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Theophylact of Ohrid

Medieval · AD 800–1500 · 1,275 passages across 17 books

Commentary

21–40 of 1,275
1 Peter 4:12

Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:

Many Christians found afflictions hard to bear because they had read in the law that a prosperous and secure life was promised to those who serve God. Peter therefore approaches the subject by telling them that they are greatly beloved. He then goes on to warn them not to be surprised at their sufferings, which come to them as tests from God.

COMMENTARY ON 1 PETER

1 Peter 4:15

But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men's matters.

A meddler is someone who loves to mind other people’s business in order to find reasons for attacking them. This is the mentality of a wicked and treacherous person who is prepared to engage in any kind of evil.

COMMENTARY ON 1 PETER

1 Peter 5:14

Greet ye one another with a kiss of charity. Peace be with you all that are in Christ Jesus. Amen.

This is no ordinary peace, for it is the same peace that Christ left his disciples when he went to be crucified. “My peace I leave with you, not as the world gives,” for you are not meant to pursue peace by natural affection for one another but by being joined in a holy fellowship, thereby avoiding the blows of enemies.

COMMENTARY ON 1 PETER

2 John 1:1

The elder unto the elect lady and her children, whom I love in the truth; and not I only, but also all they that have known the truth;

The most convincing argument in favor of the belief that John wrote this and the following letter is that the themes found in the first letter recur whenever the opportunity presents itself.

COMMENTARY ON 2 JOHN

2 Peter 1:3

According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

Grace and peace are the means by which God gives us everything we need in order to live godly lives.

COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 1:5

And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;

Peter lays out here the order which we are to follow to come into full maturity. First of all comes faith, which is the foundation and source of all good works. Next comes virtue, by which he means good works, for without them faith is dead, as Saint James said. Next comes knowledge. What is that? It is an understanding of the secret things hidden in God which are not revealed to everyone, but only to those who continue faithfully in the works already mentioned.

COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 1:6

And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;

Next in the list comes abstinence, or temperance. This is necessary in order to ensure that those who get this far are not carried away by the magnitude of the gift they have received and become haughty as a result. Patience follows next, because it takes time to acquire temperance, and without patience a person is liable to give up and fall into something even worse than what he has been delivered from. Patience increases our trust in God, which is why godliness comes next.

COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 1:7

And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.

The more we are like God, the more we are compelled by that likeness to love others, which is why brotherly love is next in the list. Finally, there is charity, the perfection of all virtues, as Paul also confirms.

COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 1:14

Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me.

Peter explains that he keeps repeating the same things to his hearers because he knows that his end is coming quickly and that he will soon be delivered from his body.

COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 1:17

For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

Peter knew that Jesus received the Father’s confirmation from heaven on three different occasions, in his baptism, at his passion and on the mountain. However, this was the one which he himself witnessed.

COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 2:21

For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.

Peter is saying that the evil awaiting those who turn away from their faith is so great that it would have been better if they had never accepted it in the first place. At least that way their wickedness would seem natural, instead of being as bizarre as a dog returning to its own vomit.

COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 3:3

Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,

These scoffers were the Gnostics and other similar heretics who appeared at that time.

COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Thessalonians 2:8

And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

For the coming of Christ needs no one to point it out, but it will be utterly clear to all, like lightning. For just as the lightning is sudden and seen by all, so too will the Lord’s coming be visible to everyone on earth.

Acts 1:1

The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach,

O Theophilus: He writes to Theophilus, a man probably of some distinction, and a governor; for the form, "Most excellent" Lk 1:3, was not used except to rulers and governors. As for example, Paul says to Festus, Most excellent Festus.

Acts 1:5

For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.

For John's baptism provided neither spiritual grace nor forgiveness of sins, but the Lord's will forgive you and give you the Spirit in abundance.

Acts 1:19

And it was known unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch as that field is called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, The field of blood.

For to this day, it says, that field is called "The field of blood," as a reminder to all that they murdered the Lord.

Acts 2:20

The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:

the sun shall be darkened," instead of being blackened; not disappearing, but being overwhelmed by the light of Christ’s appearance, and so too will the stars and the moon. For what need is there for sensory light when the Sun of Righteousness has appeared and night is no more?

Acts 3:13

The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go.

handed over and denied before the face of Pilate:
They bound Him and led Him away to Pilate the governor, who was from Pontus but was subject to the Romans who had sent him to be the governor of Judea. The chief priests and elders handed the Lord over to Pilate on the grounds that He had fomented sedition and had plotted against the emperor.

Acts 3:14

But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you;

Pilate let himself be drawn to their side, like one who is mute and cowardly, and because of this he is not without blame. For when they demanded the man who was notorious for wickedness, he handed Barabbas over; but when it came to Christ, he asked them, "What then shall I do with Jesus?’’ thus making them masters of the decision.

Acts 3:21

Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.

which God has spoken of by the mouth of his holy prophets, from ages past:
Because all the Scriptures of the Old Testament were a constant prophecy of Christ. For both our father Adam himself, and the other fathers, by their deeds bore testimony to His dispensation. All the prophets spoke of the Incarnation, and therefore it is said, As he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets.

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