1 Peter 2:15 - Printer Friendly

ESV: For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.

NIV: For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people.

NASB: For such is the will of God, that by doing right you silence the ignorance of foolish people.

CSB: For it is God’s will that you silence the ignorance of foolish people by doing good.

NLT: It is God’s will that your honorable lives should silence those ignorant people who make foolish accusations against you.

KJV: For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men:

NKJV: For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men—

In the previous verses, Peter commanded Christians to submit to every human authority. This does not necessarily mean obeying everything we are told to do by human government (Acts 5:28–29). Paul delivers these instructions knowing full well that Christians may often be falsely accused of wrongdoing. In teaching submission to human authority, Peter echoes Jesus' own teaching as well as those of Paul in Romans 13:1–7.

Why would God ask Christians to submit to human authorities, even those who wrongfully accuse us or treat us unfairly? This verse is part of the answer. First, Peter spells it out: This is God's will. Peter isn't stating a personal philosophy or a practical strategy for living as persecuted people. He is unequivocally telling Christians exactly what God wants them to do. Why does God want us to pursue goodness in this way? To silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. Notice that Peter doesn't say that the end result of our submission to authority will be fair treatment or even freedom from harm. Instead, God plans to use our good choices to shut prejudiced people up.

What does that mean? Those who know believers well enough to see our faith lived out, on a day-to-day basis, recognize that we do good because we are Christians. They will stop believing that Christians are a destructive force in society, or that Christians do evil, or that Christians are dangerous. They will stop being ignorant about what Christians are really like, because they will know better, by direct experience.

Of course, that result depends on Christians leading good lives out in the open, including being submissive to human authorities.

1 Peter 2:13–25 reveals God’s will for those who are free in Christ: to willingly submit to every human authority for God’s sake. This includes emperors, governors, kings, and even slave masters. Peter does not endorse slavery, but he does instruct Christian slaves to endure unjust suffering, as Jesus did for our sake on the cross. He does not expect us to ''obey'' when the instructions are sinful. Rather, Christians are called to imitate Christ by suffering for doing good. Because Jesus was willing to do so, we lost sheep are now under the protection of our shepherd.

Peter gets specific about what it means to live as God’s set-apart people. Christ is the foundation stone of the spiritual house God is building. We must engage in battle with our selfishness and desire to sin. This includes submitting to human authorities, no matter how evil or harsh. It means enduring suffering, as Christ did for our sake when He died on the cross. Our role is not to fight a physical war for justice here; we will be going home soon.

First Peter 1 described the glorious reality of our present and future as God’s children, by His grace and through our faith in Jesus. He called us a holy people redeemed by God for new purposes. That means believers must live differently than those in the world around us. In this chapter, Peter narrows down exactly what it means to lead a holy life, including doing battle with our own desire to sin. This also means suffering under human authorities, even unjust ones.

Some 30 years after the resurrection of Jesus, Christians are facing greater persecution for their faith. How should they respond? How should we respond to suffering today? The apostle Peter writes this letter both to comfort believers and to encourage them to stay strong. He urges them to put all their hope in their perfect future with Christ, and to obey and trust Him in the present, even in their suffering. Christ suffered greatly; now the Christ-followers have the opportunity to follow Him even in this, showing His grace and power in their hopefulness, obedience, and faith.