I Peter 1:20
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He was known before the foundation of the world, but was revealed in the last times for your sake.
Commentaries
Excerpts gathered from published commentaries to ground the reading.
God's eternal foreordination of Christ's redeeming sacrifice, and completion of it in these last times for us, are an additional obligation on us to our maintaining a holy walk, considering how great things have been thus done for us. Peter's language in the history corresponds with this here: an undesigned coincidence and mark of genuineness. Redemption was no afterthought, or remedy of an unforeseen evil, devised at the time of its arising. God's foreordaining of the Redeemer refutes the slander that, on the Christian theory, there is a period of four thousand years of nothing but an incensed God. God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world (Eph 1:4). manifest--in His incarnation in the fulness of the time. He existed from eternity before He was manifested. in these last times-- Co1 10:11, "the ends of the world." This last dispensation, made up of "times" marked by great changes, but still retaining a general unity, stretches from Christ's ascension to His coming to judgment.
Open source ↗The apostle describes the persons to whom he writes, and salutes them (Pe1 1:1, Pe1 1:2), blesses God for their regeneration to a lively hope of eternal salvation (Pe1 1:3-5), in the hope of this salvation he shows they had great cause of rejoicing, though for a little while they were in heaviness and affliction, for the trial of their faith, which would produce joy unspeakable and full of glory (Pe1 1:6-9). This is that salvation which the ancient prophets foretold and the angels desire to look into (Pe1 1:10-12). He exhorts them to sobriety and holiness, which he presses from the consideration of the blood of Jesus, the invaluable price of man's redemption (Pe1 1:13-21), and to brotherly love, from the consideration of their regeneration, and the excellency of their spiritual state (Pe1 1:22-25).
Open source ↗1:20 With Christ’s coming, Old Testament promises of redemption are being fulfilled and the last days have begun.
Open source ↗Original language
The Hebrew and Greek words behind this passage, with Strong's numbers — from openscriptures (CC BY-SA).
Cross-references
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For He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in His presence. In love
Otherwise, Christ would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But now He has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of Himself.
And all who dwell on the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written from the foundation of the world in the Book of Life belonging to the Lamb who was slain.
But in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, and through whom He made the universe.
according to the eternal purpose that He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.
But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come forth for Me One to be ruler over Israel— One whose origins are of old, from the days of eternity.
the mystery that was hidden for ages and generations but is now revealed to His saints.
and to illuminate for everyone the stewardship of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things.
But when the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law,
as a plan for the fullness of time, to bring all things in heaven and on earth together in Christ.