1 Peter 3:13-17 (NKJV) And who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good? 14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. “And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.” 15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; 16 having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed. 17 For it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.
V13 “And who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good?” Normally, no human would harm someone doing good. But, in these last days where love is fading and violence increasing (2 Timothy 3:1-5), it has become possible and does. Those who believe that it is evil to kill innocent people are arrested, fined, and sometimes worse. Compare Judas (Luke 22:47-48), Psalmist (Psalm 35:11-16), and Uriah (2 Samuel 11:14-17 and 2 Samuel 12:9 with 2 Samuel 23:39 (he was one of David’s most loyal soldiers).
V14 “But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.” God’s approval or disapproval of us is more important. See Matthew 10:28, Galatians 1:10, and Hebrews 11:1-2. This quote is from Isaiah 8:12.
V15 “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear…” Instead of fear, we should look to God as our comforter, committing our souls to Him, and trusting Him. The Greek word for “sanctify” is (G37) ἁγιάζω hagiazō, which means to separate two things. The idea here is to consider God is good and to trust (fear) Him instead of humans. With God’s help, we are able.
We must be taught and study the Bible to know the standard, then when someone comes to us asking a question about our faith, we will have an answer. We gain knowledge from reading and studying the Bible in its plain, normal sense. We gain understanding from the God’s enlightenment. We might receive this enlightenment (understanding the meaning and application of the passage we are reading/studying) directly or from other believers. If we know the truth and understand it, then we can give a honorable answer. All must study apologetics. Our hope is Jesus’s promises to return, deliver, assist us, and eventually take us all to heaven to serve Him there.
Joseph Benson (Commentary on the Old and New Testaments) writes: “Fear ye not their fear: the exhortation which Isaiah gave to the Jews when threatened with an invasion by the Assyrians. The words are a Hebraism; the meaning of which is, Be not affected with the fear which they endeavour to raise in you by their threatenings. Or, as some understand the expression, Let not that fear be in you which the wicked feel.”
V16 “…having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed.“ There is no cause for guilt when we know, live, and are able to give an answer based on Scriptures to a questioner. They may slander us (verbal abuse) and revile (insult and threaten) us. But seeing our continual good and wise response, they will be ashamed and perhaps be open to faith in Jesus.
Bible Knowledge commentary adds: “Peter may have been alluding to the occasion when he denied Christ out of fear, in words that were neither gentle nor respectful.”
Joseph Benson: “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts — Namely, by fearing him more than men, how many or powerful soever they may be; by believing all his promises; by trusting in his wisdom, power, and goodness; by acknowledging his justice in the punishments which he inflicts, and by patiently bearing all the trials he is pleased to appoint. By these dispositions, believers sanctify God in their hearts; they give him the glory of all his perfections.”
V17 “For it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.” Suffering is a result of sin either our own sin or what others do to us. Consider Jesus (John 18:11 and Hebrews 2:10). Compare Romans 8:17, 2 Corinthians 4:10, and James 5:10-11. God blesses us when we suffer for righteousness, not when we do evil. Also see Galatians 6:9, Genesis 40:15, and 1 Peter 1:11.
Matthew Henry adds: “If the sufferings of good people for well-doing be so severe, what will the sufferings of wicked people be for evil-doing? It is a sad condition which that person is in upon whom sin and suffering meet together at the same time; sin makes sufferings to be extreme, unprofitable, comfortless, and destructive.”
We learn:
- We must do good (meeting God’s standards of good)
- We will experience suffering
- God will at some time bless us in and after suffering