Introduction there has been much debate over the authorship of 2 peter. We find no good reason to reject peter s authorship of 2 peter. Its purpose was to warn against the increasing number of false teachers attacking the truth of the gospel of jesus christ. The recording is dramatized, from the king james bible. He wrote this letter to a group of christians scattered throughout the northern areas of asia minor, where he may have previously preached the gospel. The author presents himself as peter the apostle, and, following catholic tradition, the epistle has been held to have been written during his time as bishop of rome or bishop of antioch, though neither title is used in the epistle. Second peter is the apostle peter s last reminder to the church. However, if jude borrowed from peter, then peter is more likely the author. And with the notation that it was his first inspired letter.
Daniel, peter, paul, jonah, isaiah, solomon and david. It refers to historical events, which would have been true in the life of peter. Book of second peter overview insight for living ministries. The book of 1st peter is a general epistle apostolic letter. We are starting a bible study on 2 peter, a book written by the apostle peter to the same audience as the book of 1 peter the group of churches located in the northern part of asia minor modern turkey. The holy bible book 60 1 peter kjv dramatized audio. The letter has always been identified as are most general epistles, like james, john and jude, with the name of the author, peter. The book of 2 peter was written toward the end of peters life. There are very strong objections to thinking the same person wrote 1 and 2 peter. Some have argued that this date is too early for the writing of 2 peter, but nothing in the book requires a later date.
The vocabulary and style in 2 peter are very different from 1 peter but are very similar to jude. During his life and ministry, john discipled many others including several of the early church fathers, who would themselves become elders, leaders and martyrs in the late 1st and 2nd century church. How can we explain the surprising similarity between 2 peter and jude. Dec 07, 2016 watch our overview video on 1 peter, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought. Knowing his death was near, peter in his second epistle wanted to remind believers of certain doctrines and warn them about false teachers. There are a number of helpful commentaries on the books of 2 peter and jude, and the following are five of the best. Sep 24, 2017 much of the content of jude matches that of 2 peter, including a quotation from the pseudipigraphical book 1 enoch vs. Peter offers hope to persecuted christians and guides them with practical. There is evidence that peter and jude may have been coworkers. The first four books where written by the guy whose name is used as the title of the book. Why do some scholars say that peter didnt write second.
Some feel the book was written from rome around 62 ad. The two epistles of peter both claim to have been written by the apostle peter, both addressed themselves to the same church and both claim to have been sent at approximately the same time. Two wellknown scholars, duane watson who has written a monograph on second peter and terrance callan author of several books focusing on the apostle paul take up the charge of writing commentaries on first and second peter. Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. The book of 1 peter was accepted as an inspired book as early as the second century. Clearly this is too late for a disciple who lived in the. However, the early church fathers found no good reason to reject it. These epistles are ascribed to st peter the apostle, and held to have been written either during his time as bishop of rome or when he was bishop of antioch. He was once a fisherman but now was a disciple, a witness of the sufferings of christ.
Asked in new testament, the bible, bible statistics and history. Some people dispute that he wrote second peter because, in marked contrast with the simpler greek of first peter, the greek language in that epistle is highly refined and complex. Oct 22, 2010 peter, the apostle, wrote 1st and 2nd peter. Acts is really part 2 to the book of luke, written by luke.
Some also maintain that the book reflects a situation that did not exist until after peter s death, suggesting that the persecution referred to in 4. Intro to 2 peter biblica the international bible society. Whereas the first epistle of peter deals with the persecution of the believers, the second epistle deals with false teachers. Jude was going to write a letter on the subject of salvation v. The first several chapters of the book of acts depict peter as a leader of the. Peter is writing to christians in a world that is becoming increasingly hostile to them now that the romans, as well as the jews, are persecuting the church. The author was the apostle peter, whose name before he became a disciple, was simon. The book of 2 nd peter is a general epistle apostolic letter. Did jude borrow from 2 peter, did peter borrow for jude, or did both borrow from a common source. The opening verse of the epistle claims it was written by peter, who was clearly the leader among christs apostles. So jude and peter could have had a relationship like paul and luke or paul and silas. The first word of this epistle, peter, identifies the author, who called himself an apostle of jesus christ 1 peter 1. Tradition holds that he was crucified around 6465 a.
Since peter was martyred during the reign of nero, his death must have occurred prior to a. What apostle wrote the letter to cappadocia answers. What is interesting is that peter dealt with both challenges in theological terms. Moses was the first person to write portions of scripture while john, the disciple of jesus, was the last. Encourage students as they study 1 peter and 2 peter to keep in mind that these epistles were written by the apostle who was serving as the president of the church. Intro to 1 peter biblica the international bible society. Top 5 commentaries on the books of 2 peter and jude. The key personalities are the apostle peter, silas, and mark. First and second peter, james, and jude by pheme perkins.
She ably demonstrates that these catholic epistles have, in fact, much to offer to todays readers. The authorship of the petrine epistles first and second peter is an important question in. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign lord who bought thembringing swift destruction on themselves. Its purpose was to encourage suffering christians and to call them to personal holiness. Second peter is the third of the general epistles or catholic letters, the writings of apostles to the church at large. Peter introduced himself at the beginning of the letter as a bondservant and apostle of jesus christ, and he addressed the letter to those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours 2 peter 1. Shortly after this letter was written, peter was martyred, according to reliable tradition, by being crucified upside down see note on john 21. Already in the early church there were christian scholars who argued that peter did not write 2 peter the book called 2 peter was written long after peter s death, by someone who was disturbed that some people were denying that the end was coming soon. This is, in my opinion, the best and most beautiful. First and second peter, james, and jude have existed on the edges of the canon throughout the centuries. That peter, the head of the twelve, was the author of this letter is not only strongly supported by the external and internal evidence, but is more logical than any of the objections raised against it. Nov 01, 2012 john is the author of the gospel of john, and of 1st, 2nd and 3rd john, as well as the revelation.
Letters of peter new testament writings britannica. Blum affirms that 1 peter is reflected in the gospel of truth which seems to use the books regarded as authoritative in rome c. To answer the authorship question first, my personal belief is that the apostle peter wrote both of the new testament epistles that bear his name. In between are those who seethe possibility that peter wrote some of it, but that someone who may have known peter wrotethe rest of it, or that this person wrote all of it. First peter is the second of the general epistles or catholic letters, the writings of apostles to the church at large. Now lets turn to a positive argument for peter being the author of 2 peter. Peter s authorship of 2 peter has been challenged more than that of any other book in the new testament. He was born in bethsaida and lived in capernaum where he followed the occupation of fishing. Thus in 1 peter silass greek may be seen, while in 2 peter it may be peter s rough greek that appears. Most critical biblical scho lars ha ve concluded peter is not the author, considering the epistle pseudepigraphical.
John, the beloved apostle and the gospel writer, wrote 1st, 2nd, and 3rd john. Nov 19, 2012 this is the holy book of 2 peter, known as the second epistle general of peter. This is the holy book of 1 peter, known as the first epistle general of peter. The author identifies himself as the apostle peter 1. His purpose was to help disciples of jesus christ during difficult times. Jan 02, 2020 we find no good reason to reject peters authorship of 2 peter.
Here is an easy way to tell who wrote which book in the new testament. From the time of abraham, gods people were a misunderstood minority and should expect to face hostility because they live under king jesus rule. Harris says, virtually none believe that 2 peter was written by jesus chief disciple. Dec 17, 2008 peter, john, and jude all wrote the books with their names on them including the gospel of john and the book of revelation also written by john. Peter wrote this letter from rome soon after he wrote 1 peter in ad 6466. Nov 19, 2015 the author we have no credible reason to believe that anyone but the apostle peter wrote the 2nd book of peter and probably very close to the time that peter was crucified upside down so 2nd. Title the letter has always been identified as are most general epistles, like james, john, and jude with the name of the author, peter, and with the notation that it was his first inspir. The first peter commentary is written with a view toward peter as the author in peter s context, and the substance of the commentary does well at setting forth the flow of the narrative, making good sense of the text in context, and, true to the paideia series, assists the reader in understanding the historical, cultural, but especially literal and. The author of the epistle refers to himself as peter, an apostle of jesus christ. Only later does it become apparent that peter was writing to the same group of believers who had received his first letter. If so, then the tremendous similarity between 2 peter and jude may be explained by some sort of collaboration. The persecution of the believers helped peter to meditate on the suffering, death, and resurrection of christ.
As with all of the catholic epistles, no one knows. The book of 2 peter was written toward the end of peter s life. Their thought is that because peter talks about persecution, and neros persecution was taking place in rome at that time, the book was possibly written from rome. Scholars of the historicalcritical study of the bible disagree on who wrote 1 peter. In the book, peter challenges jesus followers to continue growing in their faith, love and service to god. The secon d epistle o f pe ter, often referred to as s e cond pet er and w ritte n 2 peter or in roman numer als ii peter especially in older refe renc es, is a book of the new testament of the bible, traditionally he ld to h ave been writte n by saint peter. Peter wrote both 1 peter and 2 peter answer the first epistle of peter is believed to be pseudepigraphical, written in the second century. First, the book claims to be written by the apostle peter. Paul wrote the books from romans to philemon with the author of the book of hebrews being uncertain although it has traditionally been attributed to the apostle paul. The comments in these references range from adamantly supporting peter as theauthor of the epistle to adamantly refuting peter as the author.
It is not unheard of for people in the first century to write pseudepigraphical books, but one does not get this impression for 2 peter. When jude writes in verse 1 of his little letter that he is the brother of. The first letter, addressed to persecuted christians living in five regions of asia minor, exhorts the readers to emulate the suffering christ in their. Letters of peter, two new testament writings attributed to the foremost of jesus 12 apostles but perhaps written during the early 2nd century. If the author of 2 peter borrowed from jude, then peter was probably not the author since jude was written somewhere between ad 6580. Abraham and sarah lived nearly 2000 years before peter wrote this letter. The first epistle of peter, usually referred to simply as first peter and often written 1 peter, is a book of the new testament. The first word of 1 peter is the authors name, petros, and he identifies himself. In this muchanticipated volume in the interpretation series, pheme perkins casts light on these often neglected writings. Peter was originally known as simeon or simon 2 pet. The case for petrine authorship of 1 peter religious studies center. He was brought to jesus by andrew, his brother, and became one of the leaders of the apostles.
The author of this epistle is peter, an apostle of jesus christ 1 peter 1. There is no evidence that rome was called babylon by the christians until the book of revelation was published, i. Most conservative evangelicals hold to the traditional view that peter was the author, but historical and literary critics have almost unanimously concluded that to be impossible. This summary of the book of 1 peter provides information about the title, authors, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of 1 peter. It is thus clear that peters authorship of the book has early and strong support. This letter from peter focuses on the sufferings and glory of christ and his church. An introduction to the book of 1 peter related media i. Peter wrote 2nd peter due to infiltration of false teachers into the church bringing destructive teachings contrary to the gospel of repentance and faith brought by jesus christ mark 1. The second epistle of peter, often referred to as second peter and written 2 peter or in roman numerals ii peter especially in older references, is a book of the new testament of the bible, traditionally held to have been written by saint peter. But there are a number of strong reasons to consider that the recipients of peter s first letter were jewish christians.
Peter wrote to a group of people that probably included both jews and gentiles. It is true for all women in every country at all times. This very question of writing style strongly supports peter s having composed the second letter bearing his name. Peter is one of those books of the new testament whose authorship is disputed.
Book of first peter overview insight for living ministries. Peter wrote the 1st and 2nd epistles of peter in the new testament. The first and second epistles of peter were written for practical purposes. Since peter was martyred in rome during the reign of nero, his death must have occurred prior to a. Peter says nothing in the salutation about the recipients of this letter. The goal of 2 peter is to restore confidence and order to the. The book of 1 st peter is a general epistle apostolic letter. While paul wrote to specific congregations and individuals, peter, james, john, and jude wrote to broader audiences across the roman empire. Some scholars suggest that one author borrowed from the other. These books are, therefore, extraordinarily relevant, even today. First, it assumes that the author of 2 peter was referring to all the letters ever written by paul. May 23, 2009 both books are dealing with the same problem. What we mean when we say that new testament books like 2 peter are. False teachers and their destruction but there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you.
Nov 19, 2015 the 1st book of peter was a letter that was apparently widely circulated in pontus, galatia, cappadocia, asia, and bithynia 1st pet 1. However, he could easily mean all those written up to that time, or even those that the author currently knew about. Thus, simon peter is the clear candidate for authorship of the two letters bearing his name. The author of 1 peter is identified as peter, an apostle of jesus christ 1 pet.