22  The Fiery Trial  (1 Peter 4:12–19)

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation. If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a troublesome meddler; but if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in this name. For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And if it is with difficulty that the righteous is saved what will become of the godless man and the sinner? Therefore, those also who suffer according to the will of God shall entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right. (4:12–19)

For nine days during the summer of A.D. 64, a huge fire raged in the city of Rome. The flames spread rapidly through the city’s narrow streets and the many tightly bunched wooden tenements, ordinarily crowded with residents. Because of his well-known desire to refurbish Rome by whatever means, the populace believed Emperor Nero was responsible for starting the blaze. As the fire destroyed most of the city’s districts, he watched gleefully from the Tower of Maecenas. Roman troops prevented people from extinguishing the fire and even started new fires. The disaster thoroughly demoralized the Romans because many lost nearly all their earthly goods and found their civic pride scorched as well. With public resentment toward him at a high level, Nero diverted the focus away from himself and made the Christian community the scapegoat for the fire.

Nero’s ploy was a clever one because Christians in the Roman Empire were already the unjust targets of much hatred and slander. Unbelievers falsely reported that Christians consumed human flesh and blood during the Lord’s Supper (cf. Mark 14:22–25; 1 Cor. 11:23–26) and that the holy kiss (cf. 5:14; Rom. 16:16; 1 Cor. 16:20; 2 Cor. 13:12; 1 Thess. 5:26) was actually a sign of uncontrolled lust. In addition, the Romans viewed Christianity as a sect of Judaism. With the increasing anti-Semitism of those days, the populace easily adopted an anti-Christian attitude as well. Christianity had also caused stress within families when one spouse (particularly women) believed but the other did not. That generated further resentment toward the saints.

Following the burning of Rome, Nero capitalized on that anti-Christian sentiment and punished the Christians by using them as human torches to light his garden parties, by allowing them to be sewn inside animal skins to be devoured by predatory animals, by crucifying them, and by subjecting them to other heinous, unjust tortures.

The apostle Peter likely wrote this letter just before Nero’s persecution began. So, as discussed earlier in this volume (1:6–7; 2:11–12, 19–20; 3:8–9, 14, 17; 4:1), Peter’s major recurring theme is how his readers should respond to unjust suffering. Today hostility toward Christians who speak out against the culture’s sins and in defense of the exclusivity of the gospel is on the rise. Therefore to endure the present hostility, as well as what might come in the future, believers need to heed this passage’s instructions on enduring severe trials. These verses direct believers to expect suffering, exult in suffering, evaluate suffering, and entrust suffering to God. (For a more comprehensive treatment of the entire subject of suffering, see John MacArthur, The Power of Suffering [Wheaton, Ill.: Victor, 1995].)

EXPECT SUFFERING

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; (4:12)

Not expecting to be so hatefully persecuted, the believers to whom Peter wrote were understandably surprised, troubled, and confused by their suffering. Perhaps they expected life to be full of blessing, benefits, and divine protection. However, believers’ expectation for suffering is bound up in the words of Jesus, who told the apostles, “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you” (John 15:18); Paul’s admonition to Timothy, “All who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Tim. 3:12); and the apostle John’s warning, “Do not be surprised, brethren, if the world hates you” (1 John 3:13). For Christians, the confrontation with sin and the world often results in suffering, which is part of the promised cost of discipleship (cf. Matt. 10:38–39; 16:24–26; John 12:24–26). Counting the cost is behind Jesus’ words that no one builds a tower or enters battle without first calculating that cost (Luke 14:28–32).

Beloved (agapētos, cf. 2:11) is a common pastoral word conveying tenderness, compassion, affection, and care (cf. 1 Cor. 4:14; 1 Thess. 2:8). Such love provides a sweet pillow for believers’ weary souls to rest on in the midst of trials and persecutions. Severe suffering can tempt them to doubt God’s love and allow the same thought to enter their minds that once prompted Job’s wife to utter the despicable words: “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die!” (Job 2:9). Thus the apostle sought to reassure his readers of his and God’s unfailing love.

The phrase do not be surprised informs believers to expect that the gospel of Christ will be offensive to many and will produce persecution. The original Greek is zenizō, meaning “to be surprised or astonished” by the novelty of something. Believers should never be shocked by persecution. Later in the verse, Peter uses the related noun zenos, translated some strange thing, but that could also be rendered “a surprising thing, ” which gives a double emphasis to Peter’s point to expect persecution. As saints are obedient to God’s Word and effective in proclaiming the gospel, animosity from unbelievers is inevitable. “We are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; to the one an aroma from death to death, to the other an aroma from life to life. And who is adequate for these things?” (2 Cor. 2:15–16; cf. 4:3; 1 Cor. 1:18). As the time-tested spiritual adages state it, “The sun that melts the wax also hardens the clay, ” and “The gospel saves and slays” (cf. Rom. 9:15–24). Whether it is hostility toward their exclusive message, their efforts to evangelize, or their godly lifestyle, believers need to remember that hardship is a corollary to biblical faith (Mark 10:30; John 16:33; 1 Thess. 3:4; 2 Tim. 2:3–4; 3:12; cf. Matt. 7:13–14).

While the term rendered fiery ordeal (purōsis) portrays figuratively a painful experience of persecution, it is also used of a furnace melting down metal to purge it of impurities (cf. Ps. 66:10; Prov. 17:3; see also the discussion of 1:6–7 in chapter 3 of this volume). It may be that Peter is here drawing on his familiarity with Malachi’s prophecy:

That text speaks of a purifying fire, in contrast to the consuming fire in 4:1, “‘For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace; and all the arrogant and every evildoer will be chaff; and the day that is coming will set them ablaze, ’” says the Lord of hosts, “‘so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.’” Evidence that Peter was thinking of Malachi’s words is strengthened by the apostle’s reference to “the household of God” (v. 17), where such purifying judgment must come. Peter is saying that the persecution is the Lord refining His temple—His people.

Such mistreatment which comes upon believers is also for their testing, proving the genuineness of their faith (cf. Job 23:10; Rom. 5:3; 2 Cor. 1:10; 2 Tim. 3:11; James 1:3–12). Suffering for righteousness’ sake not only refines, but, even before that, reveals whether people are truly believers. Jesus illustrated this truth in the parable of the soils: “Others [seeds] fell on the rocky places, where they did not have much soil; and immediately they sprang up, because they had no depth of soil. But when the sun had risen, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away” (Matt. 13:5–6). The Lord described a shallow, inadequate response to the proclamation of the gospel. Some did not allow the seed of the Word to penetrate the hard soil of their heart, and persecution soon revealed their response to the gospel to be nothing but a superficial, false profession (vv. 20–21).

The verb translated were happening (sumbainontos) may mean “to fall by chance” and calls for Christians to understand that experiences of unjust suffering for Christ are not accidental, but inevitable because the message of sin, salvation, and judgment offends. In addition, these incidents occur by God’s design and reveal whether professing believers’ faith is truly regenerate (cf. Job 5:17; Prov. 3:11–12; Heb. 12:5–11; Rev. 3:19).

EXULT IN SUFFERING

but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation. If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. (4:13–14)

To the degree is a generous way to translate katho (“as, ” “according to which”) and thus to show that Christians’ eternal reward is proportionate to their earthly suffering (cf. Rom. 8:18; 2 Cor. 4:16–18; Heb. 11:26; 2 John 8; Rev. 2:10). That is a reasonable relationship since suffering reveals faithfulness to their Lord Jesus Christ, who Himself noted this relationship between suffering and reward, saying,

Peter further enriches the endurance of those who are persecuted by stating that they share the sufferings of Christ. That is not in any redemptive sense; neither does it refer only to spiritual union with Him, as Paul describes in Romans 6. But it refers to believers experiencing the same kind of sufferings He endured—suffering for what is right. R. C. H. Lenski rightly elaborates the meaning of Peter’s expression:

Christ who suffered at the hands of wicked men even though He was without sin (Isa. 53:9; Matt. 26:67; 27:12, 26, 29–31, 39–44; John 10:31, 33; 11:8; Acts 2:23) promised believers it would be their privilege to suffer in the same way when He said, “Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also” (John 15:20).

To the degree that believers suffer unjustly, they should, as their Lord did, keep on rejoicing, a sentiment completely unacceptable to those who have no hope of heavenly reward, but affirmed by the Lord when He declared,

The revelation of His glory will come in “the day that the Son of Man is revealed” (Luke 17:30), which refers to Christ’s return. The Lord resumed the full exercise of His glory after He ascended to heaven, but He has not yet revealed it on earth for everyone to see (cf. Matt. 24:30; Phil. 2:9–11; Rev. 19:11–16). (Peter, James, and John did get a preview of that glory when they witnessed Christ’s transfiguration [Mark 9:2–3; cf. 2 Peter 1:16–18].)

Peter’s second use of rejoice (chairō) in verse 13 is qualified by exultation (agalliaō), a reference to rapturous joy. When Christ returns, believers will rejoice with exultation (cf. the discussion of joy in chapter 3 of this volume), and do so in proportion to their share in His sufferings in this life. Those who share His sufferings will also share His glory (5:1; cf. Matt. 20:20–23). The saints’ suffering for righteousness proves them, refines them, and earns for them “an eternal weight of glory” (2 Cor. 4:17) so that the greater their suffering the stronger their hope, and the richer their joy (cf. 2 Cor. 4:16–18; James 1:2).

The name of Christ is the cause of evil hatred directed toward believers (Matt. 10:22; 24:9). In the early days of the church, His name first became synonymous with the Savior Himself and all that He represents (cf. Luke 24:47; John 1:12; Acts 2:38; 4:17, 30; 9:15; 19:17). In Peter’s sermon before the Sanhedrin, he asserted, “There is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). Later the apostles “went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name” (5:41). In His vision concerning the conversion of Saul of Tarsus and his subsequent preaching as Paul the apostle, Christ told Ananias of Damascus, “I will show him how much he must suffer for My name’s sake” (9:16). It is not the name “Christ” that offends the ungodly, but rather who He is and what He said and did that causes hostility from them.

That animosity is summed up in the word reviled (oneidizō), meaning “to denounce, ” or “to heap insults upon.” In the Septuagint it described hostility heaped at God and His people by the godless (Pss. 42:10; 44:16; 74:10, 18; cf. Isa. 51:7; Zeph. 2:8). In the New Testament it refers to the indignities and mistreatments Christ endured from sinners (Matt. 27:44; Mark 15:32; Rom. 15:3). In the first century, unbelievers were often exasperated and infuriated that believers were so frequently speaking of Christ, whose indictment of sinners they despised (cf. Acts 4:17–18; 17:1–7).

However, all the hatred and violence of the world against Christians does not diminish their blessedness. Actually they are more blessed for such suffering, not only for the eternal reward they will receive but for the present blessing, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on them. It is not merely because of suffering that the Holy Spirit will rest on believers, as when He came on and departed from an Old Testament prophet, but rather that He, already being in believers permanently (Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 6:19–20; 12:13), gives them supernatural relief in the midst of their suffering. Because the Spirit is God, divine glory defines His nature (cf. Pss. 93:1; 104:1; 138:5). Glory recalls the Shekinah, which in the Old Testament symbolized God’s earthly presence (Ex. 24:16–17; 34:5–8; 40:34–38; Hab. 3:3–4). When the tabernacle and the ark of the covenant were brought to Solomon’s newly dedicated temple, “the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord” (1 Kings 8:11). As the brilliant cloud of the Shekinah rested in the tabernacle and the temple, so the Holy Spirit lives in and ministers to believers today. Rests (from the present tense of anapauō) means “to give relief, refreshment, intermission from toil” (cf. Matt. 11:28–29; Mark 6:31), and describes one of His ministries. “Refreshment” comes on those believers who suffer for the sake of the Savior and the gospel. The Spirit gives them grace by imparting endurance, understanding, and all the fruit that comes in the panoply of His goodness: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law” (Gal. 5:22–23).

That kind of refreshment and divine power came upon Stephen, a leader in the Jerusalem church and its first recorded martyr. As he began to defend his faith before the Jewish leaders, they “saw his face like the face of an angel” (Acts 6:15). His demeanor signified serenity, tranquility, and joy—all the fruit of the Spirit—undiminished and even expanded by his suffering and the Holy Comforter’s grace to him. The Sanhedrin became enraged as Stephen rehearsed redemptive history to them from the Old Testament, an account that culminated in the atoning work of Jesus the Messiah. Stephen’s Spirit-controlled rest was evident as “he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God; and he said, ‘Behold, I see the heavens opened up and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God’” (Acts 7:55–56). As his enemies stoned him to death, Stephen “called on the Lord and said, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!’ Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them!’ Having said this, he fell asleep” (vv. 59–60). Truly the Spirit of glory elevated him above his suffering to sweet relief. That powerful work of the Spirit was the cause of Paul’s later testimony in 2 Corinthians 12:9–10, “And He has said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.”

EVALUATE SUFFERING

Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a troublesome meddler; but if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in this name. For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And if it is with difficulty that the righteous is saved what will become of the godless man and the sinner? (4:15–18)

Not all suffering brings Holy Spirit relief. Trouble stemming from lawless actions obviously does not constitute suffering for righteousness. If any believer is a murderer, or thief (capital crimes in the ancient world), he or she has no right to complain about being punished, nor any right to expect the Spirit’s graces. The same applies if any should suffer as an evildoer (kakopoios), a more general term that encompasses all crimes without exception (cf. 2:14; 3 John 11).

The surprising inclusion of the term rendered troublesome meddler (allotriepiskopos), used only here in the New Testament, and at first seemingly minor in comparison to Peter’s previous terms, shows that all sins, not just crimes, forfeit the Holy Spirit’s comfort and rest. The word literally means, “one who meddles in things alien to his calling, ” “an agitator, ” or “troublemaker.” Paul’s exhortations to the Thessalonians illustrate the word’s meaning:

Christians are never to be troublemakers or agitators in society or in their places of work (cf. 1 Tim. 2:1–3; Titus 3:1–5). They may confront the sins in the lives of other believers, help administer church discipline, challenge unbelievers with the gospel, and exhort fellow saints to greater levels of godliness; but regarding others’ private matters that do not concern them, believers should never intrude inappropriately. More specifically, Peter was referring to political activism and civil agitation—disruptive or illegal activity that interferes with the smooth functioning of society and government. Such activity would compel the authorities to mete out punishment (Rom. 13:2–4; for a broader discussion of these issues, see chapter 13 of this volume). It is wrong for believers to view that punishment as persecution for their faith. If they step outside the faith and bring trouble, hostility, resentment, or persecution on themselves, they have no more right to expect Holy Spirit relief than if they were murderers. That Peter here includes allotriepiskopos in his list of sins may mean that some disciples, in their zeal for the truth and resentment of paganism, were causing trouble in society for reasons beyond a sincere and legitimate concern for the gospel.

I remember a conversation I once had with a Russian pastor who had suffered greatly under Soviet communism. I asked if he or his fellow Christians ever rebelled against that form of government. He replied that it was all their convictions that if they were ever resented and persecuted by the secular authorities, it would be for the gospel only. The Russian church actually grew strong in that environment, and he wondered how pastors in America could have holy people without their suffering for the gospel.

If anyone suffers as a Christian his suffering qualifies for Holy Spirit blessing. He should not feel ashamed (aischunō, “dishonored”), but rather because of this benediction of supernatural comfort he is to glorify God in this name (Christian). First-century believers referred to one another, such as “brethren” (Acts 1:15–16; 6:3; 9:30; 12:17; 15:13), “saints” (Acts 9:13; Rom. 8:27; 15:25; 1 Cor. 16:1), and those of “the Way” (Acts 9:2; 19:9, 23; 22:4; 24:14, 22). Ironically, however, Christian was not a name first assumed by believers themselves; instead, because it was originally a derisive designation given them by the world, it was associated with hatred and persecution (cf. Acts 11:26; 26:28). It has become, and should remain, the dominant and beloved name by which believers are known—those who belong to Christ.

To glorify God in this context means to praise Him for the privilege and honor of suffering for this name, because of all He has done, is doing, and will forever do for His saints. Not only does this kind of suffering produce joy over heavenly reward and the blessing of God, it also purifies the church. Here Peter’s thought returns to the Malachi 3:1–3 imagery (see comments on v. 12, earlier in this chapter). The Lord will purge His temple, His people. It is time (kairos), designating a decisive, crucial moment—in this context, the season—for judgment to begin. The Greek for judgment is krima and refers to a judicial process that renders a decision on someone’s sin. The word identifies a matter for ajudication (cf. 1 Cor. 6:7) and is used especially for divine judgment (cf. Rom. 2:5; 5:16 11:33). Divine judgment on believers is the decision God renders on their sin, which includes chastening and leads to cleansing (cf. 5:9–10) of the household of God, but not eternal condemnation:

Household is Peter’s reference to the church; other New Testament verses also make that meaning plain (cf. 2:5; Gal. 6:10; Eph. 2:19; 1 Tim. 3:15; Heb. 3:6; 10:21).

Peter poses the comparative question, if [judgment] begins with [believers] first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God? The answer is plain: judgment concludes with Christ’s final condemnation of the ungodly at the Great White Throne (Rev. 20:11–15; cf. Matt. 7:21–23; 25:44–46). Though God chastens His own people now, His future judgment of the lost will be infinitely more devastating (cf. Dan. 12:2; Matt. 13:41–42, 49–50; 22:11–14; 25:41; Mark 9:44–49; Luke 13:23–28; 16:23–24; Rev. 14:10–11).

It is infinitely better for people to endure suffering with joy now as believers being purified for effective testimony and eternal glory than to later bear eternal torment as unbelievers (cf. Luke 16:19–31). Peter reinforced that point for his readers with a quotation from the Septuagint rendering of Proverbs 11:31, And if it is with difficulty that the righteous is saved what will become of the godless man and sinner? With difficulty is the adverb molis (related to molos, “toil”), which means “hardly” or “scarcely” (see uses in Acts 14:18; 27:7, 8, 16) and reveals the difficulty with which believers are brought to final salvation through the fires of unjust suffering, divine purging, and God-ordained discipline:

Paul affirmed this necessity in response to his own severe suffering at the hands of the wicked Jews who stoned him at Lystra. Luke gives the account of the suffering and Paul’s response in Acts 14:19–22,

That was only one incident in a long list of unjust pains that the apostle endured, chronicled especially in 2 Corinthians 1:3–11; 4:7–18; 6:4–11; 7:5; 11:23–33, and culminating in 12:7–10, in which Paul reveals that his suffering was to humble and thereby strengthen him:

Jesus said believers would have tribulation in this world, including being persecuted even to death (John 16:2–3, 33), and that such suffering would come to them because it came to Him (Matt. 10:24–25) to make “the captain of their suffering perfect through sufferings” (Heb. 2:10, KJV; cf. 1 Peter 1:11). It was hard for Jesus to be the Savior because of the immeasurable pain He endured from exposure to this sinful world and His having to be under the curse of God for all the sins of all who would ever believe. If it was with excruciating difficulty that He gave Himself to redeem sinners, and with painful difficulty that the redeemed endure to their final glory, does anyone think the godless man and the sinner, who has lived his life without suffering for righteousness’ sake (because he is unrighteous), will simply die and go out of existence or be given a place in heaven because God is nothing but loving and forgiving? That is a foolish thought. Peter is saying the ungodly’s eternal suffering, compared to the godly’s temporal suffering, is far greater. Paul draws the distinction between the earthly sufferings of the saints and the endless punishment of the lost this way:

ENTRUST SUFFERING TO GOD

Therefore, those also who suffer according to the will of God shall entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right. (4:19)

Therefore draws the reader into the obvious duty he has in his suffering. Those who suffer according to the will of God receive this encouragement concerning the difficulty of their righteous pain—it is the will of God (cf. 3:7; 5:10). Knowing that fact, believers rest their souls in God’s care and purpose. Entrust (paratithemi) is a banker’s term referring to a deposit for safe keeping. One would be properly concerned about the character and ability of the person given such a trust. Jesus used the same word on the cross when He committed His spirit to His Father (Luke 23:46; cf. the discussion of 2:23 in chapter 15 of this volume). Believers are encouraged further to recall that the One to whom they give their souls is the faithful Creator. Only here in the New Testament is God called Creator. That is because it was generally understood that the Author of everything, the Designer of all that is, the One who sustains not only His material creation but achieves His purpose for it all, will bring to pass what He wills—only He is completely able and trustworthy in doing what is right. Who could be better than the trustworthy Creator who always acts righteously? Because God is faithful in Himself and to His own promises, believers’ souls are at rest in His power and purpose (cf. 1:3–5; John 10:27–30; 17:11–12, 15; Rom. 8:35–39; Eph. 1:13–14; Phil. 1:6; 1 Thess. 5:23–24; 2 Tim. 1:12; Jude 24–25).

The psalmist David walked the road that took him from anguish over his persecutors to assurance in his faithful Creator. Psalm 31 is a rich example of a believer entrusting himself to God: