, its three-fold thematic scheme, and its literary structure. As a result, this outline offers sermon sections that fit together into a single message that can be used by preachers and teachers to guide a congregation or class through the epistle of 1 Peter. This journey through 1 Peter will lead believers into one aspect of conformity to the image of Christ Jesus that was intended by the Lord, which in this book of the Holy Scriptures is to prepare Christians to put their hope in the heavenly inheritance that is awaiting them through God the Father’s divine election, a hope that is manifested to the world by living a lifestyle of good works before them and submitting to those in authority, even when they are persecuted for righteousness sake.

I. Introduction 1 Peter 1:1-12

A. Salutation 1 Peter 1:1-2

B. Foreknowledge of the Father 1 Peter 1:3-12

1. Our Future Inheritance 1 Peter 1:3-5

2. Our Present Trials 1 Peter 1:6-9

3. Our Past Prophecies 1 Peter 1:10-12

II. Sanctification by the Spirit (Explanation) 1 Peter 1:13 to 1 Peter 2:10

A. Summary Statement 1 Peter 1:13

B. Calling: The Charge to be Holy 1 Peter 1:14-16

C. Justification: The Price of our Redemption 1 Peter 1:17-21

D. Sanctification: The Love Walk 1 Peter 1:22-25

E. Sanctification: Indoctrination 1 Peter 2:1-3

F. Sanctification: Spiritual Service 1 Peter 2:4-10

III. Obedience to Christ Jesus (Illustration) 1 Peter 2:11 to 1 Peter 4:11

A. Introductory Remarks 1 Peter 2:11-12

B. Submission to Authority within Society 1 Peter 2:13 to 1 Peter 3:12

1. Believers Submit to Government 1 Peter 2:13-17

2. Slaves Submit to their Masters 1 Peter 2:18-25

3. Wives Submit to Their Husbands 1 Peter 3:1-7

4. Charge to All Believers on Submission 1 Peter 3:8-12

C. Walking in Love 1 Peter 3:13-22

D. Crucifying the Flesh 1 Peter 4:1-6

E. Exhortation to Watch and Pray 1 Peter 4:7-11

IV. Final Exhortation (Application) 1 Peter 4:12 to 1 Peter 5:9

A. Exhortation to Endure Suffering 1 Peter 4:12-19

B. Submission to Authority within the Church 1 Peter 5:1-9

1. Submission as Elders 1 Peter 5:1-4

2. Submission as young people 1 Peter 5:5 a

3. Submission to one another 1 Peter 5:5 b, c

4. Submission to God to resist the Devil 1 Peter 5:6-9

V. Conclusion 1 Peter 5:10-14

A. Benediction 1 Peter 5:10-11

B. Final Greeting 1 Peter 5:12-14

BIBLIOGRAPHY

COMMENTARY BIBLIOGRAPHY

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Barnes, Albert. The First Epistle of Peter. In Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database. Seattle, WA: Hendrickson Publishers Inc., 1997. In P.C. Study Bible, v. 3.1 [CD-ROM]. Seattle, WA: Biblesoft Inc., 1993-2000.

Bigg, Charles. A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Epistles of St. Peter and St. Jude. In The International Critical Commentary on the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. Eds. Charles A. Briggs, Samuel R. Driver, and Alfred Plummer. New York: Charles Scribners Son’s, 1903.

Blum, Edwin A. 1 Peter. In The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, vol. 12. Eds. Frank E. Gaebelien, J. D. Douglas, and Dick Polcyn. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Pub. House, 1976-1992. In Zondervan Reference Software, v. 2.8 [CD-ROM]. Grand Rapids, MI: The Zondervan Corp., 1989-2001.

Brooke, A. E. A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Johannine Epistles. In The International Critical Commentary on the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. Eds. Charles A. Briggs, Samuel R. Driver, and Alfred Plummer. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1912.

Caffin, Benjamin Charles. 1 Peter. In The Pulpit Commentary. Eds. H. D. M. Spence and Joseph Exell. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 1950. In Ages Digital Library, v. 1.0 [CD-ROM] Rio, WI: Ages Software, Inc., 2001.

Chapman, Benjamin C. The First Epistle of Peter. In The KJV Bible Commentary. Eds. Edward E. Hindson and Woodrow M. Kroll. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Pub., 1994. In Libronix Digital Library System, v. 2.1c [CD-ROM]. Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2000-2004.

Calvin, John. Commentaries on the Epistle of James. Trans. John Owen. In Commentaries on the Catholic Epistles. Edinburgh: The Calvin Translation Society, 1855.

Calvin, John. Commentaries on the First Epistle of Peter. Trans. John Owen. In Commentaries on the Catholic Epistles. Edinburgh: The Calvin Translation Society, 1855.

Clarke, Adam. The First Epistle of Peter. In Adam Clarke's Commentary, Electronic Database. Seattle, WA: Hendrickson Publishers Inc., 1996. In P.C. Study Bible, v. 3.1 [CD-ROM] Seattle, WA: Biblesoft Inc., 1993-2000.

Ebrand, John Henry Augustus. “Exposition of the Epistle of Hebrews.” Trans. A. C. Kendrick. In Biblical Commentary on the New Testament, vol. 6. Ed. Dr. Hermann Olshausen. New York: Sheldon and Company, 1859.

Exell, Joseph S., ed. I Peter. In The Biblical Illustrator. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Pub. House, 1954. In Ages Digital Library, v. 1.0 [CD-ROM], Rio, WI: Ages Software, Inc., 2002.

Gill, John 1:0; John 1:0 Peter. In John Gill’s Expositor. In OnLine Bible, v. 2.0 [CD-ROM]. Nederland: Online Bible Foundation, 1992-2005.

Henry, Matthew 1:0; Matthew 1:0 Peter. In Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible, New Modern Edition, Electronic Database. Seattle, WA: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1991. In P.C. Study Bible, v. 3.1 [CD-ROM]. Seattle, WA: Biblesoft Inc., 1993-2000.

Jamieson, Robert, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown. 1 Peter. In A Commentary, Critical and Explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments. In e-Sword, v. 7.7.7. [CD-ROM] Franklin, Tennessee: e-Sword, 2000-2005.

Lightfoot, J. B. Saint Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians. London: Macmillian and Co., Limited, 1910.

Lumby, J. Rawson. The Epistles of St. Peter. In The Expositor’s Bible. Eds. William R. Nicoll and Oscar L. Joseph. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1956. In Ages Digital Library, v. 1.0 [CD-ROM]. Rio, WI: Ages Software, Inc., 2001.

MacDonald, William. The First Epistle of Peter. In Believer’s Bible Commentary. Ed. Arthur Farstad. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Pub., 1995. In Libronix Digital Library System, v. 2.1c [CD-ROM]. Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2000-2004.

McEwan, John Cameron. The First Letter of Peter: A Study. Perth: Western Australia: New Start Bible Ministries, 2001. [on-line]. Accessed 9 September 2010. Available from http://www.newstartbibleministries.org.au/ Books/Commentaries/1Peter.pdf; Internet.

McGee, J. Vernon. The Epistle to Philemon, in Thru the Bible With J. Vernon McGee. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Pub., 1998. In Libronix Digital Library System, v. 2.1c [CD-ROM] Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2000-2004.

McGee, J. Vernon. The First Epistle of Peter. In Thru the Bible With J. Vernon McGee. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Pub., 1998. In Libronix Digital Library System, v. 2.1c [CD-ROM]. Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2000-2004.

Metzger, Bruce M., David A. Hubbard, and Glenn W. Barker, eds. Word Biblical Commentary. Dallas, Texas: Word Incorporated, 1989-2007.

Michaels, J. Ramsey. 1 Peter. In Word Biblical Commentary: 58 Volumes on CD-Rom, vol. 49. Eds. Bruce M. Metzger, David A. Hubbard, and Glenn W. Barker. Dallas: Word Inc., 2002. In Libronix Digital Library System, v. 3.0b [CD-ROM] Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2004.

Pfeiffer, Charles and Everett F. Harrison, eds. The First Epistle of Peter. In The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, Electronic Database. Chicago: Moody Press, c1962. In P.C. Study Bible, v. 3.1 [CD-ROM]. Seattle, WA: Biblesoft Inc., 1993-2000.

Poole, Matthew 1:0; Matthew 1:0 Peter. In Matthew Poole’s New Testament Commentary. In OnLine Bible, v. 2.0 [CD-ROM]. Nederland: Online Bible Foundation, 1992-2005.

Radmacher, Earl D., Ronald B. Allen, and H. Wayne House, eds. The First Epistle of Peter. In Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Commentary. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Pub., 1999. In Libronix Digital Library System, v. 2.1c [CD-ROM]. Bellingham, WA: Libronix Corp., 2000-2004.

Smith, Barry D. The New Testament and its Context: The First Letter of Peter. Crandall University, 2009. [on-line]. Accessed 5 September 2010. Available from http://www.abu.nb.ca/courses/ ntintro/1Pet.htm; Internet.

Westcott, Brooke Foss. The Epistles of St John: The Greek Text with Notes and Essays. Cambridge: Macmillan and Co., 1886.

GENERAL BIBLIOGRAPHY

Berkhof, Louis. Introduction to the New Testament. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Christian Classics Ethereal Library, 2002. Accessed 5 October 2008. Available from http://www.ccel.org/ccel/ berkhof/newtestament.html; Internet.

Booth, Wayne C., Gregory G. Colomb, and Joseph M. Williams. The Craft of Research. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2003.

Comfort, Philip W. and David P. Barrett, eds. The Text of the Earliest New Testament Greek Manuscripts Wheaton, Illinois: Tyndall House Publishers, 1999, 2001.

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