1 Peter 1:13-25

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After spending the first 12 verses of this chapter reminding us of the blessings we having in Christ, Peter then points out how these things should motivate us to live in faithful obedience to God, especially in light of the price that Christ paid to redeem us: His precious blood.

13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; 14 As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:

“Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober [alert; attentive]” - The expression “gird up the loins of your mind” is a metaphorical reference to the way they dressed in that day in robes. Whenever they needed to run or work they would bind up (“gird up”) the loose ends of their robe so that they would not be an impediment to what they were doing. In light of what he’s already told us, Peter tells us to put away all distractions and focus our minds attentively on our hope in Christ. In spite of the persecutions they were facing, Peter didn’t want the believers to which he was writing to lose sight of their hope in Christ.

“and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ” - Despite the persecutions that we face, we should not give up on the grace that is coming when Christ reveals Himself to the world but focus our hope on Him.

“As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves [conforming oneself to another pattern] according to the former lusts in your ignorance:” - With our focus on Christ, we should be behaving like obedient children and not acting as we did before our eyes were opened to the truth of Jesus Christ, following the lusts (desires) of our flesh and unsaved mind.

15 But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; 16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

“But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation [conduct; behavior]” - Instead of behaving as we did before we were redeemed, we are to live holy lives because the One Who called us is holy and has called us to holiness.

“Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy” - Peter quotes from Lev. 11:44-45, where the LORD is speaking to Israel about the importance that, as His people, they should be holy in all things, including their diet.

Lev. 11:44-45 “For I am the LORD your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. 45 For I am the LORD that bringeth you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.”

17 And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear:

“And if ye call on the Father” - Those who “call on” (appeal to Him for help and identify themselves with Him) God as their Father are also responsible to obey Him.

“who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work” - The same One we look to for our help also holds us accountable for our actions, regardless of who we are. He does not have favorites, overlooking the sins of some and rebuking the sins of others.

“pass the time of your sojourning [dwelling] here in fear” - If we look for help from the God to Whom we are all accountable, then we should live our lives here on earth (“the time of your sojourning here”) with a constant reverence and respect of God. We should obey His will in all things.

18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; 19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:

Peter gives us another reason for obeying our heavenly Father: out of respect for the price that was paid to redeem us.

“Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed [to buy out of slavery; to pay a ransom] with corruptible [perishable] things, as silver and gold” - We should fear and obey God because we know that we were not set free from the slavery of sin with such temporal things as silver and gold (or any other earthly wealth), for these things are not pure enough nor valuable enough to pay the price needed. Jesus spoke of the value of our soul in Mar 8:36 - “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?”

“from your vain [empty; pointless; useless] conversation [conduct; behavior] received by tradition from your fathers” - Peter seems to be referring to religious practices passed down from father to son, which he describes as being “vain” (useless; pointless). He may be referring to idolatrous practices of the Gentiles but the reference to the OT sacrifice in the next verse may indicate he’s talking about the religious practices of the Jews which are obsolete now that Christ has come. Whichever Peter is referring to (possibly both), these vain traditions are the slavery from which Christ has redeemed us.

“But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” - Earthly treasures could not redeem us; it took the precious blood of Christ to do that. Peter compares Christ to the OT requirement that lambs sacrificed were to be without any blemish or spot that would make them less than perfect. Silver and gold are not perfect but Christ and His precious blood is.

20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, 21 Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God.

“Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world” - God’s plan to redeem us by sending Jesus Christ to be our sin bearer on the cross was not a last-minute decision. He didn’t decide that the Mosaic Law wasn’t working and had to devise a secondary plan to accomplish our salvation. Instead, Peter reminds us that the cross was God’s plan of redemption since before He created the world.

“but was manifest in these last times for you” - Even though God had already planned man’s redemption from eternity past, He only revealed Christ in “these last times” (the time when “the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us” John 1:14a). Christ was made manifest “for you.” Christ was revealed so that we could believe and be saved, as Peter describes next.

“Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory” - There are those who believe in God but do not believe in Christ, such as the Jews who followed the Mosaic Law but rejected Christ. Even though they believe in the existence of God, their faith is not in Him, but their own works (their ability to keep the law, do good works, etc.). However, those who trust Christ for their salvation are also putting their trust in the God Who raised Him from the dead and thereby glorified Him.

John 17:1 “These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee:”

“that your faith and hope might be in God” - The result that God desires by sending Christ and raising Him from the dead is so that our faith and hope (confidence) would be in God, the One Who provided the way of salvation.

22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: 23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

“Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit” - This could be rephrased as “Having purified your souls...” Peter is stating this as a fact: the Holy Spirit had led them to obedience of the truth (believing the gospel) and the result was the purification of their souls in salvation.

“unto unfeigned [sincere; genuine] love of the brethren” - The result/by-product of the Spirit’s purification: genuine love of other Christians.

“see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently [stretched to the limit]” - Since the Spirit has produced this genuine and sincere love for each other, we should practice it to its fullest extent. In the context of the persecutions these Christians were enduring, they (and we) needed the loving support of other Christians.

“Being born again, not of corruptible [perishable] seed, but of incorruptible” - The love we produce should be the pure and eternal love that comes from being born from the non-perishable seed of God. It is to be God’s love coming out of us – not the love of man (man being the perishable seed). John 3:6 “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”

“by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever” - Emphasizing the eternal nature of our new birth, Peter adds that we have been born again through the eternal word of God. God speaks His word and it happens, therefore when we believe God’s promise of salvation through Christ, we can be guaranteed that His promise is true and eternal.

24 For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: 25 But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.

“For all flesh is as grass...But the word of the Lord endureth for ever” - Peter emphasizes his point of the eternal nature of the word of God by quoting from Isa. 40:6-8:

Isa. 40:6-8 “6 The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field: 7 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the LORD bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass. 8 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.”

The point of the quotation is that the “glory of man” (the best that mankind has accomplished) is no more permanent than grass and flowers, which wither and die. However, everything spoken by God is eternal. None of His purposes and plans will be thwarted and He will accomplish all that He has said He will do. Psalm 119:89 “For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven.”

“And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.” - The gospel of Jesus Christ which had been preached unto them is God’s word and thus is eternal and permanent. They can have confidence in the gospel in the face of persecution.