Peter began his second epistle as he did to introduce himself to his readers and to lay a foundation for what follows.
1:1 The writer could hardly have stated his identity more clearly than he did in this verse. "Simon"was Peter's Hebrew name, and "Peter"is the Greek translation of the nickname Cephas ("Rocky,"cf. Matt. 16:18).
"Double names like Simon Peter' were common in the ancient Near East. Many people used both the name they were given in their native language and a Greek name, since Greek was so widely spoken."13
This is the only New Testament epistle in which the writer identified himself with a double name. Peter may have done this to suggest the two aspects of his life, before and after discipleship to Jesus Christ.14Peter called for discipleship in this letter and referred to the changes that it produces in Christians (e.g., vv. 4-11). As I mentioned in the notes on 1 Peter, there is only one Peter in the New Testament. He regarded himself first as a bond-slave (Gr. doulos) of Jesus Christ and secondarily as His apostle (cf. Rom. 1:1; Tit. 1:1).15
Peter did not mention his apostolic authority in his salutation in 1 Peter, but in this epistle he dealt with false teachers. His readers needed to remember that what they were reading came from an apostle and was authoritative.
Peter referred to his audience in very general terms that could apply to all Christians. This reference does not help us identify exactly who the original recipients were. The faith of all believers is a gift from God. Other non-biblical Greek writers used the unique Greek word translated "same kind"(isotimos) to describe immigrants who received citizenship privileges equal to those of native inhabitants. The word "our"may be an editorial plural, but it is more likely a reference to the other apostles (cf. 3:2; 1 John 1:1-4; et al.). Some of the early Gnostic false teachers claimed a higher level of spiritual experience that they said only Christians who followed their teaching could attain. However, Peter here asserted that every Christian has the same essential faith, including all of its spiritual benefits, as the apostles did.
The Christian's faith, in both its subjective and objective aspects, comes to us through Jesus Christ's uprightness. The Greek grammatical construction of the last phrase of this verse indicates that Peter believed Jesus Christ was both God and Savior (cf. Matt. 16:16; John 1:1; 20:28; Tit. 2:13).16This is one of the verses in the New Testament that explicitly calls Jesus God. Jesus' role as Savior was one that Peter emphasized in this letter because of his readers' need of deliverance (cf. v. 11; 2:20; 3:2, 18).
1:2 The first half of Peter's benediction on his readers is identical with the one he gave in his first epistle (1 Pet. 1:2). Grace and peace were the typical greetings the Greeks and Jews used respectively. This probably suggests that Peter wrote this epistle to a mixed audience of Christians as he did his former letter. Both grace and peace come to us through the full knowledge (Gr. epignosei) of God and of Jesus (again equal, cf. v. 1). The Greeks prided themselves on their knowledge, but Peter noted that knowledge of God and Jesus was the key to grace and peace (cf. 3:18). These blessings become ours as we get to know God intimately by reading His Word and abiding in Him. The false teachers could offer nothing better than this.
". . . as used in 2 Peter, . . . epignosis[full knowledge] designates the fundamental Christian knowledge received in conversion, whereas gnosisis knowledge which can be acquired and developed in the course of Christian life . . ."17
"In our day we are rightly warned about the danger of a sterile faith, of a head' knowledge that never touches the heart. But we need equally to be careful of a heart' knowledge that never touches the head! Too many Christians knowtoo little about their faith; we are therefore often unprepared to explain how our God' differs from the God' of Mormonism or of the Jehovah's Witnesses."18
