1 Peter 3:18

Because Christ also died (oti kai Cristo apeqanen). So the best MSS.; later ones epaqen (suffered). The example of Christ should stir us to patient endurance. For sins (peri amartiwn). "Concerning sins" (not his, but ours, 1 Peter 1:18 ). Peri (around, concerning) with amartia in the regular phrase for the sin offering ( Leviticus 5:7 ; Leviticus 6:30 ), though uper amartia does occur ( Ezekiel 43:25 ). So in the N.T. we find both peri amartiwn ( Hebrews 5:3 ) and uper amartiwn ( Hebrews 5:1 ). Once (apax). Once for all ( Hebrews 9:28 ), not once upon a time (pote). The righteous for the unrighteous (dikaio uper adikwn). Literally, "just for unjust" (no articles). See 1 Peter 2:19 for the sinlessness of Christ as the one perfect offering for sin. This is what gives Christ's blood value. He has no sin himself. Some men today fail to perceive this point. That he might bring us to God (ina hma prosagagh twi qewi). Purpose clause with ina, with second aorist active subjunctive of prosagw and the dative case twi qewi. The MSS. vary between hma (us) and uma (you). The verb prosagw means to lead or bring to ( Matthew 18:24 ), to approach God (cf. prosagwghn in Ephesians 2:18 ), to present us to God on the basis of his atoning death for us, which has opened the way ( Romans 3:25 ; Hebrews 10:19 .) Being put to death in the flesh (qanatwqei men sarki). First aorist passive participle of qanatow, old verb (from qanato death), to put to death. Sarki is locative case of sarx. But quickened in the spirit (zwopoihqei de pneumati). First aorist passive participle of zwopoiew rare (Aristotle) verb (from zwopoio making alive), to make alive. The participles are not antecedent to apeqanen, but simultaneous with it. There is no such construction as the participle of subsequent action. The spirit of Christ did not die when his flesh did, but "was endued with new and greater powers of life" (Thayer). See 1 Corinthians 15:22 for the use of the verb for the resurrection of the body. But the use of the word pneumati (locative case) in contrast with sarki starts Peter's mind off in a long comparison by way of illustration that runs from verses 1 Corinthians 19-22 . The following verses have caused more controversy than anything in the Epistle.