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heavenlypromisedland.Heb3:14:11.
b.
Trinitarianformula,cr.
2
Co
13:
13+
.
c.
Lit.'atthelasttime',
cr
1
:20.
d.Bysayingtheprophets
are
insp
ired
bythepre existing
Chr
ist,cf.1Co10:4,9.
the
a
uthor
makesclear
the
unit
yortheO.T,andtheN
.T
.
1
a.
They
are
inanalienenv
ironmen
tthat
does
notmakethepracticeofreligioneasy.Thisisalsotrueof Christiansinge
neral.
TheChristian'scityisheaven,
Ph
3:20;Col3:14;Heb13:14;heisanexile
on
earth,
2
Co
5;6:1
Pl:17:heis
afo
reig
ner
here
,
Ps39:
12;119:19;Heb11:13;1P1:1;2:11,onanexodustothe
Address.Greetings
1
Peter,apostleofJesusChrist,sendsgreetingstoallthoselivingamong foreigners"intheDispersionofPontus,
Galatia
,
Cappadoc
ia,AsiaandBithynia,whohavebeenchosen,•bytheprovidentpurposeof
God
theFather,tobemadeholybytheSpirit,obedienttoJesusChristandsprinkledwithhis blood."
Gr
aceandpeacebewithyoumoreandmore.
THE
FIRSTLETTER
OF
PETER
Introduction.ThesalvationofChristians BlessedbeGodtheFatherofourLordJesusChrist,whoinhisgreatmercy
1:23
hasgivenusanewbirthashissons,byraisingJesusChristfromthedead,sothat
{
1
~
:
i
:
29
:
3:9
4
wehaveasurehope-andthepromiseofaninheritance
that
canneverbespoilt
Mt6:19-2Op
orsoiled
and
neverfadeaway,becauseitisbeingkeptforyouintheheavens.
~ ~
IJt
2;
Throughyourfaith,
God's
powerwillg
uard
youuntilthesalvationwhichhas
E
/"Ar
6
beenpreparedisrevealedattheendoftime.
C•
Thisisacauseofgreatjoyforyou,
} ~ ~ n o
eventhoughyoumayfo.ashorttimehaveto
bear
beingplaguedbyallsortsof
k ~ ~ N l 1
trials;-sothat,whenJesusChristisrevealed,yourfaithwillhavebeentested
and
provedlike
gold-only
itismorepreciousthangold,whichis
corru
ptibleeven
r ~ ~ t f
3
thoug
hitbearstestingbyfire-
and
thenyouwillhavepraiseandglory
and
Rm2
:7
8
honou
r.•Youdidnotseehim,yetyoulovehim;
and
stillwithoutseeinghim,
1
In
4:20
youarealreadyfilledwithajoysogloriousthatitcannotbedescribed,because
9
youbelieve;-andyou
are
sureoftheendtowhichyourfaithlooksforward,that is,thesalvationofyoursouls.
Heb10:39
1
PE
TER
Thehopeoftheprophets
.10
It
wasthissalvationthatthe
proph
etswerelooking
and
searchingso
hard
f
or;
II
their
prop
hecieswereaboutthegracewhichwastocometoyou
.•
The
SpiritofChristwhichwasinthem"foretoldthesufferingsofChristandthegloriesthat wouldcomeafterthem,andtheytriedtofindoutatwhattime
and
in
12
whatcircumstancesallthiswastobeexpected.-Itwasrevealedtothem
tha
tthenewstheybroughtofallthethingswhichhavenowbeen
announc
edtoyou,by thosewhopreachedtoyouthe
Good
NewsthroughtheHolySpiritsentfrom heaven,wasforyou
andnot
forthemselves.Eventheangelslongtocatcha glimpseofthesethings.
Lord,
and
forthe
purpose
ofhelpingthesick
and
forgivingtheirsins.aretheoriginoftheChurch's 'sacramentofthesick'
(or
HolyUnction),was
endo
rsedby
the
CouncilofTrent. e.Thismutualconfession
and
prayerfor
each
other.i
nstead
ofbeing
onlyrecomme
nda
tionstothe sick,
v,
15,
arehereurgedonallChristians.
Norbtna
specialho
.....
evermay
be
deducedabout
sacramental confession, 1.Var.
(V
ulg.)
'assiduous',
g.
Val',
·
~
Y
OU
can
be
sure'.
Awarningfortherichandtheself-confident Hereistheanswerforthoseofyouwhotalklikethis:'Todayortomorrow,
13
weareofftothisor
that
town;wearegoingtospendayearthere,trading,and makesomemoney',
-Yo
uneverknowwhatwillhappent
omor
row:youareno
14
morethanamistthatishereforalittlewhileandthendisappears
.•
Themost
15
youshouldeversayis:
'If
itistheLord'swill,weshallstillbealivetodothisor that'.-Buthowproud
and
sureofyourselvesyouarenow!Prideofthiskindis
16
alwayswicked.•Everyonewhoknowswhatistherightthingtodoanddoesn't
17
doitcommitsasin.
S
Nowananswerfortherich.Startcrying,weepforthemiseriesthatare
I
comingtoyou.•Yourwealthisallrotting,
your
clothesarealleatenupby m
oth
s.-Ally
our
goldandy
our
silverarecorrodingaway,andthesamecorrosion willbey
our
ownsentence,andeatintoyourbody.
It
wasaburningfircthatyou storedupasyourtreasureforthelastdays."•Labourersmowedyourfields,and
4
youcheatedthem
-li
stentothewagesthatyoukeptback,callingout;realise thatthecriesofthereapershavereachedtheears
of
theLordofhosts.•Onearth
5
youhavehadalifeofcomfortandluxury;inthetimeofslaughter"youwent oneatingtoyourhe
art'
scontent.
·I
twasyouwhocondemnedtheinnocentand killedthem;theyofferedyounoresistance. Afinalexhortation
Now
bepatient,brothers,untiltheLord'scoming.Thinkofafarmer:how patientlyhewaitsforthepreciousfruitofthe
ground
untilithashadtheautumn rain
s'
andthespringrains!-You
(00
havetobepatient;donotloseheart, becausetheLord'scomingwillbesoon.•Donotmakecomplaintsagainstone
9
anot
her,brothers,soasnottobebroughttojudgementyourselves;theJudgeis alreadytobeseenwaitingatthegates.•Foryourexample,brothers,insub-
10
mittingwithpatience,taketheprophetswhospokeinthenameoftheLord; rememberitisthosewhohadendurancethatwesayaretheblessedones.You
II
haveheardofthepatienceofJob,andunderstoodtheLord'spurpose,realising that
the
Lord
is
ki
ndandcompassionate,
Aboveall,mybrothers,donotswearbyheavenorbytheearth,oruseany
12
oaths
atall.Ifyoumean'yes',youmustsay'yes';ifyoumean'no',say'no'. Otherwiseyoumake
your
selvesliabletojudgement. Ifanyone
of
youisintrouble,heshouldpray;ifanyoneisfeelinghappy,he
13
shouldsingapsalm.-Ifoneofyouisill,heshouldsendfortheelders
14
ofthechurch,andtheymustanointhimwithoilinthenameoftheLord"and prayoverhim.•Theprayer
of
faithwillsavethesickmanandtheLordwillraise
15
himupagain;andifhehascommittedanysins,hewillbeforgiven
.•
Soconfess
16
yoursinstooneanother,andprayforone
anot
her,andthiswillcureyou;'the heartfelt!prayerofagoodmanworksverypowerfully.•Elijahwasahuman
17
beinglikeourselves
-he
prayedhardforitnottorain,andnorainfellfor three-and-a-halfyears;-thenheprayedagainandtheskygaverainandtheearth
18
gavecrops.Mybrothers,ifoneofyoustraysawayfromthetruth,andanotherbrings
19
himbackto
it.vhe
maybesure"thatanyonewhocanbringbackasinnerfrom
20
thewrongwaythathehastakenwillbesavingasoulfromdeathand
coveringupagreatnumber
0/
sins.
5
a.Esc
hatologtca
ttythemisf
ortun
esoftherichwill
be
ap
pare
ntonlyattheJudgement.
S
: 7 ~ 9 .
Wehowever
are
already
livinginthelast
day
s,
cr
2
Co
6:2+,b.
No
tareferencetoJ
udgeme
ntday.buttothe extremeviolencetowhich,
once,
theinnocenthad beensubjected,
v.
6,
whiletherichwerelivingatease.
v,
S.
c.
'ra
ins',
var.
'fruits',
d,
am,'oftheLord',Thetraditionthatthese prayers
and
this
ano
intingwithoilinthe
name
of
thePr10:12
I
P4:8M118:15
Oa6:1
P
r27
:1M16:34Lk12:19-20 Ws2:10-20Jb14:2+
Ac
18:21Rm1:10
1
J,,2:16+
S
I2
9:10-12
Mt6:
19-21
Pr/6:27
Pr
/1:4,28
Lv19:13 Dt24:14-15 Ex22:22
Tr
1:5+ Mk6:13
Ac
3:16+ On18:16Ps32Pr28:13+S14:26
I
In
1:8-10
Ex32
:1/
+
1
K
17:1:
18:1.42Lk4:25Rv11:6M'5:11-12p 1:2-3,12
Jb42
:10-17Ps103:8
SI5
:1O;23:9Mt5:34-37 1Co15:23+
I
P2:19+
Dr
JJ:14
M
124
:33pRm2:6+2Co6:2+ Rv1:3
v
 
1:13
1
PETER
4°2
4°3
1
PETER
3:
12
::>
-s
>
·w
0::
'1Z
'"1
-'
Rm12:14-18M
I5
:39.44Ga4:28 Gn18:12
LXX
Lk6:28
Ps
34:12-16Ep5:25-33 Col3:19 Is3:
16f+
I
Tm2:9-15 Ep5:22-24 Col3:18 1:25
I
Co7:12-16Ga5:13
b.Add.'inthesightof
God'
.
c.Var.
'died',cf.
3:18.
d,
Var.'youwerelikestrayshee
p'.
e.
The
'episcopos',
i.e.theinspector
or
overseer,
cr
Tt1:5+.
3
a.Lit.'should
be
thehiddenman(self)ofthe hea
rt'
.b,'(she)is
equ
allyanheir',var.
'youare
equallyheirs'.'thelifeofg
race'
,lit.
'the
graceoflife';var.
'he
rownformoftheg
race
oflife',cf.4:10.
c,
'beself-effacing'(lit.'havea
humb
le
dispo
sition'); Vulg.'be
mode
stand
humbl
e'.e.Or'bythepreciousb
lood
oftheChrist.this
spotlesslamb'.
f.
Var.'froma
pur
ehe
art'
,
g.Or'thelivingandet
ern
alWordof
Go
d'.2
a,
Lit.
'to
thisindeedtheywereappointe
d'.
ByrejectingtheGood
News
theJewshavelosttheirp
rero
g
arivcs
whichhavebeentransf
erred
toChristians, 3:9.Thea.T.Quo
tati
onsinvv.6-10reflecttheneed oftheearliestChristianstofindscript
ura
l
expla
nationsfortheunbeliefof
Israel.
Inmarriage
I
3
Inthesameway,wivesshouldbe
obed
ienttotheirhusbands.Then,ifthere ares
ome
husbandswhohavenotyetobeyedthew
ord
,theymayfindthem
2
selveswonover,wit
hou
tawordspoken,bythewaytheirwivesbehave,
-when
3
theyseehowfaithful
and
conscientioustheyare.
-Do
notdressupforshow:
4
doingupyourhair,wearinggoldbraceletsandfinecl
oth
es;-allthis
should
beinside,inaperson'sheart,«imperis
hab
le:the
orna
ment
ofasweet
and
gentle
5
disposition-thisis
wha
tispreciousinthesight
of
God
.-Thatwashowtheholy womenofthepastdressedthemselvesattractively
-th
eyhopedinGodandwere
6
t
end
erand
obe
dienttotheirhusb
ands;
-IikeSarah,whowasobedienttoAbr
aham
,
and
calledhimher
lord.
Youarenowherchildren,aslongasyoulivegoodlives anddonotgivewaytofearorworry. Inthesameway,
husba
ndsmustalwaystreattheirwiveswithconsideration intheirlifetogether,respectingawomanasonewho,
though
shemaybethe weakerp
artner
,isequallyanheir"tothelifeofgrace.Thiswillstopanything f
rom
c
oming
inthewayofyourprayers. Towardsthebrothers Finally:youshouldallagree
among
yourselvesandbesympathetic;lovethe
9
brot
hers,have
com
passion
and
beself-effacing."• Neverpaybackone
wrong
withanother,oranangrywordwith
anotherone;
instead,paybackwitha blessing.Thatiswhatyouarecalledtodo,sothatyouinheritablessingyourself.
10
Remember:
Anyonewhowantstohaveahappylifeandtoenjoyprosperitymust
II
banishmalicefromhistongue,dece
itf
ulconversationfromhislips;«hemustnever
12
yieldtoevilbutmustpractisegood;hemustseekpeaceandpursueit.«Becausethe
15
topunishcriminals
and
praisegoodcitizenship.-Godwantsyoutobe
good
16
citizens,soastosilence
what
fools
are
sayingintheirignorance.
-Youare
slaves
of
nooneexcept
God,
sobehavelikefreemen,
and
neveruse
your
freedomasan
17
excuseforwickedness.-Haverespectforeve
ryone
and
lovefor
our
community
;
?"di/21
fear
Godand
honourtheemperor.
Mt22:2Ip
Towardsmasters
18
Slavesmustberespectful
and
obedienttotheirmasters,
not
onlywhenthey
Ep6
:5-8+
19
arekind
and
gentle
but
alsowhenthey
are
unfair.-
You
see,thereis
some
merit"
j ; ; ,
~
~
i
:
l
t
in
putting
upwith
the
painsofunearned
punishment
ifitisdoneforthesakeof
20
God·
but
thereis
nothing
meritoriousin
taking
abeatingpatientlyifyouhave
done
something
wrong
todeserveit.
The
merit,inthesightof
God,
isin
bearing
itpatientlywhenyou
are
punishedafter
doing
your
duty.
21
This,infact,is
what
youwerecalledtodo,becauseChristsuffered-foryou
~ i -
~ ~
: : ~ ~
22
andleftanexampleforyoutofollowthewayhe
too
k.•Hehadnotdoneanything
1n8:46 23
wrong,
and
therehadbeennoperjuryinhismouth.
-H
ewasinsulted
and
did
not
Z t ; f ~ 9
retaliatewithins
ults;
whenhewas
tortured
hemadenothreatsbuthe
put
his
24
trustintherighteousjudge.-Hewas
bearingourfaults
inhisownbodyonthe
Ifs"JBr
cross,sothatwemightdieto
our
faultsandliveforholiness;
throughhiswounds
f c : ~ ~4 i w
25
youhavebeenhealed.
•
You
had
goneastray/ikeshee
p'
butnowyou
ha
vecome
Is53:5.6
backtotheshepherdandguardian-ofyoursouls.
Ezk34:1+
TheobligationsofChristians:towardspagans Iurgeyou,mydearpeople,whileyou
are
visitorsandpilgrims,
tokeepyour-
II
selvesfreefromtheselfishpassionsthatattackthesoul.-Alwaysbehave
12
honourablyamong
paga
nssot
ha
tthey
can
see
your
goodworksforthemselves and,whentheday
of
reckoningcomes,givethanksto
Go
df
or
thethingswhich now
make
them
denounceyouascriminals. Towardscivilauthority
For
thesake
of
the
Lord,
accepttheauth
or
ityofeverysocialinstitution:the
\3
emperor,
asthe
sup
remea
uthor
ity,-andthegovernorsascommissionedbyhim
14
AcalltosanctityandwatchfulnessFree
your
minds,then,
of
e
ncumbran
ces;controlthem,and
putyour
trust
13
in
nothing
but
thegrace
that
willbegivenyouwhenJesus
Christ
isrevealed.Donotbehaveintheway
that
youlikedtobeforeyoulearntthe
truth;
mak
e
14
a
habit
ofobedience:
-be
holyinallyoudo,sinceitistheHoly
One
whohas
15
calledyou,-andscripturesays:
Beholy,forIamholy.
16
Ifyouare
acknow
ledgingasy
our
Fatherone
whohasnofavouritesand
judges
17
everyoneaccordingto
what
hehasdone,you
must
bescrupulouslycarefulaslong asyouarelivingawayfrom
your
home.-
Remember,
the
ransom
thatwas
paid
18
tofreeyou
fromtheuselessway
of
life
your
ancestorshanded
down
wasnotpaidin
anythingcorruptible
,neitherin
silver
nor
gold,
-but
inthepreciousblood
of
a
19
lambwit
hout
spot
or
stain,namelyChrist;'
-who
,
thoughknownsincebefore
20
theworldwasmade,hasbeenrevealedonlyinourtime,theendoftheages,for
your
sake.
-Through
himyounowhavefaithin
God
,whoraisedhimf
rom
the
21
dead
and
gavehimgloryfor
tha
tveryreasor:
-so
thatyouwouldhavefaithand
hope
in
God
.LoveYouhavebeenobedienttothetruthandpurifiedyoursoulsuntilyoucan
22
lovelike
brother
s,insincerity;letyourloveforeachotherbereal
and
fromthe
heart
/e-c-yournewbirthwas
not
fromanymortalseedbutfromtheeverlasting
23
word
of
theliving
and
eternal
God.
9
-
Allfleshisgrassanditsglorylikethewild
24
flower's.Thegrasswithers,theflowerfalls,«butthewordoftheLordremainsfor
25
ever.
Whatisthisword?
It
isthe
Good
News
thathas
beenbroughttoyou. Integrity
2
Besure,then,youareneverspiteful,
or
dec
eitf
ul,
or
hypocritical,orenvious
1
and
criticalofeachother.-Youarenewb
orn
,and,likebabies,youshould behungryf
or
nothingbutmilk-thespiritual
hon
estywhichwillhelpyouto growuptosalvation-c--nowthatyouhave
tastedthegoodness
of
theLord.
Ps
39:12Ga5:24im4:1 Is10:3M15:16Rsn\3:1-7Tt3:1M121:42pAc4:11Ep2:20-22
Ex
19:6+Rm1:9+
Is28:16Rm9:33: 10:11
The
newpriesthoodHeisthelivingstone,rejectedbymen
butcho
senbyGodandprecioustohim;
4
setyourselvesclosetohim•so
that
youtoo,theholypriesthood
that
offersthe
5
spiritualsacrificeswhichJesus
Chri
sthas
made
acc
eptabl
eto
God
,maybeliving
stonesmak
ingaspiritual
house
.-Asscripturesays:
SeehowIlayinZionaprecious
6
cornerstonethatIhavechosen
and
themanwhorestshistrustonitwillnotbedisap- pointed.
-That
m
eans
thatforyou
who
arebelievers,itisprecious;
but
for
7
Ps.
11
8:2
2
unbelievers,
thestonerejecteabythebuildershasprovedtobethekeystone,'a
8
Is
8:14f
stonetostumbleover,arocktobringmendown.
They
stumb
leoveritbecausethey donotbelieveintheword;itwasthefateinst
or
efor
them.»
But
youare
achosenrace,aroyalpriesthood,aconsecratednation,apeopleset
9
apart
tosingthepraisesofGodwhocalledyouout
of
thedarkness
into
his
wonderful
light.-Onceyouwere
notapeople
atall
and
nowyouarethePeople
10
ofGod;
onceyouwere
outsidethemercy
andnow
youhavebeengivenmercy.
Ps
34:8R
m6:19
Mt5
:48Ac9:13+
1
1n3:3
Lv17:1+;
19:2
Dr
10:17+
Heb
11:6+2Co5:6
Is52:3
1Co6:20;7:23Rm1:5+
In17:17 Rm12:9
),,3:11+
1m1:18
I
in
3:9:5:1
IP
1:3Is40:6-8Is43
:21}-21
Ex
19:5-6+
Rm3:24+
Ep1:1
4+
Ac
26:18
Col1:
12-\3
Ho1:6-9;
2:3.25
in
1:29+In17:24
Ga
4:4
Rml:1
6+
R
ml
:
4+
Rm8
:11+
M119
:141m1:21
1Co3:2
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ER
4°44°5
1
PETER
5:
10
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2:R-9
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rs
55:22
Mt6:25f
Ps21:13
Ep6:111Tm3:8
Ttl:7
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8:182Co4:17
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20:28+Col3:4
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E=k34:/-'
1Co9:25
- ~
-
c,
Add.'and
power'.
Add.
at
end
of
verse'
tthc
Spirit)b
lasp
hemedbythembuthonouredbr
}-OU'.
5
a,
These
elders
arctobe
identifiedwiththe
'pres
byters'ofTt1:5+,cf.noteon5:5where'ciders' m
ean
s'olderpeople'.
h.
Thiscan
mean
either
that
as
an
apostle,
1:1,
he
witn
essed
thePassionofJesus,or
that
through hisownsuffertnxsheis.awitnesstoChrist.
c.
Atthe
narousia.
cr.
1:-513:
4:7.17:5:10.
d.
Om.'watchoverit'and'because
God
wants
i(.
c.
Lit.
'N
oraslordingitoverthoseallocated
(i.e
.
to
you)
Outbe
comin
gex
amp
les
of
Ihe
Iock":
var.'Be
examples
to
theflock'.
Add
.
( \ ' l ll ~
.
)
'wit
h
all
your
heart'.
r.
Lit.
'Likewiseyounger
peop
le
sub
mityourselvestoolderpeopl
e':
the
'youngerpeople'
herearc
uot
adolescentsasop
posed
to'oldernco
nle',
d.
TI:!:6.butthebodyofthefaithful
,IS
opposed
to
the'presbyters'orelders.
5:I,.
g.
Add.
(Vulg.)'ofhiscomina',cf.1:12.
h,
Theword
diahalos
(lit.'one
whopassestoanotherinf
ormation
again
stathird
party
')may
be
tran
sl
ated
'accuser':
it
is
app
liedtothedevilinitslegal sense
c.l'
'trresecutor
"
l.
Add.
(Vulg.)
'submittingto
deathso
that
we
mightinherit
etern
allife'.
4
a,
Lit.
'rus
hwiththemtothcsame"unsafeup pouring"(I.e."floodofno-salvation"or"l1oodof
debauche
ry"
)';
this
da
nge
rou
s
11
00
<.
deslroysthe
goo
d.
unlike
Noah'
sFloodthatdes
troyed
thewicked.cf.3:20.
b.
Forthe
proclamation
ofthe
Good
News
tothedeadcf.3:19
-I-.
Some
exegetesinterpretthisasmeaning Ihe'snirituallv
dead'
,
e.s
.thosewhoarcpersecuting theChristianstowhomthe
letter
isbeing
written.
c,
Asinimpromptuspiritual
pr
ophecie
s
andin
etossotatia,
cr
ICo14:2-19:Ac11:271withAc2:4I. d.Thiscouldpossibly
refer
toliturgicalscrvi..e.
d.
Om.'or
It>
worry
a
bout
them'.
e.Lie
'sanctify',
t,
"Thelord";var.'God'.'hope',
add.'andfaith'.
'I:C
allusionistolocalpersecutions. u.'sins',Yulg,'oursi
ns'.
Om.
'to
God'.
h.
Probablyalludes
to
thedescentofChrist
10
Hades,cf.MtI6:18
+.
betweenhisdeathand resurrection,Mt12:40:Ac2:24.31:
Rm
10:7:Ep
4:9:
Heb13:20,Hewentthere'inspirit'.
cf
Lk23:46,or
(better)
'accordingtothespirit',
Ho
m1:4
i,
his
'Ilc
sh'
being
deadonthe
cros
s,
Hill
X3f.The'spirits inprison'
to
whomhe'preached'
(or
'proclaimed') salvationarc
identified
bysomewriters
as
thechained d
emon
smentionedintheBookofEnoch(sometexts arccorrectedsoastomakeEnoch,andnotChrist,
prea
ch
to
them).These
spirit
s
have
thusbeenput undertheauth
ority
of
Christas
Kvriosv,
22,cf.
EpI:
21f;Ph2:8-10,andthis
subjec
tiontohimis
to
bec
onfirm
edlateron,ICo15:24f.Otherwriterssuggest thesewerethespiritsofpeople
drowne
dintheF
lood
asapunishmentbutwhoarc
now
summonedby
God
's'patience'
to
eterna
llife,cf,4:6.Mt27:52fisasimilar episodeofliberationbyChristbetweenhisdeathand resurrection,onlyhere
it
isthe
saint
s,the
holy
oneswhowerewaitingforhim,thatare
liberated.
cf
Heb
11:39f;12:23,
and
aregiventhefreedomof
the
holy(theh
eaven
ly)city.
The
descent
of
Christ
toHadesisoneofthe
articles
inthe'Apostles'Cre
ed'.
i.
Lit.'bywater,towhichtheantitypeisthe baptism'
I.c.
thatwhichwasprefigured
by
the'type'
(d.ICo
IU:6
-l-).
Herethe'type'ofbaptismis
Noa
h's
Flo
od.
I,
As
sofew
weresavedfrom
dro
wning,theFlood is
taken
tosymbolisetheO.T.purificatoryritesthat were.almostwithoutexc
eption
,limitedtoan
external
'bod
ily'
puri
ty,whereasthebap
tism
bywhich
a
personis
rebo
rncanhavenolimitstoitsefficacy. k.
The
'pledge'(
alternativetrans
lati
on'
there
quest'
)madebyaconvertathis
baptism
,.
Instructions:totheelders
1
5
NowIhavesomethingtotellyourelders:"Iamaneldermyself,andawitness" tothesufferingsofChrist,andwithyouIhaveashareintheglorythatis toberevealed.'•BetheshepherdsoftheflockofGodthatisentrustedtoyou: watchoverit,notsimplyasadutybutgladly,becauseGodwantsit;"notfor sordidmoney,butbecauseyouareeagertodoit.•Neverbeadict
ator
overany groupthatisputinyourcharge,butbeanexamplethatthewholeflockcan follo
w.'
•Whenthechiefshepherdappears,youwillbegiventhecrownof unfadingglory. TothefaithfulTotherestofyouIsay:dowhattheelderstellyou,"andallwrapyourselves inhumilitytobeservantsofeachother,because
Godrefusestheproudandwill alwaysfavourthehumble.
•
Bowdown,then,beforethepowerofGodnow,andhe
7
willraiseyouuponthe
app
ointedday;"
«unload
all
yourworries
01/1
0
him,
since
8
heislookingafteryou
.•
BecalmIJIII
vigi
lant,
becauseyourenemythedevil"is prowlingroundlikea
roar
inglion,lookingforsomeonetoeat.
-Siand
uptohim, stronginfaithandintheknowledgethatyourbrothersallovertheworldarc
10
sufferingthesamethings.•YouwillhavetosufTeronlyforalittlewhile:theGod
15
Spiritofglory,
r
theSpiritofGodrestingonyou.•Noneofyoushouldeverdeserve
16
tosufTerforbeingamurderer,athief,acriminaloraninformer;
-but
ifanyoneofyoushouldsufTerforbeingaChristian,thenheisnottobeashamedofit;he
;\01
1:26-117
shouldthankGodthathehasbeencalledone.
-The
timehascomeforthe
judg
e-menttobeginatthehouseholdofGod;andifwhatweknownowisonlythe
t k ~ i ? j
l
beginning,whatwillitbewhenitcomesdowntothosewhorefusetobelieveGod's
18
Good
News?
«If
it
ishardforagoodmalltobesaved,whatwillhappentothewicked
Pc
L
1)/1
19
and
10
sinners?
-SoeventhosewhomGodallowstosuffermusttrustthemselves totheconstancyofthecreatorandgoondoinggood.
Ac
10:422
Tm4:1
Rm6:2.7Rm6:4+
:Co10:31
1:5·7;4:17
2
Co
6:2+
Pr1O!2
Jm5:20Rm1:9+
2Co5:5+
Ep4:17-18 T13:3
Rm/:291
Ac2:331
Ep
1
:
~ 0 - 2
1
CoI2:15+
InpersecutionNoonecanhurtyouifyouaredeterminedtodoonlywhatisright;
-if
you
Ii
dohavetosufferforbeinggood,youwill
count
it
ablessing.
Thereisnoneedto beafraidortoworryaboutthem.s
-Simply
reverence'the
Lord
!
Christinyour
15
hearts,andalwayshave
your
answerreadyforpeoplewhoaskyouthereasonfor thehopethatyouallhave.-Butgiveitwithc
our
tesyandrespectandwithaclear
16
conscience,sothatthosewhoslanderyouwhenyouarelivingagoodlifeinChrist maybeprovedwrongintheaccusationsthattheybring
.•
Andifitisthewillof
17
G('Idthatyoushouldsuffer,itisbettertosufferfordoingrightt
han
fordoingwrong.Theresurrectionand
'the
descentintohell'Why,Christhimself,innocentthoughhewas,haddiedoncefor
sins,v
diedfor
18
theguilty,toleadusto
God
.Inthebodyhewasputtodeath,inthespirithewas raisedtolife,-and,inthespirit,hewenttopreachtothespiritsinprison."
19
Nowitwaslongago,when
Noah
wasstillbuilding
that
ark
whichsavedonlya
20
smallgroupofeightpeople'bywater',
and
when
God
wasstillwaitingpatiently, thatthesespiritsrefusedtobelieve.
-That
waterisatypeofthebaptism'which
21
savesyounow,andwhichisnotthewashingoffofphysicaldirt!butapledge" madeto
God
fromagoodconscience,
thro
ughtheresurrectionofJesusChrist,whohasenteredheavenandisat
God
'sright
hand,'
nowthathehas
made
the
22
angelsandDominationsandPowershissubjects.
4
ThinkofwhatChristsufferedinthislife,andthenarmyourselveswiththe
1
sameresolutionthathehad:anyonewhointhislifehasbodilysufferinghas brokenwithsin,•becausefortherestofhislifeon
earth
heisnotruledby
human
passionsbutonlybythewillof
God
.•Youspentquitelongenoughinthepast livingthesortoflife
that
paganslive,behavingindecently,givingwaytoyour passions,drinkingallthetime,havingwildpartiesanddrunkenorgies
ana
degradingyourselvesbyfollowingfalsegods.-Sopeople
cannot
understandwhyyounolongerhurryoffwiththemtojointhisfl
ood
whichisrushingdownto ruin,«andthentheybegintospreadlibelsaboutyou.•Theywillhavetoanswer foritinfrontofthejudgewhoisreadytojudgethelivingandthedead.
-And
becauseheistheir
judg
etoo,thedead
had
tobetoldthe
Goo
dNewsaswell,
b
sothatthough,intheirlifeonearth,theyhadbeenthroughthejudgement
tha
tcomestoallhumanity,theymightcometoGod'slifeinthespirit. TherevelationofChristisclose Everythingwill
soon
cometoanend,so,topraybetter,keepacalm
and
sober
7
mind.-Aboveall,neverlet
your
loveforeachothergrowinsincere,since
love
8
coversovermanyasin.
•
Welcomeeachotherintoy
our
houseswit
hout
grumbling.
9
Eachoneofyouhasreceivedaspecialgrace,so,likegoodstewardsresponsible
10
forallthesedifferentgracesof
God
,putyourselvesattheserviceofothers.•If
11
you
are
aspeaker,speakinwordswhichseemto
come
from
God;
"ifyouareahelper,"helpasthougheveryactionwasdoneat
God
'sorders;sothatin everythingGodmayreceivetheglory,throughJesusChrist,sincetohimalone belongallglory
and
powerforever
and
ever.Amen. Recapitulation
3:14
My
dear
people,youmustnotthinkitunacc
oun
table
that
youshouldbetested
121:7
byfire.
There
isnothingextr
aordina
ryinwhathashappenedtoyou.
-If
youcan
13
M J
~ V
: j
~ ~
havesomeshareinthesufferingsofChrist,beglad,becauseyouwillenjoyamuch
co
lli
gr
eat
ergladnesswhenhisgloryisrevealed.
-It
isablessingforyouwhepthey.
14
Jm
l:i.3
insultyouforbearingthename
of
Christ,becauseitmeans
that
youhavethe
Rm16:27+ Rm7:14f
1In2:16417
Rm
5:6;6:102:2/-24
Is
53:11
Ao
3:14/ Rm1:3-41 Heb9:26-28
2P3:9 Gn7:7
21'2:5
Co/2:/2-13
face
of
theLordfrownsonevilmen,buttheeyes
of
the
Lord
areturnedtowardsthe virtuous,hisearstotheircry.
Rm12:6-81
Co
12:4-11 M'5:10
Is
8:12·13
LXX
M
IIO
:26-31
Pr3:25
of 00

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