Verse 5
who shall give account to him that is ready to judge the living and the dead.
Bold and uninhibited sinners, arrogantly indulging to excess in every form of wickedness, and speaking evil of those who will not join in their orgies, shall give an account of their deeds. God will judge the living and the dead.
Living and the dead ... From the inception of Christianity, this appears to have been somewhat of a stereotyped way of speaking of the final judgment. Peter himself used it at the home of Cornelius (Acts 10:42), and it appears in Paul's charge to Timothy (2 Timothy 4:1), such early usage of the expression pointing back to Jesus himself as the author of it. It refers to the fact that the final judgment will gather earth's total population, the dead of all ages, as well as the living generation which shall be upon the earth when the time comes; and they shall all be judged at the same time (Matthew 25:31-46). Since most of the New Testament references to this event attribute the judgment to Jesus Christ, it is likely that the mention of "him who is ready" in this verse is to be understood as a reference to Christ.
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