The Source of the Believer's Hope - 1 Peter 1:1-2

The First Epistle of Peter was written by Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:1). There is no historical evidence that the early church believed the letter to be written by anyone other than Peter. The Church Fathers, Tertullian, Clement of Alexandria, and Irenaeus, each attribute authorship to the Apostle Peter.

According to 1 Peter 5:13, Peter wrote this epistle from Babylon. While many believe that Babylon was code for Rome, there is no substantial proof to interpret Babylon as anything other than Babylon in Mesopotamia. Babylon, in the First Century, was the center of Judaism, outside of Jerusalem. It was from Babylon that the Babylonian Talmud was penned.

Peter wrote this letter to believers who were scattered throughout five of Asia Minor’s Roman provinces — Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia. The phrase scattered throughout (diasporá) refers particularly to Jewish believers who had been scattered as a result of the persecution against Christianity. Though they are residing in these Roman provinces, they are aliens (parepídēmos) or temporary residents. Because their residency was temporary, they did not adopt the culture of the people among whom they lived. They continued to live as Christians amid a pagan world hostile against them.

Not only were they scattered, but they were also being slandered and maligned (1 Peter 2:12; 3:14, 16; 4:4, 12, 14). Christians were accused of impiety and atheism because they refused to worship Caesar as lord. David DeSilva states, “By withdrawing from cultic expressions of solidarity with the citizenry and loyalty and gratitude toward those who secured the well-being of the city, Gentile Christians especially were held in suspicion and stood at risk of being viewed as subversive, unreliable and even dangerous elements of society.”

Because they were scattered and suffering, these believers were prone to loneliness and depression, as well as temptation and sin. Thus, Peter’s purpose in writing was to encourage them to remain faithful while scattered and experiencing suffering amid a hostile world.

In many ways, the church, in the Twenty-first century, is facing a similar situation. The global pandemic has scattered local churches around the world. Additionally, the current age of rage and cancel culture has resulted in an increase in slander and hostility against Biblical Christianity. Christians need to know how to respond to these trials critically, logically, and most important, Biblically!

Writing to Christians, living in an age of hostility, Peter reveals that believers have been born again to a living hope (cf. 1 Peter 1:3). If there is one thing that scattered and suffering believers need, it is hope. This hope (elpídos) is not a wishful thinking but an eager, confident expectation centered on the Triune God. That this hope is living (záō) means that it is active and lively. It is not a passive hope that someone might do something. Instead, it is an active hope that knows that the Triune God is doing something. That something that the Triune God is doing is the work of salvation (i.e., being born again). Thus, in 1 Peter 1:1-2, Peter addresses the source of the believer’s hope — the Triune God. The believer’s hope originates in the Father’s foreknowledge, the Holy Spirit’s sanctifying, and the Son’s sprinkled blood.

The Father’s Foreknowledge (1:1b-2a)

Peter continues his greeting by reminding these scattered and suffering believers that they are chosen according to the foreknowledge of God. The term chosen (eklektós) means select or choice. When the verbal form of chosen (ĕklĕgŏmai) is used, it is in the middle voice and plural person. The middle voice indicates that the subject is choosing the object of the verb for himself. In other words, God chose (ĕklĕgŏmai) believers for Himself (Ephesians 1:4).

The plural usage of chosen (ĕklĕgŏmai) means that the choice is of a group, not individuals. As such, God’s choice or election is concerned with creating a group or nation, not choosing isolated individuals. God chose the nation of Israel, the Levitical Priesthood, the Holy Angels, and the Church. The choosing or election of each group took place in eternity past and according to God’s purpose (Ephesians 1:4; 2 Timothy 1:9).

GOD’S CHOICE OF GROUPS

The Nation of Israel is Elect - the Lord your God has chosen (bāḥar) you to be a people for His own possession… - Deuteronomy 7:6

The Levitical Priests are Elect - For the Lord your God has chosen (bāḥar) him and his sons from all your tribes… - Deuteronomy 18:5

The Holy Angels are Elect - I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of His chosen (eklektós) angels… - 1 Timothy 5:21

The Church is elect - But you are a chosen (eklektós) race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession… - 1 Peter 2:4, 6, 9

The choosing of these groups is according to the foreknowledge of God. Foreknowledge (proginṓskō) refers to prior acknowledgment; to be acquainted with someone before meeting that person. God knew, in eternity past, who would and would not receive His Son as Lord and Savior. Those who would receive His Son would become the Church.

In eternity past, God chose the means and method of humanity’s salvation. God decreed to create all humanity and allow them free will, along with its consequences. He decreed to provide salvation for humanity and to save and secure every sinner who responds to His call (John 3:16; Acts 2:21; 10:43; Romans 10:13).

The same Greek term, pás, is translated as either whoever or everyone. Of the one-hundred and ten times, the terms whoever or everyone are used in the New Testament, they are always used in an unrestricted, unlimited manner. In other words, the terms do not refer to a specific portion of the populace.

When the Scripture says Christ died for all, again the Greek term is pás, and it defines who all are — sinners (Romans 3:23; 2 Corinthians 5:14-15; 1 Timothy 2:4, 6; Titus 2:11; Hebrews 2:9; 2 Peter 3:9). Jesus died for every person even though His death is sufficient, only for those who repent and believe (1 Timothy 4:10). God graciously allows humanity free will to determine his or her eternal destiny. Those who refuse to repent and believe will, of their choosing, spend eternity in the Lake of Fire. No one is cast into the Lake of Fire because God did not elect them.

Finally, God decreed to foreknow all who would believe, predestine them to adoption and conformity to the image of His Son and elect or choose them to be holy and blameless in His presence (Ephesians 1:4-5, 11; Romans 8:29).

Predestination (proorízō) is God’s means of guaranteeing that all believers will be His adopted children. Adoption (huiothesía) is the legal process of delivering believers from the realm of Satan (Colossians 1:13). Because believers are adopted, they are God’s children with all the rights and privileges (John 1:12; Romans 8:15; 2 Corinthians 6:18). Predestination is also God’s means of guaranteeing that all believers will receive their inheritance (Ephesians 1:11, 13-14).

Finally, predestination is God’s means of guaranteeing that all believers will be conformed into Jesus’ image (cf. Romans 8:29). Being made holy and blameless, predestined to adoption, an inheritance, and conformity to Jesus is the source of the believer’s hope.

The Spirit’s Sanctifying (1:1b-2a)

Sanctifying (hagiasmós) is to designate something that is set apart for a distinct purpose. For example, a pen has been set aside for the specific purpose of writing. This, a pen is sanctified when it is used to write. Any other use of the pen would not be a sanctified use. Accordingly, the Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology defines sanctification as meaning, “to make holy, to free from sin, to purify, or to declare or render something productive of or conducive to holiness, blessing, or grace.” Thus what God deems sanctified is holy, sinless, and pure and is to be used for His intended purposes.