Andreas of Caesarea — Commentary on Scripture

1 Peter 1:17

And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear:

If the Father judges no one but has given all judgment to the Son, what are we to think about this passage? For if it is the Father who is indicated here, how is he a judge, judging everyone according to his work? But if it is the Son who judges, taking all judgment on himself, why does Peter mention the Father? The solution here is that if the Father and the Son are one Godhead, the judgment of the Son is the judgment of the Father also, but the Son can also be called the Father of the creatures, having given them birth by partaking in holiness. For on many occasions he called his disciples his children, and to others he said things like: “Child, your sins are forgiven,” and “Daughter, your faith has saved you.”

1 Peter 1:21

Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.

Peter did not stop at Christ’s death but went on immediately to remember his resurrection as well. Just because you hear that the Father has raised the Son, do not retort that the Son cannot raise himself. For listen to what Christ says: “Destroy this temple and in three days I shall raise it up again” and again: “I have power to lay down my life, and I have power to take it up again.” The apostle says these things in order to teach us that the Father and the Son hold everything in common.

1 Peter 1:23

Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

The Gospel says: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away, says the Lord Jesus Christ.”

1 Peter 1:25

But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.

God foresaw and forewarned us about all the above, but although he sees our great disobedience, the Lord of all persists in guiding us toward salvation.

1 Peter 2:2

As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:

The divine law wants us to be perfect, but on the way toward perfection it has us first drink milk, as if we were newborn babies, and by that milk we shall grow toward salvation. Paul spoke to the same effect when he said: “Do not be children in understanding, but be innocent in wrongdoing. In understanding be adults.” For it is not possible to advance toward purity, or toward maturity in understanding, or toward adulthood as a worker approved by God, unless you renounce evil and become like an innocent child.

1 Peter 2:4

To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious,

This refers to the scribes and the Pharisees and the whole body of the Sanhedrin, about whom it was said: “The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.”

1 Peter 2:8

And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.

They stumble because of their wicked mind and because they were chosen for damnation. For it is that which has brought them to this position.

1 Peter 2:9

But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

We are royal from the fact that Christ is a king, and we are a priesthood from the fact that he is a priest. Furthermore, we are also a holy people, so called by the one who is called holy in himself.

1 Peter 2:10

Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.

When people from different races and nations are called to abandon all their differences and to take on one mind, drawing near to him by one faith and one teaching, by which the soul and the heart become one, they are one holy people.

1 Peter 2:11

Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;

As always, the apostle turns to ethical matters after he has dealt with doctrine. After saying what good things are available because of Christ, he now calls us to lead the right kind of life.

1 Peter 2:13

Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme;

By “every human authority” Peter means those which have been ordained by rulers. We are called to submit to them for the Lord’s sake, because he himself said: “Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s,” but if they command something which is not God’s will we must not obey them.

1 Peter 2:15

For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men:

Peter said this because there were some subversive people who were saying that Christ had come to overthrow the state, teaching us that we should despise every earthly power. But when they see us submitting to them because it is God’s will, then they are silenced, because they realize that they were wrongly trying to tear the kingdom of Christ in two.

1 Peter 2:17

Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.

It is wrong to be insubordinate and disobedient to earthly authorities. Let no one say that we have been set free from the world because we have become citizens of heaven. Are you still insisting that we should obey earthly powers? Yes, says Peter, but obey them as free people, which is to say, in obedience to the one who has set you free and who has commanded you to do this. That way you will not glory in your freedom as if it were a cloak to cover up your evil thoughts, that is, of insubordination and disobedience.

1 Peter 2:18

Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the froward.

The person who says that servants ought to obey their masters out of abject fear is mad and ought to be regarded as a dumb animal, for the fear which they ought to have is based on knowledge and reason and is properly known as respect. For the servant who fears his master for Christ’s sake and because of his teaching will submit to him out of respect.… And there is another aspect to this, for Peter is also telling women to respect their husbands in godly fear, for that is fully consonant with the Holy Scriptures.

1 Peter 2:21

For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:

Having told servants to put up with unjust suffering, which was a bitter pill for them to swallow, Peter now comforts them by referring to Christ’s longsuffering. It is as if he were saying: “I am not trying to persuade you to put up with injustice simply by arguments. Rather stand back and look at your master as freemen in Christ, and you will be comforted.”

1 Peter 3:8

Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:

Here Peter moves on from husband and wife and sets out the law of love for everyone. Every virtue is based on it—compassion, mercy, humility, and so on.

1 Peter 3:9

Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.

What is humility? It is to bear the insults of others, to accept sins against oneself, to bear punishments. Indeed this is not just humility, but prudence as well.

1 Peter 3:12

For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.

It is not those who are still in their sins who are worthy of such divine oversight, but those who have been cleansed from them. The phrase “the eyes of God” is a metaphor for those divine powers which see everything. It is they who watch over the righteous, but his ears are also ready to hear their prayers. If you want to enjoy this experience, however, you must first turn your eyes away from evil. God never distances himself from the righteous. Whenever the hand of a righteous man does mercy, it has the eye of God watching over it. And whenever his tongue prays, it inclines the divine ear to hear, as for example the prayer of Cornelius was rewarded.

1 Peter 3:15

But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:

Just as magnifying God cannot add anything to his greatness and glorifying him does not make him any more glorious, so sanctifying the Lord does not mean that there is any addition to his existing holiness. Rather we are called to sanctify him in our hearts, and if we form a clear understanding of his holiness, then we do not sanctify him on one occasion only, but rather by doing this we have a better understanding of what his holiness is and something of it is implanted in our hearts. Likewise someone who magnifies God receives a share of his greatness, and someone who glorifies him is glorified in turn. It is a prophetic voice which says that there should be no fear in you which might prevent you from confessing Christ in your hearts. You should sanctify him there also. For this confession is sanctification both for the soul and for the body. Some people wonder why the Savior said: “Do not worry about what you will say,” but here the apostle writes: “Be ready to give an explanation.” However, there is no contradiction. Jesus was speaking about bearing witness, whereas Peter is talk…

Just as magnifying God cannot add anything to his greatness and glorifying him does not make him any more glorious, so sanctifying the Lord does not mean that there is any addition to his existing holiness. Rather we are called to sanctify him in our hearts, and if we form a clear understanding of his holiness, then we do not sanctify him on one occasion only, but rather by doing this we have a better understanding of what his holiness is and something of it is implanted in our hearts. Likewise someone who magnifies God receives a share of his greatness, and someone who glorifies him is glorified in turn. It is a prophetic voice which says that there should be no fear in you which might prevent you from confessing Christ in your hearts. You should sanctify him there also. For this confession is sanctification both for the soul and for the body. Some people wonder why the Savior said: “Do not worry about what you will say,” but here the apostle writes: “Be ready to give an explanation.” However, there is no contradiction. Jesus was speaking about bearing witness, whereas Peter is talking about teaching others the faith.

1 Peter 3:17

For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.

Once again, Peter exhorts us not to grieve over unjust suffering, if that is God’s will for us. He teaches us that we suffer for the specific purpose of being trained for what we are meant to be according to the mercy of God.