Verse 3 3If so be that ye have tasted; or, If indeed ye have tasted. He alludes to Psalms 34:8, “Taste and see that the Lord is good.” But he says that this taste is to be had in Christ, as, doubtless, our souls can find no rest anywhere but in him. But he has drawn the ground of his exhortation from the goodness of God, because his kindness, which we perceive in Christ, ought to allure us; for what follows, read more
Verse 4 To whom coming, is not to be referred simply to God, but to him as he is revealed to us in the person of Christ. Now, it cannot be but that the grace of God must powerfully draw us to himself and inflame us with the love of him by whom we obtain a real perception of it. If Plato affirmed this of his Beautiful, of which a shadowy idea only he beheld afar off, much more true is this with regard to God. Let it then be noticed, that Peter connects an access to God with the taste of his... read more
Verse 5 5.Ye also, as lively or living stones, are built up The verb may be in the imperative as well as in the indicative mood, for the termination in Greek is ambiguous. But in whatever way it is taken, Peter no doubt meant to exhort the faithful to consecrate themselves as a spiritual temple to God; for he aptly infers from the design of our calling what our duty is. We must further observe, that he constructs one house from the whole number of the faithful. For though every one of us is... read more
The argument so far is as follows: Redemption; this issuing on holiness; that leading to the fear that they should prove to be without redemption; that fear being excited, the test of love is suggested. They are regarded as bearing that test, and proving their possession of life. The next idea is obviously that of growth. I. WE HAVE HERE THE IDEA OF SPIRITUAL GROWTH . 1. That implies life. Only living things can grow. Peter can speak of growth because he calls them... read more
In this "therefore" (Revised Version) our apostle gathers up the argument, perhaps, of all the preceding part of the letter, certainly of the passage immediately preceding this; viz. if we as Christians have begun to live this higher life, how will its early stage manifest himself? So we naturally note— I. SOME OF THE SIGNS OF SPIRITUAL CHILDHOOD . One of the signs that Christian men and women are, what Peter had heard the Lord say they ought to be, like little... read more
I. ITS GROWTH . 1. What must be shunned . St. Paul bids us work out our own salvation. The new birth is the beginning; that comes from God—from his free grace. "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost." But the new man must grow; and that growth is not spontaneous; it will not evolve itself without effort from the" incorruptible seed." Progress, growth in grace,... read more
I. NEWBORN BABES . 1. Duty conditioning appetite for the Ignorant. "Putting away therefore all wickedness, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil-speakings." This duty is connected with the foregoing ("therefore"), as coming under it. As the regenerate, we are to put away all dispositions and manifestations that offend against good brotherhood. We are to put away first, as being the radical vice, all malice (as we should read, with the old translation), i.e. ... read more
If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious ; rather, if ye tasted . If ye once tasted the good Word of God ( Hebrews 6:4 , Hebrews 6:5 ), if ye tasted of the heavenly gift which comes through that Word ( 1 Peter 1:23 ), long after it that ye may g-row therein. The "if" does not imply doubt; the apostle supposes that they have once tasted, and urges them, on the ground of that first taste, to long for more. The first experiences of the Christian life stimulate God's people to... read more
To whom coming as unto a living stone. Omit the words, "as unto," which are not in the Greek, and weaken the sense. The participle is present; the Christian must be ever coming to Christ, riot only once for all, but always, every day. The ', living Stone" is Christ; the "Lord" of Psalms 34:8 is Jehovah. St. Peter passes from the figure of milk to that of a chief cornerstone. So St. Paul, in 1 Corinthians 3:1-23 ., after saying that he had fed his Corinthian converts "with milk, and not... read more
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Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 1 Peter 2:5
Ye also, as lively stones - Λιθοι ζωντες· Living stones; each being instinct with the principle of life, which proceeds from him who is the foundation, called above λιθον ζωντα , a living stone. The metaphor in this and the following verse is as bold as it is singular; and commentators and critics have found it difficult to hit on any principle of explanation. In all metaphors there is something in the natural image that is illustrative of some chief moral property in the thing to be... read more