πεπορευµένους ἐν pots πότοις καὶ ade μὴ συντρεχόντων βλασφημῦνταις ot
κε
ἀσελγείαις ἐπίθυμι µίτοις εἰδωλολατρεί ὑμῶν εἰς τὴν αὐτὴν 4 ἀποδώσουσι λόγον 5
hd consent has been rendered as it rom “\ run. It thus corresponds to
St. Paul’s συνευδοκεῖν (Rom. i. 32).— ἀσωτίας, profligacy. According to Aristotle a. is the excess of liberality, but is applied in complex sense to τοὺς ἀκρατεῖς καὶ els ἀκολασίαν δαπανηρούς. Prodigality is in fact a destruction of one- self as well as one’s property (Eth. Nic., iv. 13).—_aoeXyelars... πότοις. Violence and lust are classed with drunkenness, which breeds and fosters them. 4a. is wanton violence as well as licentiousness. So the classic Christian example of the word is exactly justified ; see Luke xv. 13, the Prodigal Son squan- dered his substance, living acdtws.— ἀνάχυσιν, excess, overflow, properly of water (Philo ii. 508 f., description of evolution of air from fire, water from air, land from water). In Strabo (iii. 1, 4, etc.) = estuary. St. Peter is still thinking of the narrative of the Deluge, which was the fit punishment of an inundation of Ρτοάἱρα](γ.--βλασφημοῦντες, put last for emphasis and to pave the way for ver. 5 in accordance with the saying, for every idle word (cf. Rom. iii. 8). The abuse is directed against the apostate heathens and implies blasphemy in its technical sense as opposed to the giving glory to God (ii. 12).
Ver. 5. ἀποδώσουσιν λόγον. will render account — if of their blasphemy, cf. Matt. xii. 36, if of their ἀσωτία (see note) cf. the steward of Luke xvi. 2.--τῷ ἑτοίμως κρίνο- ντι, #.¢., to Christ rather than to God (asi. 17). The Christians took over the Jewish doctrine that every man must give an account of his life (Rom, xiv. το). As already Enoch (Ixix. 27 = John v. 22, 27) taught that this judgment was dele- gated to Messiah. So St. Peter said at Caesarea this is he that hath been ap-
pointed by God judge of living and dead
(Acts x. 43). Compare Matt. xxv. 31 ff. for a more primitive and pictorial state- ment. The use of ἑτοίμως pro-
bably represents “P\yy (see i. 5) {.6., the future judge ; Greek readers would understand the imminent judge (cf. use of ἑτοίμως = ready, sure to come, Homer, I/., xviii. 96, etc.). The v./.
pa
615 = Eroipws κρείνοντι 1 καὶ νε Ἴπους σαρκὶ Lo ἤγγικεν' σωφρονήσα
ὃ πρὸ πάντω.
ϱ ἀγάπη καλύπτει πλῆ
ΠΕΤΡΟΥ Α κροῖς εὐηγγελίσθη ἵ σι δὲ κατὰ OV πνεύµατι.
τὴν εἰς ἑαυτοὺς ἀγάπη. Bos ἁμαρτιῶν" φιλόξε
IV. Lavras καὶ νεκροὺς eis τοῦτο γὰρ A 9 3 , να κριθῶσι μὲν κατὰ ἀνθρώ- πάντων δὲ τὸ τέλος > Ν [4 3
τε οὖν καὶ νήψατε Eis προσευχάς * ἐκτενῆ ἔχοντες ὅτι
νοι εἷς ἀλλή-
1 Codex Sinaiticus with the bulk of the manuscripts has ἔχοντι κρῖναι for κρίνοντι.
ἑ. ἔχοντι κρῖναι softens the rugged original,
Ver. 6. The judgment is imminent because all necessary preliminaries have been accomplished. There is no ground for the objection ‘‘perhaps the culprits have not heard the Gospel”. As regards the living, there is a brotherhood in the world witnessing for Christ in their lives and the missionaries have done their part. As regards the dead Christ de- scended into Hades to preach there and so was followed by His Apostles. And the object of this was that though the dead have been judged as all men are in respect of the flesh they might yet live as God lives in respect of the spirit.—eis τοῦτο, with a view to the final judg- ment or = ἵνα, «.t.A..—vekpots, to dead men generally, but probably as dis- tinct from the rebel spirits who were presumably immortal and could only be imprisoned. Oecumenius rightly con- demns the view, which adds in trespasses and sins or takes dead in a figurative sense, despite the authority of e.¢., Augus- tine (Ep., 164, §§ 1-18).--εὐηγγε- λέσθη, the Gospel was preached, the impersonal passive leaves the way open for the development of this belief accord- ing to which not Christ only but also the Apostles preached to the dead. Hermas, Sim., ix. 165-167; Cl. Al. Strom., vi. 645 f. So was provision made for those who died between the descent of Christ and the evangelisation of their own countries.—tva, κ.τ.λ., that though they had been judged in respect of flesh as men are judged they might live in respect of spirit as God lives. The parallel be- tween the dead and Christ is exact (see iii, 20). Death is the judgment or sen- tence passed on all men (Ecclus. xiv. 17 = Gen. ii. 17, iii. 10). Even Christians, who have died spiritually and ethically (Rom. viii. το), can only hope wistfully to escape it (2 Cor. v. 2 ff.). But it is pre- liminary to the Last Judgment (Heb. ix. 27), at which believers, who are quick- ened spiritually, cannot be condemned to the second death (Apoc. xx. 6).