1 and 2 Peter: Courage in Times of Trouble

By John F. MacArthur

Believers in the early church scattered across the Roman Empire were facing the threat of increased persecution. Peter, the most outspoken of the disciples and leader among the apostles, wrote two practical and encouraging letters to strengthen the hearts of these followers of Christ.

Pastor John MacArthur will take you through these two letters, passage by passage, so that you can better understand Peter's words of hope and wisdom and how to live victoriously in the midst of life-threatening trials.

In the first letter, Peter reminds believers of the many blessings available to them because of their persecution. In the second letter, he warns them to discern and defeat the false teachers who were invading their churches and teaching them dangerous and deceptive doctrines. Peter's letters of encouragement and warning are just as important for believers today as they were during the first century.

—ABOUT THE SERIES—

The MacArthur Bible Study series is designed to help you study the Word of God with guidance from widely respected pastor and author John MacArthur. Each guide provides intriguing examinations of the whole of Scripture by examining its parts and incorporates:

• Extensive, but straight-forward commentary on the text.
• Detailed observations on overriding themes, timelines, history, and context.
• Word and phrase studies to help you unlock the broader meaning and apply it to your life.
• Probing, interactive questions with plenty of space to write down your response and thoughts.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson
• Release date: May 31, 2016
• ISBN: 9780718035365

John F. MacArthur

Widely known for his thorough, candid approach to teaching God's Word, John MacArthur is a popular author and conference speaker. He has served as pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, since 1969. John and his wife, Patricia, have four married children and fifteen grandchildren. John's pulpit ministry has been extended around the globe through his media ministry, Grace to You, and its satellite offices in seven countries. In addition to producing daily radio programs for nearly two thousand English and Spanish radio outlets worldwide, Grace to You distributes books, software, and digital recordings by John MacArthur. John is chancellor of The Master's University and Seminary and has written hundreds of books and study guides, each one biblical and practical. Bestselling titles include The Gospel  According to Jesus, Twelve Ordinary Men, Twelve Extraordinary Women, Slave, and The MacArthur Study Bible, a 1998 ECPA Gold Medallion recipient.

Book preview

Title page with Thomas Nelson logo

1 & 2 PETER

MACARTHUR BIBLE STUDIES

© 2007, John F. MacArthur, Jr.

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other—except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Nelson Books, an imprint of Thomas Nelson. Nelson Books and Thomas Nelson are registered trademarks of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Inc.

Nelson Books titles may be purchased in bulk for education, business, fundraising, or sales promotional use. For information, please email [e-mail].

Produced with the assistance of the Livingstone Corporation. Project staff include Jake Barton, Betsy Todt Schmitt, and Andy Culbertson.

Project editors: Mary Horner Collins, Amber Rae, and Len Woods.

Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version®. © 1979, 1980, 1982, 1992 Thomas Nelson, Inc. Publishers.

Unleashing God’s Truth, One Verse at a Time is a trademark of Grace to You. All rights reserved.

Keys to the Text material taken from the following sources:

James. MacArthur New Testament Commentary Series. © 1998 by John MacArthur. Published by Moody Press, Chicago, Illinois. Used by permission.

The MacArthur Study Bible (electronic edition), John MacArthur, General Editor. © 1997 by Word Publishing. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Rev. ed. R. F. Youngblood, F. F. Bruce, R. K. Harrison, editors. © 1995 by Thomas Nelson Publishers. Used by permission.

Our Sufficiency in Christ (electronic edition). © 1991, 1997 by John MacArthur. Published by Word Publishing: Dallas, TX. Used by permission.

Romans. MacArthur New Testament Commentary Series. © 1994, 1996 by John MacArthur. Published by Moody Press, Chicago, Illinois. Used by permission.

Cover Art by Holly Sharp Design

Interior Design and Composition by Joel Bartlett, Livingstone Corporation

ISBN: 978-0-7180-3517-4

ISBN: 978-0-7180-3536-5 (eBook)

First Printing April 2016

Information about External Hyperlinks in this ebook

Please note that footnotes in this ebook may contain hyperlinks to external websites as part of bibliographic citations. These hyperlinks have not been activated by the publisher, who cannot verify the accuracy of these links beyond the date of publication.

EBOOK INSTRUCTIONS

In this ebook edition, please use your device’s note-taking function to record your thoughts wherever you see the bracketed instructions [Your Notes] or [Your Response Here]. Use your device’s highlighting function to record your response whenever you are asked to checkmark, circle, underline, or otherwise indicate your answer(s).

CONTENTS

Ebook Instructions

Introduction to 1 Peter

1 What an Inheritance!

1 Peter 1:1–12

2 The Importance of an Eternal Perspective

1 Peter 1:13–2:10

3 Honorable Living

1 Peter 2:11–3:12

4 Suffering for Good

1 Peter 3:13–4:6

5 Pray, Love, Serve

1 Peter 4:7–11

6 Joy Even in Suffering

1 Peter 4:12–19

7 Requirements for Leadership

1 Peter 5:1–4

8 Christian Victory

1 Peter 5:5–14

Introduction to 2 Peter

9 Know Your Salvation

2 Peter 1:1–11

10 Know Your Scriptures

2 Peter 1:12–21

11 Know Your Adversaries

2 Peter 2:1–22

12 Know Your Prophecy

2 Peter 3:1–18

INTRODUCTION TO 1 PETER

This letter has always been identified with the name of the author, Peter (one of Jesus’ disciples), and with the notation that it was his first inspired letter.

AUTHOR AND DATE

The opening verse of the epistle claims it was written by Peter, who was clearly the leader among Christ’s apostles. The Gospel writers emphasize this fact by placing his name at the head of each list of apostles (Matt. 10; Mark 3; Luke 6; Acts 1), and including more information about him in the four Gospels than any person other than Christ. Originally known as Simon (Greek) or Simeon (Hebrew)—see Mark 1:16; John 1:40–41—Peter was the son of Jonas, who was also known as John (Matt. 16:17; John 1:42), and a member of a family of fishermen who lived in Bethsaida and later in Capernaum. Andrew, Peter’s brother, brought him to Christ (John 1:40–42). Peter was married, and apparently his wife accompanied him in his ministry (Mark 1:29–31; 1 Cor. 9:5).

Peter was called to follow Christ early on in His ministry (Mark 1:16–17), and was later appointed to apostleship (Matt. 10:2; Mark 3:14–16). Christ renamed him Peter (Greek), or Cephas (Aramaic), both words meaning stone or rock (John 1:42). The Lord clearly singled out Peter for special lessons throughout the Gospels (for example, Matt. 10; 16:13–21; 17:1–9; 24:1–7; 26:31–33; John 6:6; 21:3–7, 15–17). He was the spokesman for the Twelve, articulating their thoughts and questions as well as his own. Peter’s triumphs and weaknesses are chronicled in the Gospels and in Acts 1–12.

After Jesus’ resurrection and ascension, Peter initiated the plan for choosing a replacement for Judas (Acts 1:15). After the coming of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1–4), he was empowered to become the leading gospel preacher from the Day of Pentecost on (Acts 2–12). Peter also performed notable miracles in the early days of the church (Acts 3–9), and he opened the door of the gospel to the Samaritans (Acts 8) and to the Gentiles (Acts 10). According to tradition, Peter had to watch as his wife was crucified, but he encouraged her with the words, Remember the Lord. When it came time for him to be crucified, Peter reportedly pled that he was not worthy to be crucified like his Lord, but rather should be crucified upside down (ca. AD 67–68), which tradition says he was.

Because of Peter’s unique prominence, the early church had no shortage of documents falsely claiming to be written by him. That the apostle Peter is the author of 1 Peter, however, is certain. The material in this letter bears definite resemblance to his messages in the book of Acts. The letter teaches, for example, that Christ is the Stone rejected by the builders (2:7–8; Acts 4:10–11) and that Christ is no respecter of persons (1:17; Acts 10:34). Peter teaches his readers to be clothed with humility (5:5), reminiscent of the Lord girding Himself with a towel and washing the disciples’ feet (John 13:3–5). Other statements in the letter echo Christ’s sayings (4:14; 5:7, 8). Moreover, the author claims to have been a witness of Christ’s sufferings (5:1; see also 3:18; 4:1). In addition to these internal evidences, it is noteworthy that the early Christians universally recognized this letter as the work of Peter.

The only significant doubt to be raised about Peter’s authorship arises from the rather classical style of Greek employed in the letter. Some have argued that Peter, being an uneducated fisherman (Acts 4:13), could not have written in sophisticated Greek, especially in light of the less classical style of Greek employed in the writing of 2 Peter. This argument has a good answer, however. In the first place, that Peter was uneducated does not mean that he was illiterate, but only that he was without formal, rabbinical training in the Scriptures. Moreover, though Aramaic may have been Peter’s primary language, Greek would have been a widely spoken second language in Palestine. It is also apparent that at least some of the authors of the New Testament, though not highly educated, could read the Greek of the Old Testament Septuagint (see James’s use of the Septuagint in Acts 15:14–18).

Beyond these evidences of Peter’s ability in Greek, Peter also explained (5:12) that he had written this letter by Silvanus, also known as Silas. Silvanus was likely the messenger designated to take this letter to its intended readers. But more than that, Peter is acknowledging that Silvanus served as his secretary, or amanuensis. Dictation was common in the ancient Roman world (for example, Paul and Tertius; Rom. 16:22), and secretaries often could aid with syntax and grammar. So, Peter, under the superintendence of the Spirit of God, dictated the letter to Silvanus, while Silvanus, who also was a prophet (Acts 15:32), may have