1 Peter 5:1-10

Serve God Willingly

1 ¹Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your ²fellow elder and ³witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a ⁴partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed,

2 shepherd ⁵the flock of God among you, exercising oversight ⁶not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and ⁷not for sordid gain, but with eagerness;

3 nor yet as ⁸lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be ⁹examples to the flock.

4 And when the Chief ¹⁰Shepherd appears, you will receive the ¹¹unfading ¹²crown of glory.

5 ¹³You younger men, likewise, ¹⁴be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with ¹⁵humility toward one another, for ¹⁶GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE.

6 Therefore ¹⁷humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time,

7 casting all your ¹⁸anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.

8 ¹⁹Be of sober spirit, ²⁰be on the alert. Your adversary, ²¹the devil, prowls around like a roaring ²²lion, seeking someone to devour.

9 ²³But resist him, ²⁴firm in your faith, knowing that ²⁵the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world.

10 After you have suffered ²⁶for a little while, the ²⁷God of all grace, who ²⁸called you to His ²⁹eternal glory in Christ, will Himself ³⁰perfect, ³¹confirm, strengthen and establish you.

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1 Peter 5:1-10 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 1 PETER 5

In this chapter the apostle first exhorts pastors and members of churches to their respective duties as such; and then to those which were common to them all, as Christians; and closes the epistle with prayers for them, salutations of them, and with his apostolic benediction. He begins with the pastors or elders, and describes himself as a fellow elder, an eyewitness of Christ's sufferings, and a partaker of his glory, 1Pe 5:1, and these he exhorts to feed the flock of God, where they were; to take the charge and oversight of them, freely, readily, and willingly, and not through force or covetousness; and not to exercise a tyrannical dominion over them, but to be examples to them, 1Pe 5:2,3, and the argument made use of to encourage them to all this is, that at the appearance of Christ, the chief Shepherd, they should receive a never fading crown of glory, 1Pe 5:4 and next, the members of the churches are exhorted to submit to the rule and government of their pastors, being according to the word of God; and to be subject to one another; and particularly to put on humility, as a garment very ornamental to them; and the rather, since God opposes himself to men that are proud, but gives more grace to the humble, 1Pe 5:5 and especially he exhorts them to be humble under the hand of God, since that is a mighty one, and this is the way to be exalted in due time; and also to cast their care upon him, seeing he cared for them, 1Pe 5:6,7 and then the apostle proceeds to the common duties of Christians, and to exhort them to sobriety and watchfulness, since Satan their adversary was a cruel and indefatigable one, and ever seeking the ruin of men; and to resist him in the steadfast exercise of faith, and patiently bear all afflictions, seeing the same were accomplished in their brethren in the world, 1Pe 5:8,9 and then he puts up some petitions for them, that they might be perfected, stablished, strengthened, and settled, 1Pe 5:10 and ascribes glory and dominion for ever to the God of grace, to whom he prays, 1Pe 5:11 after which he names the person by whom he sends this epistle, giving a summary of it; that it was an exhortation and a testimony to the true doctrine of grace wherein they stood, 1Pe 5:12, and next follow the salutations of the church at Babylon, and of his son Marcus, to them, 1Pe 5:13, and lastly, he desires they would salute one another with a kiss of love, and gives them his benedictory wish, 1Pe 5:14.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Cross References 31

1. Acts 11:30
2. 2 John 1; 3 John 1
3. Luke 24:48; Hebrews 12:1
4. 1 Peter 1:5, 7; 1 Peter 4:13; Revelation 1:9
5. John 21:16; Acts 20:28
6. Philemon 14
7. 1 Timothy 3:8
8. Ezekiel 34:4; Matthew 20:25
9. John 13:15; Philippians 3:17; 1 Thessalonians 1:7; 2 Thessalonians 3:9; 1 Timothy 4:12; Titus 2:7
10. 1 Peter 2:25
11. 1 Peter 1:4
12. 1 Corinthians 9:25
13. Luke 22:26; 1 Timothy 5:1
14. Ephesians 5:21
15. 1 Peter 3:8
16. Proverbs 3:34; James 4:6
17. Matthew 23:12; Luke 14:11; Luke 18:14; James 4:10
18. Psalms 55:22; Matthew 6:25
19. 1 Peter 1:13
20. Matthew 24:42
21. James 4:7
22. 2 Timothy 4:17
23. James 4:7
24. Colossians 2:5
25. Acts 14:22
26. 1 Peter 1:6
27. 1 Peter 4:10
28. 1 Corinthians 1:9; 1 Thessalonians 2:12
29. 2 Corinthians 4:17; 2 Timothy 2:10
30. 1 Corinthians 1:10; Hebrews 13:21
31. Romans 16:25; 2 Thessalonians 2:17; 2 Thessalonians 3:3

Footnotes 5

[a]. Lit "the allotments"
[b]. Or "becoming"
[c]. Lit "wreath"
[d]. Lit "whom resist"
[e]. Lit "brotherhood"