1 Peter 1:10-12 (NKJV) Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, 11 searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. 12 To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things which angels desire to look into.
V10 “Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you…” This salvation is the Gospel preached by the Lord Jesus. Compare Acts 10:43 and Luke 24:25-27. Salvation and forgiveness of sins without animal sacrifices. Jesus is the Passover Lamb for our sins (1 Corinthians 5:7). The prophets are all the spokesmen for God from Abraham, Moses, Miriam, Deborah, Hulda, Malachi, etc. The information is there but scattered about until the Lord Jesus came and assembled the message pieces so we could understand. See Matthew 13:16-17. The prophets wished to know all of the new covenant’s beliefs, worldview, lifestyle, rules, blessings, benefits, gifts, etc. What they wanted to know the most is, “Who is the promised Messiah?” The Gospel and its full application is one of the mysteries that Paul mentions (Romans 16:25 and Colossians 1:24-28). Note the wisdom of seeking the answer in the Scriptures (searched carefully). This is the best principle and practice we could have. “The grace” is the Gospel.
Some quotes:
(Ryrie Study Bible Notes) “Though the OT prophets spoke of grace being given to Gentiles, they did not understand all that was involved in God’s saving Gentiles through a suffering Messiah (see Col. 1:26-27). The OT prophets did predict both the suffering (Isa. 53) and glory (Isa. 11) of the Messiah, without distinguishing that the former would be fulfilled at His first coming and the latter at His second.”
(Adam Clarke) “The prophets plainly saw that the grace which was to come under the Messiah’s kingdom was vastly superior to any thing that had ever been exhibited under the law; and in consequence they made all possible inquiry, and searched as after grains of gold, hidden among sand or compacted with ore, (for such is the meaning of the original word), in order to ascertain the time, and the signs of that time, in which this wondrous display of God’s love and mercy to man was to take place; but all that God thought fit to instruct them in was what is mentioned 1Pe 1:12.”
V11 “…searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow.” They had the information but wanted to know the when, how, and who. The sufferings of the Messiah are listed in Isaiah 52:13-53:12, Psalm 22:16-18, Zechariah 9:9-10, and Zechariah 12:10. The glories are those things He received after His ministry on earth was finished–partly after His resurrection and the rest after ascension. Some of the glories are Isaiah 63:1, Daniel 7:14, Zechariah 6:13, and Matthew 24:30. The Greek word for “indicate” is (G1213) δηλόω dēlóō, which means to make known whether past, present, future, or hidden. God has this knowledge.
V12 “To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things which angels desire to look into.” What their inquiry found was that the message was for a future time. A future generation would understand. That generation is us. That message was and is preached beginning with Messiah Jesus, the Apostles, and so on to this day. The Holy Spirit was sent from heaven to bring the messages to the prophets. Even the angels were seeking the solution to the mystery. The Holy Spirit was sent to convict all humans of their sins (John 16:8). The Holy Spirit is also sent into the hearts of all believers (John 14:17, 1 Corinthians 3:16, and 1 Corinthians 6:19).
We learn:
- The prophets received and spoke/wrote the NT salvation message (Gospel) but didn’t understand it completely
- They searched the Scriptures to find the answer
- They did know that the message was for us