V. 1. In the same way, wives are to be subject to their husbands.
Here St. Peter speaks mainly of the women who had pagan and unbelieving husbands at that time; and again he says of the believing men who had pagan wives. For it often happened in those days, when the apostles preached the gospel among the Gentiles, that one was a Christian and the other was not. Since it was then commanded that women should be subject to men, how much more must it be so now? Therefore the woman's work (says St. Peter) is to be subject to her husband, even if he is a Gentile and an unbeliever; and he gives the reason why this should be done:
V. 1. 2. so that even those who do not believe in the word may be won over by the way women walk without a word, when they see your chaste walk in fear.
That is, if a man sees that his wife, after she has become a believer in Christ, is well behaved and fine, that he may be provoked to the faith thereby and consider the Christian state to be a right good state; and although wives are not commanded to preach, yet they should lead a chaste, holy walk, in fear and all reverence toward their husbands, that they may provoke them to the faith thereby; as we read of St. Augustine's mother, who converted her husband before he became a pagan. Augustine's mother, who converted her husband, who was a pagan, before his death, and after that also her son Augustinum. Now this is an outward thing, which one should not do in order to become pious before God, for the obedience of a woman to her husband does not make her righteous and blessed before God, for one may well find an obedient woman who is nevertheless unbelieving; but for this reason you should do it, so that you may serve your husband, that he may be converted by your honorable, godly conduct. For this is what God has decreed in Genesis 3:16, when He says to the woman, "Your will shall be done for your husband.
He shall be your master", which is also one of the punishments that he has imposed on the consecrated. But such (I say) is the outward walk; belongs to the body, not to the spirit.
But this is a great thing, to know what works to do that please God; we should run far after it, as we see that the world has run with great toil and devotion after that which men have devised. This is a high, noble treasure that a wife can have, if she keeps herself so that she is subject to her husband; then she is sure that her work pleases God: what can happen to her that is more joyful? Therefore, she who wants to be a Christian woman should think like this: I will not consider what kind of husband I have, whether he be a Gentile or a Jew, pious or wicked; but this I will consider, that God hath put me in wedlock, and commanded me that my will should be subject to my husband; therefore I will be subject and obedient to my husband. When she is in such obedience, all her works are golden.
If the people who are in the marital state knew such things and lived according to them, oh how blessed they would be! But what is God's work and commandment, no one respects; but what men have devised, everyone runs to. God wanted to keep this commandment so firmly that he also gave the men the power to dissolve the vows that the wives had made if they did not please them, as we read in Numbers 30:9, so that it would only be peaceful and quiet in a house. That is one piece. Now the apostle goes on to say how a woman should behave toward other people.
V. 3. 4. Which adornment shall not be by heart, with braids of hair, and cloaks of gold, or putting on of garments; but the hidden man of the heart unfeigned, with a gentle and all-embracing spirit, that is delectable in the sight of God.
This precious treasure, of which St. Peter speaks here, is not only to be had by a woman, but also by a man.
But here someone would like to ask whether St. Peter forbids the Christian women the jewelry. We read of Esther that she wore a crown of gold and precious jewelry, as befits a queen; so also of Judith. But Esther says in her prayer [Pieces in Esther, Cap. 3, 11.]: "Lord, you know that I do not respect the splendid ornament that I wear on my head when I have to be resplendent, but keep it like an unclean cloth, and do not wear it apart from the splendor"; and of Judith it is written that she did not adorn herself for the sake of showiness, but to praise God. Therefore we also say: A Christian woman should not adorn herself out of showiness, nor have any desire or love for adornment, as the womenfolk commonly do, but follow the example of Esther and Judith, adorn herself in honor, especially if her husband wants it, or if there is any other honest reason for it. But this should be her right adornment (as St. Peter says here), that the hidden man of her heart is unchanged, pure and sincere in faith, without all error and doubt, with a gentle and quiet spirit; this is a glorious, delicious adornment before God. She is pretty enough adorned when she is adorned to her husband. St. Peter does not want her to adorn herself to please other people and to be called a beautiful woman. Then 1) she should see that she has the inward treasure and delicious ornament of the heart, which is the hidden man with a gentle and quiet spirit (as St. Peter says), and outwardly lead a fine, honorable, chaste walk etc.
It is a sure sign that there is not much spirit where one puts much emphasis on the adornment; but if there is faith and spirit, he will certainly look at the adornment with such eyes as Esther, and speak like her: Lord, you know that I consider the crown I wear on my head an abomination, and so I must adorn myself; if I did not have to do it in honor of my Lord the King, I would rather not. Where there is such a woman, she will please the man all the more. Therefore they should think (says St. Peter) that they adorn the inner man, where there is a gentle, quiet spirit, which remains unchanged; not alone,
1) "shall" is missing in the Wittenberger.
He means, as he said, that they should see to it that the soul inwardly remains unchanged in the right faith, so that it is not injured by false teaching.
Then such a heart will come forth that does not break out and think how it will be seen and praised before the world, but how it will increase in faith and knowledge of Christ, which is the right inward adornment that is a precious thing before God. A woman who is thus minded is more beautifully and gloriously adorned in the sight of God than when she adorns herself with pure gold, precious stones and pearls, and puts on the most exquisite garments, which even pagan women can do and gloriously flaunt before the world.
But the adornment of Christian women is, as I said, the hidden man of the heart, who is pure from all kinds of error and defilement of the spirit. The woman who is so adorned, that is, who has a righteous faith and a quiet, gentle spirit, that she can obey her husband and be kind to him in word and deed, has everything that Christ has. For faith (as I said) brings us all the goods of Christ with one another. This is a great, precious treasure and such an ornament that no one can praise enough. Of this ornament one should preach to the womenfolk, that they strive for it. If they have it, then they can also make good use of the outward things, for everything is pure for the pure etc. Now St. Peter also gives an example of holy women, that he stimulates the women to Christianity, and says:
V. 5. 6. For so did the holy women of old adorn themselves, who put their hope in God, and were subject to their husbands, as Sarah was obedient to Abraham, and called him lord.
As these women have adorned themselves, so do ye also, and follow their example. How did they adorn themselves? First, they placed their hope in God; second, they were obedient to their husbands, not coerced or forced, but willingly from the heart for the sake of God's command and order.
Abraham was obedient, and called him Lord" etc. For thus saith the scripture Gen. 18:10, et seq. when the angel came to Abraham, and said, When I come again unto thee above a year, Sarah thy wife shall have a son: then she laughed with herself, and said, Now that I am old, and my lord also is old, shall I yet deal with pleasure?" St. Peter took a good look at this saying and brought it here, because she would not have called Abraham a lord, if she had not been subject to him according to God's command and had kept it before her eyes. Such is the proper adornment of Christian women, to hope in God and to be subject to men.
What daughters you have become, if you do well and are not so shy.
Women are timid by nature and easily frightened, even for very small reasons; that is why some of them are so superstitious; one teaches the other that it is not worth counting what magic they have. But a Christian woman should not be so timid and fearful, running to and fro, saying here a blessing, there a blessing; but as she meets with it, let it be God's will, and think that no evil can befall her. For because she believes in Christ and does what is her due, loves her husband, is subject to him, loves her children, raises them in the discipline and admonition of the Lord, is domesticated, etc., which is called doing well by St. Peter, she is sure that her position pleases God; why then does she want to be afraid? If a child dies, or if she falls ill, or if some other misfortune strikes quickly, which she has not foreseen, she should not go off the deep end, but should command God and put her hope in Him. etc. This is preached to the women. Now follows what the men should do.
V. 7. the same, you men, dwell with them with reason, and give honor to the female, as the weakest instrument.
The woman, he says, is God's instrument as well as the man, for God needs her to bear children, to give birth, to nourish, to wait, and to rule the house; such works the woman should do, as St. Paul also teaches Titus 2:4 ff. Therefore she is God's instrument
and vessel, who created her for this purpose and implanted such in her. The man should know this and regard his wife for it. Therefore St. Peter says: "Husbands, live with your wives with reason. A woman should indeed live as the man governs her, what he calls her and creates, 1) that shall be done; but he should nevertheless neither govern her nor despise her according to his great head, but not only deal with her neatly and spare her, as a weak vessel and instrument of God, but also honor her, as she is also partaker of the grace of eternal life: So that the man, who is a stronger instrument of God, should deal with his wife, who is weaker in body and more stupid and timid in spirit, in such a way that she can bear it. He should deal with her as he would with a tool, so that he can work. For example, if he wants a good knife, he must not use it to chop stone. No rule can be given to this: God will teach every man himself to deal wisely with his wife, according to the skill of every woman. For thou shalt use the power thou hast as thou wilt; yea, thou art her husband therefore, that thou mayest help her, keep her, and protect her, and not that thou mayest destroy her. The goal cannot be set for you; you must know for yourself how you should proceed with reason.
So now we also have from husbands what they should do for good works that please God, namely, that they dwell with their wives, and feed them and deal with them cleanly. But it will not always be as straight as you would like. Therefore see to it that you are a man and have all the more sense where there is too little in a woman. You must be patient at times, give in a little, and, when necessity demands it, not only give way to the weak vessel, but also give it its honor.
Honor has been interpreted, but I don't know how. Some have interpreted it to mean that the husband should provide the wife with food, drink and clothing, and feed her; others have made it a marital duty. I had thought that this was the
1) create - order, command.
2) Wittenberger: not alone not.
Opinion, as I said, that the man should look at the woman in such a way that she is also a Christian, and God's work or equipment; that therefore on both ropes it should happen that the woman holds the man in honor, and again, the man also gives his honor to the woman. If the three of them were well suited, things would go well in peace and love; otherwise, where there is no art, there is vain unhappiness in the marriage state. Therefore, when husband and wife take each other for the sake of pleasure alone, thinking they want to have good days and good air, they find heartache. But if you consider God's work and will, you can live a Christian life in marriage, not like the pagans who know nothing of God.
As also joint heirs of the grace of life.
The man does not have to consider that the woman is weak and infirm, but that she is also baptized and has exactly what he has, namely all heavenly, eternal goods of God in Christ. For inwardly we are all equal, there is no difference between man and woman, Gal. 3, 28. Col. 3, 11.; but outwardly God wants the man to rule and the woman to be subject to him.
So that your prayer will not be hindered.
What does St. Peter mean by this? This is what he means: If you do not act with reason, but always want to murmur, grumble and rumble, and with your head through it, and it is also frail, and neither wants to provide anything for the other nor have anything to give, then you will not be able to pray. There we see that Christians should pray. For though they are in the grace of God for Christ's sake, in whom they believe, yet the devil does not celebrate, but goes about them like a roaring lion etc.; over which the world is to them, persecuting them etc.; so also their own flesh afflicts them; against which they have no other defense or weapon, but prayer. But if prayer is to be righteous, all dissension, displeasure, and anger must be put away; otherwise it is never well to pray, nay, it is soon at odds when you begin to say Our Father etc. That is why St. Peter teaches that wives should be subject to their husbands; they should in turn live with them with reason; if not, their prayer will be prevented,
which is a sign that they are not Christians, have no forgiveness of sins from God, because they do not forgive one another etc. Now these are the right, delicious good works that we should do. If this were preached and known, we would all have a house full of 1) good works at home. So far we have heard how Christians should be in all ranks, and especially one against another. Now he teaches how they should keep themselves among themselves, namely, "to be like-minded" etc., then against their enemies who persecute them and do them all harm, namely, that they do not repay evil with evil etc., and thus speaks:
V. 8. Finally, all of you are of the same mind.
All this is said in no other way than that we should love one another. For here is boldly put forth, which the Scripture otherwise comprehendeth in few words. So now St. Peter wants to say: This is Summa Summarum of it, how you should keep yourselves after the outward life, that you are like-minded. The apostles St. Peter and Paul often use this word, and so much is said that we should all have one doctrine, one faith, one mind, one courage, one conceit, which seems right and good to one, so that 2) the same thing seems right and good to the other. It is an excellent, remarkable word, which should ever be well grasped; St. Paul wrote especially much about it.
We cannot all do the same work, for every man must do one thing for himself; a man another than a woman, the servant another than the master, and so on, every man according to his calling. Therefore it is a clumsy thing to teach that we should all do one work, as the fool preachers did, who held up the legends of the saints to the people and said, "You are in a state where you cannot serve God; therefore look at this or that saint, what he has done for a life and for works, follow him. There is no doubt that Abraham did a good, delicious work when he sacrificed Isaac, his son, because it was specially commanded to him by God. Then
1) the second "full" is missing in the Wittenberger.
2) "that" is missing in the Wittenberg.
The pagans also wanted to sacrifice their children, which was an abomination in the sight of God. In the same way, King Solomon did well when he built the Temple, and God rewarded him. Now our blind leaders also go and preach that one must build churches and temples here and there in honor of the dear saints, when nothing of this is commanded by God. So it is now the other way around, that one does one kind of work, and one has one kind of mind, straight against the teachings of St. Peter.
So you should teach that there should be one mind and many works. One heart and many hands. Not all should do one work, but each one should wait for his own; otherwise there will not remain one mind and heart. All Christians should have the thoughts: Nothing makes me righteous in the sight of God except faith in Christ; so one mind and many works remain, for each one waits for that which is commanded him by God; if not, one thinks to be saved by this work, another by another, then one leaves his work pending, and does something that seems good to him, without, yes, against God's command, which the Scripture severely reproves. Therefore, this admonition, "Be of the same mind, all of you," is useful and necessary to be understood, for the devil takes special care of it, and has also brought it about in such a way that people forget such unity and fall on their works; for each one thinks that his work is better than the other. That is why they have become so divided among themselves, monks against priests, one order against the other, because each one wanted to do the best work. Then they fell in with one another, and set themselves on the orders, and thought that the order was better than the other; the Augustinian against the preacher, 1) the Carthusian against the Barefoot, 2) so that everything was divided, and nowhere was there greater disagreement than among the orders.
But if it had been taught that no work was better in the sight of God than another, but that through faith they were all made equal, so that hearts were one and all men remained like-minded, they could have been....
1) Preacher ----- Dominicans.
2) Barefoot ----- Franciscans.
nen speak: The order or rank which the bishop leads is neither better nor greater in the sight of God than that which a bad man leads; nor is the rank which a nun leads better than that which a legitimate woman leads, and so on. For no one is saved by his rank or order, otherwise Christ would have died in vain. But they do not want to hear this, but each one wants to be the best, and they say: How can my position in the order not be better and greater than the position of the common man?
Therefore, to have one mind is to hold each man's work equal to another's, as that the marital estate is as good as the virgin's estate; as indeed all things are equal in the sight of God, who judges according to the heart and faith, not according to the person nor according to works. Therefore, we should judge as God judges, so that hearts would remain undivided, so that they would not be divided over the outward essence, and if there were one mind, and if there were unity among us, each one would consider it good, and it would please him well, what each one would do for work according to his profession.
This is a necessary teaching that St. Paul often points out. 2 Cor. 11:3: "I fear lest, as the serpent deceived Evam, so also your minds be deceived from the simplicity of Christ," that is, lest the devil also deceive you, and rend and separate the simple mind which you have received from my teaching. Item, Phil. 4, 7: "The peace of God, which is higher than all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ JEsu." Why does the apostle care so much about the mind? Ei, it is all because of it. For if I fall into a wrong sense, all is already lost. For if I am a monk, and have conceived such a mind that my work is more worthy in the sight of God than others, and say, Thank God that I have become a monk, and that my state is now better than the common married state, then pride must follow from the mind, and cannot remain outside, that I think myself more pious than another, and despise other people: then I deceive myself, as the Pharisee Luc. For a married woman, if she stand in faith, is better before God than I with my order.
Therefore, knowing this, that faith brings with it all that a Christian should have, we all have One mind and opinion, and there is no difference among works.
Therefore, St. Peter's saying must be understood to mean my spiritual, not outward, sense, and an inward opinion or conceit, which concerns the things that are valid in the sight of God, that both doctrine and life are one and the same, and that I consider good that which you consider good, and again, that which is pleasing to you is pleasing to me; as I have said. Christians have the mind, and over the mind we are to hold fast, lest it go mad, as St. Paul speaks. For if the devil perverts the mind, he hath perverted the right virgin lock, and thereupon all is lost.
Compassionate, brotherly, warm, friendly.
To be compassionate means that one takes care of the other and lets his neighbor's distress go to his heart when he is in trouble, so that you don't think, "That's right, that's right, that's right, that's right, that's right, that's right, that's right, that's right, that's right, that's right, that's right, that's right, that's right, that's right, that's right. Where there is love, it takes care of the neighbor when he is in trouble, so that it goes to its heart just 1) as if it were happening to itself.
But to be brotherly is so much that one holds the other as for his brother. Now this is easy to understand, for nature itself teaches it. You see that true brothers, if they are not otherwise brutes, stick together much harder than any other friends. We Christians should do the same, for we are all brothers through baptism and have the same goods in Christ, so that after baptism my father and mother are also my brother and sister, for I have the same goods and inheritance that they have in Christ through faith.
"Cordially," viscerosi. I cannot interpret this word in any other way than to give a simile. Behold, as a mother does toward her child when it is in distress, her motherly heart is moved in her womb. This is spoken of in many places in Scripture. There is also a history of it in the books of the
1) Thus in the first redaction and in the Erlanger. In the Wittenberg: thus probably.
Kings, 1 Kings 3:16 ff. Two women quarreled about a child before King Solomon, one of them wanted to have the child. When the king wanted to know which was the child's right mother, he had to go into nature, where he found it. 2) He said to both wives, "You say that the child is yours, and you say that it is yours; so get a sword and divide the child into two pieces, give one piece to the one and one to the other. Then he came to know which was the right mother. For the text speaks there [v. 26] that her motherly heart trembled over her son and said: Do not, do not! rather give the child to this one alive, and do not kill it. Then the king made such a judgment and said: This is the right mother, take and give her the child. Therefore you can take what this word means "heartily".
St. Peter wants us to treat each other like true blood friends; just as the whole heart, marrow, veins and all powers are moved, so it should also be heartfelt and motherly here, so that one Christian man should bear such courage toward another. But the goal is truly ambitious; one will find very few of them who bear such a heartfelt love for their neighbor when they see that a need affects them, that they are moved just as a mother is moved by her child, so that it penetrates through the heart and all the veins. There you see what monks' and nuns' lives and beings are, how far they are from such heartfelt love; if you were to melt them all together in one heap, you would not find a drop of such Christian love. Therefore, let us watch and take care of ourselves, whether we find such a kind of love in ourselves. It is a short sermon and soon said, but it is not soon done.
"Friendly" is that one should outwardly conduct oneself in a fine, gentle, sweet manner; not only that one should take care of the other, as father and mother do of their child, but also that one should deal with the other with love and gentleness. There are some stubborn and bruised people, like a tree with many branches, so unkind that no one likes to deal with them. This comes from the fact that the same people are common to all.
2) Wittenberger: he spoke.
They are only full of suspicion and soon become angry; no one likes to deal with them. But these are fine people who interpret all things for the best, and are not suspicious, are not soon angered, can well hold something to good, who are called candidos. This virtue is called by St. Paul χρηστότης, and is often praised by him.
The gospel portrays the Lord Christ in such a way that this virtue is especially felt in him. Now and then the Pharisees attack him in this way, now and then, that they might see him: yet he will not be angered. Item, although the apostles often stumble grossly, and fool here and there, he nevertheless nowhere snorts at them, but is always friendly, and deals with them in such a way that they were heartily pleased to be around him and to deal with him. This is also seen among good friends and companions on earth; if there are two or three of them who are well able to get along with each other, if one of them is foolish, the other can very well take it in his favor. There it is also a little illustrated what St. Peter means here, although not enough, because this kindness should be offered to everyone. From this you can see the right kind of love that Christians should have for one another. The angels in heaven live in this way through one another; it should also be this way on earth, but weakness and infirmity run underneath.
Just as St. Peter said that servants and maids, husband and wife, should keep themselves in this way, so that each one should wait for his office to be done, so he wants all of us to be of the same mind in common, compassionately etc. Therefore, if you want to be sure and certain that you are doing a good work that is pleasing to God, let everything be done in God's name that has been preached without God's command, out of your own devotion and good opinion, in the devil's name, so that the world will go around and earn heaven. But how can you be more sure that you please God, if you first believe that you have a gracious God through Christ, and then do what God has commanded you in your profession; and in this you 1) agree with all Christians, are compassionate, brotherly, cordial, friendly. There-
1) Wittenberger and Erlanger: "stinipts".
St. Peter leaves it alone, says only about faith, hope, love, and about the works, which every man is obliged to do according to God's commandment in a fine state; does not remember the monkey game with a word, of which the pope's sons alone have cried out, and the world has written full of books, namely of their spiritual state, vows, chastity etc., which must be far more holy and delicious thing, as St. Peter teaches here.
Therefore the devil is opposed to Christian doctrine, in short, he cannot stand it, for he knows that with it his lies will come to nothing; therefore he thinks up what he can to suppress such doctrine, awakens his servants, who cry out: If you say that our thing is nothing, then the devil is speaking to you etc. Then say to them again: You will not punish St. Peter with lies, who first of all points us to Christ, then teaches and instructs all classes how they should conduct themselves in their outward conduct; item, that they should be compassionate to one another etc. and forgive their enemies etc. These things he spake as an apostle of Christ, full of the Holy Ghost; thou shalt do no better etc. I am quite surprised that such blindness has arisen among us. Thomas, the preacher-monk, 2) has written, and says impudently, that monks and priests are in a better state, than common Christians, only because they are modest, with clothes, food etc. differently behaved, than the common Christians. The high schools have affirmed this, and made doctors about it. Then the pope came with his own, and raised to sainthood those who taught such things.
Therefore, as I have said, understand what Christ himself and all the apostles have taught, namely: If you want to do the best good works and be in the best state, you will find nothing else than faith and love, which is the highest state. Therefore it must be a lie and a forgery for them to say that their state is better than faith and love. If it is better, it is better than God's word; if it is above God's word, it is also above God Himself. Therefore St. Paul is right
2) Marginal gloss: Thomas Aquinas.
3) Wittenberger: es.
said that the end-Christ will rise above everything that is called God or worship, 2 Thess. 2, 4. Know therefore how to judge these things: Where love and kindness are not, all works are surely condemned, and trample it all under foot. Thus we see how St. Peter has so bravely set forth how a righteous Christian life should stand according to outward character, after he has masterfully taught above how the inward life should stand against God; therefore this epistle is to be considered a right golden epistle. This is followed by the following:
V. 9 Do not repay evil with evil, not evil with evil, but bless, knowing that you are called to inherit the blessing.
But this is another transfiguration of love, how we should do against those who insult and persecute us. If they do evil to you (he wants to say), you do good; if they rebuke and curse you, you rebuke and bless. This is truly a great piece of love. O Lord God, how strange such Christians are!
But why should we give good for evil, blessing those who curse us? Therefore (he says) that you are called to inherit the blessing, 2) that is, from children of wrath and enemies of God, to become children of grace and friends of God through Christ; therefore you have no cause to reproach again, but to bless etc.
For this you have received a blessing from God, not only for yourselves, but also to bless those who are still cursed, that is, to pray for them that they may also come to faith through your teaching, patience and good conduct. But if they are lost, continue to offend you and curse you, consider how highly God has exalted and honored you; for the blessing you are to inherit 4) is not temporal, nor is it directed to this fleeting life, but this is that you may now be blessed through Christ.
1) In the Wittenberg is missing: so.
2) "beerbet" is taken from the first redaction; it is missing in the Wittenberg.
3) Wittenberger: "Flesh" instead of: Curse.
4) "should" put by us instead of: "should" in the Wittenberg and in the Erlanger.
stum with God in grace, have forgiveness of sins, have been saved from death and the power of the devil, and now have to wait for eternal life and salvation. Of this you are sure, because you were baptized into it, and have received the Holy Spirit through the word of grace, who assures you of it. Therefore, if you should let your necks go, what would it be against this glory? Therefore you have much more reason to pray for your enemies and have compassion on them than to be angry with them etc. They are children of wrath and cursing, they could not be more afflicted; if they now do wrong, it will be found in its time that they will weep bitterly enough and have to suffer their punishment because of it, if here not temporally, but there eternally in the abyss of hell.
V. 10 For whosoever would live to see good days, let his tongue be silent, that it speak no evil; and his lips, that they deceive not.
This saying, which St. Peter introduces here from the 34th Psalm, v. 13 f., is especially important for teaching. Because he speaks here of the outward conduct of Christians, he has drawn it very finely to it, teaching them how they should create peace and good days for themselves, saying that they should not stand or strive for it, like the children of the world, who can no sooner have peace and tranquility, because they take revenge and cool their temper on those who have done them harm, with hand or mouth. Therefore you shall do to him thus: If the world or false brethren prove evil against you, do you wrong or harm, reproach and curse you, do not be hasty in your anger to avenge yourselves, repay evil with evil, and reproach with reproach; Otherwise you will get two kinds of misfortune for one, outwardly, damage to body, honor or goods, inwardly a troubled heart, an evil conscience, lose in addition your best treasure, namely God's grace and blessing, and invite upon yourselves His wrath and the eternal curse; but surrender in patience and set your heart at rest, and remember: It is enough that I have received harm in loan or goods, or am evil scolded etc. If I should lose my heart's peace and joy over it, and become angry and impatient, and do evil again.
Do and curse, which is the devil's delight and joy? That is far away etc.
That is St. Peter's "fine tongue keep silent, so that it does not speak evil, and his lips, so that they do not deceive"; which art only the Christians can, yes, are still students in it, because it can not be learned so soon. With unbelievers there is a contradiction: if you punish them and tell them the truth, they curse you with all their plagues; if they suffer or are harmed, they repay you sevenfold etc.
V. 11: He turns from evil and does good; he seeks peace and pursues it.
This is what the world takes for peace, when someone wrongs another, hits him on the head and takes revenge on him. But this is no way to achieve peace, for no king, no emperor, has ever been able to do this, to be content in the face of enemies. The Roman Empire was so powerful that it crushed everything that opposed it, but they could not keep it that way. Therefore this way is useless for peace. For if you put down one enemy and deceive him, ten or twenty will rise again until he is destroyed. But he that seeketh peace aright, and shall find it, that holdeth his tongue and his lips in silence, and turneth from evil, and doeth good, as I have said; which is another way, as the world goeth.
To turn from evil and do good means, when one hears evil words, not to repay evil with evil, but to bless, item. To not only bear and suffer evil and injustice, but to overcome evil with good. Therefore, when your enemy cools his temper against you and does you all the harm he can, if you interrogate, rebuke and do not rage again, but bless him and do him all the good you can, you seek peace and find it, that is, you keep a good conscience and a kind, calm heart that can speak with right confidence: Forgive us, dear Lord, our trespasses etc.
But he does not add in vain, "He seeks peace and pursues it." For only do not think that peace will pursue you; indeed, you will feel it when, through no fault of your own, you suffer evil and are scolded.
that you will be moved to anger, impatience, revenge, etc. that you would gladly repay evil with evil; but here it is time that you stand firm and overcome yourself, hurt yourself and pursue peace. This happens when you do not repay evil with evil, nor curse again, but command God and comfort yourself that you are a child of grace and blessing, and pray that you will not fall into temptation. etc. Now he concludes this exhortation with a promise:
V. 12 For the eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears upon their prayer: but the face of the Lord is upon them that do evil.
If you can believe that the eyes of the Lord neither sleep nor slumber, but look upon those who keep peace outwardly with mouth and tongue, and inwardly have a kind heart toward their enemies, then you can easily endure all kinds of temptation etc.
This is a very beautiful, glorious consolation for the righteous, that is, believers in Christ, who are persecuted in the world and have to suffer much, and yet hold their fist so that they do not repay evil with evil, and their tongue and lips remain silent, so that they do not curse again, but do good to their enemies and bless them, That the Lord turn not away his face from them, as though he were angry with them; that his eyes also sleep not, nor slumber (as they think they do, when they are thus persecuted), but look upon them graciously, as his dear children, and keep them in a good watch. They must suffer much, as the psalm says afterwards; but he helps them out of all this etc. What they ask of God, they are surely granted, for his ears, he says, are attentive to their prayer. If this is true, as it undoubtedly must be, for the prophet David does not lie, then he will not forget our prayer, nor will he leave it out of his sight; we should take comfort in this.
This is also what should move a Christian man, that he should only suffer with all patience all injustice and dishonor that can be inflicted on him. For if one thinks it over rightly, he sees that the soul of the one who has
Suffering, where he does not convert, must burn eternally in the infernal fire. For he goes on to say that the Lord's face is upon those who do evil; he does not look upon them with kindly eyes, as the righteous do, but with an angry face. In a man who is fiercely angry, one sees his whole face disguised and inverted; he looks sour, grits his teeth, frowns, mouths and noses, and all the while looks like one who wants to throw himself in with all his might. With such a face, he wants to say, the Lord looks at those who do evil, so that he wants to eradicate their memory from the earth; as all history testifies, that he has eradicated many great, powerful potentates, so that neither trunk nor root remains. So it finally comes to pass that all who persecute the righteous do harm only to themselves, lose the blessing and the kindly face of the Lord, are not only cut off here for a time, but are also guilty there, wherefore they must be eternally damned.
Therefore a Christian heart should say: Dear Father, because our enemies fall so horribly into your wrath, and throw themselves so miserably into the eternal fire, I pray that you will forgive them, save them from wrath, and show mercy, as you did to me. For as he looks with favor on the righteous, so he looks with displeasure on the wicked, and wrinkles his face, and has turned it in anger on them. Knowing then that he looks upon us with favor, and upon those with disfavor, let us have mercy upon them, and let us mourn, and pray that he may increase our faith, that we may believe these things (that he looks kindly upon us who suffer), and be glad, and give understanding to those who persecute us, that they may believe it to be true that God is angry with them, that they may be afraid of it, and be converted. Further, St. Peter speaks:
V. 13. And who is he that might harm you, if ye do that which is good?
If we do what is good, that is, do not repay evil with evil, but are cordial and kind to our enemies, etc. there is no one who can harm us. For though honor, body, and goods be taken from us, yet are we unharmed, because that
We have a good that cannot be compared to what can be taken away from us. Those who persecute us have nothing but good on earth, then eternal damnation; but we have an eternal, imperishable good, even if we lose the temporal.
V.14. Even though you suffer for righteousness, you are blessed.
Not only can no one harm you if you suffer for the sake of God and righteousness, but you are also blessed and should rejoice that you suffer; as Christ also says Matt. 5:11 ff: "Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you for my sake, and speak all kinds of evil against you, when they lie about it; be joyful and confident, for you will be well rewarded in heaven. Whoever then grasps the fact that the Lord says these things and speaks them so sweetly and comfortingly into the heart, stands well; but whoever is not strengthened by this, and is not made confident and 2) courageous, will probably remain unstrengthened.
V. 14. 15. But do not be afraid of their defiance, and do not be dismayed; but sanctify God in your hearts.
But St. Peter cites a saying from the prophet Isaiah Cap. 8, 12. f., where he says: "Do not fear as they do, and do not be afraid, but sanctify the Lord of hosts, and let him be your fear and your terror" etc. There we have a strong protection and back, on which we may rely, that no one can harm us. Let the world terrorize, defy and oppress as long as it wants, it must have an end; but our comfort and joy will have no end. So let us not be afraid of the world, but let us be courageous; but before God let us be humble and fearful.
But what does St. Peter mean by saying that we should sanctify God? How can we sanctify Him; must He not sanctify us? Answer: He says right, for so we pray also in the Lord's Prayer, when we say: "Sanctified" etc., that we sanctify His name, even though He is holy before. Therefore, in your hearts (says St. Peter) you should sanctify him,
1) Wittenberger: little.
2) "and" is missing in the Wittenberger.
That is, if our Lord God sends us something, whether it is good or bad, whether it is good or bad, whether it is shame, honor, happiness or misfortune, we should consider it not only good, but also holy, and say: This is the most precious sanctuary of which we are not worthy etc. Therefore the prophet Ps. 145:17 says: "The Lord is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works." Therefore, if I accept God's ways, and give Him the praise, and consider His works good, holy and delicious, I sanctify Him in my heart.
But those who run to the law books and complain that they are wronged, and say that God is asleep and does not want to help the right or to prevent injustice, they dishonor Him and do not consider Him righteous or holy. But he who is a Christian must give right to God, wrong to himself, consider God holy, but himself unholy, and say that he is holy and righteous in all his deeds and works. This is what he wants; as the prophet Daniel says Cap. 9, 7: "O Lord, you are righteous in all that you have done to us, you do us justice in punishing us" etc. When one sings Deo gratias and Te Deum laudamus, and says: God be praised and blessed, when adversity befalls us, that is St. Peter and Isaiah sanctifying the Lord rightly.
But by this he does not mean that you should say that he who has offended you has done right and well. For there is much other judgment between God and me, and between me and you. I can have anger, hatred and evil air in my heart, so that I do not harm you, and you are still unoffended and have nothing against me; but before God I am unjust; therefore if he punishes me, he does right, I have well deserved it; if he does not punish me, he shows me mercy; and so he is always right. But it does not follow that he who persecutes me does right. For I have not wronged him, as I have done before God. When God sends the devil or evil men to punish you, he needs them to carry out his justice; so that evil men and injustice in the play are also a good thing.
Thus we read Ezek. 29, 18. f. of the king Nebuchadnezzar, where God speaks through the prophet: "Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar, who is
King of Babylon, led his army before Tyre with great difficulty, and yet neither he nor his army was rewarded for his work before Tyre; behold, I will give him Egypt land" etc. The king had no right to the land of Egypt, but God was right to punish the Tyreans through him. So that the wicked boys also serve him, and do not eat the bread for free, he gives them enough, lets them also serve him, that he not only persecutes the heathen, but also his own people, in which there were many saints, 2). Reason falls in and thinks that they are doing well and justly; but if he pays them here alone, he gives them much land here, and does it for this very reason, that they are his masters and persecute the pious Christians. But if thou sufferest, and sanctifieth God, and sayest, Right, O Lord, well unto thee; those that have done wrong he will in his time find, and cast into the pit of hell, and torment with everlasting torment; but thee he will accept with mercy, and give thee everlasting blessedness. Therefore let him do it, and he will reward you well.
We have an example of this from St. Job. When all his cattle and children were slain, and all his goods taken away, he said [Cap. 1:21], "The Lord hath given, and the Lord hath taken away: blessed be the name of the Lord." And when his wife came, mocking him, scolding him, and saying [Cap. 2, 9.], "Do you still hold to your piety? bless God and die," he answered [v. 10.], "You speak as foolish women speak. Have we received good from GOtt, nor should we accept evil?" God gave, and God took away (he says); not, God gave, the devil took away; though the devil had done it. The man has sanctified the Lord rightly, therefore he is also so highly praised and commended by God. Now continue:
But always be responsible to everyone, who demands the reason for the hope that is in you.
We will have to confess here that St. Peter spoke these words to all Christians,
1) Wittenberger: "hats" instead of: had deß. In the first redaction: "hatts".
2) "lets" inserted by us.
For this reason it follows that every Christian should know the reason and cause of his faith, and be able to give cause and answer where it is necessary. Now it has hitherto been forbidden that the laity should not read the Scriptures. For the devil had a good grip on it, that he might tear people away from the Scriptures, and so thought: If I make the laity not read the Scriptures, I will then bring the priests away from the Bible into Aristotle, that they may wash what they will; so the laity must hear what they preach to them. Otherwise, if the laity read the Scriptures, the clergy would also have to study, so that they would not be punished and overcome. But see what St. Peter says here to all of us, that we should give an answer and show the reason for our faith. If thou shalt die, I will not be with thee, neither will the pope be with thee; if then thou knowest not the ground of thy hope, and sayest, I believe as the Conciliar, the pope, and our fathers believed, the devil will answer, Yea, how if they were mistaken? then he hath won, and taketh thee into hell. Therefore, we must know what we believe, namely, what God's word is, not what the pope or Concilia put or say. For you must by no means trust in men, but in the mere word of God.
Therefore, if one attacks you as a heretic and asks why you believe that you will be saved by faith without works, answer: I have God's word and clear sayings of Scripture, Rom. 1, 17: "The righteous will live by his faith"; and above Cap. 2, 6, where St. Peter speaks of the living stone Christ, from the prophet Isaiah: "He who believes in him will not be put to shame"; there I build up, and know that the word does not deceive me. But if you say, as other fools do, "Well, we will listen to what the council decides, and we will stick to it," you are lost. Therefore you should say, "What do I ask about what he or she believes or decides; if it is not the word of God, I do not want to hear it.
Yes, you say, it is a confused thing about faith, that no one knows what to do
Therefore, we must wait until it is decided what we are to do. Answer: In the meantime you will go to the devil. For when the time comes for you to die, and you do not know what to believe, neither I nor anyone else can help you. Therefore you must know for yourself, and turn to no one, and remain firm in the word of God, if you want to escape the devil and hell. Therefore it is necessary for those who cannot read to grasp and retain some clear sayings from Scripture, at least one or two, and to stand firm on the foundation, as one is Genesis 22:18, where God says to Abraham, "Through your seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed." When you have grasped this, you can groan at it 1) and say: If pope, bishops and all concilia stood there and said otherwise, then I say thus: This is God's word, it stands firm to me, and do not deny; what is to be blessed must be blessed through this seed. What then is blessing? It is to deliver from the curse, that is, from sin, death and hell. Therefore it follows from the saying: Whoever is not blessed by the seed must be lost; so my works and merits cannot help me to salvation. Item, thus concludes the saying of Isaiah, Cap. 28:16: He that believeth on the stone shall not be put to shame. Now if someone attacks you and asks for the reason for your faith, answer: "There is the reason, I cannot lack it; therefore I ask nothing of what the pope or bishops teach and conclude. If they were true bishops, they should teach the reason of faith, so that all Christians would know it in common; then they go on and cry out that the laity should not be allowed to read the Scriptures.
So, if someone asks you whether you consider the pope to be a head, say: Yes, I consider him to be a head, not of the Christian church, which has Christ as its head, but of the devil's synagogue. Why? Because he is the antichrist. Because St. Paul says 1 Tim. 4, 1. ff: Devilish teachers will come, who will forbid marriage, and avoid the food that God has created to be taken with
1) moan - support.
Thanksgiving etc. This is what the pope has ever done, as it is in the day; therefore he is the right Antichrist. For what Christ teaches and gives, he opposes. What Christ sets free, he binds. Christ says it is not sin to need all kinds of food etc.; so the pope says it is sin.
Now therefore learn to give the cause and answer of faith: for it shall come to pass, that if it be not in life, it shall be in death. Then the devil will come forth and say: Why did you call the pope a final Christian? If you are not prepared and know the reason, he has won. So now here St. Peter wants to say: Because you have now become believers, you will have much persecution in the future, but in the persecution you must have a hope and wait for eternal life. If you are asked why you hope for this, you must have God's word to build on.
The Sophists have also inverted this text, that one should overcome the heretics with reason and from Aristotle, the natural light, therefore that in Latin it says rationem reddere, as if St. Peter meant, one should do it with human reason. That is why they say that Scripture is much too weak to overthrow heretics, that it must be done with reason and come from the brain, from which it must be proved that faith is right, since our faith is above all reason and is God's power alone. Therefore, if people do not want to believe, keep quiet; for you are not guilty of forcing them to believe that the Scriptures are God's book or word; it is enough that you give your reason for it. As, if they do so, and say: You preach that one should not hold the doctrine of men, when St. Peter and Paul, even Christ himself, were men; if you hear such people, who are so blinded and obdurate that they deny that this is God's word, what Christ and the apostles have spoken and written, or doubt it: then only be silent, do not speak a word to them, and let them go; only speak thus: I will give thee reason enough from the Scriptures; if thou wilt believe it, well; if not, go always. Then you say: Ei, so
then God's word must stand with shame. Command God to do so. Therefore, it is necessary to understand this and know how to deal with those who now stand up and pretend such foolishness. Follow:
V.16. And this with meekness and fear.
That is, when you are asked about your faith, you should not answer with proud words, and want to lead the matter out with defiance and violence, as if you wanted to uproot trees, but with such fear and humility, as if you were standing before God's court, and should answer there. For if it should happen that you were summoned before kings and princes, and had prepared yourself for a while with sayings, and thought thus: Wait, I will answer them rightly; then it may come about that the devil takes the sword out of your hands before you know it, and gives you a blow, so that you stand with shame, and would have armed yourself in vain; he could also tear out of your heart the sayings that you would have best conceived, so that you would be lacking, if you had it well in mind; for he has sensed your thoughts before. God allows this to happen, so that he may curb your arrogance and humble you.
Therefore, if thou wouldest that such things should not befall thee, thou must stand in fear, relying not on thy skill and wisdom, but on the words and promise of Christ [Matt. 10:19. f.], "When therefore they shall deliver you up, be not anxious how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that hour what ye shall speak. For it is not you who speak, but it is your Father's Spirit who speaks through you." It is right for you to answer that you are well equipped with sayings from the Scriptures; but see to it that you do not insist on them with a proud courage, otherwise God will tear the right, strong saying out of your mouth and memory, if you were otherwise equipped with all sayings beforehand. Therefore fear belongs to it. But if thou art thus skillful, thou canst answer to princes and lords, and also to the devil himself. Only see to it that it is not man's doing, but God's word.
And have a good conscience, that they which speak evil of you, as of evildoers, may be put to shame, because they have reproached your good walk in Christ.
St. Peter also said above that we cannot avoid it, if we want to cling to the gospel and Christian life, we must be blasphemed and condemned by the world, so that we are thought to be the most desperate of boys. Therefore, we must not allow ourselves to be challenged, but earnestly strive to have a good conscience, to fear God, and to lead an honorable life. For let the devil and all the world rage and rage, let them reproach as they will, they will have to stand with shame in the end, because they have reproached and blasphemed our good walk in Christ (which they regard as error and disobedience); when our innocence comes to light, then we will be safe and stand with a good conscience. Now these are all beautiful and strong sayings that can comfort us and make us courageous, and yet keep us in fear.
V. 17 For it is better, if it is God's will, that you suffer for good than for evil.
It will not happen that those who go to heaven have good days on earth, because those who do not go to heaven 1) may not have good days either. For it has ever been laid upon all men that God says to Adam, "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat thy bread"; and to the woman, "Thou shalt bring forth children with pain." Since misfortune is laid upon us all, how much more must those bear the cross who wish to enter into eternal life. Therefore he says: "If God wills it so, then it is better that you suffer for your own good. Those who suffer for iniquity have an evil conscience, and therefore have double punishment; but Christians, because they have a good conscience, only suffer inwardly in their bodies, and inwardly they have comfort, as Christ says Jn 16:33: "In the world you are afraid, but in me you have peace" etc.
1) Here we have deleted "the", which is too much, not even in the first redaction.
But here he has set a goal: "if it is God's will"; as he also said above: "if it should be so"; so that the erroneous spirits may be warded off, as the Donatists were, of whom St. Augustine writes, who took such sayings that sound of suffering, and killed themselves, threw themselves into the sea etc. God does not want us to seek misfortune and choose it ourselves. Go thou and exercise thyself in faith and love; if the cross comes, accept it; if it does not come, do not seek it. Therefore the fiery spirits do wrong to scourge and smite themselves, or to choke themselves, and to storm heaven with it. We should therefore wait for the body, so that it does not become horny, but also not corrupt; and we should suffer when another sends us suffering, but not choose it from ourselves. This is what the phrase means: "if it is God's will"; if he decrees that you should be persecuted for his name's sake, accept it and suffer it with patience, and be confident, for you are suffering for a good deed.
V.18. Since Christ also once suffered for our sins, the righteous for the unrighteous.
Once again, St. Peter sets the Lord Christ as an example for us, always referring to the suffering of Christ, so that we should all follow the example, lest he should propose a special image to each class. For as Christ's example is proposed to everyone in the whole community, so he also holds it up to everyone in the community, that everyone of whatever rank he is, in all his life, as it happens, should keep to it; and thus wants to say: Christ has been just, has also suffered for our sake who were unjust; but has not sought the cross, but waited until it was God's will that he should drink the cup; he should be our example, whom we should follow. And especially St. Peter introduces the example here, so that he now wants to conclude, after he has instructed all classes, and will now further transfigure the suffering of Christ.
But actually he says here: "Christ once suffered for us", that is, he took upon himself the sin of all the world and bore it,
But he did not die for every sin separately, but once he was enough for all of them. In this way he has redeemed from their sins all those who come to him and believe in him, so that they are now masters over sin and death, just as he is.
The righteous for the unrighteous" (he says), as if to say: "We should suffer much more, because we suffer for the sake of the righteous, who has no sin; but he died for the unrighteous, that he might be sufficient for their sin.
That he might offer us to God.
All this is said to show the quality of Christ's suffering, namely, that He did not die for His own sake, but that He sacrificed Himself to God for us. How does this work? Did he not sacrifice himself? Answer: It is true that he sacrificed himself on the cross for all of us who believe in him; but in the same way he also sacrificed us with him, so that all who believe in him must also suffer and be killed with him according to the flesh, just as he was. Thus God has presented us as those who are alive in the spirit, yet die in the flesh; as he says afterwards. So then we are one sacrifice with him: as he dies, so we also die according to the flesh; as he lives spiritually, so we also live in the spirit.
And is dead according to the flesh, but made alive according to the Spirit.
The word flesh is common in Scripture, as is also spirit, and the apostles commonly hold the two in opposition to each other. Now if this is the opinion that Christ through his suffering was taken from the life that is flesh and blood; as a man on earth, living in flesh and blood, walks and stands, eats, drinks, sleeps, wakes, sees, hears, grasps and feels, and recently what the body does, which is perishable, to this Christ died. This is what St. Paul calls corpus animale, that is, as an animal lives, in the flesh, not according to the flesh, that is, 1) in natural works which the body has; to such life he died, so that it ceased with him, and he is now set in another life. Therefore he says that he was made alive according to the Spirit, that is, he was made alive in the flesh.
1) "that is," is missing in the Wittenberg.
enter into a spiritual and supernatural life, which fully comprehends the life that Christ now has in soul and body, so that he no longer has a fleshly body, but a spiritual body. This is how St. Paul expresses it.
So shall it be with us in the last day: we shall become spiritual men out of natural men, that is, my body and yours shall live without eating and drinking, shall not beget children, nor digest, nor cast out, and such like, but shall live inwardly according to the Spirit, and the body shall be transfigured as the sun is now, and much more clearly; shall not be natural flesh and blood, neither shall it do natural works, nor works of the flesh, such as animals have in common with us. St. Paul also speaks of this in 1 Cor. 15:45: "The first man Adam was made in the natural life, and the last Adam in the spiritual life"; item, v. 49: "As we have borne the image of the earthly, so shall we bear the image of the heavenly." From Adam we have all natural works, like the unreasoning 2) animals according to the five senses; but Christ is spiritually flesh and blood, not according to outward senses, sleeping not, waking not, yet knowing all things, and being in all things. So shall we be also, for he is the firstfruits of spiritual life, that is, he is the first that is risen, and come into spiritual life. So Christ now lives according to the Spirit, that is, he is truly man, but has a spiritual body.
Therefore, the words here are not to be taken as separating the spirit from the flesh, but that the body and flesh are spiritual, and the spirit is in the body and with the body. For St. Peter does not mean here that the Holy Spirit raised Christ, but 3) in general, as when I say: "the Spirit", "the flesh", 4) I do not mean the Holy Spirit, but the inward things which the Spirit does, and which come from the Spirit. Follows now:
V. 19, 20: In the same he went and preached to the spirits in prison who did not believe.
2) Wittenberger: reasonable.
3) "but" is missing in the Wittenberger.
4) "The flesh" is missing in the Wittenberg. Cf. Col. 1077, § 64 in this volume.
This is a strange text and a darker saying than there is in the New Testament, so that I do not yet know for sure what St. Peter means. First, the words read as if Christ had preached to the spirits, that is, to the souls that did not believe when Noah built the ark. I do not understand this, nor can I interpret it; no one has interpreted it yet. But if someone wants to believe that Christ, after he died on the cross, came down to the souls and preached to them, I will not refuse. So it would like to suffer a mind; but I do not know whether St. Peter wants to say that.
The words may well give such an idea that the Lord Christ, after he ascended into heaven, came in the spirit and preached, but in such a way that his preaching was not bodily. For he speaketh not with a bodily voice, neither doeth he any more that which is the natural work of the body. Therefore, just as it sounds that he preached to the spirits in the same spiritual life, so such preaching must also be spiritual preaching, which he does inwardly in the heart and soul, so that he may not go with the body and preach orally. The text does not say that when he died he went down to the souls and preached to them. For it says, "in the same," that is, when he was put to death according to the flesh and made alive according to the Spirit, that is, when he had given up being in the flesh and the natural works of the body, and had entered into a spiritual being and life, as he is now in heaven, he went and preached. Now he has never again gone to hell, after he has taken on such a new nature: therefore it must be understood that he did this after the resurrection.
Because the words want to imply that it is said of spiritual preaching, we want to stay on the sense that St. Peter speaks 1) of the ministry that Christ does through outward preaching. For he commanded the apostles to preach the gospel bodily; but apart from the preaching he himself comes and is also present spiritually, speaking and preaching.
1) "rede" is missing in the Wittenberger.
He preaches into the hearts of the people, as the apostles speak the words orally and bodily into the ears. There he preaches to the spirits that are imprisoned in the prison of the devil, so that the going is also to be understood spiritually like the preaching.
But that here follows: "To the spirits that believed not" etc., we want to interpret according to the divine account, that in the being, since Christ is inside, are equal before him, who were before times, and are now. For his regiment extends both over the dead and the living. And in that life the beginning, the middle and the end of the world is in one lump. But here in the world there is a measure, that time goes on one after another, the Son after the Father, and so on. As that we give a likeness: If a log lies far from you, or if you look at it lengthwise, you cannot see it; but if it lies close to you, or if you stand on top of it and look at it lengthwise, you can see it. So on earth we cannot comprehend this life; for it is always from foot to foot one after the other, until the last day, but before God it is all in a moment. For before Him a thousand years are as one day, Ps. 90, 4. 2 Petr. 3, 8. Thus the first man is just as near to Him as he who is to be born at the last, and sees it all at the same time, as the eye of man can bring two things together in a moment, which are also far from each other. Let it be understood, then, that Christ no longer preaches in the flesh, but is present with the Word, and preaches to the spirits spiritually in the heart. But do not understand that he preaches to all spirits. To which spirits did he preach? To those "who did not believe". There is the figure that is called synecdoche, ex parte totum, the
is not the same as them, but the same as them, and just as unbelieving as them. Therefore, one must look from this life into that life.
This is now the best understanding, as I think, of these words of St. Peter, but I do not want to fight too hard about it. But I cannot well believe that Christ went down to the souls and preached to them there; so the Scripture is also against it, and says: Who
The one who does not believe has already been judged, so that each one may receive what he has believed and lived. For this reason, since it is not certain what will happen to the dead, the saying cannot be interpreted in this way. But it is certain that Christ is present and preaches into the heart, where a preacher preaches the word of God into the ear; therefore we can draw it without hesitation. But to whom better understanding is revealed, let him follow it. Now this is the sum of the understanding I have shown: Christ went to heaven and preached to the spirits, that is, to the souls of men, among whom the souls of men were unbelievers in the days of Noah. Now follow on:
Since God once waited and had patience in the days of Noah, when the ark was prepared, in which few, that is, eight souls were kept by the water.
But St. Peter wants to lead us into the Scriptures so that we can study them, and gives a likeness of the Ark of Noah, and interprets the same figure. For it is nice to introduce parables with such images; as St. Paul does when he speaks of the two sons of Abraha and two wives, Sarah and Hagar, Gal. 4, 22. ff, and Christ Joh. 3, 14. of the serpent that Moses had set up in the desert. Such parables can be well understood and are also amusing; that is why St. Peter also introduces this one, so that faith can be summarized in a physical image. He wants to say: As it happened when Noah prepared the ark, so it will happen here. Just as he was preserved in the box that floated in the middle of the water, so you also must be saved in baptism. The water of that time drowned all living things, both man and beast: so baptism also drowns all that is carnal and natural, and makes spiritual men. But we ship in the box, which signifies the Lord Christ, or the Christian church, or the gospel which Christ preaches, or the body of Christ, to which we cling by faith, and are saved, as Noah was in the ark. So you see how the picture summarizes what is faith and the cross, life and death. Now where there are people who believe in
Christ, there is certainly a Christian church, where everything that comes from Adam and that is evil is drowned.
V. 21. Which therefore also makes us blessed in baptism, which is signified by that, not the putting away of filthiness of the flesh, but the covenant of a good conscience with God.
You are not kept and saved by washing the filth from the flesh, that the body may be clean, as the Jews did; such cleanliness is no longer valid, but the covenant of a good conscience with God, that is, that you feel in yourself a good, happy conscience, which is in covenant with God and can say: He has promised me grace and forgiveness of sins through Christ; I accept this with joy and do not doubt that he will keep it for me, for he cannot lie. So if you hang on his word and cling to it, you must be preserved. Now the covenant to keep us is faith, which takes hold of God's promise and holds fast to it; not an outward work that you can do.
Through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
St. Peter adds this so that he may glorify the faith that is based on the fact that Christ died, descended to hell, and rose from the dead. If he had remained dead, we would not have been helped; but because he is risen again, sits at the right hand of God, and proclaims to us that [we], if we believe in him, have a covenant with God, 1) and a certain promise of eternal life and blessedness, so that we will be kept, like Noah in the ark. So St. Peter made the ark entirely spiritual, since there is not flesh and blood inside, but a good conscience toward God, which 2) is faith.
V. 22. Who has ascended to the right hand of God in heaven, and the angels and the mighty and the powers are subject to him.
He says all this for the transfiguration and strengthening of our faith. For Christ has
1) In the first adaptation, "that we believe in Him, we have a covenant with God."
2) In the Wittenberg and Erlangen editions: "da". In contrast, in the first redaction: "that".
must also go to heaven and become lords over all creatures, and where there is a power, that he also led us there and made us lords. Now this is said to us for comfort, that we know that we must be served by
and help all powers that are in heaven and earth, even death and the devil, as all things must serve and be at the feet of the Lord Christ. This is now the third chapter; the fourth follows.