PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Peter
B.C. Caffin [1826-1894] · 223,592 words · 241 reading sections
The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Peter — Section 181
tians must not be ashamed of it, but, as the God. He ndopta the iuexaot Septuagint holv martyrs did, utter their "Christianus translation for its substantial truth, ns we ~uni'' with inward peace and th1mksgiving, now sometimes use versions which are suffi- glorifying God that he had given them cient for practical p…
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removeue out of the dominion of those sine which ha.ve hitherto ruled over us. This is the end, the blessedness, of suffering. God sends it in love; he chastens us for our profit, that we may be partakers of his holiness. But suffering doth not always save. "The sorrow of the world worketh death;" it produces disconten…
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Vers. 7-11.-Exlwrtations based on the impending judgment. I. THE NllED OP' PREPARATlO~. 1. The nearness of the end. The end seemed near when St. Peter wrote, more than eighteen hundred years ago; by that great interval it is the nearer now. That long-expected end will be the end of all things-of sorrows, trials, suff…
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To keep the end steadily in view requires much self-restraint; it implies a well-ordered mind, 11 life guided by the eternal law of God, not frittered away in trifleR and idle pleasures, not spent in pursuits and ambitions which do not rise above the atmosphere of earth. 'l'his self-restraint is the sobriety, the sound…
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unblemi~hed honour, with a diligence and zeal wbich are beautiful in th.i sight of tho t.ru!r g_ood. 'l'he _grace of _God varies in its manifestations, in the diversities of gifts "·h1ch issue from it, accordmg to the needs of the Church, a,:,cording to the capacity of the_ individual se:vant_; it is like a p~ece of…
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St. Peter WM writin.~. H w:i~ n. burning furnace, n. fiery trial, the be'!inning of the cruel persecutions through which believers were to pass; the prison and the torture, the sword, the stake, the lion, were threatening the infn.nt Church; the savage shout, "Christianos ad leones ! " would soon be heard in the towns …
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busybodi~ They must imitate the Lord Jesus who said," Man who made me a turlt-e_ or a ~ivider o~er yo~?''. (Luke xii. 14). ;, Be much at hom'e," says Leighton, settmg thmgs at nghts w1thm your own breast, where there is so much ,vork and sue~ d~ly need of diligence, a~d then you will find no leisure for uunecessa.ry…
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HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Ver. 10.-Gifts and seruiu. If we may venture to connect these words with the preceding injunction as well as with the following, the power of rendering simple hospitality is as truly a girt of God's grace for the u.se of which a man is resronsible as is the loftiest endowment of eloqnent s…
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"_va_rie_gat_e,1" or'.' many-coloured" grace; and exhorts to variety of service based upon d1ss1milar1ty ~f gifts. It cannot but be that the fulness of God passing into the limits o~ ~reated mmds should. n!anifest itself in _an infinite variety. The light flashed at ~1tlerent an_gles ~rom a million dewdrops twmkles …
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Ver. 19.-The sufferers wisdom and peace. "Wherefore." The word carrieB us back to the whole series of thoughts on persecution and sorrow in the preceding verses, and, as it were, binds them all together, as a man might bind a bundle of twigs to make a standing-ground for himself and his companions on a black bog. The f…
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our hands in indolence, which we misname trust. Neither are we to be so much engaged with cultivating the inward graces of faith and submission as to ne"lect the pr~ctice of _common de~ds of kindness. Our religion may become transcondente.l, a thmg or spmtual expen<;nces and emotions, and may be in danger of soaring so…
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political, financial, or commercial interest. Man has, however, higher interests-those which are moral and epiri tual. It is desirable that we should take a retrospect of "tlie time past." with a view of tracing God's providential dealings with us, with a view of estimating our own spiiitnal progress, and of learniog l…
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Ver. 8.-Fervent love. Because St. John was emphatically the apostle of love, it must not be supposed that the inculcation of this virtue was left to him alone. The eloquent panegyric of charity in St. Paul's Epistle to the Corinthians is a proof of that apostle's sense of the importance of this virtue. And this passage…
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FOR THE SERVICE AND BENEFIT OF HIS FELLOW-MEN. The expression of St. Peter is noticeable in its definiteness and graphic force: "ministering it among yourselve.~." 1. This, then, is nn appointed service. 2. A beneficial service. 3. A mutual service. In the Church of Christ no one is wholly and only a giver, or wholly a…
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Vers. 1-i.-Tlie persecuted Ohristian reminded of tlie necessity of suffering for righteousness. This passage is the most difficult in the entire Epistle. We can see a meaning in each of its sentences taken separately, but when we take them together their meaning, as a whole, is obscure. As far, however, as I can under…
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pur,rhased at no less a price than what comes to mind, when we speak of our Lord as "the Man of sorrows, end acquainted with grief;" and for which he did not regard that price ns too great to pay I And if we find, when we try to secure and maintain this great blessing, that it can only be done at much cost to ourselves…
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Vers. 8-11.-The persecuted Christian reminded of the help of brotherly love "Above all things have fervent love among yourselves." You will remember how this expression, "above all things," corresponds with other Scripture. Paul says "Now abideth faith, hope, love; but the greatest of these is love." "Now the end of…
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endure the " spoiling of their goods ; " but there was to be a place at the table and a room for the stranger who needed food and rest. Love speaks-not always, does not obtrude itself, but where there is an erring step or a listening ear, love speaks. 2. It i& reciprocal. Each has his own gift, his own power of doing g…
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II. THl!RE IS TRE JOY OF GLORIFYING THE SPIRIT rn t!UFFEnING. 1. Be sure that yonrs is really C}w~tian suffe,·ing. "Let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as a busybody." (Strange company that, by the way, for busybodies I) Is it not strange that Peter should suggest that Church-members might be gui…
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character will be as an asbest?s robe en~apping their spirits. Notbi~g can violate the charm of that good conscience, nothmg bum or even singe the asbestos robe of that true character. Remember his defiant inquiry, "Who is he that can harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good?" This be has been showing in m…
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III. LrvE TO THE WILL OF Gon, FOR DOTH CHRIST'S JUDGMENT AND CHRIST'S GOSPEL ARE FOR ALL. The point the apostle is here pressing is that these bad men- obese Gentiles and pagans of that day, who find their counterpart and succession in all "''orldly, sensual, selfish men of to-day-will have to give account to him wh…
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end " be " the end of the world " or " the end of the age," that is approaching, so far as we and all with whom we daily have to do are concerned, "the end of all things ie at hand." In our persons, homes, institutions, in the world itself, are elements of decay, indications of tranRitoriness. Yesterday, honours, ol…
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ftrang<'l', nnd ye took me in." "\Vithout murmuring;" i.e. without ~rumbling. Three watch-dogs keep the door of the inhospitable man: temper, suspicion, reproach. "If any man srwnketb." Just as th_e hands put on the table viands for the body, the lips are to spr<'ad a banquet for the mtelleet and the heart. How? "As…
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catee the continuance of God with you, but the satisfaction of God in you. His spirit "re,teth" upon you. The teaching is: (1) God is near those who are par- takers of Christ's sufferings, The Spirit of Goel is with them. (2) God is near them to glorify them, and himself to rejoice in them. "The Spirit of glory resteth…
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whatever ordeal our God appoints; thus also shall wo be prepared for it whon it comes. When it is so.id tha.t Christ suffered in the flesh, there may be, in the line of a former thoujl:bt, a look beyond his pa.st condition to his present condition, He is no longer in the flesh to suffer; so shall it soon be with us,…
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"Dead" is general; but we are not to think of all the dead. The word is properly limited by the connected language. 'fho time is to be observed-the gospel was preached to the dead. And we are only to think of the dead with whom the language can be associat,ed, that they had been judged according to men in the flesh. 'l…
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giving b~·. m1mnt~1·ing .. ~xc1·~e _of gifts. R'Ulefor their exercise, "According as each hath rccc1rnd a gilt, m1n1stermg 1t among yourselves, as good stewards of the manifold grac_e of God.". All !-hat God graciously bestows on the Church is here called gi-ace; 1•arl1cu)ar manifestations are gmces (the words being…
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pcsHion is of them that did not overleap the bounds, but put on restraints, thinkin~ 1t strange that the fire shonltl be allowed to come among them. How did this consist with their Ohri8tian s~anrling, character, destiny? Were they not the objects of covenant love? Were they nut sincerely striving to honour the Divine …
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to understand the Beatitude as connected with what Christians suffer in the ordinary course of providence, but with suffering that they could a.void but do not avoid because the ~a1!1e of Christ does not permit it. Blessed are they who are not intimidated, who 11re willingly reproached, when it is demanded by Christ…
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is to be final judicio.l dealing with them for their ungodly deeds, for their hard speeches. There is especially to be final judicial dealing with them for the treatment they have given the gospel, the preachers of the gospel, the Christian communities, the Christian members. Stress is laid on the order of the judgm•mt…
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EXPOSITION. had Been with his ryes. He he.d seen the CHAPTER V. Lord bound nnd delivered into the hl\nds of Yer. 1.-The elders which are among you wiokcd men ; probably he had watched hie I exhort. The Vatican and Alexandrine last sufferings nmong them whioh stood afur 1\fonuscript-s omit the article, and insert off…
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adverb (aluxpo,npBws) occurs only here (for good Shepherd," and of the " great Shep- the, thought, comp. I Tim. iii. 8; Titus i. 7). her~ of the sheep" (Heb. xiii. 20). Ye shall It would seem the.t, even in the apostolic e.ge, receive a crown of glory that fadeth not there were sometimes such opportunities of away. Thi…
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washed the feet of his apostles (John xm. "because" is omitted in the best manu- 4). It may be noticC'd that the Greek word scripts. The asyndeton, as in the last for'' hmnility" (-ra,mvo<1>po<rov11) is used only clause, increases the emphasis. The word by St. Paul, except in this place. For God rendered" adversary"…
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tho brothorhnod. (For the wm·rle, "in lho Peter e.nrl Andrew, James and John, by tha world," comr. John xvi. 33, "In the world Sea of Galilee, when the two last were in ve shall hcwe tribulation : but be of good the ship with Zebedee their father, mendin1: Jheer; I hn.ve overcome the world.") '!'here (1<'?'-rap-rl(o…
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nnrl may therefore be rendered "I write." H; l Cor. ix. 5) is intended, or some other Exhorting, and testifying. The general well-known Christian woman (comp. 2 John t0ne of this Epistle is hortatory: St. Peter 1). In fo.rnur of this view is the following ~0mforts his readers in the sufferings which sn.lutRtion from…
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he confined his miniatro.tiona to the Jews. 26). The practice seems to have been uai- On the whole, it seems much more probable versal in early times; it is mentioned by that St. Peter wo.s writing 11t the famous Justin Martyr, Tertullian, Chrysoatom, olty on the Euphrates, though no traces of Augustine, and other anci…
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Those who would tea?h and exllC\rt like St. Peter, mu8t luwe St. Peter'e faith and hopA: we mu~t know, not w1tb the cold knowledge which may be gleaned from books, but with the wann, real knowledge of the heart, what is the deep value of religion-its precious- ness, the sweetn~ss of its peac~, the _gl~dness of its h…
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he died for them. .And he appointed under-shepherds to work under his eye. He still gives the pastoral spirit to those who are faithfully serving him in their sacred calling; -ioal, self-denying charity, the strong lo·,e of sonls, are his gift. For he is the chief Shepherd, and under-shepherds must gather round him, an…
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day life.. Th_e ~rd,himself chose and wore that lowly garb. He girded himself; he wnshed his disciples feet, setting us an example that. we should do as he bath done unto ~s.; that as he_, our Lord and Master, washed the feet of his creatures, so we should be w11lmg to subnut ourselves to humble works of Christian lov…
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all those troubles he cares for us, and guides them all for our eternal good. If we have foith in his love, we shall be able to cast all our care upon him. Hezekiah took the threatening letter of Sennacherib into the house of the Lord, and spread it before the Lord. So should we do with ell our anxieties, great and …
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strength to obey. They must look unto Jesus (A<f,opi»vns, Heb. xii. 2); they must look away from the troubles which were surrouuding them-their light afiliction, which was but for a moment, to the Author and Finisher of their faith. .And that because it is by ~race that men are saved, and God is the God of all grace…
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make us perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle us; for his is the mi"ht, and that for all the nges of eternity. Hie hand is mighty; all might is his. The Christian thankfully and joyfully acknowledges it. Hie hand framed the heavens; they declare his glory. Bis he.nd is over his elect; they set forth his praises. The sa…
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HOMILIES BY V.ARIOUS AUTHORS. Ver. 5 (middle clause).-The slave'.s dress. "Be clothed," or, according to tl1e Revised Version, "gird yourselves." It is a remarkable word, occurring only here in the New Testament. It means to put on a certain article of dress which according to one view was a kind of "overall" worn b…
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of our claims lhan either of our obligations or of onr weaknesses. If we would obey this injunction, and be rooted in humility, we must seek to know ourselves as we are, 11nd to that end must study our own faces in the glass of God's \Vord and Christ's example. 'Jhese mirrors will show us what will put us out of concei…
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Isa storehouse from which they get all they require. Its fruit is their rood, its juice their beverage, from its bark they prepare their clothing, [rom its wood they builcl their houses and fashion their weapons, its leaves make their thatch, its fibres their cor<lage So the grace of God is all-sufficient-Protean in it…
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exalted an ide& of the fulness a.nd variety of the operations of God's grace that he heaps toge~her here all ~hese terms which substantially express the same i<lea. 'l'he accumulat10~, however, 1s 1:1ot empty tautology. It witnesses to the joyful emotion which fill~ his h~art. It brings to view the completeness of t…
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steady us, and so we find, e. verse or two before our text, that the apostle has bid his readers be "steadfast in the faith," where he employs a word which is cornate with that here used. Faith knits us to God, and sets wide the portals of the hea~t that the flood of his power may enter in. If we trust him, he will hol…
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of the Christian pastor differ widely and radically from those of the heathen priest or phil0sopher; and they differ decidedly from those of the Jewish prophet 01· priest. 'l'he bonils uniting pa.stor and people together are more sacred, more tender, and more momlly powerful than the official bonds which owe their e…
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growth, of a rnrituro, noble, and serviceable character. 2. Especially, obedience and subjection a.re the best prer,ara.tion for the exercise of authority and command. As society is constituted, it is natural and necessary that, whilst generation succeeds generation, the younger should step into the places of those who…
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Ver. 8.-Watchfulness. Peter may well have remembered the Lord's appeal to him and his companions in the garden of Gethsemane, "Could ye not watch with me one hour?" And his failure upon that occasion to exercise this virtue, connected as it was with the reproach of his Divine Friend, may well have deepened his sense…
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from the necessity of observing his conduct. and consciously regulating it by the counsels of inspired wisdom. III. THE MOTIVE TO WATCHFUJ,NESS. The motive which will weigh most with the Christian will be the wish and authoritative command of his Lord. How deep an impression bis frequent admonitions to spiritual vigil…
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appointed thee: if any be blameless, . . . for n hishop must be blameless, ns the steward of God;" or in the passage before us. "The ciders which are among yon I exhort ... feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof" (literally, Greek Jmt1"1<01rovVT_«, bi~hoping). The two terms ( as also,…
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Vers. 5-7.-The conduct 'becoming Ohurch members towards the elders of fht Ohurch. 'l'he apostle is not thinking of those ,vho are young in years when he writes "Like?Tise, ye younger." In the early Church the ministers were to be tried men'. consequently they were more advanced in exrerience than most of the rest, and…
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Vers. 8--11.-Suspicion of Satan. "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaiing lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour," etc. Jesus had appoiuted Peter to the care of his fleck, and here we have the cry of the wakeful shepherd, and also another instance in which Peter's personal hist…
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Ver. 1.-True office-bearers in the Church (No. 1). "The elders therefore among you I exhort, who am a fellow-elder," etc. With the word" well-doing" in the last sentence of tho preceding chapter ~inging in our ears, we easily understand why the apostle thus proceeds to exhort men to their duties as office-bearers in th…
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high dostiny. "Eternal glory in Christ;" such Mis (1) revealed in Christ; (2) share,t with Christ; (3) inherited through Christ. 2. A trial that is transient. "Arte~ ye have suffered a little while." Often it seems long. "Life, an age to the miserable, a moment to the hn.ppy." Ilut it is a "little while" comparntively …
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themselves ensamples to the flock. Their ambition is to be to hve whnt they tench. '' Either tench not," snys Gregory Nazianzen, "or teach by living." 3. Promise of reward for fulfilment of the exhortation. •• And when the chief Shepherd shall be mnnifested, ye shall receive the crown of glory that fadcth not awny."…
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thnt sacred ovening before the Crucifixion" (Howson's 'Honn Petrinit1 '). All of them, after the example of Christ, were to gird themselves to serve one another-the elders the younger (people), and the younger (people) the el<lers. The principle laid down in eh. iv. 10 was that 1111 girts-experience, youthfol energy, a…
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are strongly tempted. \Ye are here exhorted not to flee from but to face the devil; and James adds the thought that, when we boldly face him, he will flee from us. '!'here ~eems to be a connecti~g of the devil with the persecutions that were takiug place. Paul says that Satan hrndered mice and again his going to the …
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wns at tllis time writing from Babylon. He WM attracted to this city (changed from what it hnd once been) by the number of Jews that were resident there. Cbristianity had found II congenial soil among them; and now, on the occasion of Peter writin" to the elect Churches of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, ancl Dithyn…
744 wordsSource & rights
Public domain historical Pulpit Commentary. Source page identifies the volume as Public Domain; text extracted from its historical PDF.
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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.