seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
1 Peter 5:1 12 With the help of Silas, whom I regard as a faithful brother, I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand fast in it.
13 She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you her greetings, and so does my son Mark. 14 Greet one another with a kiss of love.
Peace to all of you who are in Christ.
2 Peter 1:1 Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours:
2 Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
The end of 1 Peter and the beginning of 1 Peter have a couple of interesting things. Here's the link to the commentary for the verses in 1 Peter and 2 Peter this morning. The commentary uses Silvanus instead of Silas... and for that there's a lesson.By Silvanus… I have written to you: This portion was probably written by Peter’s own hand, after he (according to the custom of the day) had dictated the bulk of the letter to Silvanus. This man Silvanus was probably the same one known as Silas in many of Paul’s letters.
She who is in Babylon… greets you: She probably refers to the church, which in the ancient Greek is in the feminine. Peter apparently wrote from Babylon. This may be the literal city of Babylon (which still existed in Peter’s day), or it may be a symbolic way of referring to either Rome or Jerusalem. These were two cities that in Peter’s day were famous for their wickedness and spiritual rebellion, just like ancient Babylon was. In any regard, this was one church greeting another.
There was of course the literal city of Babylon on the Euphrates. There was also a place known as Babylon in Egypt, and it was a Roman military fortress near the present city of Cairo. Yet many think that Peter meant “Babylon” in a symbolic sense to represent the city of Rome. As a Biblical concept, “Babylon” as the city of this world stands in contrast to “Jerusalem” as the city of God. He may have meant Rome as Babylon as “the center of worldliness.”
So does Mark my son: This verse connects Mark with Peter, apparently the same Mark of Acts 12:12, 12:25, and 15:37-39. When the style and perspective of the Gospel of Mark are taken into account, many believe that Peter was Mark’s primary source of information for his gospel.
Simon Peter: The Apostle here called himself Simon Peter. Perhaps, since he wrote this letter later in life, he didn’t want to forget where he came from and that sometimes he was still more like the old Simon than the new Peter.
We remember that Simon was his given name at birth; Peter was the special name given to him by Jesus, to call this man to “rock-like” thinking and behavior.
Some have said that Peter didn’t write this letter because the subject and style is somewhat different than 1 Peter. Yet the purpose of the two letters is quite different. 1 Peter was written to encourage Christians under the threat of violent persecution; 2 Peter was written to warn those same believers of the danger of false teachers and harmful influences.
“Convinced that the best antidote for heresy is a mature knowledge of the truth, Peter exhorts his readers to have a proper appreciation for prophecy, to live holy and godly lives while awaiting Christ’s coming and to grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord.” (Kirby)
There seems to be a lot written about a few verses. These are the greetings and salutations of letters kept for all to read. A few people are introduced or mentioned in these verses. First there's Silas. In the commentary they use the King James name... Silvanus. It's the same guy, he's just called by different names. There is also the hint that Silas was a secretary for the Christian Church. It appears, going on style, that Silas also took dictation and transcribed for Mark [author of the Book of Mark] as well. I often wondered how a fisherman had time to learn to write... Silas wrote... He was educated. While I'm sure Paul could write his own stuff, I'm not so sure about the fishermen being educated and scholarly... they were fishermen... not scholars.
Then Peter moves to "she who is in Babylon". No, it's not a big whore with much fame, as in the whores of Babylon. Apparently "she" is the Church. The Church is all the Christians in Babylon. So, the commentary says Peter was in Babylon writing to a church elsewhere. [Like I'm writing this in Arizona to friends there in Southern Maryland.]
Then, there's my son Mark. According to the commentary, Peter is referring to "John Mark". Peter is talking about the guy who wrote the book of Mark. Peter is talking about the son of a woman who happens to be named Mary and who owns the house where the Christians met. There were a lot of Marks and Johns and Marys back then... just like there are now. John Mark was known as an Evangelist.
Then there's Simon Peter. Peter used to go by the name Simon. That was before Jesus named him Peter "the rock". Peter lied and denied and still Jesus knew Peter would make amends by working hard to build the church.... so, before Peter had done anything to be called "the rock" Jesus tagged him with the name. Apparently, Peter is remembering the old, very fallible, Simon the ignorant liar along with the new "rock" known as Peter the Apostle.
So, are we clear? Silas is also known as Silvanus, and apparently, he was a church secretary. She who is in Babylon is NOT a big whore, but the church located in Babylon because churches are called "she". Peter doesn't have a son named Mark that anyone knows of. Since Peter was an Apostle and Mark would have been a Disciple, then Peter would refer to other men in the church as "son", rather than "brother". Oh no... it's a hierarchy.... right? And finally, Peter himself brought back his old name tacked to the new name. I guess that's so everyone would know he was a changed man, rather than a lying bum who wouldn't stand up for the man who would take his beating for him.
So... tomorrow Peter will babble on from Babylon.
Babble on from Babylon... giggle.
