Section 5:1–11
Instructions for God’s people
In this section Peter addressed the church community and gave them words of encouragement. First, he addressed the leaders and commanded them to be faithful in looking after the believers. He then addressed younger men in the church, and finally the whole community. He concluded this section by reminding them of God’s faithfulness.
Some other headings for this section include:
Leading and Living in God’s Flock (NET Bible)
-or-
Advice for Elders and Young Men (New Living Translation (2004))
Paragraph 5:1–4
5:1a–b
In these verse parts Peter wrote about himself and explained the basis on which he was appealing to the church leaders.
5:1a
There is a textual problem here. Some Greek texts have an introductory word meaning “therefore,” and some do not:
(1) There is an introductory or connecting word. For example:
So… (Revised Standard Version)
(New American Standard Bible, Revised English Bible, NET Bible, New Living Translation (2004), New Century Version, Revised Standard Version)
(2) There is no introductory or connecting word.
(Berean Standard Bible, King James Version, New International Version, God’s Word, Contemporary English Version, Good News Translation, New Jerusalem Bible)
It is recommended that you follow option (1), with the majority of Greek manuscripts. Some other logical connectors in English are:
So
-or-
Now (New Century Version)
As a fellow elder: Peter based his appeal to the elders on who he was. He was an elder, a church leader, as they were.
a witness of Christ’s sufferings: There are several ways of understanding the Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as a witness of Christ’s sufferings :
(1) It means that Peter was an eyewitness to how Jesus suffered. (This does not necessarily mean that Peter was claiming to have been present at the crucifixion.) For example:
I have seen Christ’s suffering (New Century Version)
(God’s Word, New Century Version)
(2) It means that Peter was one who gave a verbal testimony to how Christ suffered. He gave witness or told about this.
(3) It means that Peter shared in the sufferings of Christ.
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), understanding that Peter is speaking of himself in a general sense as a witness of Christ’s suffering throughout his ministry.
5:1b
and: The word and here introduces another thing that was true about Peter. Connect 5:1b and 5:1c together in a way that is natural in your language.
a partaker of the glory to be revealed: Peter was continuing to describe himself. He looked forward to having a part in the glory that would be seen when Jesus returned to this earth. In some languages it may be natural to make it clear by using the first-person pronoun “I,” as the Contemporary English Version has done:
and I will share in his glory when it is shown to us (Contemporary English Version)
the glory: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as glory refers to the bright light that reflects and symbolizes the greatness of God and Christ. See how you translated glory in 4:11 and 4:13.
to be revealed: This is a passive verb. To “reveal” means to make known something that is hidden or secret. If it is more natural in your language to use an active verb, you could say:
that ⌊God⌋ will reveal/show/display
If it is necessary for you to say to whom God would reveal this glory, you could supply the phrase “to us”:
that God will reveal ⌊to us (incl.)⌋
5:1c
I appeal: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as appeal means to urge or warmly invite/encourage someone to do something. Some other ways to translate appeal include:
exhort (Revised Standard Version)
-or-
I am writing to encourage you (Contemporary English Version)
to the elders among you: The phrase to the elders among you introduces some advice that Peter wanted to give to one group among his readers, the elders.
elders: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as elders here refers to the church leaders. These leaders would usually be chosen from among the older church members. Some other ways to translate this include using a general description. For example:
⌊spiritual⌋ leaders
-or-
persons caring for the Christians
General Comment on 5:1
In Greek, Peter first appeals to the elders and then gives this description of himself as the basis of his appeal. The New International Version is one of many translations that reflects the Greek word order here:
To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ’s sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed
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