John MacArthur - 1 & 2 Peter

MacArthur Bible Studies

1 & 2 Peter

Courage in Times of Trouble

1 and 2 Peter

MacArthur Bible Studies

Copyright 2000, John F. MacArthur, Jr. Published by Word Publishing, P.O. Box 141000, Nashville, TN 37214. All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any otherexcept for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Scripture passages taken from:

The Holy Bible, New King James Version

Copyright 1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.

Cover Art by The Puckett Group.

Interior design and composition by Design Corps, Batavia, IL.

Produced with the assistance of the Livingstone Corporation. Project staff include Dave Veerman, Christopher D. Hudson, and Amber Rae.

Project editor: Len Woods

ISBN 0-8499-5545-9

All rights reserved.

Table of Contents

The Epistles of Peter

1 Peter 1:112

1 Peter 1:132:10

1 Peter 2:113:12

1 Peter 3:134:6

1 Peter 4:711

1 Peter 4:1219

1 Peter 5:14

1 Peter 5:514

2 Peter 1:111

2 Peter 1:1221

2 Peter 2:122

2 Peter 3:118

Introduction

The letter has always been identified (as are most general epistles, like James, John, and Jude) with the name of the author, Peter (as stated in the first verse), and with the notation that it was his first inspired letter.

Author and Date

The opening verse of the epistle claims it was written by Peter who was clearly the leader among Christs apostles. The gospel writers emphasize this fact by placing his name at the head of each list of apostles (Matthew 10; Mark 3; Luke 6; Acts 1), and including more information about him in the four gospels than any person other than Christ. Originally known as Simon (Greek) or Simeon (Hebrew)see Mark 1:16; John 1:4041Peter was the son of Jonas (Matthew 16:17) who was also known as John (John 1:42) and a member of a family of fishermen who lived in Bethsaida and later in Capernaum. Andrew, Peters brother, brought him to Christ (John 1:4042). Peter was married, and, apparently, his wife accompanied him in his ministry (Mark 1:2931; 1 Corinthians 9:5).

Peter was called to follow Christ in His early ministry (Mark 1:1617), and was later appointed to apostleship (Matthew 10:2; Mark 3:1416). Christ renamed him Peter (Greek), or Cephas (Aramaic), both words meaning stone or rock (John 1:42). The Lord clearly singled out Peter for special lessons throughout the gospels (for example, Matthew 10; 16:1321; 17:19; 24:17; 26:3133; John 6:6; 21:37, 1517). He was the spokesman for the twelve, articulating their thoughts and questions as well as his own. Peters triumphs and weaknesses are chronicled in the gospels and Acts 112.

After the resurrection and ascension, Peter initiated the plan for choosing a replacement for Judas (Acts 1:15). After the coming of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:14), he was empowered to become the leading gospel preacher from the Day of Pentecost on (Acts 212). Peter also performed notable miracles in the early days of the church (Acts 39), and he opened the door of the gospel to the Samaritans (Acts 8) and to the Gentiles (Acts 10). According to tradition, Peter had to watch as his wife was crucified, but he encouraged her with the words, Remember the Lord. When it came time for him to be crucified, Peter reportedly pled that he was not worthy to be crucified like his Lord but rather should be crucified upside down (ca. A.D. 6768), which tradition says he was.

Because of Peters unique prominence, the early church had no shortage of documents falsely claiming to be written by him. That the Apostle Peter is the author of 1 Peter, however, is certain. The material in this letter bears definite resemblance to his messages in the book of Acts. The letter teaches, for example, that Christ is the Stone rejected by the builder (2:78; Acts 4:1011) and that Christ is no respecter of persons (1:17; Acts 10:34). Peter teaches his readers to gird yourself with humility (5:5), reminiscent of the Lord girding Himself with a towel and washing the disciples feet (John 13:35). Other statements in the letter echo Christs sayings (4:14; 5:7, 8). Moreover, the author claims to have been a witness of Christs sufferings (5:1; see also 3:18; 4:1). In addition to these internal evidences, it is noteworthy that the early Christians universally recognized this letter as the work of Peter.

The only significant doubt to be raised about Peters authorship arises from the rather classical style of Greek employed in the letter. Some have argued that Peter, being an unlearned fisherman (Acts 4:13), could not have written in sophisticated Greek, especially in light of the less classical style of Greek employed in the writing of 2 Peter. This argument has a good answer, however. In the first place, that Peter was unlearned does not mean that he was illiterate but only that he was without formal, rabbinical training in the Scriptures. Moreover, though Aramaic may have been Peters primary language, Greek would have been a widely spoken second language in Palestine. It is also apparent that at least some of the authors of the New Testament, though not highly educated, could read the Greek of the Old Testament Septuagint (see James use of the Septuagint in Acts 15:1418).

Beyond these evidences of Peters ability in Greek, Peter also explained (5:12) that he had written this letter by Silvanus, also known as Silas. Silvanus was likely the messenger designated to take this letter to its intended readers. But more is implied by this statement in that Peter is acknowledging that Silvanus served as his secretary, or amanuensis. Dictation was common in the ancient Roman world (for example, Paul and Tertius; Romans 16:22), and secretaries often could aid with syntax and grammar. So, Peter, under the superintendence of the Spirit of God, dictated the letter to Silvanus, while Silvanus, who also was a prophet (Acts 15:32), may have aided in some of the composition of the more classical Greek.

First Peter was most likely written just before or shortly after July, A.D. 64 when the city of Rome burned, thus a writing date of about A.D. 6465.

Background and Setting

When the city of Rome burned, the Romans believed that their emperor, Nero, had set the city on fire, probably because of his incredible lust to build. In order to build more, he had to destroy what already existed.

The Romans were totally devastated. Their culture, in a sense, had gone down with the city. All the religious elements of their life had been destroyedtheir great temples, shrines, and even their household idols had been burned. This had great religious implications because it made them believe that their deities had been unable to deal with this conflagration and also had been victims of it. The people were homeless and helpless. Many had been killed. Their bitter resentment was severe, so Nero realized that he had to redirect the hostility.

The emperors chosen scapegoat was the Christian community. Christians were already hated because they were associated with Jews and because they were seen as being hostile to the Roman culture. Nero quickly spread the word that the Christians had set the fires. As a result, a vicious persecution against Christians began and soon spread throughout the Roman Empire, touching places north of the Taurus mountains, like Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia (1:1), and impacting the Christians, who Peter calls pilgrims.