1 Peter 4:15

4:12-19 By patience and fortitude in suffering, by dependence on the promises of God, and keeping to the word the Holy Spirit hath revealed, the Holy Spirit is glorified; but by the contempt and reproaches cast upon believers, he is evil spoken of, and is blasphemed. One would think such cautions as these were needless to Christians. But their enemies falsely charged them with foul crimes. And even the best of men need to be warned against the worst of sins. There is no comfort in sufferings, when we bring them upon ourselves by our own sin and folly. A time of universal calamity was at hand, as foretold by our Saviour, Mt 24:9,10. And if such things befall in this life, how awful will the day of judgment be! It is true that the righteous are scarcely saved; even those who endeavour to walk uprightly in the ways of God. This does not mean that the purpose and performance of God are uncertain, but only the great difficulties and hard encounters in the way; that they go through so many temptations and tribulations, so many fightings without and fears within. Yet all outward difficulties would be as nothing, were it not for lusts and corruptions within. These are the worst clogs and troubles. And if the way of the righteous be so hard, then how hard shall be the end of the ungodly sinner, who walks in sin with delight, and thinks the righteous is a fool for all his pains!

{15} But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men's matters. (15) The third difference: the godly are not afflicted for their evil doings, but for righteousness' sake as Christians: by which it comes to pass that the cross, seeing it is a testimony to them of faith and righteousness, ministers to them not an occasion of sorrow, but of unspeakable joy: now the apostle propounds this third difference under the form of an exhortation.

A busybody in other men's matters (ἀλλοτριοεπίσκοπος) Only here in New Testament. Lit., the overseer of another's matters. One who usurps authority in matters not within his province. Rev., meddler. Compare Luke 12:13, Luke 12:14; 1 Thessalonians 4:11; 2 Thessalonians 3:11. It may refer to the officious interference of Christians in the affairs of their Gentile neighbors, through excess of zeal to conform them to the Christian standard.

1 Peter 4:15 . Μὴ γὰρ , for not ) The particle for gives the reason why the Lord is glorified in those who suffer. For it presupposes that they have it as a settled principle in themselves, to wish to suffer in no other way than as Christians; and not to commit anything contrary to this, which is deserving of punishment. There is a similar imperative, ch. 1 Peter 3:3 .— ὡς φονεὺς , as a murderer ) Disgraceful titles.— ἢ ὡς ἀλλοτριοεπίσκοπος , as one who pries into the business of others ) The particle as , repeated here only, makes a wide separation between the man who pries into the business of others, and the classes of evil-doers (here mentioned); hut still it also distinguishes him from the Christian. Such are they who thrust themselves into business, whether public or private, sacred or civil, with which they have no concern, as though they were impelled by great prudence and faithfulness, and hatred of the wickedness of the world. Men of this kind often incur ill will from the world, and more so than they deserve (especially from those in power, and who less readily endure just advisers and inspectors, than such as are like themselves); and thus they easily meet with sufferings . And this might especially happen in the case of heathen magistrates.

But let noise of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief: keep clear of those crimes which may expose you to suffering by the hand of justice, and carry yourselves so innocently, that you may never suffer from men but unjustly. Or as an evil-doer; either this is a general term, denoting them that offend against any public law; or, it may signify those that are guilty of any offence against the laws, though less than murder or theft. Or as a busy-body in other men’s matters; either a covetous person, that looks with an evil eye upon what others have, and is ready to catch it as he can; or rather, one that goes beyond the bounds of his own calling, and invades the callings of others, pragmatically intruding into their business, and making himself a judge of those things which belong not to him. Some nations are said to have punished those that were busy through idleness, impertinently diligent in other men’s matters, and negligent of their own. However, if this pragmaticalness did not expose the Christians to the laws of the Gentiles, yet it might make them odious, and expose them to their reproaches.

1 Peter 4:15 . γάρ . I assume that you suffer in Christ’s name as representing Him and bearing only the reproach which attaches to it per se . The crimes of which slanderers had accused Christians are given in the order of probability and are selected as belonging to the pattern. Christ Himself was implicitly accused thereof by His persecutors and acquitted of each by independent witnesses, as the Gospels are at pains to show. He suffered the fate from which the murderer was preserved ( Acts 3:14 ) by the petition of the Jews; shared it with thieves or brigands, being delivered up to the secular arm as a malefactor ( John 18:30 ). Such slanders the Christian must rebut for the credit of his Lord; that he must not be guilty of such crimes goes without saying.— ἀλλοτριεπίσκοπος is distinguished from the preceding accusations by the insertion of ὡς ; it is also an addition to the pattern of Christ, unless stress be laid on the sneer, He saved others . The word was apparently coined to express the idea of the itinerant philosopher of whatever sect current among the unphilosophical.

Epictetus defends the true Cynic against this very calumny; he is a messenger sent from Zeus to men to show them concerning good and evil (Arrian, iii. 22, 23) … a spy of what is helpful and harmful to me … he approaches all men, cares for all ( ib. 81) … neither meddler— περίεργος —nor busybody is such an one; for he is not busy about alien things— τὰ ἀλλότρια πολυπραγμονεῖ —when he inspects the actions and relations of mankind— ὅταν τὰ ἀνθρώπινα ἐπισκοπῇ ( ib. 97). This zeal for the welfare of others was certainly the most obvious charge to bring against Christians, who indeed were not always content to testify by good behaviour without word . St. Paul heard of some at Thessalonica, μηδὲν ἐργαζομένους ἀλλὰ περιεργαζομἔνους ( 2 Thessalonians 3:2 ). Women generally if unattached were prone to be not merely idle but meddlers speaking what they should not ( 1 Timothy 5:13 ). So St. Peter ( cf. 1 Corinthians 10:27 ) has emphasised the duty of all Christians—even of the wives of heathen husbands—to preach Christianity only by example and now deprecates their acquiescence in what some might reckon a title of honour. The fate of Socrates is the classical example of the suffering of such; and later one philosopher was scourged and another beheaded for denunciation of the alliance of Titus with Berenice ( Dio Cassius , lxvi. 15).

15. But—Greek, "For." "Reproached in the name of Christ" I say (1Pe 4:14), "FOR let none," &c. as … as … as … as—the "as" twice in italics is not in the Greek. The second Greek, "as," distinguishes the class "busybody in other men's matters," from the previous class of delinquents. Christians, from mistaken zeal, under the plea of faithfulness, might readily step out of their own calling and make themselves judges of the acts of unbelievers. Literally, "a bishop in what is (not his own, but) another's" province; an allusion to the existing bishops or overseers of the Church; a self-constituted bishop in others' concerns.

15 . But let none of you suffer as a murderer ] Literally, For let none of you suffer . The implied sequence of thought would seem to be this: “I bid you suffer for the name of Christ and remind you of the blessing which attaches to such suffering, for the last thing I should wish is that you should think that it is the suffering, not the cause, that makes the martyr.” He represses the tendency, more or less prevalent in all times of persecution, whether of Christians by heathens, or of one body of Christians by another, which leads men to pose in the attitude of martyrs and confessors when they ought rather to be classed with ordinary criminals suffering the just punishment of their crimes. Of the four forms of evils named, the first and second require no explanation. The third includes all other forms of evil which came under the cognizance of law, as in the “malefactor” of John 18:30 . Comp. 1 Peter 2:12-14 . The fourth is a word which is not found elsewhere and may possibly have been coined by St Peter. Literally, the word ( allotrio-episcopos ) describes one who claims an authority like that of a bishop or superintendent in a region in which he has no right to exercise it. As such it might, of course, be applied to the schismatic self-appointed teacher, and “a bishop in another man’s diocese,” though too modern in its associations, would be a fair equivalent for it.

Such an one, however, would hardly be singled out for punishment by a heathen persecutor, and we must therefore think of the word as describing a like character in another sphere of action. It was, perhaps, a natural consequence of the higher standard of morals which the Christian disciple possessed, or imagined himself to possess, that he should be tempted to interfere with the action of public or private men when he thought them wrong, intermeddling in season or out of season. Such a man might easily incur the penalties which attach to what, in modern language, we call “contempt of court,” or “obstruction of justice.” If a passing word of controversial application be allowable in a Commentary we may note the reproduction of the character of the allotrio-episcopos (1) in the permanent policy of those who claim to be the successors of St Peter, and (2) in the meddling fussiness which leads laymen, or clergy, to interfere in matters which properly belong to the office of a Bishop, or to the jurisdiction of an authorized tribunal.