Be watchful (). First aorist active imperative of , late present imperative from perfect (to be awake) from (to arouse), as in Mt 24:42. For see 1Pet 1:13; 1Pet 4:7.

Your adversary ( ). Old word for opponent in a lawsuit (Mt 5:25).

The devil (). Slanderer. See on Mt 4:1.

As a roaring lion ( ). But Jesus is also pictured as the Lion of the tribe of Judah (Re 5:5). But Satan

roars at the saints. Present middle participle , old verb, here only in N.T., to howl like a wolf, dog, or lion, of men to sing loud (Pindar). See Ps 22:13.

Whom he may devour (). Second aorist active infinitive of , to drink down. B does not have , Aleph has (somebody), “to devour some one,” while A has interrogative , “whom he may devour” (very rare idiom). But the devil’s purpose is the ruin of men. He is a “peripatetic” () like the peripatetic philosophers who walked as they talked. Satan wants all of us and sifts us all (Lu 22:31).

Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament

Be sober [] . See on ch. 1Pe 4:7.

Be vigilant [] . Rev., be watchful. See on Mr 13:35; and 1Th 5:6, where both verbs occur : watch and be sober. A reminiscence of the scene in Gethsemane : Could ye not watch with me? (Mt 26:40, 41).

Adversary [ ] . The article points to a well – known adversary. From ajnti, against, and dikh, a lawsuit. Strictly, an adversary in a lawsuit. Here an adversary in general. Compare Zec 3:1 – 5. Only here, in New Testament, of Satan.

The devil. See on Mt 4:1.

Roaring [] . Only here in New Testament. The word conveys somewhat of the sense by the sound [] . It denotes especially the howl of a beast in fierce hunger.

Lion. Augustine says, “Christ is called ‘a lion ‘ (Rev 5:5) because of his courage : the devil, because of his ferocity. The one lion comes to conquer, the other to hurt.” Seven Hebrew words are used for this animal; six to describe his movements and four to describe his roar. He is mentioned in the Bible about one hundred and thirty times. In Job 4:10, 11, give different words are used for him. In Jud 14:5; Psa 21:13; Psa 103:21 (Sept.), the same word as here is used for the roaring of the lion as a translation of the Hebrew word for the thunder in Job 37:4. Walketh about [] . Compare Job 1:7; Job 2:2. This word gave name to that sect of Greek philosophers known as Peripatetics, because they walked about while teaching or disputing. “St. Peter calls Satan the Peripatetic” (Cox, on Job). The Arabs call him the Busy One. It was to Peter that Christ said, “Satan hath desired to have you,” etc. (Luk 22:31). Devour [] . Lit., swallow down. See on Mt 23:24.

Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament

1) “Be sober, be vigilant.” (Greek nepsate) “be ye sober, earnest, sincere, restrained, or well balanced in emotions and judgment. (Greek gregoresate) “Watch ye cautiously.” One must “be something before he can do something.”

2) “Because your adversary the devil.” Note the Lord’s commands and admonitions -are always reasonable. Sobriety and watchfulness are exhorted because of the (antidikos) adversary of the believer who is the (diabolos) Devil.

3) “As a roaring lion.” (Greek hos leon oruomenos) as a roaring lion — on the prowl, seeking food, doesn’t roar while prowling for food but sneaks quietly upon the prey.

4) “Walketh about” (Greek peripatei) walketh about, circling in different directions on soft, cushioned, padded feet.

5) “Seeking whom he may devour.” Seeking the ones (Greek katapiein) “to devour” deceptively, craftily, unexpectedly he comes upon men. Gen 3:1; 2Co 11:14.

Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary

8 Be sober This explanation extends wider, that as we have war with a most fierce and most powerful enemy, we are to be strenuous in resisting him. But he uses a twofold metaphor, that they were to be sober, and that they were to exercise watchfulness. Surfeiting produces sloth and sleep; even so they who indulge in earthly cares and pleasures, think of nothing else, being under the power of spiritual lethargy.

We now perceive what the meaning of the Apostle is. We must, he says, carry on a warfare in this world; and he reminds us that we have to do with no common enemy, but one who, like a lion, runs here and there, ready to devour. He hence concludes that we ought carefully to watch. Paul stimulates us with the same argument in Eph 6:10, where he says that we have a contest not with flesh and blood, but with spiritual wickedness, etc. But we too often turn peace into sloth, and hence it comes that the enemy then circumvents and overwhelms us; for, as though placed beyond the reach of danger, we indulge ourselves according to the will of the flesh.

He compares the devil to a lion, as though he had said, that he is a savage wild beast. He says that he goes round to devour, in order to rouse us to wariness. He calls him the adversary of the godly, that they might know that they worship God and profess faith in Christ on this condition, that they are to have continual war with the devil, for he does not spare the members who fights with the head.

Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary

CRITICAL AND EXEGETICAL NOTES

1Pe. 5:8. The devil.Thought of under the figure of a wild beast that, at any moment, may put the flock in peril. Those who fall into sin are often surprised at the sudden and overwhelming character of their temptation. Adversary.See Mat. 5:25. term in LXX. for the Hebrew Satan, with special idea of making charges against. Devour.Gulp down.

1Pe. 5:9. The faith.Better, your faith. Are accomplished.Are being accomplished.

MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.1Pe. 5:8-9

The Common Enemy.The figures in this passage are evidently suggested to St. Peters mind by his reference to shepherds and shepherding, and by his conception of the Church as the flock of God. These are the sudden cries (be sober, be vigilant), of warning from a shepherd to the other shepherds, who spies the lion prowling round the flock in the darkness, while the guardians of the flock lie drowsy and asleep. Whether St. Peter is to be understood as affirming the existence of a personal devil, or as speaking here in a figurative manner, personifying the calamities and evils which were proving such serious temptations to the Christians of the Dispersion, need not be decided. Evil, taking form as disability, reproach, and persecution, is a distinctly active and mischievous force; it was seriously imperilling the Christian faith and life of the disciples, and precisely what they had to watch against was the subtle and constant and varied influences of these calamities and anxieties. They resisted the devil by resisting the things which were his agencies.

I. Temptations of evil are always on the watch for opportunities.To impress this fact the figure of the prowling wild beast is taken.

II. Temptations of evil are always active.This is said to impress the necessity of wakefulness. The Christian while on earth is always on the battle-field, in face of the enemy. All are subject to some kind of suffering.

III. Temptations of evil always work with a bad design.What they want to devour is the faith which is the very foundation of Christian life. When there is so much to bear, it is hard to keep trust in God.

IV. Temptations of evil must be met by a watchfulness and activity greater than that which they exhibit.Whom withstand, stedfast in your faith. Steady; ever ready, clothed in the whole armour of God.

V. Temptations of evil made the same trouble and conflict for our fathers.It is but a common lot. Our fathers conquered, so may we; our Divine Lord and Master conquered, so may we, in His strength.

SUGGESTIVE NOTES AND SERMON SKETCHES

1Pe. 5:8-9. Malign Spiritual Influences.Mans soul carries in it the elements of all good, and of all evilfor every faculty has its good and its evil side, its temperate and its excessive use; and there is no outward evil in the world which is not made so by something which represents it in man. There is no evil under the general designation of sin, which has not its origin within. There is that in man which answers to whatever is good and whatever is evil. This is itself a sufficient reason for forethought and for vigilance. But the sacred Scripture declares that there is a power of temptation in evil spirits; that man, in this mortal state, is surrounded by a sphere filled with spirits that are perpetually tempting him to evil. Many, indeed, disbelieve in spirit agency. It is inconsistent with their conception of a benevolent God, that He should permit a devil to exist. Inquire into the nature of this influence called temptation. Temptation holds a parallel and analogic course with inspiration. It is simply a stimulus, coming from wherever it may, applied to a faculty, or to classes of faculties, in the human mindfaculties of which men have, or should have, might have, full control. Temptation never works out anything. It merely gives impulse, suggestion, stimulus. If any evil is wrought out through you, you work it out wholly and absolutely. If, being impelled, men do evil, as when, being impelled, they do right, the right or the wrong is their own act, for which they are responsible. For, although they were pushed to it, tempted to it, they had plenary power to do it or not to do it. No man, therefore, is carried away under termptation or by temptation. Many men carry themselves away. No man is overborne by temptation in any literal sense, although figuratively the language is employed properly enough. Temptation does not destroy self-control. It may intensify its difficulty, but it does not invalidate plenary power. The strength of the temptation lies wholly in the faculty which it tempts. Temptation goes with the strongest faculties. See some of the conditions of mind which make temptations by evil natures fatal and dangerous. Every right and good tendency of the soul draws to itself food for goodness. A good man attracts goodness, and is sensitive to goodness. The better you are, the more qualities there are in life helping you to be good. It is easy to be good, after you have received impulsion towards goodness. A bad man finds that which is bad. He carries it with him. An irritable man finds not only irritable men, but occasions for irritability. Selfishness finds everywhere occasions for selfishness. The moral condition which you carry into life constitutes the first great ground of susceptibility to inspiration on the side of good, and to temptation on the side of evil. To this must be added the want of fixed and ruling purposes by which you meet and resist evil tendencies. There is much in life that is easily overcome, if there be a positive and steadfast resistance to it. But if we are languid, if we are pulseless, we become a prey to it. Physicians tell us that there is such a thing as predisposition to epidemic. Also the habit of doing wrong makes it more sure that temptations will be victorious over men. And the social element enhances the power of temptation. Consider, then, how many adversaries are moving upon every single point of your nature. Consider what special temptations, over and above the general tenor of society, are marching out upon you from your business. Consider, too, all the temptations which spring upon you from individual men. Consider the evil fellowship which you have in the company in which you go at large. Consider that you have secret and open sins, which are themselves like cancers draining the body of its strength and stamina, and eating at the very vitals. Upon all these temptations there descends that malign influence which sweeps in from the great spirit-world, against which God bids us take heed.H. Ward Beecher.

Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell

1Pe. 5:8-9 Be sober, be watchful: your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour; whom withstand stedfast in your faith, knowing that the same sufferings are accomplished in your brethren who are in the world.

Expanded Translation

Be calm (sober, self-controlled), be wide awake (watchful and vigilant): Your adversary (enemy, opponent) the devil, as a roaring lion is stalking about, seeking those whom he may gulp down (swallow, devour, gobble), Whom you must oppose with firm faith, knowing (considering, realizing) that the same experiences of suffering are endured by your (Christian) brethren who are in (other parts of) the world.

Be sober

nepho (see discussions under 1Pe. 1:13 and 1Pe. 4:7). Literally meaning not intoxicated, in the New Testament it is used only figuratively: Be free from every form of mental and spiritual drunkennessfrom excess, passion, rashness, etc. In Apostolic usage, it refers to one who is well-balanced or self-controlled. Here (as in 2Ti. 4:5 and 1Th. 5:6), Arndt and Gingrich would translate: be self-possessed under all circumstances.

be watchful

gregoreo literally signifies to be awake or watch (Mat. 26:38-40). Metaphorically, as here, to be watchful, vigilant, circumspect; give strict attention to, be cautious. Through carelessness, neglect, and lack of careful attention, our souls can drift away from Christ and become easy prey to Satan. Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation (Mat. 26:41).

Both be sober and be watchful are aorist imperatives, indicating sharp commands to be heeded at once.

your adversary, the devil

The term adversary (antidikos) sometimes refers to an opponent in a lawsuit (Mat. 5:25, Luk. 12:58; Luk. 18:3). This has caused some to believe the devil is called our adversary because he accuses men before God (tries to get a case against us) so God, as judge, may sentence us. However, the word is commonly used in ancient Greek literature (including the Septuagint) to simply indicate an enemy, adversary, or opponent; and, I believe, should so be understood here.

Christ is our friend! All that he does to or for us, he does out of a heart of love and for our good. Not so with Satan! He may, and often does, appear as a friend, BUT HE HAS NOTHING BUT OUR HARM, DAMAGE, AND RUIN in mind. May we never forget this truth!

as a roaring lion walketh about

Many beasts roar or howl when they are hungry. Perhaps we may so understand this phrase. Satan is hungry and eager for souls! Watch out!

seeking whom he may devour

The words walking and seeking are in the present tense, showing constancy of action. You may let down your guard and go to sleep on the job, BUT SATAN DOES NOT! He is at his task of consuming unwary saints at all hours!

His allurements may, and often do, look attractive. But what is his real purpose? To destroy our souls! He seeks those he may gulp down. If Satans subtlety and slyness are portrayed when he appeared as a serpent (Gen. 3:1), his ferocity and meanness are pictured in this simile of a lion. He is a brutal, ravaging, wild beast! What must we have to ward off such a beast? Peter tells us . . .

whom withstand stedfast in your faith

The term in (en) may be taken as instrumental: with or by means of faith; or locative: in faith.

Our faith is to be rigid, strong, firm, solid, and immovable, for this is the meaning of stedfast, Homer used this word to describe rocks, God needs people with a rock-like faith!

Equipped with such a trust, we are to resist and oppose Satan. But resist the devil and he will flee from you (Jas. 4:7).

knowing that the same sufferings are accomplished in your brethren who are in the world

Note the Expanded Translation. There are some who believe the brethren here are the Jewish people who were undergoing trials over the world, This is particularly held by those who believe the book was exclusively addressed to Hebrew Christians, the brethren who are in the world referring to non-Christian Jews who were undergoing persecutions at the hands of the Romans.
Whereas the above is a possibility, the whole scope of the verse concerns Christians. The term brethren occurs throughout the book with this significance (1Pe. 1:22, 1Pe. 2:17, 1Pe. 3:8). Realizing that other brethren in other parts of the globe are bearing up under trials similar to our own provides us with spiritual encouragement, (Compare Rom. 1:12.)

Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series

(8) Be sober, be vigilant.Single words in the Greek, and in the tense which bespeaks immediate attention. The best text omits the following because. These are the sudden cries of warning of a shepherd who spies the lion prowling round the flock in the darkness, while the guardians of the flock lie drowsy and secure.

As a roaring lion.The epithet is not only added to lend terror to the description, but the roaring implies hunger and determination.

Walketh about.Comp. Job. 1:7; Job. 2:2. St. Peter, however, is not calling attention to the fact that Satan is always prowling about, but he warns the sleeping shepherds that he is especially doing so now. This season of persecution was just his time for picking off one here and another there.

Seeking whom he may devour.Perhaps still more expressive to say, seeking which he may devour. Satan is eyeing all the Christians in turn to see which he has the best chance of, not merely stalking forth vaguely to look for prey.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

8. Be sober Circumspect, watchful.

Be vigilant Wide awake: and with good reason for both precepts.

Your adversary The adversary of you, in particular. The word means the adverse party in a suit; an accuser in a court of law.

The devil Satan, prince of the devils; not, now, as the subtle serpent or an angel of light, but as a terrible lion, roaring through hunger, and raging to destroy.

Walketh about Up and down in the earth, as in Job 2:7; but just now, in particular, in Pontus and the adjacent countries. That Satan’s proper dwelling-place is in the abyss does not prevent his appearing on the earth. His errand at this time was, as chief persecutor, to rouse persecutors, and use them as his instruments to frighten Christians from their faith, or, in case of failure, to destroy them. The apostle well knew the value of his warning, for he had once himself, from not heeding it as given by Christ, denied his Lord.

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

‘Be sober, be watchful. Your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking whom he may devour,’

And this is especially so because of the one who is rampaging around with his eye on the flock. The likening of the Devil to a lion waiting to attack the sheep may well have arisen from the abundance of lions in the region to which he was writing, given substance as an illustration by David’s defeat of a lion when protecting his sheep (1Sa 17:34-36). Now the servants of the greater David will face a greater lion. That there is a fear of them being ‘mauled’ comes in the reference to sufferings that follows. It is an apt picture so that in spite of 2Ti 4:17 there is no good reason for connecting it with Roman persecution. At that time lions regularly prowled around roaring and at the same time looking for sheep. And to Christians the hostile shouting of anti-Christian crowds must often have seemed like roaring, especially in the light of Psa 22:13.

‘Be sober, be watchful.’ Shepherds would often be half drunk and careless. But Christ’s under-shepherds were not to be like that. They must be sober and ever vigilant, as must the flock. Compare 1Pe 4:2-4; 1Pe 4:7, and see Luk 12:22; Luk 12:37.

‘Your adversary the Devil.’ Ho antidikos — diabolos.’ Both words mean ‘adversary’, the duality emphasising the idea, and could be used to translate the Hebrew Satanas (Satan). Compare LXX of 1Ch 21:1; Job 1-2; Zec 3:1-2, which are the first references to the Devil in Scripture. Job 1-2 pictures the Devil as ‘walking around’ looking to cause trouble in a similar way to here, and in the end inflicting suffering on one of God’s people (Job 1:7; Job 1:12). And Jesus Himself indicates that Satan holds in thrall the rest of mankind, plucks God’s word from men’s hearts and is the great deceiver and murderer (Mat 12:29; Mat 13:19; Joh 8:44). Indeed, as Peter had himself been told, ‘Satan has desired to have you’ (Luk 22:31). There is no need therefore to look for any further background to the idea.

That the reference is to persecution is brought out in 1Pe 5:9, a persecution instigated by Satan. And he is pictured as being like a lion, roaring and searching for victims, constantly ready to arouse public feeling against God’s people as he comes across different sections of the flock of God. The baying of persecuting crowds (see Act 19:28) must often have seemed to be like a lion roaring. Compare Psa 22:13.

Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett

1Pe 5:8. Be sober, be vigilant, &c. They were not so to cast all their care upon God, as to be off their guard, or to indulge in any vice; they were to watch, like soldiers encamped near an enemy, lest they should be suddenly surprized. Sobriety at such a time conduces much to watchfulness and safety; whereas drunkards are apt to fall asleep, or to be secure, and off their guard; beasts of prey go about in the night, and creatures which are off their guard are in danger of being taken by them. The devil, the grand adversary of Christians, is compared to a roaring lion, going after his prey. Naturalists have observed, that a lion roars when he is roused by hunger; for then he is most fierce, and most eagerly seeks for prey. Many commentators suppose, that the sacred writer designed hereby to denote the fierce and terrible attacks which the persecuting Jews, instigated by Satan, made upon the Christians. They were like the grand adversary and destroyer, and raged, because their time was short; Rev 12:12. The expression of walking about, is perhaps in allusion to what is said of Satan, Job 1:7; Job 2:2. The word , rendered devour, originally signified to drink down; but it is used by some of the best Greek authors for swallowing solids, as well as liquids: it strongly represents the insatiable rage of the enemy of our salvation. Some have observed, that St. Peter might well give such a caution as this, having himselfreceived such veryparticular and express warning from Christ his Master, and so shamefully fallen immediately after, for want of the watchfulness which he here recommends. See Parkhurst on the word .

Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke

1Pe 5:8 . (chap. 1Pe 4:7 ), , cf. 1Th 5:6 ; placed in juxtaposition by asyndeton “in nervous conciseness, in virtue of which , too, is omitted before ” (Wiesinger). Temperance and watchfulness are specially necessary, in order to remain faithful amid all the temptations of suffering. The reason is given in what follows.

] Hensler’s explanation: “slandering opponents,” requires no refutation.

is a substantive, in explanatory apposition to . , which latter is used, in this passage only, to designate the devil (corresponding to the Hebrew , which, however, the LXX. always translate by ). The word denotes strictly an opponent in a court of justice; but it occurs also in a general sense as “adversary.” Schott would retain the original application, after Zec 3:1 ff., Rev 12:10 , in that “the devil will, as it were, compel God to declare in condemnatory judgment that the Christians have forfeited salvation;” but there is no allusion to the divine judgment here, the is rather indicated as the aim of the devil.

]

[ 276] peculiariter dicitur , , (Hesych.), cf. Psa 104:21 .

(Job 1:7 ; Job 2:2 ) ] and belong strictly to each other, so that the comparison with the lion applies to both (Steiger). The efforts of the devil are directed against Christians, who, as such, do not belong to him; as long as they remain faithful to their Christian calling, he can do them no harm (1Jn 5:18 ), therefore he is on the look-out whom (according to the reading: ) he may devour, or if he may devour any one (according to the reading: ), by alluring to unfaithfulness. [277]

, “ devour ,” denotes complete destruction. Chrysostom (Homil. 22, ad popul. Antioch.): circuit quaerens, non quem mordeat vel frangat, sed quem devoret.

[276] Augustin (Sermo 46 de divers. c. ii.): Christus leo propter fortitudinem, diabolus propter feritatem; ille leo ad vincendum, iste leo ad nocendum.

[277] Hofmann irrelevantly remarks that , followed by an interrogative, means: to consider a thing; the word above is evidently stronger than that.

Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary

DISCOURSE: 2414
THE MEANS OF DEFEATING SATANS MALICE

1Pe 5:8-9. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: whom resist steadfast in the faith.

THERE are many who deny the influences of the Holy Spirit. No wonder therefore if the agency of Satan be called in question. But there is abundant proof in the Scriptures that Satan exercises a power over the minds of men. St. Peter had learned this truth by bitter experience.
In this view the caution he gives us is worthy of particular attention:

I.

The malice of Satan

Satan is the great adversary of mankind. It was he who caused the fall of our first parents [Note: Gen 3:1-5.]. He has exerted a similar influence over all their descendants. He still maintains his enmity against the seed of the woman [Note: Gen 3:15.]. He is justly compared to a roaring lion.

He is subtle
[The lion prowls with subtilty in search of prey: this is noticed in Davids description of wicked men [Note: Psa 10:9-10.]. Satan also uses many devices to destroy souls [Note: Eph 6:11.]. He suits his temptations to us with astonishing craft: he draws us into his snare before we are aware of his designs [Note: 2Co 2:11.]. To be acquainted with his devices is a most eminent and useful part of Christian knowledge [Note: 2Co 2:11.].]

He is active
[The lion ranges far and wide in search of his prey; and Satan walks to and fro throughout the earth [Note: Job 1:7 and the text.]: he ceases not from his exertions day or night [Note: Rev 12:10.]. He is the more diligent as knowing that his time is limited [Note: Rev 12:12.]. He has legions of emissaries acting in concert with him [Note: Mar 5:9.]. If at any time he suspend his attacks, it is but for a season, that he may return afterwards with greater advantage [Note: Compare Luk 4:13. with Luk 22:53.].]

He is cruel
[The lion little regards the agonies which he occasions; nor has Satan any compassion for the souls which he destroys. The savage animal kills to satisfy the calls of nature; but our adversary reaps no benefit from the destruction of men. His exertions serve only to increase his own guilt and misery; yet is he insatiable in his thirst for our condemnation [Note: This is strongly intimated in the word , he would swallow us up.].]

He is powerful
[Feeble is the resistance of a lamb against the voracious lion: still more impotent are men before the god of this world. Satan, has a limited power over the elements themselves [Note: Job 1:12; Job 1:19. He is called the prince of the power of the air.]. The ungodly are altogether subjected to his will [Note: Eph 2:2. 2Ti 2:26.]; nor would the saints have the smallest power to resist him, if God should deliver them into his hands [Note: Many who have appeared lights in the Church have been swept away by the tail of this great dragon, Rev 12:3-4.].]

If we believe this representation of Satans malice, we cannot but desire to know,

II.

The means of defeating it

Our adversary, though great, is not invincible. There is one stronger than he, that can overcome him [Note: Luk 11:21-22.]; and God has prescribed means whereby we also may vanquish him:

Moderation
[An undue attachment to the things of time and sense gives him a great advantage over us. He will not fail to assault us on our weak side [Note: It was he who instigated Judas to treachery, and Ananias to falsehood; but he wrought by means of their covetousness, Joh 13:2. Act 5:3.]; but a deadness to the world will in some measure disarm him. He prevailed not against our Lord, because he found no irregular affection in him [Note: Joh 14:30.]; nor could he so easily overcome us if we disregarded earthly things. A contempt of life has been a principal mean whereby the saints and martyrs in all ages have triumphed over him [Note: Rev 12:11.].]

Vigilance
[Unwatchfulness, even in a victorious army, exposes it to defeat: much more must it subject us to the power of our subtle enemy. St. Peter had experienced its baneful effects. He had been warned of Satans intention to assault him [Note: Luk 22:31.]. He had been commanded to pray lest he should fall by the temptation [Note: Luk 22:40.]; but he slept when he should have been praying [Note: Luk 22:45-46.]. He stands in this respect, like Lots wife [Note: Luk 17:32.], a monument to future generations; but vigilance on our part will counteract the designs of Satan. The armed Christian, watching unto prayer, must be victorious [Note: Eph 6:18.].]

Fortitude
[The timid Christian falls into a thousand snares [Note: Pro 29:25.]. The only way to obtain a victory is, to fight manfully; and this is the duty of every follower of Christ [Note: Eph 6:10; Eph 6:13.]. We must never give way to Satan [Note: Eph 4:27.]. We are called to wrestle and contend with him [Note: Eph 6:12.]; nor shall our resistance be in vain [Note: Jam 4:7. Satan is not only checked but terrified, and vanquished, by the resistance of the weakest Christian.].]

Faith
[Unbelief is a powerful instrument in the hands of Satan. He excites it in us that he may turn us from the faith: we must therefore hold fast the doctrines of faith. We should not suffer ourselves to be moved from the hope of the Gospel: this is our anchor whereby we must outride the storm [Note: Heb 6:19.]. We must also steadfastly exercise the grace of faith. This is the weapon whereby we overcome the world [Note: 1Jn 5:4.]; and by this shall we triumph over Satan himself [Note: Eph 6:16.].]

Application

[Let not the ungodly despise this adversary; but let them seek deliverance from him through the Gospel [Note: Act 26:18.]; and let the godly be continually on their guard against him [Note: 2Co 11:3.], so shall they experience that promised blessing [Note: Rom 16:20.]]

Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)

8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

Ver. 8. Your adversary the devil ] Satan envies our condition that we should enjoy that paradise that he left, the comforts he once had. Hence he disturbs us, and is restless out of his infinite hatred of God and goodness; as the scorpion still puts forth his sting, and as the leopard bears such a natural hatred against men, that if he see but a man’s picture, he flies upon it, and tears it. Hannibal, whether he conquered, or was conquered, never rested. Satan is over overcome, and yet he walks up and down seeking to devour: he commits the sin against the Holy Ghost every day, and shall lie lowest in hell; every soul that he drew thither by his temptation shall lie upon him, and press him down as a millstone under the insupportable wrath of God. The word , here rendered an adversary, properly signifies an adversary at law. Against whom we have an advocate, Jesus Christ, the just one, 1Jn 2:2 , who appears for us, Heb 9:24 , to non-suit all accusations, and to plead our cause. The devil, the accuser, often makes that to be treason in the saints that is but petty larceny. In prosperity he makes us lay our hearts too near it; in adversity, to lay it too near our hearts. He is ever assaulting us, and is therefore called , the tempter, in the present tense; not lazy at his business, but ever in motion for some mischief to us. Si per anticam eiecias, per posticam denuo solet irrepere, If you throw him out at the street door, he will creep in again at the backdoor. Watch him therefore. Non enim unquam dormitat vigil ille Synagogae suae Episcopus, as Amama calleth him. Ut teipsum serves non experglscere? (Horat.)

Whom he may devour ] Gr. , whom he may drink up at one draught.

Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

8, 9 .] Other necessary exhortations under their afflictions ; and now with reference to the great spiritual adversary, as before to God and their own hearts. “Ne consolatione illa, quod Deo sit cura de vobis, ad securitatem abutamur, prmonet nos Apostolus de Satan insidiis,” gloss. interlin.

Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament

8 .] Be sober (see ch. 1Pe 4:7 , and Luk 21:34 ; Luk 21:36 . This sobriety of mind, as opposed to intoxication with , is necessary to the : only he who is sober stands firm), be watchful (can it be that Peter thought of his Lord’s , on the fatal night when he denied Him?

Bengel says, “ , vigilate, anima : , vigilate, corpore :” but the distinction is not borne out: both words are far better taken as applying to the mind; as Aug [33] in Wies.: “corde vigila, fide vigila, spe vigila, caritate vigila, operibus vigila”): your adversary (the omission of any causal particle, as , inserted in the rec., makes the appeal livelier and more forcible, leaving the obvious connexion to be filled up by the reader. . . , your great and well-known adversary : “ut sciant, hac lege se Christi fidem profiteri, ut cum diabolo continuum bellum habeant. Neque enim membris parcet, qui cum capite prliatur,” Calv. properly, and in reff. an adversary in a suit at law: but here = , an enemy in general) the devil (anarthrous as a proper name, as in Act 13:10 ; Rev 20:2 ) as a roaring lion (“comparatur diabolus leoni famelico et pr impatientia famis rugienti, quia perniciem nostram inexplebiliter appetit, nec ulla prda ei sufficit,” Gerh.) walketh about (cf. Job 1:7 ; Job 2:2 ) seeking whom to devour (“incorporando sibi per mortalem culpam,” Lyra: see reff.):

[33] Augustine, Bp. of Hippo , 395 430

Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament

1Pe 5:8 . , cf. 1Pe 1:13 , 1Pe 4:7 . So St. Paul, (1Th 5:6 ; 1Th 5:8 ) drawing upon the common source in the Parables of the Householder and Burglar, etc. (Mat 24:42 ff.) which set forth the sudden coming of the Kingdom. , your adversary, Satan . (properly adversary in law suit ) is used in the general sense of enemy in LXX. Of the description of Satan, as a roaring lion comes from Psa 22:14 , ; walketh from Job 1:7 , where Satan ( LXX, , Aq.) ; seeking to devour identifies him with Hades the lord of death; cf. Pro 1:12 , where the wicked say of the righteous man, . The present sufferings of the Christians are his handiwork as much as the sufferings of Jesus (1Co 2:6 ; 1Co 2:8 ) and of Job.

Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson

Be sober. See 1Pe 1:13.

be vigilant. Greek. gregoreo. Translated “watch”, except here and 1Th 5:10 (wake).

roaring. Greek. oruomai. Only here. Compare 2Co 11:3, 2Co 11:14.

devour = swallow up. See 1Co 15:54.

Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics

8, 9.] Other necessary exhortations under their afflictions; and now with reference to the great spiritual adversary, as before to God and their own hearts. Ne consolatione illa, quod Deo sit cura de vobis, ad securitatem abutamur, prmonet nos Apostolus de Satan insidiis, gloss. interlin.

Fuente: The Greek Testament

1Pe 5:8. , watch) Let this be your care. Watch with the soul.-, watch) with the body.- -, the adversary-may devour) He seeks the righteous at once by the appearance of justice and by violence: Apocalypse, Rev 12:10.-, roaring) with fury.-, seeking) with treachery.-, whom) especially of the faithful, Job 1:8.-, he may devour) First with reference to the soul, and then with reference to the body. But he especially lays snares by means of the sorrow arising from cares, which is injurious to faith.

Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament

Resisting the Devil

1Pe 5:8-14

We hear of the adversary in Zec 3:1. The enemy of Christ desires to hurt the Shepherd by injuring His flock. The hunger of a lion for his prey is an emblem of the insatiable desire of our spiritual foes for our undoing. Walketh about-temptation never assails us long from the same quarter. Perhaps the figure of a roaring lion suggests an outburst of persecution, which made timid people tremble. See 2Ti 4:17.

All grace is in God for every hour and need, 1Pe 5:10. We too are called to His eternal glory through Christ. The path of suffering, and that path alone, leads to the world where suffering is unknown. The suffering is only for a little while. Perfect, that nothing be lacking; stablish, that we may not waver; strengthen, that we may stand and withstand.

Silvanus is Silas, 1Pe 5:12. He was a man to be trusted. Peters theme was grace. So he began, so he finishes; and from the church in the literal Babylon, or in Rome, Rev 14:8, where he and Mark were living and working, he sends this message of grace, and love and peace.

Fuente: F.B. Meyer’s Through the Bible Commentary

sober: 1Pe 1:13, 1Pe 4:7, Mat 24:48-50, Luk 12:45, Luk 12:46, Luk 21:34, Luk 21:36, Rom 13:11-13, 1Th 5:6-8, 1Ti 2:9, 1Ti 2:15, 1Ti 3:2, 1Ti 3:11, Tit 1:8, Tit 2:2, Tit 2:4, Tit 2:6, Tit 2:12

your: Est 7:6, Job 1:6, Job 2:2, Psa 109:6, *marg. Isa 50:8, Zec 3:1, Luk 22:31

the devil: Mat 4:1, Mat 4:11, Mat 13:39, Mat 25:41, Joh 8:44, Eph 4:27, Eph 6:11, Jam 4:7, 1Jo 3:8-10, Rev 12:9, Rev 20:2, Rev 20:10

as: Jdg 14:5, Psa 104:21, Pro 19:12, Pro 20:2, Isa 5:29, Isa 5:30, Isa 14:12, Isa 14:13, Jer 2:15, Jer 51:38, Eze 19:7, Hos 11:10, Joe 3:16, Amo 1:2, Amo 3:4, Amo 3:8, Zec 11:3, 2Ti 4:17, Rev 12:12

walketh: Job 1:7, Job 2:2

devour: Eze 22:25, Dan 6:24, Hos 13:8

Reciprocal: Neh 4:9 – set a watch Psa 7:2 – like Psa 17:4 – destroyer Psa 17:12 – Like Psa 22:13 – as a Psa 22:21 – me from Pro 28:15 – a roaring Isa 21:8 – General Mat 6:13 – lead Mat 12:43 – he Mat 13:25 – enemy Mat 24:42 – Watch Mat 25:5 – they Mat 25:13 – General Mat 26:41 – Watch Mar 4:15 – Satan Mar 5:12 – General Mar 9:20 – the spirit Mar 13:33 – General Mar 14:34 – and watch Mar 14:38 – Watch Luk 8:33 – the herd Luk 9:39 – lo Luk 11:24 – he walketh Luk 12:41 – Lord Luk 22:32 – strengthen Luk 22:40 – Pray Act 5:3 – why Act 10:38 – who Rom 8:38 – nor Rom 12:3 – soberly 1Co 10:13 – hath 1Co 16:13 – Watch 2Co 1:24 – for 2Co 2:11 – General Eph 6:16 – the shield Heb 11:33 – stopped 1Pe 4:18 – if 1Jo 2:13 – because Rev 2:10 – the devil Rev 3:2 – watchful Rev 12:4 – the dragon Rev 12:17 – the dragon Rev 13:2 – and his mouth

Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

THE PERSONALITY OF EVIL

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: whom resist stedfast in the faith.

1Pe 5:8-9

Your adversary the devilis he a figure of speech, or a real person? I venture to ask you to consider that question to-day. It is a venture, because it requires some courage in these days to ask men to bring the belief in the personality of evil out of the dim and obscure regions in which they leave it and to face it as a practical fact. But if there be a personal power of evil using all the defects of body, or of mind, or imagination to attract or impel what is wrong, if that belief is involved in the very authority which gives us the hope and strength of Christianity, then it has a very real being upon our practical struggle. To ignore it is to wage our warfare for nothing, and to involve the issue from the first in a great mistake. If we believe, as I do from the bottom of my heart, that the recognition of the personal power of evil gives enormous strength and decisiveness to the moral conflict, then to ignore it, or to leave it to some dim, undetermined region, must bring corresponding feebleness and uncertainty. The question, indeed, which I have put to you goes to the very root of the most practical issue which every life must face.

I. How am I to explain, to deal with, and it may be to overcome, this evil which I know is within and around me?For sooner or later every man must face for himself the problem of the origin of evil. A man may be settling down to the assumption that evil, after all, comes from circumstances. It is involved in them, and cannot be dealt with until they are removed. This is a truth, but a half-truth. The reformer passionately seizes it, and struggles rightly to remove and change the conditions which he thinks are the sources of evil. But if this is the only explanation, then while, on the one hand, he is building a country on improved conditions, on the other he is sapping the only foundation upon which this can securely restthe foundation of individual responsibility. For let a man really believe that the evil which he knows comes from circumstances, and the power of personal resistance will be blunted, and the sense of personal responsibility will be quenched. He will blame everything and everybody rather than himself. Thus he stands still or falls backwards. Or again, the mind drifts into the tendency of regarding evil as due to some inherent corruption of our human nature. It is, alas! true; but, once again, it is only a half-truth, and if it is regarded as a whole truth it results sooner or later in that resentment against human nature, that distrust of its capacity and desires, which we see in the gloom and the exaggeration of the ascetic.

II. Whence, in the last resource, comes the attractiveness of evilwhence comes this tendency to violate the true order, and pass into the wrongness which certainly was not in the purpose of God? Was it due to some inherent spontaneous malignity? Then, if it was, you are back again in the old belief that evil is inherent in human nature, which is the cause of all the hopelessness and feebleness of moral struggle. And thus, amid all this natural and inevitable groping of the human mind, there comes the declaration which has been made from the very first by that historic religion through which the Spirit of God has been training the spirit and the thought of men. It declares that man was made good, meant to be good, is capable of goodness, yea, is capable of being a partaker of the Divine Nature. It declares that the first impulse to an abuse of freewill came from an external power, and that mankind has passed under its sway, but that that sway has been met and broken by the entry into our human nature of the Redeemer, the Son of Man.

III. This truth is presented by our Christian faith in two striking ways: first of all, in the Divine allegory in which the Spirit of God, making use of the Eastern imagery, reveals to man all that he can know or needs to know about the nature and purpose of his creation. Evil is revealed as this intruding power coming upon and thwarting the will of man. The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat. Next, and more impressive, from the bewilderment and confusion of mans mistake of his own true nature, there shone forth in the clear light of an historic person Gods ideal of human lifehuman nature as God meant it to be, in the Person of Jesus Christ. He is represented to us as sharing the fulness of our human nature, as absolutely free from sin, and yet as tempted. Whence came the power of that temptation of Gods own manhood? Then was Jesus led up of the spirit in the wildernessshall we say to be tempted by some subtle attractiveness in His own nature towards disobedience? It is impossible. We cannot understand the Christian faith unless we believe the words which followto be tempted of the devil. And thus the truth of the personality of evil is involved in the Christian faith. It is impossible to read its records without seeing that it was of the spirit of that faith presented to the first Christians.

IV. Do not put behind you this fact of a personal evil, but carry it out into the details of your daily conflict.It must make an enormous difference. It means that, instead of thinking that there is some natural law which is stronger than I am overwhelming me, or some inherent vice of my nature which I cannot resist, which confronts me in my temptationinstead of this, there is a personal will against whom I can pit myself. And upon the side of man there is the everlasting will of strength and the power of goodness. If I believe that, I can go into the struggle with decisiveness and courage and hope. Be sober, says St. Peter, remembering your adversary the devil. Be soberthe sobriety of men who recollect the gravity of the issue of the things they do.

V. And lastly, resist stedfast in the faith.St. John describes the vision of the unseen which he saw. It was the vision of the kingdom of the world become the kingdom of our God and of His Christ, for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony. They overcame by their testimony. This is wonderfully described in the words of St. Paul when he speaks of Christ blotting out the handwriting of ordinances (Col 2:14). And having spoiled principalities and powers, He made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it. It is the picture of the strong man entering our human nature, and casting off the bonds as Samson cast off the cords of the Philistines, and implanting and restoring there the prevailing power of the righteousness of God. And it is in that faith that we can make headway, steadfast and sure. In our own nature, in the world that lies around us, it seems almost impossible to resist the stream of evil. But we who have this faith know that somehow, somewhere, good will winthat evil has been by a supreme struggle wrecked and vanquished by the Lord of life.

Archbishop Lang.

Illustration

I do not say that we could of ourselves perhaps have imagined or thought out this personal will of evil, but at least it can be said that when it is given to us on the authority of the Christian faith, we find that it violates no point of reason, that it does interpret the experience of human life. There are mysteries around us on every side as great, as puzzling to the mind, day by day. We see that mystery of unseen human wills moving out upon and changing and modifying the natural forces of things. If we believe in God at all, we come across a personal will lying behind the whole system of natural laws, moving through them, controlling them; and to believe that there are superhuman agencies at work, some of them embodiments of evil influence, adds no fundamental difficulties to those which already exist. And certainly the belief does interpret for us the facts of human experience. I know not how to explain the nature God has given me; I know not how to escape from the very bitterness of His contempt, unless I believe that at such a moment the personal presence of the will of evil is revealed to my conscience. There are overwhelming difficulties; we cannot speculate what may be the relationship between the different forms in which this power of evil works. We cannot understand the life of man as it is dimly seen in our own experience; we certainly cannot understand the character of man as it is perfectly revealed in the Son of Man, unless we believe with St. Paul that our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

(SECOND OUTLINE)

THE NEED OF WATCHFULNESS

Beware of that drowsy slumber which destroys the very springs of the spirits life. To your soberness add vigilance. Watch against that slothful indifference which would leave your days and hours to flow as they please or as they may chance, not as you, in the strength of God, determine that they shall.

I. But why is this watchfulness needed?Why is every moment so full of danger? Why do the fairest fruits and flowers of life so often turn to poison; the most sinless joys and duties of life so often lead to sin? Your adversary, the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour. It is from the deceits of the world, the flesh, and the devil that you pray to be delivered. The world would be no world at all, it would be the glorious kingdom of your Father; the flesh would be no flesh, it would be the sinless body of the Resurrection; if there were not that murderer from the beginning who brought the curse upon both. We are weak, but weakness need not be sin. We might love the worldGod loves it, and it is beautifulbut the father of lies is here to persuade us in our weakness to become prodigal sons, to teach us so to gaze upon this world as to forget our Fathers love. He watches, though you may not. He is ever wakeful and vigilant, though your eyes may be closed and your slumbers deep. He waits to lead your blindness to a false step, to turn your false step into a stumble, your stumble into a fall, your fall into death.

II. Have you ever thought that in your light, unguarded moments there is actually an evil spirit watching for your destruction, that your adversary, the devil, walketh about seeking whom he may devour? Seeking whom, and who is it that the devil may most easily destroy? Who is it that is most open to the attacks of Satan? Who is it that dares to venture among the dangers and temptations of the day without first solemnly committing his soul to God? Who is it that is passing through life with a confident and careless step, and because he will not think of his peril fancies that there is none? Who is it that is content to be swayed by the impulse of the moment, the chance company of the hour, the light and trifling talk which may happen to meet his ear? Who is it that hears it said that the way to life is narrow, and few can find it, and yet makes no hearty effort to enter there? Who is it that knows he is beset by the fiery darts of the evil one, and is content to know it and to sleep? Who is the slothful, the indifferent, the lukewarm? Your adversary the devil is seeking whom he may devour.

III. You are compassed about with a cloud of witnesses.There is joy in heaven when you manfully resist temptation. There is a triumph in hell when you believe the lie that bids you forget your heavenly home. The more you try to cast your care upon God, the more deeply will you feel the awfulness of life; the more you feel your own utter helplessness in the presence of your enemy, the more hopefully will you fly to the strong Son of God that you may hide under the shadow of His wings; the more you learn of the power of evil, the more earnest will be your gaze upon the Cross of your salvation. And so does the awful warning of the text return to the heavenly promise, and the heavenly promise brings you back to the awful warning. The promise is so strengthening because the warning is so stern. And St. Peter presses both together upon your mind, and both together issue in this one command, the watchword of your life, Whom resist, stedfast in the faith. Resist your enemy, because your Friend is near and strong. Resist, because you have your Fathers Name written upon your foreheadsteadfast in the faith that the Lamb shall overcome, for He is King of Kings, and Lord of Lords; the faith that He Who placed you in this world of trial will certainly keep you from evil; the faith that His strength shall be made perfect in your weakness; and in all these things you are more than conqueror through Him that loved you.

Illustration

I went last Tuesday on a hunting party, wrote Luther to a friend, and spent two days in learning this bitter-sweet amusement of heroes. We caught two hares and some partridgescertainly a most fitting employment for idle men! but I occupied myself with theological contemplations even among the nets and dogs; and amid the amusement which the spectacle afforded me, there arose a mysterious feeling of pity and pain: for what does the same represent, but a vivid portraiture of how the devil, by his impious huntsmen and hounds, pursues and hunts after poor simple souls, as those here after the innocent beasts! and thereupon followed a still more frightful image and sign, for at my entreaty, a leveret having been caught alive, I wrapped it in my sleeve, and went away with it, when behold! the dogs sprang upon it, bit it through my coat, and then strangled it. And so likewise does Satan rage against rescued souls.

(THIRD OUTLINE)

DANGER AND SAFETY

St. Peter had himself been tempted, had himself conspicuously and signally fallen beneath the tempters assault. His denial of his Master was doubtless well known among the early Christians. And his repentance and forgiveness were equally well known, both as a matter of tradition, and as evidenced by his newness of life. It was most appropriate that, in the fulfilment of his apostleship, he should fulfil the command of the Lord: When thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.

I. The Christians danger.This is from an unseen and spiritual adversary, the devil. Such teaching is in accordance with Scripture generally, which represents both our temptations and our succours as proceeding from the invisible world. This enemy is

(a) Malicious, bent upon the harm, especially of those who are seeking to live a holy life.

(b) Active, walking about, putting forth strenuous efforts, leaving no means unemployed to lead Gods people astray.

(c) Destructive, having a purpose to devour, to injure, and to ruin those whom he besets. It is not wise to ignore danger: forewarned is forearmed.

II. The Christians safety.This lies in

(a) Our control of self. Sobriety becomes the soldier on guard, the sentry at his post. So with the Christian warrior, who needs beware, lest he be carried away by his own desires for earthly good. Watchfulness is an incessant duty. He who is not vigilant will be surprised; for Satan sleeps not. Did Peter remember the reproach of the Master: Could ye not watch with Me one hour?

(b) Our resistance of the adversary. The Christian warrior is forbidden to retire; his safety lies, not in flight, but in an uncompromising resistance. Faith is the principle of steadfastness; he who relies upon an unseen helper alone can discomfort an unseen foe.

(c) Our fellowship with the saints. St. Peter reminds the tempted that their brethren throughout the world suffer the same assaults. None is free from the attacks of the foe. A united resistance must be offered. The Church of Christ is an army, and each soldier is strengthened by the fidelity and steadfastness of his comrades. Whilst our chief dependence is upon the invisible Captain of our salvation, we shall be strong whilst we stand shoulder to shoulder in the ranks of the consecrated host.

Fuente: Church Pulpit Commentary

1Pe 5:8. To be sober means to be serious minded and vigilant denotes that the one is watchful–is on his guard, and the reason for this exhortation is next stated. The English word devil in the King James Version comes from the Greek words which are DIABOLOS and DAIMONION. The first refers to Satan the chief of devils, the second is a name for the evil spirits in Hades or the unseen world. The reader should see the extended description of these evil spirits or demons, at Mat 8:28-29 in the first volume of the New Testament Commentary. The word in our verse is from the first Greek word and means Satan or the devil. We know that Satan does not literally walk about among men, for he does not have a material or visible body and hence could not be seen by human eyes. Yet Peter exhorts the disciples to be vigilant which means watchful. But it would be useless to be on the lookout for a being whom no one can see. Mat 25:41 speaks of the devil and his angels. The last word means messengers of any kind, so that any being who carries messages or has communication on behalf of Satan may be said to be one of his angels. We know the Bible teaches that he has various agencies among mankind who are working for him. Roaring lion is said because a lion roars when he is hungry and prowling around looking for food.

Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary

1Pe 5:8. Be sober; see on chap. 1Pe 1:13, where sobriety is noticed as a condition to the highest type of Christian hope. In chap. 1Pe 4:7 it appears as a preparation for prayer. In this third recommendation, it is enjoined as a protection against Satan.

be watchful. The verb rendered vigilant here, and in 1Th 5:10 wake, is elsewhere (in some twenty-one occurrences) always rendered watch by the A. V. Its use here perhaps indicates painful, personal recollection on the writers part. It is the word which Jesus addressed to Peter and his comrades in the gardenWhat, could ye not watch with me one hour? (Mat 26:40).

your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom to devour. The because which is prefixed by the A. V., is not found in the best manuscripts. Its omission gives a nervous force to the whole statement. The word adversary means primarily an opponent in a lawsuit, and then an opponent generally. It is much the same as the O. T. term Satan. This is the only N. T. passage in which it is a name for mans great spiritual enemy, who is immediately designated also the devil, or accuser. While this adversary is elsewhere described as a serpent in respect of his cunning, he is here appropriately compared to a roaring lion, where threatenings and persecutions are in view. The Hebrews had several terms for the terrible roar of the lion. They had one (used also of thunder) which expressed in particular the roar of the hungry creature in quest of its prey. It is that one which seems to be represented by Peters word here. There is great force also in the other descriptions,walketh about (cf. Job 1:7; Job 2:2), as if the wide earth were his range, and seeking whom he may devour, or, as it literally is, swallow, or gulp down, in his famished rage. The fury and vigilance of this enemy, the dread means which he employs and the end to which he applies them, make sobriety and watchfulness imperative on our side. The writer who pens these words, so bluntly expressive of his own belief in the existence of a personal spirit of evil, is the disciple to whom Jesus specially addressed the mingled warnings and assurances which Luke records (Luk 24:31-32)Simon, Simon, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not.

Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament

Observe here, 1. A double duty exhorted to, sobriety and vigilancy: Be sober, be vigilant, be sober and temperate in all things: sober in your enjoyments; sober in your employments; sober in your recreations. Be neither drunk with wine, nor worldly cares; the latter is the worst of the two . A night’s sleep cures the former, but the worldling is drunk all the year long, never sober night nor day. And to sobriety we are exhorted to add vigilancy, a watchful care and diligent circumspection over all our thoughts, words, and actions, that we may not displease God in any thing, Be sober, be vigilant.

Observe, 2. The reason or motive to enforce the duty, Because your adversary the devil, goeth about, &c.

Where note, How every word contains a special motive to Christian watchfulness. He is your adversary, who will do you all possible mischief: he is the devil, an accuser, and one that seeks all advantages against you; he is a cruel adversary, a lion,yea, a roaring lion which adds terror to his cruelty: he a restless adversary, He goes about seeking whom he may devour; what soul he may devour, for that’s the bait he gapes for. It greives the devils, those apostate angels, to find the souls of men appointed to fill up those vacant places in heaven, which they turned themselves out of. It is a delight to them to plunge souls into the same condemnation and misery with themselves.

Observe, 3. The duty of resistance, urged upon us in order to our preservation, with the weapon put in our hand for that purpose:

Whom resist, steadfast in the faith; that is, be steadfast in your faith, that you may resist him: and by the help of your faith you shall overcome him.

Learn hence, 1. That the devil is the restless adversary and unwearied enemy of mankind.

2. That all the pains which Satan takes is, in order to the destruction of precious souls.

3. That the way to overcome him is by resisting of him, not by yielding to him: he is a cowardly enemy, and a conquered enemy; resist him, and he will run.

4. That faith is the weapon by which the Christian is enabled to resist the tempter, and to repel the force of his fiery temptations.

Fuente: Expository Notes with Practical Observations on the New Testament

Being Watchful and Standing Firm

Even though Christ’s followers can cast their worries upon God, they cannot go to sleep on the job and fail to be watchful for themselves. They must maintain a calm, thoughtful and watchful attitude. The reason for such an attitude is the devil. Woods says, “An ‘adversary’ is, technically, an opponent in a lawsuit; here, it is used to identify Satan as the one on the opposite side of a trial for life or death.” The word “devil” indicates he is a slanderer and false accuser of the saints. He is like a hungry lion that is growling as he runs after his prey. Woods says the words “walks about” refer to a restless walking up and down as he constantly looks for a victim. He will swallow up, or destroy, any whom he catches outside of the fold ( 1Pe 5:8 ).

Like soldiers holding the line in battle, the apostle urged God’s children to stand firm against the attacks of the devil. Their ability to stand firm originates in the faith produced by hearing the word of God ( Rom 10:17 ). Knowing the devil is pursuing ought to cause Christians to constantly study the Bible in an effort intended to help stand fast against him. Any suffering endured by Christians standing firm is not unique to them. Other brethren have suffered and died for their faith ( 1Pe 5:9 ).

Peter then concentrated on one characteristic of God, His grace. God is the great giver of unmerited favor. God calls His people through the gospel ( 2Th 2:13 ) to share in His eternal glory, which is in Christ (A.S.V.). Though disciples might have to suffer for a time, Peter said it is nothing compared to their eternal reward. Peter’s prayer for them was that God would “perfect” them, which would be to ready them for service. This is the same word used in Mar 1:19 , which is translated “mending”.

Peter also prayed that God would shore them up, “establish,” like one might a wall that was teetering. He also wanted God to give them strength in the face of severe trials. When Christians realize God’s glory will not fail or His dominion diminish, it is easier to face temporary trials ( 1Pe 5:10-11 ).

Fuente: Gary Hampton Commentary on Selected Books

1Pe 5:8-9. Be sober See on 1Th 5:6. Keep your appetites and passions under proper restraint and government, or awake, as also signifies; namely, to a deep sense of the certainty and importance of things invisible and eternal; be vigilant Watchful against the subtle and malicious designs of your spiritual enemies. As if he had said, Awake, and keep awake; sleep no more; be this your care, white you cast your temporal and anxious cares on God. How deeply had Peter himself suffered for want of the wakeful vigilance which he here recommends! Because your grand adversary, the devil, full of rage, as a roaring lion Fierce and hungry, walketh about Watching for an opportunity to insnare and destroy you; seeking With all subtlety likewise, whom he may assault with the greatest likelihood of success, and devour Swallow up both soul and body. This manner of speaking strongly expresses the insatiable rage of this enemy of mankind to hinder their salvation, and the danger we are in from his devices and snares. He sometimes attacks the people of God in person, though not visibly, and sometimes by his ministers, the other evil spirits who are in league with him; and sometimes by wicked men, his subjects, whom he instigates to tempt them by the terror of persecution. This account of the devils malice is given with great propriety by Peter, to whom our Lord had said, Simon, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat; but I have prayed for thee. Whom resist As you regard your safety and life, be careful to oppose him in all his assaults; steadfast in the faith Firmly believing the truths and promises of the gospel, and adhering constantly to, and confiding in Christ, in whom all these truths and promises are yea and amen. To show the efficacy of faith, in enabling us to resist temptation, St. Paul calls it a shield, (Eph 6:16,) wherewith the fiery darts of the wicked one may be quenched; knowing that the trials with which you are exercised are not peculiar to you, but that the same afflictions which you are called to sustain are accomplished in That is, suffered by; your brethren that are in the world Till the measure allotted them is filled up, and you may reasonably hope that the same grace which is their support will be also yours.

Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

ARGUMENT 25

SOBRIETY AND VIGILANCE

8. Be sober, watch. As nothing but sin can intoxicate the human soul, nothing but entire sanctification can make it perfectly sober, and so keep it. Hence, be sober simply means be wholly sanctified. These two commandments, watch and be sober, walk hand in hand through the New Testament. Watch has a double meaning, as our Savior has a double nature. We are to keep our eyes on the spiritual Savior every moment we can, while He keeps His hand on us, fortifying us against all danger. At the same time, we are to be on the constant outlook for the glorified Jesus to ride down on a cloud, for whose presence perfect spiritual sobriety, i.e., entire sanctification, is the qualification. The devil, your adversary, is walking around like a roaring lion, seeking some one to devour. Though the devil goes about roaring like a lion, ready to eat you up in a moment, beware that you do not watch him lest you take your eye off of Jesus. If you keep your eye on Jesus and abide in perfect sobriety, He will attend to this roaring devil and you too. So the devils roaring can never hurt you. On the contrary, it will stir you up to the battle and inspire you to fight the more Courageously, thus even utilizing the devil as a drummer to make music for you while you fight him.

9. Whom resist steadfastly in faith. Now Jesus is a million times stronger than the devil. He says, It shall be unto you according to your faith. Therefore you have nothing to do but steadfastly resist the devil, having faith in Jesus to whip him for you, and He will do it every time.

10. The God of all grace having called you unto His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself make you perfect, having suffered a little while, will establish, strengthen, settle you. The little while you are to suffer in order to be made perfect, is just long enough for old Adam to be crucified.

The omnipotent Adam the Second will slay Adam the First in a moment pursuant to your faith. John Wesley said that only one out of three in his day having received the grace of perfection retained it. We see here the establishment, invigoration and settlement in holiness in Gods order, should follow the grace of perfection, as the only available preventive of collapse. The Holiness movement is very delinquent in that invaluable precaution against apostasy. I dictate these pages in California. A leading officer of the Salvation Army declared that thirty thousand persons have professed conversion through the work of the Army in this State, whereas it is impossible to find more than three thousand. The work of establishment is underestimated to the serious detriment of Gods cause.

11. Unto Him is the dominion, unto ages of ages. Amen. The Greek here is, eis tous aioonas toon aioonoon which defines the duration of the divine government, and also the existence of God, the life of the saints in glory and the perpetuity of heaven. Now remember that the Holy Ghost throughout the New Testament repeatedly uses the same phrase to reveal the duration of hell torment and the future existence of lost souls, suffering the retribution of eternal punishment. These positive revelations of God in the Bible forever sweep away the foolish dogmata of Universalism, Annihilationism, and Restorationism. You have to either throw away the Bible or accept the doctrine of endless punishment for the wicked.

12. Silvanus was the honored amanuensis of the venerable apostle, writing this letter pursuant to his dictation. Exhorting and testifying that this same grace of God is true, in which you may stand. The English indicative in this clause is wrong. The true reading is may stand, involving the liability to fall.

13. Doubtless the elect sister here in Babylon,. i.e., Rome, sending her salutations was the kind sister who entertained the apostle. We see Mark was also with him, who is believed generally to have been his amanuensis, Peter dictating the gospel which bears his name.

14. Salute with a kiss of divine love. The kissing salutation will always be right, blessed of God, and a means of grace if prompted by divine love, as the Scriptures say: But beware of the carnal kiss. In it there is a snare. Peace be unto all you who are in Christ. This is Peters benediction at the close of this wonderful letter. It is very beautiful, and so brief as to suit our convenience on many occasions. We find benedictions at the close of all the apostolic letters, furnishing us a vast variety, suitable to all occasions. We should never use any one unto monotony, as has been done for ages in case of Pauls benediction at the close of Second Corinthians.

Fuente: William Godbey’s Commentary on the New Testament

1Pe 5:8-11. Further counsels to watchfulness, and to sympathy, closing with a renewed promise of Gods reward, and a short doxology.

1Pe 5:8. seeking whom: the rendering seeking someone to devour, founded on a better reading, is preferable. It is more in accord with the figure and less suggestive of the adversarys success.

1Pe 5:9. knowing, etc.: the Gr. words are not easy to render (cf. mg.), but the translation given by Moffatt is much to be preferred, and learn to pay the same tax of suffering as the rest of your brotherhood throughout the world. The words constitute a call to active participation in the trials of the community (2Ti 2:3 mg.).in the world may point to a general persecution.

1Pe 5:11. to him be may be to him is, i.e. an assertion of a fact rather than an ascription.

Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible

5:8 {11} Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

(11) The cruelty of Satan, who seeks by all means to devour us, is overcome by watchfulness and faith.

Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes

4. The importance of resisting the devil 5:8-11

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

Trust in God is not all that we need, however. We also need to practice self-control and to keep alert (cf. 1Pe 1:13; 1Pe 4:7) because Satan is on the prowl (cf. Job 1:7; Mat 26:41; 1Co 16:13). Peter’s readers were in danger from him if they gave in to his temptation to regard their sufferings as an indication of God’s disinterest or ill will (cf. Jas 1:13). Satan not only seeks to deceive us as a serpent (2Co 11:3), but he also seeks to devour us as a lion.

"The picture is one of a beast swallowing its prey in a gulp." [Note: Davids, p. 191.]

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

Chapter 18

THROUGH PERILS TO VICTORY

1Pe 5:8-14

NOT only had these Asian Christians to suffer from the opposition and calumnies of the heathen and from the estrangement of former friends: there were perils within the Churches themselves. There were weak brethren, who fell away when trials came, and infected others with their despondency; there were false brethren, with whom faith was a mere consent of the understanding, and not the spring of a holy, spiritual life. These spake of the liberty of Christ as though it were an emancipation from all moral restraints. Such dangers asked for firmness both in the elders and their hearers. To withstand them there must be a constant growth in Christian experience, whereby the faithful might wax steadfast, and attain to the strength and stature of the fullness of Christ. These dangers became more manifest before St. Peter wrote his second letter, where we find them described in dark colors.

Here to the converts, exposed to the assaults of these temptations, he enjoins the same wellordered frame of mind which before {1Pe 1:13} he commended to them as they looked forward to the hope in store for them, and also {1Pe 4:7} in their prayers, that their petitions might be such as suited with the approaching end of all things. “Be sober,” he says again, and combines therewith an exhortation which without sobriety is impossible: “Be watchful.” If the mind be unbalanced, there can be no keeping of a true guard against such dangers as were around these struggling believers. And it is impossible not to connect such an exhortation from his lips with those words of Christ, which one Evangelist says were expressly addressed to St. Peter, “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation”. {Mar 14:37-38} He who had received this admonition was conscious that, as in his own case, so with these his converts, the spirit might be willing, but the flesh was weak, and the enemy mighty.

“Your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” In the days of Job, when God asked of Satan, “Whence comest thou?” his answer was, “From going to and fro in the earth and from walking up and down in it”. {Job 1:7} Of this Old Testament language the Apostle here makes partial use in his description of the enemy of mankind. He walketh about in the earth, which is his province, for he is called the prince of this world {Joh 12:31} and the god of this world. {2Co 4:4} And the Greek word “adversary,” which St. Peter uses as a translation of the Hebrew “Satan,” is well chosen, for it describes not an ordinary enemy, but one who acts as an opponent would in a court of law. Such was Satan from the first, an accuser. In Jobs case he accused the Patriarch to his God: “Doth Job serve God for naught?” “Put forth Thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, or touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse Thee to Thy face.” In earlier days he appears as the accuser of God Himself: “Ye shall not surely die, for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as God, knowing good and evil”. {Gen 3:4-5} And with suchlike suggestions he assails the faithful continually, speaking either to their unguarded hearts, or by the words of his servants, of whom he has no lack. St. Paul dreaded his power for the Thessalonian converts: “I sent that I might know your faith, lest by any means the tempter had tempted you, and our labor should be in vain”. {1Th 3:5} And St. Peters words are dictated by the same fear; he has the same wish to keep the flock steadfast in their faith. To them Satans whisperings would be after this sort: “You are forgotten of God”; “Love could never leave you so long in trial.” Or his agents would say in scorn, “How can you talk of freedom, when your life is one long torment? What is the profit of faith, when it gives you no liberty?” And such questions are perilous to feeble minds. The Apostle marks the great danger by a comparison which Ezekiel {Eze 22:25} had used before him, speaking of the tempter as a roaring lion, ever hungry for his prey. There is but one weapon which can vanquish him. “This is the victory that hath overcome the world, even our faith”. {1Jn 5:4} St. Peters lesson is the same as St. Johns.

“Whom withstand steadfast in your faith, knowing that the same sufferings are accomplished in your brethren who are in the world.” The steadfast faith must be the firm foundation of God; and the same thoughts, which St. Paul commends as a correction of those who have erred concerning the truth, are those most fit to be urged upon St. Peters converts to render them steadfast. “The Lord knoweth them that are His,” {2Ti 2:19} and with the Lord to know is to care for and to save. And “let every one that nameth the name of the Lord depart from unrighteousness.” This is the perfect law, the law of true liberty, and he who continueth therein, being not a hearer that forgetteth, but a doer that worketh, shall be blessed in his doing. Thus resting on God and thus ruling himself, he shall be kept from the snares of the enemy, and having withstood in the evil day, shall still be made able to stand. And to such steadfastness the brethren are to be moved by the knowledge that others are in the same affliction. How shall such knowledge minister support? The mere knowledge that others bear a like burden does not strengthen our own shoulders: to hear of others pains will not relieve our own. Not so. But just as it is a power in warfare when men see their leader before them, facing the same perils, hear his voice cheering them by his courage, inspiring them with his hope; just as it is a support to brave men to find brave brethren at their side in the conflict, animated by the same spirit, marching forward to the same victory, so is it in the Christian struggle. All Christians are to be steadfast, the elders like the leaders of an army, the younger like the soldiers who follow, that, moving with one spirit against the foe, feeling that each is like-minded with all the rest, while all are equally conscious of the importance of victory, they may grasp hands as they go forward, and be heartened thereby, being sure that in the danger they will have helpers at their side. And that he may give the more emphasis to this idea of unity, in which, though the suffering is common to all, yet the hope is also common, and the victory is promised to all, the Apostle does not speak of the converts as a multitude of brethren, but uses a noun in the singular number, naming them (as the margin of the Revised Version indicates) “a brotherhood” (). And when they regarded themselves as “a brotherhood in the world,” the thought would have its comforting as well as its painful aspect. The world, as Scripture speaks of it, is void of faith. Hence the believer, while he lives in it, is amid jarring surroundings, and is sure to suffer. “In the world ye shall have tribulation.” But it is not to last forever, nor for long. “The world passeth away, but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever.” And though the brotherhood in the world must suffer, yet there is that other brotherhood beyond; and there the suffering will not be remembered for the glory that shall be revealed in us. “And the God of all grace, who called you unto His eternal glory in Christ, after that ye have suffered a little while, shall Himself perfect, stablish, strengthen you.” Being now about to sum up the great work of Christian advancement, in, which from first to last the power is bestowed by God, St. Peter finds no title more fitting to express the Divine love than “the God of all grace.” The invitation to become partakers of the glory which Christ has won by His sufferings, won that He may bestow it upon men, was Gods free call. Our sufferings, the discipline which the Father employs to purge and purify us, are to last but a little while. Then those whom He has called He will also justify, and those whom He justifies He will in the end glorify. Thus St. Paul {Rom 8:30} describes the operations of Divine grace. St. Peter, with the same lesson, uses words more after his own graphic manner. He gives us a picture of Gods work in its several stages. First God will complete in all its parts the work which He has begun. He will make it so that He can pronounce it very good, as He did when the worlds were perfected in the first creation, {Heb 11:3} making His people to be so perfected that they may be as their Master. {Luk 6:40} Then He will sustain and support that which He has brought to its best estate. There shall not be, as in the first creation, any falling away. New gifts shall be bestowed by the Holy Spirit, through the ministration of the word. It was for such a purpose that St. Paul longed to visit the Roman Church, that he might impart unto them some spiritual gift, to the end that they might be established. And what has been perfected and established shall also by the same grace be made strong, that it may endure and withstand all assaults.

In many ancient texts a fourth verb is given, which the Authorized Version renders “settle.” It signifies “to set on a firm foundation,” and it is of the figurative character which marks St. Peters language, and, besides this, is not uncommon in the New Testament. {Mat 7:25, Luk 6:48, Heb 1:10, etc.} But the verbs immediately preceding have no direct reference to a building, and the addition arises probably from a marginal note, made to illustrate the text and by some later scribe incorporated with it. The whole passage brings to mind Christs injunction to the Apostle, “When thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.”

“To Him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.” A fitting doxology to follow the Apostles enumeration of the riches of Divine grace. He who feels that every gift he has is from above will with ready thankfulness welcome Gods rule, and seek to submit himself thereto, making it the law of his life here, as he hopes it will be hereafter.

“By Silvanus, our faithful brother, as I account him, I have written unto you briefly.” Silvanus was that Silas who accompanied St. Paul in his second missionary journey through the districts of Phrygia and Galatia, {Act 16:6} to which St. Peter addresses his letter. To send it by the hand of one known and esteemed among these Churches for his former labors and for his friendship with the great Apostle of the Gentiles would secure acceptance for it, while the bearer would testify to the unity of the doctrine preached by the two Apostles. He who had been a faithful brother to St. Paul was so also to St. Peter, and was by him commended to the Churches. For the expression, “I account him,” implies no doubt or question in the Apostles own mind. It is the utterance of a matured opinion. The verb () is that which St. Paul uses: “I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us”. {Rom 8:18} To St. Paul something of the future glory had been shown, and he had felt abundance of present suffering. He had taken account of both sides, and could speak with certainty. The brevity of St. Peters letter could be supplemented by the words of his messenger. For Silas himself was a prophet, {Act 15:32} and fitted to exhort and confirm the brethren.

“Exhorting, and testifying that this is the true grace of God: stand ye fast therein.” The grace in its several stages has just been summarized: the calling, the perfecting, stablishing, strengthening; and the whole letter is occupied in showing that at every advance God puts His servants to the test. But the Apostle knows that the agents of the adversary are busily scattering the tares of doubt and disbelief where God had sown His good seed. The wrestling is not against flesh and blood alone, but against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual host of wickedness. Hence the form of his exhortation: “Stand fast.”

“She that is in Babylon, elect together with you, saluteth you; and so doth Mark my son. Salute one another with a kiss of love.” It is most natural to refer these words to a Church, and not to any individual. Some have interpreted them as an allusion to St. Peters wife, whom, as we know from St. Paul, {1Co 9:5} he sometimes had as a companion in his travels. But there is a degree of inappropriateness in speaking of a single person as elect along with these various Churches of Asia, whereas the Church in Babylon might fitly have such a distinction. It is unnecessary, too, to explain Babylon (as some have done) as intended for Rome. There was no conceivable reason in St. Peters day why, when he was writing to lands under Roman dominion, if he meant to speak of the city in Italy, he should not call it by its real name. The Mark here named was most probably the John whose surname was Mark, {Act 12:12} whose mother was a friend of St. Peters from the earliest days of his apostolic labors. He, too, had been a companion of St. Paul for a time, and made another link between the two great Apostles. St. Peter calls him “son” because it is likely that both the mother and her son were won to the new teaching by him, and he employs the term of affection just as St. Paul does of Timothy, his convert. {1Ti 1:2; 1Ti 1:18 2Ti 1:2} The salutation by a kiss is frequently mentioned. It is called “a holy kiss” {Rom 16:16; 1Co 16:20; 2Co 13:12; 1Th 5:26} in St. Pauls language. We find from Justin Martyr that it had come to be used in his day as part of the ceremonial preceding the Holy Communion. It was to be a token of perfect love, according to the name which St. Peter here gives it. An evil construction was soon put upon it by the enemies of the faith; and after a long history it fell into disuse, even in the East, where such manner of salutation is more common than in the West. In his final words the Apostle has embodied the benediction of which the kiss was meant to be the symbol.

“Peace be unto you all that are in Christ.” This is the bond which unites believers into one fellowship. To be in Christ is to be of the brotherhood which has been so significantly marked just before for its unity. And in these last clauses we have examples of the force of the tie. Individuals are brought by it into close communion; as Peter himself with Silas and with Mark, whom he speaks of in terms of family love. To the Churches Silas is commended as a brother in the faith, which faith establishes a bond of strength between the distant Churches which have been called into it together. Well might the heathen, wonderstruck, exclaim, “See how these Christians love one another!” And the Apostles own words mark the all-embracing character of the love: “all that are in Christ.” They are all brethren, children of the common Father, inheritors of the same promises, pilgrims on the same journey, sustained by the same hope, servants of the same Lord, and strengthened, guided, and enlightened by the one Spirit, who is promised to abide with Christs Church for ever.

Fuente: Expositors Bible Commentary