1:11
Long before Peter wrote this letter, the Holy Spirit revealed to the prophets of the Old Testament what would happen to the Christ, God’s Son. The Holy Spirit revealed that he would suffer and then receive glory from God his Father.
1:11a
trying to determine the time and setting: There are two ways of interpreting the Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as time and setting :
(1) It means what time and what circumstances. For example:
[The prophets] tried to learn…when those things would happen, and what the world would be like at that time. (New Century Version)
(Berean Standard Bible, God’s Word, King James Version, New International Version, New Jerusalem Bible, Revised English Bible, Good News Translation, New Century Version)
(2) It means what person and what time. For example:
they searched to find out exactly who Christ would be and when this would happen. (Contemporary English Version)
(New American Standard Bible, NET Bible, New Living Translation (2004), Revised Standard Version, Contemporary English Version)
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). However, since scholars are uncertain about this and either meaning is possible, you may wish to follow the major-language version in your area.
and: There are two ways of interpreting the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as and :
(1) It means and.
(Berean Standard Bible, Contemporary English Version, New Century Version, New International Version, New Jerusalem Bible, New Living Translation (2004), Revised English Bible, Good News Translation)
(2) It means or.
(God’s Word, King James Version, New American Standard Bible, NET Bible, Revised Standard Version)
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) since in this context it is clear that the prophets were searching for both the time and the circumstances.
1:11b
the Spirit of Christ: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the Spirit of Christ refers to the Holy Spirit. It does not refer to Jesus’ human spirit, but the Holy Spirit sent from Jesus.
If your readers would understand the phrase the Spirit of Christ to refer to Christ’s own spirit, then you may need to say something like:
the ⌊Holy⌋ Spirit ⌊sent by⌋ Christ
See also John 16:7, where Jesus explained to his disciples that, after he went to His Father, he would send the Holy Spirit.
Christ: These notes and the meaning lines in the Display follow the interpretation that Peter used Christ as a name rather than a title (see the note on “Christ” at 1:1a).
in them: The phrase in them implies that the Holy Spirit was controlling the words of these prophets. The prophets were speaking, but the Holy Spirit was causing them to speak and telling them what to say. If saying that the Spirit of Christ was in them is unnatural in your language, or communicates a wrong meaning, you may be able to say:
who directed them to speak/prophesy
-or-
who told/gave them what to write/say
-or-
who inspired their writings
was pointing: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as was pointing in this context means to reveal or make something known. The verb is in the imperfect tense, showing that the Spirit continued doing this again and again. The God’s Word therefore translates this as:
kept referring to (God’s Word)
Other ways to translate this verb include:
was indicating (New American Standard Bible, NET Bible)
-or-
was showing (New Century Version)
1:11c
when He predicted: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as predicted means to tell about something before it happens. In contrast, the English word “predict” can mean to say something about the future that does not in fact ever happen. Be sure that your translation follows the meaning of the Greek. What the Holy Spirit told the prophets was sure to happen. Other ways to say this include:
told them in advance (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
foretold (Revised English Bible)
the sufferings of Christ: The phrase the sufferings of Christ means “how Christ would suffer.” It implies that his suffering would result in death. When the Holy Spirit told the prophets about how Christ would suffer and die, it was still in the future. Christ was not born until several hundred years later. Here is another way to translate this phrase:
how Christ would suffer (Contemporary English Version)
and the glories to follow: The phrase and the glories to follow means “how Christ would receive glory after he had suffered and died.”
glories: The Greek text reads glories, in the plural. Peter was perhaps referring to a series of events, including Christ’s resurrection and ascension into heaven. But in some languages the plural of the word “glory” may be unnatural or may not exist at all. If this is the case in your language, it may be necessary to use the singular word “glory” (as in the New Living Translation (2004) and several other English versions). Some other ways to translate this word are:
glorious events
-or-
wonderful things ⌊that would happen⌋
If your language does not normally use abstract nouns such as glories, then you may want to use a verb, such as:
glorified
-or-
honored
If it is necessary in your language to say who would glorify Jesus Christ, then you should supply the subject “God”:
how ⌊God⌋ would honor/glorify him
See also the note on “glory” at 1:7d.
General Comment on 1:10–11
You may be able to make your translation of verses 10–11 clearer and more natural by reordering the verse parts. This is one suggestion:
10a
⌊Long ago God’s⌋ prophets foretold that ⌊God⌋ would be kind to you and save ⌊you⌋. 11b Christ ⌊had sent⌋ the Holy Spirit to ⌊give⌋ these prophets messages to tell ⌊people⌋ 11c ahead of time that Christ was going to suffer and afterwards be glorified/honored. 10b ⌊The prophets⌋ thoroughly researched and investigated ⌊the Scriptures, because they wanted⌋ 11a to discover when and under what circumstances ⌊these prophecies would be fulfilled⌋.
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