(10-11) A prayer for their spiritual strengthening.
But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
a. May the God of all grace… perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you: Knowing the suffering and danger Christians face, Peter can only conclude with prayer. He asks God to do His work of perfecting, establishing, strengthening, and settling.
i. These things are God’s work in us and through us. Peter personally knew the futility of trying to face suffering and danger in one’s own strength. His own failure taught him the need for constant reliance on God’s work in our lives, so he prays for his dear Christian friends.
ii. After you have suffered a while: We almost want to ask Peter, “Why did you say that?” But the truth remains. We are only called… to His eternal glory… after you have suffered a while. We wish we were called to His eternal glory on the “no suffering” plan. But God uses suffering to perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle us.
iii. We are called us to His eternal glory; but what does this glory entail?
· It is the glory of purified character.
· It is the glory of perfected humanity.
· It is the glory of complete victory.
· It is the glory of being honored by a King.
· It is the glory of reflecting the glory of God.
· It is the glory of the immediate, constant presence of God.
· It is the glory of the enjoyment of God Himself.
b. To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever: The God who can do this great work in our lives is certainly worthy of our praise.
4. (12-14) Conclusion to the letter.
By Silvanus, our faithful brother as I consider him, I have written to you briefly, exhorting and testifying that this is the true grace of God in which you stand. She who is in Babylon, elect together with you, greets you; and so does Mark my son. Greet one another with a kiss of love. Peace to you all who are in Christ Jesus. Amen.
a. 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.
b. This is the true grace of God in which you stand: Peter summed up his message as an exhortation to understand and recognize the true grace of God in which you stand. We must understand not only what God’s grace is, but that grace is our place of present standing before Him.
c. 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.
i. 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.”
d. 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.
e. Greet one another with a kiss of love: Peter concludes with a command to greet and display God’s love to one another, and by pronouncing a blessing of peace. These two things – love for each other and peace – are especially necessary for those who suffer and live in dangerous times.
i. “It should be noted that the apostles did not originate that form of greeting; the custom already prevailed. They sanctioned its use as a sincere expression of Christian love.” (Hiebert)