Commentary - 1 Peter 1:17-21

Bird's-eye view

In this dense and glorious passage, the Apostle Peter connects our day-to-day conduct with the highest realities of our salvation. He argues from the greater to the lesser, grounding our present ethical responsibilities in the character of God the Father, the cost of our redemption, and the eternal plan of God in Christ. The logic is airtight: because of who God is (an impartial Judge and our Father), and because of what Christ has done (redeemed us with His precious blood), we are therefore obligated to live a certain way (in holy fear). This is not a call to cowering dread, but to a sober-minded, awe-filled reverence for the God who has done such great things for us. Peter demolishes any notion of cheap grace by reminding his readers of the infinite price of their salvation. He lifts their eyes from their temporary trials to the eternal realities that define them, showing that our hope is not a flimsy wish, but is securely anchored in the historical reality of Christ's resurrection and glorification.

The passage moves seamlessly from our conduct to God's character, from our redemption to Christ's identity, and from God's eternal decree to our present faith. It is a masterful tapestry weaving together theology proper, Christology, soteriology, and ethics. The central thrust is that sound doctrine must produce holy living. What we believe about God the Father and God the Son directly impacts how we walk through this world during our "sojourn." Our lives are to be shaped not by the worthless traditions we inherited from our fallen cultures, but by the staggering value of the blood of Christ.

Outline

Context In 1 Peter

This passage flows directly from Peter's previous exhortation to holiness (1 Pet 1:13-16). Having commanded his readers to be holy as God is holy, he now provides the deep theological motivation for that command. The "if" in verse 17 is better translated "since," indicating that what follows is the logical basis for the preceding call to a holy lifestyle. This section is part of a larger argument that begins in verse 13, where Peter calls for clear-minded hope and obedience. The entire first chapter is foundational, establishing the believer's identity in Christ. We are born again to a living hope (1:3), guarded by God's power (1:5), and our faith is being proven genuine through trials (1:7). Now, Peter shows that this glorious salvation, which cost the precious blood of Christ, must result in a life of reverent obedience. This section, therefore, serves as the theological engine driving the practical ethics of the Christian life.

Key Issues

The Fear of the Redeemed

Modern Christians often get squeamish about the idea of fearing God. We have so emphasized the love of God and His fatherly affection that we can treat the command to fear Him as a relic of the Old Testament, something grace has done away with. Peter will have none of it. He insists that the very fact we call God "Father" is the reason we must conduct ourselves in fear. This is not the cowering terror of a slave before a tyrant, but the reverent, respectful, awe-filled fear of a son before a good and powerful father. It is the fear of disappointing Him. It is the fear of dishonoring the family name. It is the fear that comes from understanding the immense holiness of our Father and the staggering price He paid to adopt us. A child who truly loves and respects his father is afraid to grieve him. This filial fear is not opposed to love and assurance; it is the fruit of it. It is what keeps grace from becoming cheap in our hearts. We are sons, not slaves, and so we fear God. We are sons, not spoiled brats, and so we fear God.

Verse by Verse Commentary

17 And if you address as Father the One who impartially judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves in fear during the time of your sojourn,

Peter begins with a logical connector, "And since..." He is building on what he has just said about holiness. Since you call upon God as your Father, certain things follow. The intimate privilege of calling God "Father" does not remove His role as Judge; it establishes it in a new context. This Father is also the one who impartially judges. He has no favorites. He doesn't grade on a curve. His judgment is not based on our pedigree, our wealth, or our reputation, but "according to each one's work." This is not a contradiction of salvation by grace. Our works do not save us, but they are the necessary evidence of our salvation. They are the fruit that reveals the nature of the root. Because our loving Father is also a righteous Judge, we are to live our lives, our "sojourn," our temporary stay on this earth, in a state of holy fear. This is the baseline disposition of the Christian life: a profound reverence and awe that shapes all our conduct.

18 knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things like silver or gold from your futile conduct inherited from your forefathers,

The motivation for this holy fear is rooted in the nature of our redemption. Peter uses the word redeemed, which means to be bought back, to be ransomed from slavery. He first tells us what did not pay the price. It was not paid with "corruptible things," things that decay and lose their value, like silver or gold. In the ancient world, these were the highest forms of currency, but Peter says they are utterly worthless for ransoming a human soul. And what were we ransomed from? Not just from the penalty of sin, but from our "futile conduct." This is a striking phrase. It describes a life that is empty, pointless, and vain. And where did we get this way of life? It was "inherited from your forefathers." Every human culture apart from Christ is a system of futility, a collection of traditions and habits that lead nowhere. We are born into this bondage. Redemption is not just a ticket to heaven; it is liberation from a meaningless existence here and now.

19 but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.

Here is the positive side, the actual ransom price. In contrast to the corruptible silver and gold, we were redeemed with something infinitely valuable: the precious blood of Christ. The word "precious" means of high value, honored. This blood is not just any blood; it is the blood of a specific kind of sacrifice, that of a "lamb unblemished and spotless." This language immediately throws us back into the Old Testament, evoking the Passover lamb (Exodus 12) and the sacrificial system of Leviticus. The sacrifice had to be perfect to be acceptable. Christ was that perfect sacrifice. He was without sin, either by nature (unblemished) or by action (spotless). His life, represented by His shed blood, was the only currency valuable enough to purchase our freedom. This is the heart of the gospel. The price was not cheap. Therefore, our gratitude and our corresponding conduct must not be cheap either.

20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but appeared in these last times for the sake of you

This great sacrifice was not a divine afterthought, a plan B that God came up with after Adam sinned. Peter says that Christ, the lamb, was foreknown before the foundation of the world. This speaks to the eternal plan of God. In the councils of the Trinity, before time began, the plan of redemption was set. The Father knew the Son would be the sacrifice. This doesn't just mean God looked down the corridors of time and saw what would happen; it means He ordained it, He purposed it. This eternal plan, hidden for ages, "appeared," or was made manifest, "in these last times." The "last times" refers to the entire era inaugurated by Christ's first coming. And why was He revealed? "For the sake of you." The grand, eternal, cosmic plan of God had you, the believer, in its sights. This is a profoundly pastoral and comforting truth. Your salvation is not an accident of history; it is the culmination of an eternal purpose.

21 who through Him are believers in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

Peter now connects this grand theological reality directly to the experience of his readers. It is "through Him," through Christ, that we are now "believers in God." Christ is the mediator, the only way to the Father. And the basis of our belief is objective, historical fact. We believe in the God who did two things for Christ: He "raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory." The resurrection is the ultimate vindication of Christ's sacrifice. It is God the Father's public declaration that the payment was accepted, the debt was paid in full. The ascension and seating at the right hand is the "glory" that followed. And what is the result of this mighty act of God? "So that your faith and hope are in God." Our faith is not a leap in the dark. It rests on the solid ground of an empty tomb and an occupied throne. Our hope is not wishful thinking. It is a confident expectation because the God who raised Jesus from the dead is the same God who has promised to keep us and bring us to glory. The entire structure of our Christian confidence is built upon God's mighty acts in Christ.

Application

This passage is a potent antidote to a casual, flippant, or sentimental Christianity. It demands that we take our faith seriously because God has taken our salvation seriously. First, we must recover a biblical fear of God. This means cultivating a deep and abiding reverence for His holiness, His power, and His justice, even as we revel in His fatherly love. We should ask ourselves if our daily conduct reflects the reality that we will give an account to an impartial Judge who is also our Dad. Does the thought of grieving Him check our behavior?

Second, we must constantly remember the price of our redemption. We are prone to forget. We were bought, not with pocket change, but with the precious blood of the Son of God. This truth should demolish our pride, because we were helpless slaves in a futile system. It should also give us an unshakable sense of our own value to God. He thought you were worth the life of His Son. How can this not transform the way we live? It should make us hate the sin that nailed Him to the cross and flee the "futile conduct" from which He rescued us.

Finally, our faith and hope must be consciously and deliberately placed in God Himself, who has demonstrated His faithfulness by raising Jesus from the dead. When we are tempted to despair, when our circumstances seem bleak, we must look away from our own resources and look to the empty tomb. The resurrection is the guarantee of all God's promises. Because Christ is risen, our faith is not in vain. Because Christ is glorified, our hope is secure. Let us therefore live as what we are: redeemed children of a holy Father, sojourning in this world with reverent fear and unshakeable hope.