1 Peter 2:13

2:13-17 A Christian conversation must be honest; which it cannot be, if there is not a just and careful discharge of all relative duties: the apostle here treats of these distinctly. Regard to those duties is the will of God, consequently, the Christian's duty, and the way to silence the base slanders of ignorant and foolish men. Christians must endeavour, in all relations, to behave aright, that they do not make their liberty a cloak or covering for any wickedness, or for the neglect of duty; but they must remember that they are servants of God.

{15} Submit yourselves to {c} every ordinance of man {16} for the Lord's sake: {17} whether it be to the king, as supreme; (15) That which he spoke generally, he now expounds in detail, describing individually every man's duty. First, he speaks of the obedience that is due both to the laws, and also to the magistrates both higher and lower. (c) By ordinance, is meant the inventing and ordering of civil government, which he calls ordinance of man, not because man invented it, but because it is proper for men. (16) The first argument: because the Lord is the author and avenger of this policy of men, that is, which is set among men: and therefore the true servants of the Lord must above all others be diligent observers of this order. (17) He prevents a frivolous objection which is made by some, who say they will obey kings and the higher magistrates, and yet condemn their ministers, as though their ministers were not armed with the authority of those who sent them.

1 Peter 2:13-15 . Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man — Greek, παση ανθρωπινη κτισει , to every human constitution of government, under which you are placed by Divine Providence, and which is formed instrumentally by men, and relates to you as men, and not as Christians. Macknight translates the clause, Be subject to every human creation of magistrates; observing that “the abstract word creation is put for the concrete, the person created; just as governments and powers are put for persons exercising government and power. The phrase, human creation of magistrates, was formed by St. Peter with a view to condemn the principles of the zealots, who maintained that obedience was due to no magistrates but to those who were appointed by God, as the Jewish kings had been.” Whether to the king — That is, to the emperor; as supreme — For though at Rome the name of king was odious, the people in the provinces gave that name to the emperor, John 19:15 ; Acts 17:7 . When this epistle was written, Nero was emperor.

Or to subordinate governors — Or magistrates, in the different provinces of the empire. “From this we learn that it is the duty of Christians, residing in foreign and even in infidel countries, to obey the laws of those countries in all things not sinful, without considering whether the religion of the magistrate and of the state be true or false.” That are sent by him — Commissioned by the emperor from Rome; for the punishment of evil-doers — The Roman governors had the power of life and death in such conquered provinces as those mentioned 1 Peter 1:1 . There is, therefore, the exactest propriety in the apostle’s style. And for the praise of them that do well — For protecting and rewarding them who give due obedience to the good laws of the state. For so is the will of God — As I assure you by inspiration; that by well-doing — By your due subjection to magistrates, and the performance of all other Christian duties; you may put to silence — Φιμουν , may bridle in, or restrain by a bridle or a muzzle, (so the word signifies,) the ignorance — The calumnies proceeding from the ignorance of foolish men — Of men destitute of the fear of God, who blame you because they do not know you, affirming that your religion makes you bad subjects.

1 Peter 2:13 . Πάσῃ ἀνθρωπίνῃ κτίσει , to every creation of man ) A king or Cæsar is called a creation, and so are governors sent by him; the abstract being put by Metonymia for the concrete, as in political language the phrase, cine Creator, to create a magistrate , is often used (comp. κτίσις , a building, Hebrews 9:11 ): hence the word every is divided by the words, whether, or . And they are called creations of man , because they govern the affairs of men, after the manner of men: which saying savours of the heavenly perception (sense) of the apostle, raised above all human things. And under this very name, they who have attained to the nobility of faith, might look down upon the whole of that creation . Peter guards against this, and orders them to submit themselves, for the sake of the Lord Christ, who once became subject, though all things are subject to Him.— διὰ , on account of ) The highest obligation, by the name of Jesus Christ, whose honour is at stake.— βασιλεῖ , to the king ) Cæsar. For they were Roman provinces into which Peter was sending. The Jewish zealots refused obedience.— ὑπερέχοντι , supreme ) Among the French, Souverain .

Every ordinance; of all kinds, whether supreme or subordinate. Ordinance of man; Greek, human creatures, which may be understood either, as Mark 16:15 , every human creature for every man, only restraining it to the present subject whereof he treats, viz. magistrates, and the sense is, to every magistrate: or rather, (though to the same effect), to every human ordinance; or, as we translate it, ordinance of man; the word creature being taken for an ordinance, or constitution, and creating for ordaining, or appointing: so CEcumenius will have the word to signify, Ephesians 2:15 , to make of twain one new man. But this creature, or ordinance, here is to be understood of the magistrate; (as appears by the following words), which is called human, not as if magistracy were not an ordinance of God, {for, Romans 13:1, the powers that are are said to be ordained of God } but either because it is only among men, and proper to them; or because it is of man secondarily and instrumentally, though of God primarily and originally, God making use of the ministry of men in bringing them into the magistracy; as, though church offices are God’s ordinance, yet he makes use of men to put them into office. For the Lord’s sake; for God’s sake, who commands this obedience; and gave them the authority, and is represented by them, and honoured by that obedience which is yielded to them in all things agreeable to his will.

The phrase seems to be of the same import with that of being obedient in the Lord, Ephesians 6:1 . To the king; to Caesar, the then supreme magistrate, under whose jurisdiction the Jewish Christians were; and this being a general command extending to all Christians, it follows, that obedience is due from them to those chief magistrates whose subjects respectively they are. As supreme; not only above the people, but above other magistrates.

1 Peter 2:13-17 . The duty of the Christian towards the State; compare Romans 13:1-7 .— πάσῃ ἀνθρωπίνῃ κτίσει , every human institution , including rulers (14), masters (18), and husbands ( 1 Peter 3:1 ). κτίζειν is used ordinarily in many senses, e.g. , of peopling a country, of founding a city, of setting up games, feasts, altar, etc. In Biblical Greek and its descendants it is appropriated to creation . Here κτίσις is apparently selected as the most comprehensive word available; and the acquired connotation—creation by God—is ruled out by the adjective ἀνθρωπίνῃ . It thus refers to all human institutions which man set up with the object of maintaining the world which God created.— διὰ τὸν κύριον , for the sake of the Lord . διά may be (1) retrospective— i.e. , because Jesus said, Render what is Cæsar’s to Cæsar or , generally, because God is the source of all duly-constituted authority; or (2) prospective for the sake of Jesus ( Jehovah ); your loyalty redounding to the credit of your Master in heaven.— βασιλεῖ , the Roman Emperor, as in Revelation 17:9 , etc.; Josephus B.J., ver 136, v. infra .— ὑπερέχοντι , pre-eminent, supreme, absolute , as in Sap. 6:5, where τοῖς ὑπερέχουσιν corresponds to those who are underlings of His Sovereignty (4), to whom power was given from the Lord (3); cf. διʼ αὐτοῦ below.— ἡγεμόσιν , properly Governors of provinces , but Plutarch uses the singular = Imperator .

Peter rather follows the conventional rendering of the saying of Jesus, ἐπὶ ἡγεμόνων καὶ βασιλέων σταθήσεσθε , interpreted in the light of popular usage ( cf. Luke 21:12 ) or of Jeremiah 39:3 , ἡγεμόνες βασιλέως Βαβυλῶνος . Contrast vague general term, ἐξουσίαις ὑπερεχ · ὡς … which St. Paul employed before his visit to Rome.— πεμπ ., as being sent through the Emperor . διά implies that the governors are sent by God acting through the Emperor; so Romans 13:1-7 ( cf. Sap. 6:3) and John 19:11 , εἰ μὴ ἦν δεδομένον σοι ἄνωθεν .— εἰς ἐκδίκησιν , κ . τ . λ . The ruler executes God’s vengeance ( Romans 12:19 ) and voices God’s approval ( Psalm 22:25 , παρὰ σοῦ ὁ ἔπαινός μου ). The former function of governors has naturally become prominent, the latter is exemplified in the crowns, decrees and panegyrics with which the Greek and Jewish States rewarded their benefactors if not mere well-doers.— οὕτως … since this is so (referring to 13 f.) God’s will is that … ( cf. Matthew 18:14 , οὕτως οὐκ ἔστιν θέλημα where οὕτως refers to the preceding parable) rather than God’s will is thus namely that … or … well-doing thus . Since God has set up governors who express His approval of well-doers, you as well-doers will receive official praise and thus be enabled to silence the slanderers. St. Peter is thinking of the verdict pronounced in the case of St.

13. every ordinance of man—"every human institution" [Alford], literally, "every human creation." For though of divine appointment, yet in the mode of nomination and in the exercise of their authority, earthly governors are but human institutions, being of men, and in relation to men. The apostle speaks as one raised above all human things. But lest they should think themselves so ennobled by faith as to be raised above subordination to human authorities, he tells them to submit themselves for the sake of Christ, who desires you to be subject, and who once was subject to earthly rulers Himself, though having all things subject to Him, and whose honor is at stake in you as His earthly representatives. Compare Ro 13:5, "Be subject for conscience' sake." king—The Roman emperor was "supreme" in the Roman provinces to which this Epistle was addressed. The Jewish zealots refused obedience. The distinction between "the king as supreme" and "governors sent by him" implies that "if the king command one thing, and the subordinate magistrate another, we ought rather to obey the superior" [Augustine in Grotius].