Free Bible Commentary
“First Peter 2:21-25”
Categories: First Peter"For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.”
---End of Scripture verses---
Peter has Isaiah 53 at the forefront of his mind as he quotes from and references it in writing of the vicarious sufferings of Jesus the Messiah. But he also writes from firsthand experience as one who personally witnessed some of the abuse that Jesus suffered in fulfillment of that prophetic Old Testament treasure. Peter followed “at a distance” as Jesus was abused and “reviled” and refused to return the evil He unjustly received from His abusers (Matthew 26:57-75; Luke 23:48-49).
In today’s verses the apostle sets Jesus up as the perfect example for us to follow when we suffer for following Him. A servant is not above His Master and since the world hated Jesus it will hate His disciples also (John 15:18-20). Peter hones in on the verbal aspect of the abuse and how our Shepherd was as silent as a sheep led to slaughter to encourage us to be harmless in the words that we speak as well.
God has “called” us “for this purpose”— to follow in Christ’s “example” of enduring difficulties with dignity, composure and righteousness (verse 21). If anyone had the right to defend Himself and retaliate verbally it was our perfect Redeemer. But instead of retribution Jesus chose trust. He “kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously” (verse 23) knowing full well that justice is always upheld by the Supreme Magistrate of the Universe. If we trust that the Lord will always defend the case of the righteous, we will suppress the desire to spew verbal abuse (revile) and utter threats against our adversaries.
Jesus “Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness” (verse 24). “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree’” (Galatians 3:13). Because Jesus took the shame of the cross and paid the purchase price of His own life to redeem us from the slavery of sin, we should ever live to serve and please Him. When we died with Christ in the waters of baptism, buried the old person of sin and then arose to walk in newness of life (Romans 6:1-6), Jesus became “the Shepherd and Guardian” of our souls (verse 25). He promises His protection and guidance over us if we are willing to follow His lead.
Please read 1 Peter 3:1-6 for tomorrow.
Have a great day!
-Louie Taylor
