1 Pietro 1:2 Commento

The apostle describes the persons to whom he writes, and salutes them (Pe1 1:1, Pe1 1:2), blesses God for their regeneration to a lively hope of eternal salvation (Pe1 1:3-5), in the hope of this salvation he shows they had great cause of rejoicing, though for a little while they were in heaviness and affliction, for the trial of their faith, which would produce joy unspeakable and full of glory (Pe1 1:6-9). This is that salvation which the ancient prophets foretold and the angels desire to look into (Pe1 1:10-12). He exhorts them to sobriety and holiness, which he presses from the consideration of the blood of Jesus, the invaluable price of man's redemption (Pe1 1:13-21), and to brotherly love, from the consideration of their regeneration, and the excellency of their spiritual state (Pe1 1:22-25).

. 1 Peter 1:1 pe1 1:1 pe1 1:1 pe1 1:1Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,.... The writer of this epistle describes himself first by his name, Peter, the same with Cephas, which signifies a rock, or stone; a name given him by Christ at his first conversion, and which respected his after firmness, solidity, resolution, and constancy; for his former name was Simeon, or Simon, as sometimes called; see Mat 4:18 and he further describes himself by his office, an apostle of Jesus Christ; being one of the twelve apostles, and the first of that number; who saw Christ in the flesh, was conversant with him, had his call and commission immediately from him, and was qualified by him to preach the Gospel; and was sent out first into Judea, and then into all the world to publish it, with a power of working miracles to confirm it; and this his character he makes mention of, in order to give the greater weight and authority to his epistle; and it is to be observed, that he does not style himself, as his pretended successor does, the head of the church, and Christ's vicar on earth; nor does he call himself the prince of the apostles, but only an apostle, as he was upon an equal foot with the rest. The persons he writes to are the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia: these Jews here intended are called strangers; not in a metaphorical sense, either because they were, as the wicked are, estranged from the womb, and alienated from the life of God, as all unconverted men are, and as they were before conversion; for now they were no more strangers in this sense: or because of their unsettled state and condition in this life; having no continuing city, and seeking one to come, an heavenly country; and living as pilgrims and strangers, in which respect they are indeed so styled, Pe1 2:11 but in a civil sense, and not as the Gentiles were, aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, for these were Jews; but on account of their not being in their own land, and in a foreign country, and therefore said to be "scattered", or "the strangers of the dispersion"; either on account of the persecution at the death of Stephen, when multitudes of the converted Jews were scattered abroad, not only throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, but as far as Phenice, and Cyprus, and Antioch; see Act 8:1 and so it may be afterwards throughout the places here mentioned; or else these were some remains of the ten tribes carried captive by Shalmaneser, and of the two tribes by Nebuchadnezzar; or rather the dispersion of the Greeks, mentioned in Joh 7:35 under the Macedonians, by Ptolemy Lagus: however, there were Jews of Pontus, who inhabited that place, and of such we read in Act 2:9 who came to worship at the feast of Pentecost, some of which were converted to the Christian faith, and being mentioned first, has occasioned this epistle to be called, both by Tertullian (a), and Cyprian (b), "the epistle to the Pontians". Perhaps these Jews converted on the day of Pentecost, on their return hither, laid the first foundation of a Gospel church state in this country: it is a tradition of the ancients, mentioned by Eusebius (c), that Peter himself preached here, and so, very likely, formed the Christians he found, and those that were converted by him, into Gospel churches; and it appears by a letter of Dionysius, bishop of Corinth (d), that there were churches in Poutus in the "second" century, particularly at Amastris, the bishop of which was one Palma, whom he commends, and Focas is said to be bishop of Syncope, in the same age; and in the "third" century, Gregory and Athenodorus, disciples of Origen, were bishops in this country (e); the former was a very famous man, called Gregory Thaumaturgus, the wonder worker, and was bishop of Neocaesarea: in the "fourth" century there was a church in the same place, of which Longinus was bishop, as appears from the Nicene council, at which he and other bishops in Pontus were present; and in this age, in the times of Dioclesian, many in this country endured most shocking sufferings, related by Eusebius (f); and in the same century Helladius is said to govern the churches of Pontus; and in the "fifth" century we read of churches in Pontus, reformed by Chrysostom; in this age Theodorus was bishop of Heraclea, and Themistius of Amastris, both in this province, and both these bishops were in the Chalcedon council; and in the "sixth" century there were churches in Pontus, whose bishops were in the fifth synod held at Rome and Constantinople; and so there were in the "seventh" and "eighth" centuries (g). Galatia, next mentioned, is that part of the lesser Asia, called Gallo Graecia, in which were several churches, to whom the Apostle Paul wrote his epistle, called the epistle to the Galatians; See Gill on Act 16:6, Gal 1:2. Cappadocia, according to Ptolomy (h), was bounded on the west by Galatia, on the south by Cilicia, on the east by Armenia the great, on the north by part of the Euxine Pontus; it had many famous cities in it, as Solinus (i) says; as Archelais, Neocaesarea, Melita, and Mazaca. The Jews oftentimes talk (k) of going from Cappadocia to Lud, or Lydda; so that, according to them, it seems to be near to that place, or, at least, that there was a place near Lydda so called; of this see Gill on Act 2:9. From this country also there were Jews at Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost, some of whom were converted; and here likewise the Apostle Peter is said to preach, as before observed of Pontus, and who probably founded a church or churches here in the "first" century; and in the "second" century, according to Tertullian (l), there were believers in Christ dwelling in this country; and in the "third" century, Eusebius (m) makes mention of Neon, bishop of Larandis, and Celsus, bishop of Iconium, both in Cappadocia; there was also Phedimus of Amasea, in the same country, in this age, and at Caesarea, in Cappadocia, several martyrs suffered under Decius; and in this century, Stephen, bishop of Rome, threatened to excommunicate some bishops in Cappadocia, because they had rebaptized some that had been heretics: in the "fourth" century there were churches in Cappadocia, of one of which, namely, at Sasimi, the famous Gregory Nazianzen was first bishop, and afterwards of Nazianzum, as was also the famous Basil of Caesarea, in the same country; hither the persecution under Dioclesian reached, and many had their thighs broken, as Eusebius relates (n); from hence were sent several bishops, who assisted at the council of Nice, under Constantine, and at another held at Jerusalem: in the "fifth" century there were churches in Cappadocia, in several places, the names of whose bishops are on record; as Firmus, Thalassius, Theodosins, Daniel, Aristomachus, Patricius, and others: in the "sixth" century there were many famous churches in this country, whose bishops were in the fifth synod held at Rome and Constantinople; and in the "seventh" century there were several of them in the sixth synod of Constantinople; and in the "eighth" century mention is made of bishops of several churches in Cappadocia, in the second Nicene synod; and even in the "ninth" century there were Christians in these parts (o), Asia here intends neither the lesser nor the greater Asia, but Asia, properly so called; and which, according to Solinus (p), Lycia and Phrygia bounded on the east, the Aegean shores on the west, the Egyptian sea on the south, and Paphlagonia on the north; the chief city in it was Ephesus, and so it is distinguished from Phrygia, Galatia, Mysia, and Bithynia, in Act 16:6 as here from Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, and Bithynia, and from Pontus and Cappadocia, in Act 2:9 though they were all in lesser Asia. Here also were Jews converted on the day of Pentecost; and here likewise Peter is said to preach; and by him, and by the Apostle John, who also lived and died in this country, churches were planted; and churches there were here, even in the "seventh" century, as distinct from the other Asia, greater or less; for out of it bishops were sent to, and were present at, the sixth council at Constantinople, whose names are recorded; yea, in the "eighth" century there were churches and bishops, one of which persuaded Leo to remove images from places of worship; and another was in the Nicene synod (q). The last place mentioned is Bithynia, of which See Gill on Act 16:7. And though the Apostle Paul, and his compassions, were not suffered at a certain time to go into Bithynia, and preach the Gospel there, yet it is certain that it was afterwards carried thither; and as Peter is said to preach in Pontus, Asia, and Capadocia, so likewise in Bithynia; here, according to the Roman martyrology, Luke, the evangelist, died; and, according to tradition, Prochorus, one of the seven deacons in Act 6:5 was bishop of Nicomedia, in this country; and Tychicus, of whom the Apostle Paul makes frequent mention, was bishop of Chalcedon, another city in it; and who are both said to be of the seventy disciples; see Gill on Luk 10:1, and it is certain, from the testimony of Pliny (r), an Heathen writer, in a letter of his to Trajan the emperor, written about the year 104, that there were then great numbers of Christians in Bithynia; not only the cities, but the towns and villages were full of them; and in the "third" century, the persecution under Dioclesian raged, particularly at Nicomedia, where Anthimus, the pastor of the church in that place, had his head cut off as Eusebius (s) relates: in the beginning of the "fourth" century, Nice, in Bithynia, became famous for the council held there under Constantine, against Arius; and in this century, bishops from Bithynia assisted at a synod held at Tyre, in Phoenicia; and in the "fifth" century was held a synod at Chalcedon, a city in this country, against the Nestorinn heresy; and the names of several bishops of Chalcedon, Nicomedia, and Nice, who lived, in this age, are on record; and in the "sixth" century there were bishops from these several places, and others, who were present in the fifth synod at Constantinople; as there were also in the "seventh" century, at the sixth synod held at the same place, whose names are particularly mentioned; and in the "eighth" century bishops from hence were in the Nicene synod; and even in the ninth century there were some that bore the Christian name in Bithynia (t). In these places however, it seems, dwelt many Jews, who were converted to Christ, to whom the apostle inscribes this epistle, and whom he further describes in the following verse, (a) Scorpiace, c. 12. (b) Testimon. ad Quirin. l. 3. c. 36, 37, 39. (c) Eccl. Hist. l. 3. c. 1. (d) Apud Euseb. ib. l. 4. c. 23. (e) Ib. l. 7. c. 14. Hieron. Script. Eccles. Catalog. sect. 75. (f) Ib. l. 8. c. 12. (g) Hist. Eccl. Magdeburg. cent. 2. c. 2. p. 3. cent. 4. c. 2. p. 3. c. 7. p. 289. cent. 5. c. 2. p. 4. c. 1O. p. 602. cent. 6. c. 2. p. 4. cent. 7. c. 2. p. 3. cent. 8. c. 2. p. 5. (h) Geograph. l. 5. c. 6. (i) Polyhist. c. 57. (k) Zohar in Gen. fol. 51. 3. & in Exod. fol. 33. 2. & 35. 4. (l) Adv. Judaeos, c. 7. ad Scapulam, c. 3. (m) Eccl. Hist. l. 6. c. 19. (n) lb. l. 8. 12. (o) Eccl. Hist. Magdeburg. cent. 3. c. 2. p. 2. c. 3. p. 11. c. 7. p. 117. cent. 4. c. 2. p. 4. c. 9. p. 350, 390. cent. 5. c. 2. p. 4. c. 10. p. 605, 859. cent. 6. c. 2. p. 5. cent. 7. c. 2. p. 3. c. 10. p. 254. cent. 8. c. 2. p. 5. cent. 9. c. 2. p. 3. (p) C. 53. (q) Ib. cent. 7. c. 2. p. 3. c. 10. p. 254. cent. 8. c. 2. p. 5. (r) Epist. l. 10. ep. 97. (s) Eccl. Hist. l. 8. c. 5, 6. (t) Hist. Eccl. Magdeburg. cent. 4. c. 2. p. 3. c. 9. p. 390. cent. 5. c. 2. p. 4. c. 10. p. 601, 602. cent. 6. c. 2. p. 4. cent. 7. c. 2. p. 3. c. 10. p. 254. cent. 8. c. 2. p. 5. cent. 9. c. 2. p. 3.

Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,.... Not to any office, as to that of bishops or presbyters; for though the apostle writes to some of them under this character, Pe1 5:1 yet not all; nor were they so called, as a nation, for they were persons scattered about in several countries; nor as a church, for they are not wrote to as such; nor does this character merely design their effectual calling; though as that is a fruit and evidence of election, it is sometimes so styled, and the saints called by grace are said to be chosen; Joh 15:19 but it intends the eternal election of those persons both to grace and glory; which the apostle knew of, not by divine revelation, or any particular discovery made to him; but he concluded it in a judgment of charity, they being all under a profession of faith in Christ, and he having reason to believe that the greater part of them were truly partakers of that faith which demonstrated them to be the elect of God: the cause, spring, and source of their election was, "the foreknowledge of God the Father": to whom election is commonly ascribed, agreeably to the order of the divine Persons in the Trinity, and their distinct parts in the economy of salvation, though not to the exclusion of the Son and Spirit: and by this his "foreknowledge" is meant, not his eternal, universal, and infallible knowledge, and which is infinite, and reaches to all things and persons, present, future, or possible, for this has for its objects persons whom God never predestinated and chose: though certain it is that he knows and foreknows all whom he does predestinate and choose; nor does it intend the mere decree of election, or God's eternal purpose and resolution to choose, but the spring and source of that act of his: and much less does it mean a bare prescience of men, and choice of them, upon a foresight of faith, holiness, good works, and perseverance therein; for these are all, when genuine, the fruits and effects of election, which are included in it, and secured and brought about by it; but the sovereign grace, good will, and pleasure of God, or the everlasting love of God the Father, which is the cause of, and has given birth to the act of election, is meant by foreknowledge, joined with affection, delight, and approbation; knowledge, and foreknowledge, as ascribed to the divine Being, often signify such things; see Psa 1:6 Rom 11:1 and such a knowledge God the Father had of the persons of the elect from all eternity; and which is the ground and foundation of his choosing them to grace and glory, and not anything in them, or done by them, or anything out of himself; no other reason can be given of it than his own grace, his pure love, and sovereign good will and pleasure: the means follow, through which they were chosen, through sanctification of the Spirit; as in Th2 2:13. See Gill on Th2 2:13. The ends to which the saints are chosen are, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ; by "obedience" is meant either the obedience of elect men to Christ, which lies in obeying the truth of the Gospel, called the obedience of faith; and so is the same with the "belief of the truth", which goes along in election with the sanctification of the Spirit, in Th2 2:13 and in submission to Gospel ordinances, and doing all good works in the name, faith, and strength of Christ; and which also are fruits and effects, and so not causes of divine predestination; see Eph 2:10 and also follow upon the sanctification of the Spirit; or else the obedience of Christ is intended; and so the Arabic version renders it, "unto the obedience of Jesus Christ"; which lay in his performing the precepts of the law, and bearing the penalty of it, death; and by which the chosen seed are justified, or made righteous in the sight of God, and have a title to eternal life and glory, and are safe from wrath to come; and to the enjoyment of this grace, they are chosen of God the Father; and between these two, predestination and justification, there is a close and inseparable connection; so that they that are interested in the one, are in the other; see Rom 8:30, the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ; does not denote a small quantity of it, for it was shed and poured out in great abundance; but is said in allusion to the sprinkling of the blood of the passover lamb. Exo 12:22 or to the sprinkling of the blood on the book of the covenant, and on the people at Mount Sinai, Exo 24:8 or to other sprinklings of blood in their legal sacrifices: the application of the blood of Christ to the heart, by the Spirit of God, for cleansing, pardon, and justification, is meant; which affords true, solid, conscience peace and joy now, and entitles to eternal happiness and glory; all which are secured by electing grace. The salutation of these persons follows: grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied; which is much the same that is used by the Apostle Paul in all his epistles; see Gill on Rom 1:7, only Peter adds the word "multiplied"; which makes it more express, and the sense more clear: he means an enlarged view of interest in the love of God, an increase of grace out of the fulness of it in Christ, and of Gospel light, and of the several gifts of the Spirit; and also of all prosperity outward and inward, of a conscience peace through the blood of Christ, which passeth all understanding, and a more established and well grounded hope of enjoying eternal peace hereafter. The phrase is Jewish, and is used in their salutations in this form, , "let your peace be multiplied" (t), (t) T. Hieros. Masser Sheni, fol. 56. 3. T. Bab. Sanhedrin, fol. 11. 2.

We must not suppose that the Spirit knows God as we do, only through the historic revelation of the Son. For if the Holy Spirit knows God only in this way, then he has passed from ignorance to knowledge, and it is certainly as impious as it is foolish to confess him as the Holy Spirit and then ascribe a prior ignorance to him.

May it be granted to us, after we have struggled nobly and subdued the spirit of the flesh, which was at enmity with God, when our soul is in a calm and tranquil state, to be called the children of peace and to share the blessing of God in peace.

What Peter says agrees with the statements of Paul, such as: “He has chosen us in himself before the foundation of the world, to be holy and spotless before him in love, predestinating us to be adopted as sons.” … Foreknowledge is not to be regarded as anything other than the contemplation of the future. It becomes knowledge as the things which are foreseen come to pass. Therefore, although the people to whom Peter was writing had once been chosen according to God’s foreknowledge, by the time he was writing to them their election had already taken place.

Peter, Apostle of Jesus Christ, to the chosen sojourners of the dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ, grace to you and peace be multiplied. The series and order are now collected: Peter, Apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ. The rest, however, will be placed by interjection: for they signify to whom the letter is written. However, that particle is used according to the foreknowledge of God, to signify that there is no prophet who is inferior in anything, except in time. That they were sent, says Isaiah: "He has sent me to announce good news to the poor." (Isa. 61:1) But although later times have brought this to pass, it is not, however, the foreknowledge of God; rather, in this, he shows himself equal to Jeremiah, who was known and sanctified before he was formed in the womb and designated as a prophet to the nations. And since the prophets, among other things, had foretold the coming of Christ (for this reason they were sent), he adds the necessity of his apostleship, saying: "I was sent in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ," signifying through what is proposed: "This is the manner of my apostleship, to be set apart." The name signifies through sanctification: as it is said, "And you shall be to me a peculiar people sanctified," (Deut. 14:2) that is, separated from other nations. Therefore, the manner of his apostleship was to separate through spiritual gifts obedient nations, sprinkled with the passion and blood of Christ, not with the ashes of a heifer, when it must be purified, taken from the pollution of the Gentiles: but with the blood received from the passion of Christ. At the same time, it also touches upon a certain prolog to martyrdom of blood for Christ suffered by those who believe in him: for he who follows the footsteps of the teacher through obedience, when it is absolutely necessary, will not refuse to shed his own blood for him who poured out his for the whole world. "Peter, Apostle of Jesus Christ." Here Peter writes to those who were of the circumcision, as does blessed James, but he indeed addresses all Jews who inhabited the world, wherever they were; however, this one specifically addresses the regions of Pontus in Galatia. He also added Pontus to Galatia. For there is another Galatia near the Celts which is also truly Galatia, from which those he is now discussing had migrated. Therefore, he directs his speech to these and other nations which are mentioned in the preface, using this letter universally or generally. The series of letters is therefore this, with the addition of those things that have been said through deficiency for the sake of manifestation, for this reason also he employs rearrangement and the alteration of figures to the word. Peter, apostle of Jesus Christ… receiving the end of your faith1, and what is that? Salvation of the soul: concerning which salvation even the prophets searched and inquired, "To the chosen sojourners." Sojourners, either because of dispersion he said, or also because all who live according to God are sojourners on earth, as David also says: "I am a sojourner with you and a pilgrim as all my fathers were." (Ps. 38:13) The name “sojourner” [παρεπίδηµος] signifies something different from a “newcomer” προσήλυτος. The former indicates someone who has come from elsewhere or from abroad, while the latter παρεπίδηµος denotes something more shameful. For just as a πάρεργον, that is, something incidental, is less valuable than an ἔργον, that is, a work, and a πάροδος, that is, a passage, is less than a ὁδός, that is, a way: Indeed, work and way are proper and are pursued with intention, while passage and what is done incidentally are like those things that intrude upon these. Thus, the term παρεπίδῃηµος, as it intrudes upon existence, seems indeed to signify more abjectly than ἔπίδημος. "grace to you and peace be multiplied." Grace, because you are saved freely, having contributed nothing to it, "And peace”, for this is necessary for those who have offended their Lord and have become His enemies.

See how Peter says that he was called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ by the foreknowledge of God the Father. Furthermore, he explains what his apostleship is like by saying that it is in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling with the blood of Jesus Christ. Moreover, we who believe in him have also been sanctified by the Spirit, and he sprinkles us too with his blood in order to cleanse us. For how can we not know that God sanctifies us by his own Spirit and cleanses us believers with his own blood? For Christ was God in human flesh.

According to the foreknowledge of God the Father, etc. These verses are connected to what was previously stated, "To the elect exiles." For they were chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father. Hence the apostle also says: "Those whom He foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son." And elsewhere: "He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world." They were elected to this end, that by the gift of the Holy Spirit they might be sanctified, cleansed from all sins, to begin to obey the Lord Jesus Christ, who had perished due to the proto-parent's disobedience, that being sprinkled with His blood they might avoid the power of Satan, just as Israel avoided the dominion of the Egyptians through the lamb's blood. He speaks of sprinkling in the manner of the old Scripture, where those things which were to be sanctified were usually sprinkled with the blood of sacrifices. Otherwise, the Lord Himself speaks clearly about this: "Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you" (John 6).

May grace and peace be multiplied. So that what you have well begun, you may complete perfectly. He first names grace, then peace, because without the grace of Christ we cannot attain to the peace of reconciliation, indeed we cannot have anything peaceful except through His grace.

"Grace," because we are saved freely, contributing nothing of our own. "Peace," because, having offended the Master, we were numbered among His enemies.

He said "sojourners" either because they were scattered, or because all who live according to God are called sojourners on earth, as, for example, David says: "for I am a stranger with You and a sojourner, as all my fathers were" (Ps. 39:12). The name "sojourner" is not the same as the name "pilgrim." The latter signifies one who has come from a foreign country, and even something more imperfect. For just as a secondary matter (πάρεργον) is lower than the main work (τοῦ ἔργου), so also a pilgrim (παρεπίδημος) is lower than a resident alien (ἐπιδήμου). This inscription should be read with a rearrangement of words, namely thus: Peter, an Apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the Blood of Jesus Christ. The remaining words should be placed after this, for in them are indicated those to whom the epistle is written. "According to the foreknowledge of God." By these words the apostle wishes to show that he, apart from the matter of time, is in no way inferior to the prophets, who themselves also were sent—and that the prophets too were sent, Isaiah speaks of this: "to preach good tidings to the poor, He has sent Me" (Isa. 61:1). But if he is inferior in time, he is not inferior according to the foreknowledge of God. In this respect he declares himself equal to Jeremiah, who, before being formed in the womb, was known and sanctified and appointed "a prophet to the nations" (Jer. 1:5). And since the prophets, along with everything else, foretold the coming of Christ (for they were sent for this purpose), he explains the ministry of apostleship, and says: I, through sanctification of the Spirit, have been sent unto obedience and sprinkling of the Blood of Jesus Christ. He explains that the work of his apostleship consists in setting apart. For this is what the word "sanctification" means, as for example in the words: "for you are a holy people to the Lord your God" (Deut. 14:2), that is, set apart from the other nations. Thus, the work of his apostleship is, through spiritual gifts, to set apart the nations obedient to the cross and sufferings of Jesus Christ, sprinkled not with the ashes of a heifer when it was necessary to cleanse the defilement from association with pagans, but with the Blood from the sufferings of Jesus Christ. By the word "Blood" he simultaneously foretells the martyrdom for Christ of those who believe in Him. For whoever with obedience follows in the footsteps of the Teacher will, without doubt, not himself refuse to shed his own blood for the One Who shed His for the whole world.

Of the persons to whom this epistle was directed, and their spiritual state, Pe1 1:1, Pe1 1:2. He describes their privileges, and thanks God for the grace by which they were preserved faithful in trials and difficulties, Pe1 1:3-5. The spiritual benefit they were to receive out of their afflictions, Pe1 1:6, Pe1 1:7. Their love to Christ, Pe1 1:8. And the salvation they received through believing, Pe1 1:9. This salvation was predicted by the prophets, who only saw it afar off and had only a foretaste of it, Pe1 1:10-12. They should take encouragement, and be obedient and holy, Pe1 1:13-16. Thy should pray, and deeply consider the price at which they were purchased, that their faith and hope might be in God, Pe1 1:17-21. As their souls had been purified by obeying the truth through the Spirit, they should love each other with a pure and fervent love, Pe1 1:22, Pe1 1:23. The frailty of man, and the unchangeableness of God, Pe1 1:24, Pe1 1:25.

Elect according to the foreknowledge of God - If the apostle had directed his letter to persons elected to eternal life, no one, as Drs. Lardner and Macknight properly argue, could have received such a letter, because no one could have been sure of his election in this way till he had arrived in heaven. But the persons to whom the apostle wrote were all, with propriety, said to be elect according to the foreknowledge of God; because, agreeably to the original purpose of God, discovered in the prophetical writings, Jews and Gentiles, indiscriminately, were called to be the visible Church, and entitled to all the privileges of the people of God, on their believing the Gospel. In this sense the word elected is used in other places of Scripture; see Th1 1:4, and the note there. The Rev. J. Wesley has an excellent note on this passage, which I shall transcribe for the benefit of those of my readers who may not have his works at hand. "Strictly speaking, there is no foreknowledge, no more than afterknowledge, with God; but all things are known to him as present, from eternity to eternity. Election, in the scriptural sense, is God's doing any thing that our merit or power has no part in. The true predestination or foreappointment of God is, 1. He that believeth shall be saved from the guilt and power of sin. 2. He that endureth to the end shall be saved eternally. 3. They who receive the precious gift of faith thereby become the sons of God; and, being sons, they shall receive the Spirit of holiness, to walk as Christ also walked. Throughout every part of this appointment of God, promise and duty go hand in hand. All is free gift; and yet, such is the gift, that it depends in the final issue on our future obedience to the heavenly call. But other predestination than this, either to life or death eternal, the Scripture knows not of: moreover, 1. It is cruel respect of persons; an unjust regard of one, and an unjust disregard of another: it is mere creature partiality, and not infinite justice. 2. It is not plain Scripture doctrine, (if true), but rather inconsistent with the express written word that speaks of God's universal offers of grace; his invitations, promises, threatenings, being all general. 3. We are bid to choose life, and reprehended for not doing it. 4. It is inconsistent with a state of probation in those that must be saved, or must be lost. 5. It is of fatal consequence; all men being ready, on very slight grounds, to fancy themselves of the elect number. But the doctrine of predestination is entirely changed from what it formerly was: now it implies neither faith, peace, nor purity; it is something that will do without them all. Faith is no longer, according to the modern predestination scheme, a Divine evidence of things not seen wrought in the soul by the immediate power of the Holy Ghost; not an evidence at all, but a mere notion: neither is faith made any longer a means of holiness, but something that will do without it. Christ is no more a Savior from sin, but a defense and a countenancer of it. He is no more a fountain of spiritual life in the souls of believers, but leaves his elect inwardly dry, and outwardly unfruitful; and is made little more than a refuge from the image of the heavenly, even from righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost." Through sanctification of the Spirit - through the renewing and purifying influences of his Spirit on their souls, unto obedience - to engage and enable them to yield themselves up to all holy obedience, the foundation of all which is the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ - the atoning blood of Jesus Christ which was typified by the sprinkling of the blood of sacrifices under the law, in allusion to which it is called the blood of sprinkling.

ADDRESS TO THE ELECTED OF THE GODHEAD: THANKSGIVING FOR THE LIVING HOPE TO WHICH WE ARE BEGOTTEN, PRODUCING JOY AMIDST SUFFERINGS: THIS SALVATION AN OBJECT OF DEEPEST INTEREST TO PROPHETS AND TO ANGELS: ITS COSTLY PRICE A MOTIVE TO HOLINESS AND LOVE, AS WE ARE BORN AGAIN OF THE EVER-ABIDING WORD OF GOD. (1Pe. 1:1-25) Peter--Greek form of Cephas, man of rock. an apostle of Jesus Christ--"He who preaches otherwise than as a messenger of Christ, is not to be heard; if he preach as such, then it is all one as if thou didst hear Christ speaking in thy presence" [LUTHER]. to the strangers scattered--literally, "sojourners of the dispersion"; only in Joh 7:35 and Jam 1:1, in New Testament, and the Septuagint, Psa 147:2, "the outcasts of Israel"; the designation peculiarly given to the Jews in their dispersed state throughout the world ever since the Babylonian captivity. These he, as the apostle of the circumcision, primarily addresses, but not in the limited temporal sense only; he regards their temporal condition as a shadow of their spiritual calling to be strangers and pilgrims on earth, looking for the heavenly Jerusalem as their home. So the Gentile Christians, as the spiritual Israel, are included secondarily, as having the same high calling. He (Pe1 1:14; Pe1 2:10; Pe1 4:3) plainly refers to Christian Gentiles (compare Pe1 1:17; Pe1 2:11). Christians, if they rightly consider their calling, must never settle themselves here, but feel themselves travellers. As the Jews in their dispersion diffused through the nations the knowledge of the one God, preparatory to Christ's first advent, so Christians, by their dispersion among the unconverted, diffuse the knowledge of Christ, preparatory to His second advent. "The children of God scattered abroad" constitute one whole in Christ, who "gathers them together in one," now partially and in Spirit, hereafter perfectly and visibly. "Elect," in the Greek order, comes before "strangers"; elect, in relation to heaven, strangers, in relation to the earth. The election here is that of individuals to eternal life by the sovereign grace of God, as the sequel shows. "While each is certified of his own election by the Spirit, he receives no assurance concerning others, nor are we to be too inquisitive [Joh 21:21-22]; Peter numbers them among the elect, as they carried the appearance of having been regenerated" [CALVIN]. He calls the whole Church by the designation strictly belonging only to the better portion of them [CALVIN]. The election to hearing, and that to eternal life, are distinct. Realization of our election is a strong motive to holiness. The minister invites all, yet he does not hide the truth that in none but the elect will the preaching effect eternal blessing. As the chief fruit of exhortations, and even of threatenings, redounds to "the elect"; therefore, at the outset, Peter addresses them. STEIGER translates, to "the elect pilgrims who form the dispersion in Pontus.", &c. The order of the provinces is that in which they would be viewed by one writing from the east from Babylon (Pe1 5:13); from northeast southwards to Galatia, southeast to Cappadocia, then Asia, and back to Bithynia, west of Pontus. Contrast the order, Act 2:9. He now was ministering to those same peoples as he preached to on Pentecost: "Parthians, Medes, Elamites, dwellers in Mesopotamia and Judea," that is, the Jews now subject to the Parthians, whose capital was Babylon, where he labored in person; "dwellers in Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia, Phrygia, Bithynia," the Asiatic dispersion derived from Babylon, whom he ministers to by letter.

foreknowledge--foreordaining love (Pe1 1:20), inseparable from God's foreknowledge, the origin from which, and pattern according to which, election takes place. Act 2:23, and Rom 11:2, prove "foreknowledge" to be foreordination. God's foreknowledge is not the perception of any ground of action out of Himself; still in it liberty is comprehended, and all absolute constraint debarred [ANSELM in STEIGER]. For so the Son of God was "foreknown" (so the Greek for "foreordained," Pe1 1:20) to be the sacrificial Lamb, not against, or without His will, but His will rested in the will of the Father; this includes self-conscious action; nay, even cheerful acquiescense. The Hebrew and Greek "know" include approval and acknowledging as one's own. The Hebrew marks the oneness of loving and choosing, by having one word for both, bachar (Greek, "hairetizo," Septuagint). Peter descends from the eternal "election" of God through the new birth, to the believer's "sanctification," that from this he might again raise them through the consideration of their new birth to a "living hope" of the heavenly "inheritance" [HEIDEGGER]. The divine three are introduced in their respective functions in redemption. through--Greek, "in"; the element in which we are elected. The "election" of God realized and manifested itself "IN" their sanctification. Believers are "sanctified through the offering of Christ once for all" (Heb 10:10). "Thou must believe and know that thou art holy; not, however, through thine own piety, but through the blood of Christ" [LUTHER]. This is the true sanctification of the Spirit, to obey the Gospel, to trust in Christ [BULLINGER]. sanctification--the Spirit's setting apart of the saint as consecrated to God. The execution of God's choice (Gal 1:4). God the Father gives us salvation by gratuitous election; the Son earns it by His blood-shedding; the Holy Spirit applies the merit of the Son to the soul by the Gospel word [CALVIN]. Compare Num 6:24-26, the Old Testament triple blessing. unto obedience--the result or end aimed at by God as respects us, the obedience which consists in faith, and that which flows from faith; "obeying the truth through the Spirit" (Pe1 1:22). Rom 1:5, "obedience to the faith," and obedience the fruit of faith. sprinkling, &c.--not in justification through the atonement once for all, which is expressed in the previous clauses, but (as the order proves) the daily being sprinkled by Christ's blood, and so cleansed from all sin, which is the privilege of one already justified and "walking in the light." Grace--the source of "peace." be multiplied--still further than already. Dan 4:1, "Ye have now peace and grace, but still not in perfection; therefore, ye must go on increasing until the old Adam be dead" [LUTHER].