2 Peter | Practical Teaching on Coming Conditions
Session 1 | 2 Peter 1:1-4
2 Peter 1:1-4 | Introduction: Precious Faith
Verse 1 --
This letter is from Simon Peter, likely written shortly after the first letter, in much the same context.
While there are a few who argue that Jude was the author or partial author of the epistle, based on similarities of chapter 2 with the epistle of Jude as well as a different writing style, I see no need to belabor the point and take Simon Peter to be the author, as stated.
We will use the date of 66AD for the time of writing, though it could be earlier, and unlikely that it is later. As such, the Jewish rebellion has begun in Galilee, but not yet reached Jerusalem.
He writes to a broader audience than in the first epistle. Rather than to strangers scattered (1 Pet. 1:1), his audience is the ones that have obtained like precious faith with us.
My position through the epistle will be that Peter speaks that which is his primary domain, the gospel of the circumcision (Gal. 2:7).
Therefore, the salvation sought is found within the arrival of the Kingdom of God, for which his recipients sought diligently.
We will be diligent to question this assumption throughout the epistle.
The like precious faith was obtained, a verb in which Peter uses the active voice (the subject as the doer of the action).
When Paul speaks about being saved he uses the passive voice (the subject as the recipient of the action).
See, for example, Ephesians 2:8, Acts 16:30-31, Romans 10:9, 1 Timothy 2:4, and many more.
I could not find a single Pauline passage which speaks of faith or salvation in the active voice.
The word through is the Greek ἐν [en“en governs only one case (the Dative), and denotes being or remaining within, with the primary idea of rest and continuance..." (The Companion Bible, Appendix 104.viii).
Therefore, the idea is that this precious faith came from within the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ. His righteousness is the source.
While these words are not in opposition to the message of grace, God's mystery salvation is much more spoken of in terms of being sourced within God's grace and the completed work of Jesus Christ than in God's righteousness.
Verse 2 -
Peter gives a customary blessing of grace and peace.
He asks that these might be multiplied.
πληθύνω [plathuno], which is not a word of arithmetic but of abundance.
The word through is the same as verse 1 (see note), thus Peter says that it is in the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord that grace and peace are sourced.
Verse 3 --
Peter's prayer is that grace and peace be multiplied (v. 2) not only through the knowledge of God (v. 2) but also according as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness.
This difficult sentence can only be understood correctly when it is known that the words according as are grammatically an adverb, and the only verb which they can modify is multiplied, in verse 2.
Thus the measurement of the multiplication is the distribution of things that pertain unto life and godliness which have been given through his divine power.
The interpretive question must be, when did God multiply all that pertains to life and godliness and do it through his divine power?
I think one would be hard-pressed to say that this was anything other than the giving of the Law in the days of Moses.
This was an unprecedented time of God using His power to give instructions about life and godliness, so much so that all other distributions of these things pale in comparison.
When God gave the mystery to Paul, it was no display of His divine power at all, but rather given in secret to one man, and the manifestation of the mystery involved no display of miracles (power), but only faith, hope, charity.
The multiplication is also through the knowledge of him that hath called us.
Since calling pertains to Israel, then us, the second person plural pronoun, must refer to Israel (believing Israel) through the whole book, unless otherwise clarified.
It is Israel that is called to glory and virtue (note Eph. 2:10, and the change of pronoun from verses 8-9 to verse 10, shifting from the church to Israel).
Verse 4 --
Note the plural verb are, thus whereby (by which) must not be something singular, but plural. Furthermore, it is feminine in grammar, thus it cannot be the calling (which is masculine, and singular).
The only real possibility is that it is glory and virtue (v. 3) that are the instruments of exceeding great and precious promises.
Indeed, the great and precious promises of Israel lie in the fulfillment of the glory and virtue to which she is called.
When the nation does achieve this calling, they will be partakers of the divine nature.
Note that Peter has been speaking of us (v. 3) but has now shifted to ye (v. 4). Here he is talking to his audience and reminding them that the blessings and calling of the nation are not automatically given to each individual within the nation, but only to the faithful remnant. This remnant is those who have escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. Note once again the strong works message, as opposed to the Pauline message.
To summarize verses 2-4, Peter prays for Grace and peace and that it would be multiplied in this manner:
through the knowledge of God (v. 2)
according to his divine power displayed in the giving of Torah (v. 3)
through the knowledge God's calling (v. 3), which include glory and virtue
through which come Israel's exceeding great and precious promises.
