1 Peter

In this revised BST volume, Edmund Clowney expounds the rich pastoral letter of 1 Peter, exploring historical background, key themes, and applications for today. He highlights the life and work of Jesus, the reality of suffering, and the fulfillment of Old Testament promises, showing readers in every era what the story of Jesus' life means for us as we take up our cross and follow him.

Our inheritance through Christ is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading. In 1 Peter, a man of faith and flaws and eyewitness to the life of Christ challenges us to look beyond our current circumstances to a future inheritance. He shares his concerns on big picture issues for the early church, describes believers' true identity in Christ, and ultimately helps readers discover what it means to experience the Living Hope they have in Christ. Key themes of humility, submission, and identity in Christ guide the study of 1 Peter as participants are challenged to read the book in its entirety each week. Teaching videos are key to the understanding of this study. (9 sessions) Features: Personal study segments to complete between group sessions 9-session study with 8 weeks of homework Verse-by-verse approach to complete a book study Teaching videos that build upon and tie together the personal study available for purchase or rent (30 to 35 minutes per session) Benefits Expand your understanding of 1 Peter for personal spiritual growth by reading the book in its entirety throughout each week of study Follow a verse-by-verse approach to complete a book study Discover the gospel of Christ as learners seek to conform fully to the Scriptures Dig deeper into Scripture individually and alongside other women--both those new to Bible study and those more familiar with Scriptures--with this widely-applicable study Author: Jen Wilkin is a writer, teacher, and blogger at JenWilkin.net. She is the managing editor of The Village Church blog and leads the Flower Mound Women's Bible Study, an interdenominational Bible study with about 700 members representing 68 different churches. She earned a B.A. in English and a Master of Business Administration from Texas A&M. Jen wrote Women of the Word: How to Study the Bible with Both Our Hearts and Our Minds and has a 9-week DVD Bible study on The Sermon on the Mount.Jen grew up in Texas and came to saving faith in elementary school. Her childhood was marked by time spent in seven different denominations - a range of experience that left her with the conviction that knowing the Word was the only sure means of discerning truth from error. Jen's passion is to see women become articulate and committed followers of Christ, with a clear understanding of why they believe what they believe and grounded in the Word of God. She sees women as most frequently appealed to through their emotions. Because of that, she advocates for women to have Bible literacy, love God with their minds, and have their voices and giftings fully leveraged in the church.

Howard Marshall's study of 1 Peter is part of the IVP New Testament commentary series, a series combining pastoral concerns with attention to tough exegetical issues and emphasizing the significance of the biblical text for today's church.

Crisis in the church is not a new phenomenon. In fact, the church has always been - and probably always will be - involved in some kind of crisis. Even in the apostolic period, which is regarded by many as the church's golden age, there were serious crises coming both from the outside, as in 1 Peter, and from the inside, as in Jude and 2 Peter. The three short New Testament letters treated in 1 Peter, Jude and 2 Peter illustrate the problems early Christians faced, as well as the rhetorical techniques and theological concepts with which they combated those problems. In the first part of this volume, Donald Senior views 1 Peter as written from Rome in Peter's name to several churches in northern Asia Minor - present-day Turkey - in the latter part of the first century C.E. The new Christians addressed in 1 Peter found themselves aliens and exiles in the wider Greco-Roman society and suffered a kind of social ostracism. But they are given a marvelous theological Vision of who they have become through their baptism and pastoral encouragement to stand firm. They are shown how to take a missionary stance toward the outside world by giving the witness of a holy and blameless life to offset the slander and ignorance of the non-Christian majority and possibly even to lead them to glorify God on the day of judgment. In the second part of this volume, Daniel Harrington interprets Jude and 2 Peter as confronting crises in the late first century that were perpetrated by Christian teachers who are described polemically as intruders in Jude and as false teachers in 2 Peter. In confronting the crises within their churches, the authors appeal frequently to the Old Testament and to early summaries of Christian faith. While Jude uses other Jewish traditions, 2 Peter includes most of the text of Jude as well as many distinctively Greek terms and concepts. It is clear that for the authors, despite their different social settings, what was at stake was the struggle for the faith. Daniel J. Harrington, SJ, is a professor of New Testament at Weston Jesuit School of Theology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and general editor of New Testament Abstracts. He is a past-president of the Catholic Biblical Association of American and the editor of the Sacra Pagina series. He also wrote The Gospel of Matthew in the Sacra Pagina series. Donald Senior, CP, is a professor of New Testament studies and president of Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. He was recently appointed by Pope John Paul II to the Pontifical Biblical Commission. General editor of The Bible Today, he also co-edited The Collegeville Pastoral Dictionary of the Bible and the 22-volume international commentary series New Testament Message, and he wrote the four-volume The Passion series published by The Liturgical Press.

Identifying the theme of 1 Peter as how the church is to witness responsibly in a non-Christian world, Boring emphasizes the necessity of a sympathetic historical understanding of those parts of the letter that collide with modern cultural values and understandings of what Christian commitment and theology require. He gives special attention, as well, to the narrative world within which this ancient writer operated, and to the strong affirmation of ecumenism implicit in the letter's amalgamation of traditions stemming from Peter and Paul, respectively. "Through the years, Professor Boring has shown himself to be a master of technical exegesis and theology wedded to great pastoral concern. These twin talents are fittingly brought to bear on a New Testament document that shows the same union of rich theology and pastoral care. Indeed, the sober, centrist, yet moving commentary squares perfectly with the sober, centrist, yet moving document that is 1 Peter. If this commentary is a popularization, then it is a popularization of very high caliber; a tremendous amount of research and insight is made available and intelligible to a wide public. This commentary is not just a rehash of what everyone else has said on 1 Peter. The innovative appendix detailing the narrative world of 1 Peter is alone worth the price of admission. All in all, an excellent contribution to present-day literature on an often neglected book of the New Testament." --John P. Meier, The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C.

Most Bible commentaries take us on a one-way trip from the twentieth century to the first century. But they leave us there, assuming that we can somehow make the return journey on our own. In other words, they focus on the original meaning of the passage but don't discuss its contemporary application. The information they offer is valuable -- but the job is only half done! The NIV Application Commentary Series helps us with both halves of the interpretive task. This new and unique series shows readers how to bring an ancient message into modern context. It explains not only what the Bible means but also how it can speak powerfully today.

Many Christians are fearful of engaging in conversations about their faith with Jewish people-knowing that there are complex issues and suspicions that lie deep beneath the surface. And yet there are many points of contact, and much common ground. This short book is designed to help both Christians and whole churches understand more about the variety of Jewish people we might work with, meet or know, and to reach out to them with the good news of the gospel. Written at a level that everyone can understand, this book emphasizes the importance of forming loving, honest and open relationships as part of the way we engage with our Jewish friends.

Leading New Testament scholar Craig Keener, one of the most trusted exegetes working today, is widely respected for his thorough research, sound judgments, and knowledge of ancient sources. His four-volume magnum opus on Acts has received high praise from all quarters. This commentary on 1 Peter features Keener's meticulous and comprehensive research and offers a wealth of fresh insights. It will benefit students, pastors, and church leaders alike.

A substantive commentary that will help pastors, students, and teachers understand the historical significance of 1 Peter.

A companion series to the acclaimed Word Biblical Commentary Finding the great themes of the books of the Bible is essential to the study of God's Word and to the preaching and teaching of its truths. These themes and ideas are often like precious gems: they lie beneath the surface and can only be discovered with some difficulty. While commentaries are useful for helping readers understand the content of a verse or chapter, they are not usually designed to help the reader to trace important subjects systematically within a given book a Scripture. The Word Biblical Themes series helps readers discover the important themes of a book of the Bible. This series distills the theological essence of a given book of Scripture and serves it up in ways that enrich the preaching, teaching, worship, and discipleship of God's people. Volumes in this series: Written by top biblical scholars Feature authors who wrote on the same book of the Bible for the Word Biblical Commentary series Distill deep and focused study on a biblical book into the most important themes and practical applications of them Give reader’s an ability to see the "big picture" of a book of the Bible by understanding what topics and concerns were most important to the biblical writers Help address pressing issues in the church today by showing readers see how the biblical writers approached similar issues in their day Ideal for sermon preparation and for other teaching in the church Word Biblical Themes are an ideal resource for any reader who has used and benefited from the Word Biblical Commentary series, and will help pastors, bible teachers, and students as they seek to understand and apply God’s word to their ministry and learning.

The relationship between theology and praxis is an important subject that requires further attention from biblical scholars. As the need for social theology or praxis increases, so does the challenge for it to be informed by sound biblical exegesis. This book explores the interplay between theology and praxis using the Christian identity of the elect in 1 Peter as a paradigm. Who are the elect and what is the significance of the identity in 1 Peter? This study employs an exegetical hermeneutical approach to underline the 'present' ethical dimension of this identity with its implicit missionary purpose, not only within the first century but also in the twenty-first century as a necessary corollary of the identity. 1 Peter is applied to a twenty-first century context - the Nigerian Anglican Church - to underline the continuing relevance of Scripture and thereby propose 'conscious' interaction as a veritable and vital missiological strategy that facilitates 'reactive' evangelism with potentials for making theology an independent social variable. Although it makes direct reference to the Nigerian Church, the main argument of this book is applicable anywhere - to be God's elect is to live no longer as before but in newness of life. This book not only underlines the importance of 1 Peter but also raises important challenges that no 'living church' can afford to ignore. It is suitable for use in biblical studies, NT interpretation and applied theology, and African Christian studies, especially on the transition from missions to churches in Nigeria.

The relationship between the church and the scriptures of Israel is fraught with complexities, particularly in regard to how the first Christians read scripture in light of the gospel of Christ. Patrick Egan examines the text of 1 Peter in light of its numerous quotations of scripture and demonstrates how the epistle sets forth a scriptural narrative that explains the nature and purpose of the church. Egan argues that 1 Peter sets forth an ecclesiology based in a participatory christology, in which the church endures suffering in imitation of Jesus' role as the suffering servant. The epistle admonishes the church to a high moral standard in light of Christ's atoning work while also encouraging the church to place hope in God's final vindication of his people. Addressing the churches of Asia Minor, 1 Peter applies the scriptural narrative to the church in unexpected ways.

Many refer to 1 Peter as an exegetical stepchild within the New Testament; that is, it does not receive the same attention as the Pauline writings, the Gospels, or the Johannine literature. Yet Martin Luther held the First Letter of Peter to be essential to one's own salvation. In keeping with the tradition of Reformation-inspired New Testament theology, and building on the work of John H. Elliott, Elritia Le Roux highlights an affinity between the theology of Mark and the theology of 1 Peter. Ethics in 1 Peter elaborates particularly the similar ways that Mark and 1 Peter handle Christology and the ethics that flows from it. Le Roux argues that both the Gospel of Mark and the First Letter of Peter Christology (specifically Christ's passion) lay a foundation for an ethics of suffering.

Janette H. Ok argues that 1 Peter characterizes Christian identity as an ethnic identity, as it holds the potential to engender a powerful sense of solidarity for readers who are experiencing social alienation as a result of their conversion. The epistle describes and delineates a communal identity based on Jewish traditions, and in response to the hostility its largely Gentile Anatolian addressees are experiencing as religious minorities in the Roman empire. In order to help construct a collective understanding of what it means to be a Christian in contrast to non-Christians, Ok argues that the author of the epistle employs “ethnic reasoning” or logic. Consequently, the writer of 1 Peter makes use of various literary and rhetorical strategies, including establishing a sense of shared history and ancestry, delineating boundaries, stereotyping and negatively characterizing “the other,” emphasizing distinct conduct or a common culture, and applying ethnic categories to his addressees. Ok further highlights how these strategies bear striking resemblances to what modern anthropologists and sociologists describe as the characteristics of ethnic groups. In depicting Christian identity as an ethnic identity akin to the unique religious-ethnic identity of the Jews, Ok concludes that 1 Peter seeks to foster internal cohesion among the community of believers who are struggling to forge a distinctive and durable group identity, resist external pressures to revert to a way of life unbefitting the people of God, and live as those born anew to a living hope.

Drawing on recent insights from postcolonial theory and social psychology, Travis B. Williams seeks to diagnose the social strategy of good works in 1 Peter by examining how the persistent admonition to "do good" is intended to be an appropriate response to social conflict. Challenging the modern consensus, which interprets the epistle's good works language as an attempt to accommodate Greco-Roman society and thereby to lessen social hostility, the author demonstrates that the exhortation to "do good" envisages a pattern of conduct which stands opposed to popular values. The Petrine author appropriates terminology that was commonly associated with wealth and social privilege and reinscribes it with a new meaning in order to provide his marginalized readers with an alternative vision of reality, one in which the honor and approval so valued in society is finally available to them. The good works theme thus articulates a competing discourse which challenges dominant social structures and the hegemonic ideology which underlies them.

Finally, a book that uses Bible scriptures only to search the essence of water baptism and expose its real purpose for us participating in the experience of it.

In the last quarter of the twentieth century, a number of studies have appeared on 1 Peter under different perspectives. Attention however has been centred on the letter as a whole, and studies dealing with particular parts of the letter are still wanting. The present study is a contribution in that respect. The pericope studied here, 1, 13-25, is set in the perspective of the basic literary questions of the letter, such as the authorship and date, the unity and literary genre, and structure. Peter, a letter written to encourage and strengthen in the faith groups of Christians in Asia Minor undergoing suffering, is paraenetic in character; and this feature is obvious in the segment studied. The Anatolian Christians, who are advised to conduct themselves in holiness by reverential fear of God and love of their brothers, are reminded of the dignity of their Christian vocation, for they have been redeemed through the precious blood of Christ, and begotten anew through the living and abiding Word of God. The study focuses on these teachings upon which the author bases his directives for the Christian way of life. Thus it brings to the fore the distinctive Theology, the ontological Christology of logos and its functional dimension. In conclusion, by way of theological reflection, an actualization of the soteriology of the pericope in the author's native South Asian context is also attempted.

The Life Application Bible Commentary series is the only commentary to offer sermon and lesson applications alongside stirring commentary. Each volume in the series provides in-depth explanation, background, and application for every verse in the text. Perfect for sermon preparation and lesson planning, this one-of-a-kind reference provides excellent quotes and a bibliography for additional commentary. Additional features include Charts, diagrams, and maps on the same page as their related verses Quotes from various versions, such as the NIV, NRSV, and NLT Key information graphically highlighted