1 Peter 1:1
Πέτρος ἀπόστολος Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐκλεκτοῖς παρεπιδήμοις διασπορᾶς Πόντου, Γαλατίας, Καππαδοκίας, Ἀσίας, καὶ Βιθυνίας,
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the elect foreigners, scattered of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia
Paraphrase: Peter, an apostle called and set apart for this work by our Savior and King, Jesus Christ. I am writing this letter to God’s chosen people, to those pilgrims (Hebrews 11:13) who are living in the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia.
Comments:
1 Peter 1:2
κατὰ πρόγνωσιν θεοῦ πατρός, ἐν ἁγιασμῷ πνεύματος, εἰς ὑπακοὴν καὶ ῥαντισμὸν αἵματος Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ· χάρις ὑμῖν καὶ εἰρήνη πληθυνθείη.
according to the foreknowledge of God, the Father, by sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ; grace to and peace be multiplied.
Paraphrase: To those whom God our Father knew before all time and chose them to be His children; and, as a result of this, they have been baptized with the Spirit of God and so cleansed from every impurity (Acts 1:5; 1 Corinthians 6:11; 12:13 Titus 3:5). To those who as as result of God’s love and choice have learned to submit to the lordship of King Jesus (2 Thessalonians 1:8) and have come under the sprinkling of His blood. (Numbers 19:18-19) May the grace and peace of God be richly multiplied to you.
Comments:
On πρόγνωσιν, see v20 and especially Shedd. Plumptre writes: “The word hovers between the meaning of a mere prevision of the future and the higher sense in which “knowing” means “loving” and “approving,” as in 1 Corinthians 8:3, Galatians 4:9, and probably Romans 8:29, 11:2.” source Denney translates it “those of whom God took knowledge from eternity.” source On foreknowledge, see Edwards and Storms.
1 Peter 1:3
Εὐλογητὸς ὁ θεὸς καὶ πατὴρ τοῦ κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ὁ κατὰ τὸ πολὺ αὐτοῦ ἔλεος ἀναγεννήσας ἡμᾶς εἰς ἐλπίδα ζῶσαν δι’ ἀναστάσεως Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ ἐκ νεκρῶν,
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to the greatness of His mercy, regenerating us to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
Paraphrase: Praise be to the Great God and Father of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. It was our Father’s abounding mercy which led Him to give us a new birth into an entirely new kind of life. We all remember the hopeless and futile life which we lived before we came to know Jesus. (Ephesians 2:12; 1 Peter 1:18; 2:10) Now, however, what a difference. What a change has come in our lives. Now, we have a hope that is undying and unfading (Romans 5:2-5); it is just as reliable as God Himself. (Titus 1:2) How can we be so certain? Our confidence rests on the resurrection of Jesus. (John 11:25) We know that as surely as God raised Jesus from the dead and gave Him new life, so surely will He do the same for us. This is the basis of our confidence and why we are so certain of a happy future.
Comments:
Elsewhere, Peter speaks of the living and abiding word of God (1 Peter 1:23) and living stones. (1 Peter 2:4, 5)
1 Peter 1:4
εἰς κληρονομίαν ἄφθαρτον καὶ ἀμίαντον καὶ ἀμάραντον, τετηρημένην ἐν οὐρανοῖς εἰς ὑμᾶς
into an inheritance, imperishable and uncorrupted and unfading being kept in the heavens for you.
Paraphrase: This future is like an inheritance which God gives to all His children. It is not something they earned or something they had to work for. It is just God’s gift which He freely bestows on those who are His adopted children. Furthermore, unlike gifts which we receive here, this inheritance is imperishable and never rots or decays. (Hebrews 12:27-28) The reason it is imperishable is because it is not defiled with sin. Sin brings death, and where there is no sin, there is no death. Therefore, this inheritance is eternal and never fades or declines. It is pure, lovely, and praiseworthy (Philippians 4:8), and God is always guarding it and keeping it ready for us so that when the day arrives, we may take possession of it with joy and gladness.
Comments:
Westcott (p170): From these examples it will appear that the dominant Biblical sense of ‘inheritance’ is the enjoyment by a rightful title of that which is not the fruit of personal exertion. The heir being what he is in relation to others enters upon a possession which corresponds with his position; but there is no necessary thought of succession to one who has passed away (yet see Matthew 21:38 and parallels; Luke 12:13). An inheritance, in other words, answers to a position of privilege and describes a blessing conferred with absolute validity; and an heir (κληρονόμος) is one who has authority to deal with, to administer, a portion, a possession (κλῆρος).
1 Peter 1:5
τοὺς ἐν δυνάμει θεοῦ φρουρουμένους διὰ πίστεως εἰς σωτηρίαν ἑτοίμην ἀποκαλυφθῆναι ἐν καιρῷ ἐσχάτῳ.
Those who by the power of God being guarded through faith to salvation ready to be revealed on the last time.
Paraphrase: Now you might wonder how we can ever be sure that we will enter into this inheritance when there are so many dangers that threaten us. Every day, Satan is working hard to lead us into sin and to drag us down to hell with him. How can we be sure that we will one day arrive at our eternal home and claim our inheritance? Well this is the truth; God’s mighty arm is stretched out over you to protect you from every enemy. No matter how severe the trial becomes or how sharp the persecution, God’s everlasting arms (Deuteronomy 33:27) never waver and never grow weary. (Isaiah 40:28) Furthermore, Jesus, the Glorious second Person of the Blessed Trinity is praying and interceding for you that your faith will not fail. (Luke 22:32) You can be sure of this; when that day arrives, your eyes will open upon a scene of unparalleled beauty and glory.
Comments:
τοὺς is anaphoric to ἡμᾶς in v3.
1 Peter 1:6
ἐν ᾧ ἀγαλλιᾶσθε, ὀλίγον ἄρτι εἰ δέον λυπηθέντες ἐν ποικίλοις πειρασμοῖς,
in this you rejoice, although being necessary for a little while at this time being grieved in many trials
Paraphrase: I realize that it is difficult for you to think about this inheritance when you aren’t sure about your life from day to day, but consider what I am calling you to do. Look up and see that the time is drawing near when you will lay claim to this inheritance and enter into its glory. When you think of this, you will be able to rejoice even in the face of all these painful experiences which you are having to endure. (2 Corinthians 6:10) God our Father has His own reasons why we must pass through these afflictions.
Comments:
δέον is a participle with a concessive nuance; see §437-438.
1 Peter 1:7
ἵνα τὸ δοκίμιον ὑμῶν τῆς πίστεως πολυτιμότερον χρυσίου τοῦ ἀπολλυμένου διὰ πυρὸς δὲ δοκιμαζομένου εὑρεθῇ εἰς ἔπαινον καὶ δόξαν καὶ τιμὴν ἐν ἀποκαλύψει Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ.
in order that the trial of your faith, more valuable than gold which decays, being tested through fire might then be found unto praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Paraphrase: One of these reasons is that by these trials, our faith is tested and shown to be genuine. You all have seen the goldsmith as he heats up his metal to extreme temperatures. By doing this, he is able to remove all that is not gold from the gold itself. In a similar way, our Father brings us into these difficult places to purify our faith and to give us clear evidence that our faith, which is many times more precious than even the purest gold, is genuine. Then when our Lord returns and shows Himself to be the Great King and Messiah, we will see His glory and honor and will fall at His feet and worship Him. If our faith were not genuine, we would be cast out of God’s presence into eternal punishment.
Comments:
1 Peter 1:8
ὃν οὐκ ἰδόντες ἀγαπᾶτε, εἰς ὃν ἄρτι μὴ ὁρῶντες πιστεύοντες δὲ ἀγαλλιᾶσθε χαρᾷ ἀνεκλαλήτῳ καὶ δεδοξασμένῃ,
whom not seeing, you love, to whom although not now seeing, believing and you rejoice with joy unspeakable and glorious.
Paraphrase: It’s true that we can’t meet with our Savior face to face as we used to. For all that, however, we never stop loving him and looking for His return. We put our full confidence in Him and patiently wait for His appearing. This faith fills us with such confidence, that we are able, even here, to rejoice with great joy. It’s a joy that cannot be expressed in words; it’s a joy that delights in heaping glory and exaltation upon our Lord and Savior.
Comments:
“…a joy in believing on Him, which is better experienced than expressed; a joy that not only strangers intermeddle not with, know nothing of, which entirely passes their understanding, but is such as saints themselves cannot speak out, or give a full and distinct account of; they want words to express it, and convey proper ideas of it to others.” source
1 Peter 1:9
κομιζόμενοι τὸ τέλος τῆς πίστεως ὑμῶν σωτηρίαν ψυχῶν.
1 Peter 1:10
Περὶ ἧς σωτηρίας ἐξεζήτησαν καὶ ἐξηραύνησαν προφῆται οἱ περὶ τῆς εἰς ὑμᾶς χάριτος προφητεύσαντες,
1 Peter 1:11
ἐραυνῶντες εἰς τίνα ἢ ποῖον καιρὸν ἐδήλου τὸ ἐν αὐτοῖς πνεῦμα Χριστοῦ προμαρτυρόμενον τὰ εἰς Χριστὸν παθήματα καὶ τὰς μετὰ ταῦτα δόξας·
1 Peter 1:12
οἷς ἀπεκαλύφθη ὅτι οὐχ ἑαυτοῖς ὑμῖν δὲ διηκόνουν αὐτά, ἃ νῦν ἀνηγγέλη ὑμῖν διὰ τῶν εὐαγγελισαμένων ὑμᾶς πνεύματι ἁγίῳ ἀποσταλέντι ἀπ’ οὐρανοῦ, εἰς ἃ ἐπιθυμοῦσιν ἄγγελοι παρακύψαι.
1 Peter 1:13
Διὸ ἀναζωσάμενοι τὰς ὀσφύας τῆς διανοίας ὑμῶν νήφοντες τελείως ἐλπίσατε ἐπὶ τὴν φερομένην ὑμῖν χάριν ἐν ἀποκαλύψει Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ.
Wherefore, gathering up the loins of your mind, being sober, hope perfectly until the being brought to you grace at the Revelation of Jesus Christ.
Paraphrase: Now as a result of this glorious truth which has been proclaimed to you and which message you have believed, it is time to act. It’s time to get serious; may I say that it is time to gather up your robes and to prepare for a good run. Start with your mind. Set it to thinking and pondering on the gift which you have received. Let your mind be perfectly content to rest in the sure promise of God knowing that God can never break His word. Let your mind look backward to what Christ has done; let it also look forward to His glorious appearing when He will come again and usher us into our glorious inheritance.
Comments:
1 Peter 1:14
ὡς τέκνα ὑπακοῆς, μὴ συσχηματιζόμενοι ταῖς πρότερον ἐν τῇ ἀγνοίᾳ ὑμῶν ἐπιθυμίαις,
As submissive children not conforming to your former lusts in ignorance.
Paraphrase: Do this just as obedient children, humbly looking to your heavenly Father with complete trust and confidence that He will work all these things out for your good. Watch out that you don’t slip back into your old way of life, giving in to your old desires for sin and evil. That was your former lifestyle, when you were completely ignorant of God’s laws and the vastly superior lifestyle which we learned from our Lord Jesus.
Comments:
1 Peter 1:15
ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὸν καλέσαντα ὑμᾶς ἅγιον καὶ αὐτοὶ ἅγιοι ἐν πάσῃ ἀναστροφῇ γενήθητε,
As submissive children not conforming to your former lusts in ignorance.
Paraphrase: Do this just as obedient children, humbly looking to your heavenly Father with complete trust and confidence that He will work all these things out for your good. Watch out that you don’t slip back into your old way of life, giving in to your old desires for sin and evil. That was your former lifestyle, when you were completely ignorant of God’s laws and the vastly superior lifestyle which we learned from our Lord Jesus.
Comments:
1 Peter 1:16
διότι γέγραπται ὅτι Ἅγιοι ἔσεσθε, ὅτι ἐγὼ ἅγιος.
Wherefore, it is written, “Be holy because I am holy.”
Paraphrase: Remember the standard which God has set for us, “You are to be holy, because I am holy.”
Comments:
1 Peter 1:17
Καὶ εἰ πατέρα ἐπικαλεῖσθε τὸν ἀπροσωπολήμπτως κρίνοντα κατὰ τὸ ἑκάστου ἔργον, ἐν φόβῳ τὸν τῆς παροικίας ὑμῶν χρόνον ἀναστράφητε·
And if you call on the Father, who is impartially judging according to each work, in fear, occupy the time of your sojourning,
Paraphrase: Now if this is the God to whom you pray and if this is the God whom you call Father and if He is supremely holy and if He will judge every person’s works impartially and with perfect justice, then you should live your life with a deep respect of His majesty and power. You should fear to sin against Him knowing that the great day of judgment is coming. Remember, this life is just a brief span of time; think of yourself as pilgrims in strange land. Soon your Father will come and gather you up and bring you to your homeland. In the meantime, we should do all we can to honor Him with our lifestyle.
Comments:
M&M write (p72), “ἀπροσωπολήμπτως naturally does not appear. It is witness only to the firm hold of πρόσωπον λαμβάνειν as a technical term in the vocabulary of Jews, derived from a literal translation.
1 Peter 1:18
εἰδότες ὅτι οὐ φθαρτοῖς, ἀργυρίῳ ἢ χρυσίῳ, ἐλυτρώθητε ἐκ τῆς ματαίας ὑμῶν ἀναστροφῆς πατροπαραδότου,
knowing that not with perishable things, silver or gold, you were ransomed from your empty lifestyle, handed down from your fathers.
Paraphrase: Do you remember the price that was paid for your freedom? I know you remember that time when you were locked up in a lifestyle of fruitless pursuit for pleasure. It was such an empty and unsatisfying life which you learned from your parents and they learned from their parents. But then God made the difference. He stepped up and paid the price for your freedom; then you were delivered from the bondage you were in and set free to live in the glorious liberty of the children of God. Now, brothers and sisters, it wasn’t any amount of silver or gold that set you free. Such currency is perishable and is of no value in transactions of this kind.
Comments:
1 Peter 1:19
ἀλλὰ τιμίῳ αἵματι ὡς ἀμνοῦ ἀμώμου καὶ ἀσπίλου Χριστοῦ,
but the precious blood as an unblemished and spotless lamb.
Paraphrase: No it was no silver and gold that set you free. It was the precious blood of Christ which He poured out on the cross for us. He was the Great Lamb who had no defect, and His life was the price paid to set you free.
Comments:
1 Peter 1:20
προεγνωσμένου μὲν πρὸ καταβολῆς κόσμου, φανερωθέντος δὲ ἐπ’ ἐσχάτου τῶν χρόνων δι’ ὑμᾶς
but
Paraphrase: No.
Comments:
1 Peter 1:21
τοὺς δι’ αὐτοῦ πιστοὺς εἰς θεὸν τὸν ἐγείραντα αὐτὸν ἐκ νεκρῶν καὶ δόξαν αὐτῷ δόντα, ὥστε τὴν πίστιν ὑμῶν καὶ ἐλπίδα εἶναι εἰς θεόν.
1 Peter 1:22
Τὰς ψυχὰς ὑμῶν ἡγνικότες ἐν τῇ ὑπακοῇ τῆς ἀληθείας εἰς φιλαδελφίαν ἀνυπόκριτον ἐκ καρδίας ἀλλήλους ἀγαπήσατε ἐκτενῶς,
1 Peter 1:23
ἀναγεγεννημένοι οὐκ ἐκ σπορᾶς φθαρτῆς ἀλλὰ ἀφθάρτου, διὰ λόγου ζῶντος θεοῦ καὶ μένοντος·
1 Peter 1:24
διότι πᾶσα σὰρξ ὡς χόρτος, καὶ πᾶσα δόξα αὐτῆς ὡς ἄνθος χόρτου· ἐξηράνθη ὁ χόρτος, καὶ τὸ ἄνθος ἐξέπεσεν·
1 Peter 1:25
τὸ δὲ ῥῆμα κυρίου μένει εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα. τοῦτο δέ ἐστιν τὸ ῥῆμα τὸ εὐαγγελισθὲν εἰς ὑμᾶς.