who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, angels and authorities and powers being made subject to him.
Parallel Translations
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who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, angels and authorities and powers being made subject to him.
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which is oure right honde of God and is gone into heven angels power and myght subdued vnto him.
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Which is at the right hand of God, gone into heauen, to whom the Angels, and Powers, and might are subiect.
Cross-references (20)
Passages linked to 1 Peter 3:22 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Hebrews 9:24 For Christ hasn’t entered into holy places made with hands, which are representations of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us;
- Hebrews 12:2 looking to Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising its shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
- Hebrews 10:12 but he, when he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God,
- Ephesians 1:20-21 which he worked in Christ, when he raised him from the dead and made him to sit at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule, authority, power, dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in that which is to come.
- Mark 16:19 So then the Lord, after he had spoken to them, was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.
- Romans 8:34 Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, yes rather, who was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.
- Hebrews 8:1 Now in the things which we are saying, the main point is this. We have such a high priest, who sat down on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens,
- Romans 8:38 For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers,
- Hebrews 6:20 where as a forerunner Jesus entered for us, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.
- Psalms 110:1 Yahweh says to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool for your feet.”
- Matthew 22:44 ‘The Lord said to my Lord, sit on my right hand, until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet?’
- Mark 12:36 For David himself said in the Holy Spirit, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies the footstool of your feet.” ’
- Colossians 3:1 If then you were raised together with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated on the right hand of God.
- Acts 1:11 who also said, “You men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who was received up from you into the sky, will come back in the same way as you saw him going into the sky.”
- Acts 2:34-36 For David didn’t ascend into the heavens, but he says himself, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit by my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” ’ “Let all the house of Israel therefore know certainly that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
- Acts 3:21 whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God spoke long ago by the mouth of his holy prophets.
- 1 Corinthians 15:24 Then the end comes, when he will deliver up the Kingdom to God, even the Father, when he will have abolished all rule and all authority and power.
- Hebrews 1:3 His Son is the radiance of his glory, the very image of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, who, when he had by himself purified us of our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high,
- Hebrews 1:13 But which of the angels has he told at any time, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies the footstool of your feet?”
- Luke 20:42 David himself says in the book of Psalms, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand,
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (16 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 22 Who is on the right hand of God.…
22 Who is on the right hand of God. He recommends to us the ascension of Christ unto heaven, lest our eyes should seek him in the world; and this belongs especially to faith. He commends to our notice his session on the Father’s right hand, lest we should doubt his power to save us. And what his sitting at the right hand of the Father means, we have elsewhere explained, that is, that Christ exercises supreme power everywhere as God’s representative. And an explanation of this is what follows, angels being made subject to him; and he adds powers and authorities only for the sake of amplification, for angels are usually designated by such words. It was then Peter’s object to set forth by these high titles the sovereignty of Christ.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 22 Who is gone into heaven, and is on…
22 Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.
Ver. 22. Angels and authorities] Psa 68:17. The word rendered angels signifieth seconds, as being second to Christ, or next to him. See Dan 10:13.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Who is gone into heaven, and is on the…
Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God: see Rom 8:34; Heb 1:3. This is added as another ground of faith and a good conscience.
Angels and authorities and powers: see Rom 8:38; Eph 1:20,21; Col 1:16; Col 2:10.
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Being made subject unto him; viz. by his Father, to whom this subjecting all things to Christ is elsewhere ascribed, 1Co 15:27; Eph 1:22; Heb 2:8.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
William Burkitt 1703 · Public Domain Our apostle having in the close of the former…
Our apostle having in the close of the former verse, spoken of the resurrection of Christ, and of the benefits which we receive thereby, he makes mention in this verse,
1. Of his going into heaven, there to dispatch all that remained to be done for the completing the salvation of his people.
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2. He is here affirmed to be at God’s right hand. The right hand is the upper hand, the hand of honour; and the right hand is the hand of power; accordingly Christ sitting at God’s right hand, as an enthroned king, imports sovereign honour and supreme power: and that God has exalted his Son Jesus Christ with great triumph to his kingdom in heaven.
3. It is asserted, that angels, authorities, and powers are made subject to him; that is, our Jesus, in whom we hope, believe, and trust, is advanced in heaven to a pre-eminency above, and to a superiority over, all angels and celestial powers, waiting and expecting until all his enemies on earth become his footstool.
For though his victory is yet incomplete and inconsummate, and we see not all things yet put under him, it may suffice at present that we see Jesus crowned with glory and honour, and that’s enough to show that the power of his enemies is broken; and that though they make some opposition still, yet it is to no purpose at all: for refusing to submit to his sceptre, they will fall by the rod of his strength, Angels and principalities in heaven, and all powers and potentates upon earth, being made subject unto him.
William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Angels and authorities and powers - That is, all…
Angels and authorities and powers - That is, all orders both of angels and men.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 22. Who is gone into heaven] Having given…
Verse 22. Who is gone into heaven] Having given the fullest proof of his resurrection from the dead, and of his having accomplished the end for which he came into the world.
On the right hand of God] In the place of the highest dignity, honour, and influence.
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The Vulgate, one copy of the Itala, Augustine, Fulgentius, Cassiodorus, and Bede, have the following remarkable addition after the above words: Deglutiens mortem, ut vitae aeternae haeredes efficeremur. "Having abolished (swallowed down) death, that we might be made heirs of eternal life." But this addition is found in no Greek copy, nor in any other of the ancient versions.
Angels and authorities and powers] That is, all creatures and beings, both in the heavens and in the earth, are put under subjection to Jesus Christ. He has all power in the heavens and in the earth. He alone can save; and he alone can destroy. None need fear who put their trust in him, as he can do whatsoever he will in behalf of his followers, and has good and evil spirits under his absolute command. Well may his enemies tremble, while his friends exult and sing. He can raise the dead, and save to the uttermost all that come unto the Father through him.
If he have all power, if angels and authorities and powers be subject to him, then he can do what he will, and employ whom he will. To raise the dead can be no difficulty to him, because he has power over all things. He created the world; he can destroy it, and he can create it anew. We can conceive nothing too difficult for Omnipotence. This same omnipotent Being is the friend of man. Why then do we not come to him with confidence, and expect the utmost salvation of which our souls and bodies are capable?
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain Who is gone into heaven - See the notes…
Who is gone into heaven - See the notes at Act 1:9.
And is on the right hand of God - See the notes at Mar 16:19.
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Angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him - See the notes at Eph 1:20-21. The reason why the apostle here adverts to the fact that the Lord Jesus is raised up to the right hand of God, and is so honored in heaven, seems to have been to encourage those to whom he wrote to persevere in the service of God, though they were persecuted. The Lord Jesus was in like manner persecuted. He was reviled, and rejected, and put to death. Yet he ultimately triumphed. He was raised from the dead, and was exalted to the highest place of honor in the universe. Even so they, if they did not faint, might hope to come off in the end triumphant. As Noah, who had been faithful and steadfast when surrounded by a scoffing world, was at last preserve by his faith from ruin, and as the Redeemer, though persecuted and put to death, was at last exalted to the right hand of God, so would it be with them if they bore their trials patiently, and did not faint or fail in the persecutions which they endured.
In view of the exposition in 1Pe 3:1-2, we may remark:
(1) That it is our duty to seek the conversion and salvation of our impenitent relatives and friends. All Christians have relatives and friends who are impenitent; it is a rare thing that some of the members of their own families are not so. In most families, even Christian families, there is a husband or a wife, a father or a mother, a son or daughter, a brother or sister, who is not converted. To all such, they who are Christians owe important duties, and there is none more important than that of seeking their conversion. That this is a duty is clearly implied in this passage in reference to a wife, and for the same reason it is a duty in reference to all other persons. It may be further apparent from these considerations:
(a) It is an important part of the business of all Christians to seek the salvation of others. This is clearly the duty of ministers of the gospel; but it is no less the duty of all who profess to be followers of the Saviour, and to take him as their example and guide. Compare Jam 5:19-20.
(b) It is a duty especially devolving on those who have relatives who are unconverted, on account of the advantages which they have for doing it. They are with them constantly; they have their confidence and affection; they can feel more for them than anyone else can; and if they are not concerned for their salvation, they cannot hope that any others will be.
(c) It is not wholly an improper motive to seek their salvation from the happiness which it would confer on those who are already Christians. It is not improper that a wife should be stimulated to desire the conversion of her husband from the increased enjoyment which she would have if her partner in life were united with her in the same hope of heaven, and from the pleasure which it would give to enjoy the privilege of religious worship in the family, and the aid which would be furnished in training up her children in the Lord. A Christian wife and mother has important duties to perform toward her children; it is not improper that in performing those duties she should earnestly desire the cooperation of her partner in life.
(2) Those who have impenitent husbands and friends should be encouraged in seeking their conversion. It is plainly implied 1Pe 3:1-2 that it was not to be regarded as a hopeless thing, but that in all cases they were to regard it as possible that unbelieving husbands might be brought to the knowledge of the truth. If this is true of husbands, it is no less true of other friends. We should never despair of the conversion of a friend as long as life lasts, however far he may be from the path of virtue and piety. The grounds of encouragement are such as these:
(a) You have an influence over them which no other one has; and that influence may be regarded as capital, which will give you great advantages in seeking their conversion.
(b) You have access to them at times when their minds are most open to serious impressions. Every man has times when he may be approached on the subject of religion; when he is pensive and serious; when he is disappointed and sad; when the affairs of this world do not go well with him, and his thoughts are drawn along to a better. There are times in the life of every man when he is ready to open his mind to a friend on the subject of religion, and when he would be glad of a word of friendly counsel and encouragement. It is much to have access to a man at such times.
(c) If all the facts were known which have occurred, there would be no lack of encouragement to labor for the conversion of impenitent relatives and friends. Many a husband owes his salvation to the persevering solicitude and prayers of a wife; many a son will enter heaven because a mother never ceased to pray for his salvation, even when to human view there seemed no hope of it.
(3) We may learn 1Pe 3:1-2 what are the principal means by which we are to hope to secure the conversion and salvation of impenitent friends. It is to be mainly by a pure life; by a holy walk; by a consistent example. Conversation, properly so called, is not to be regarded as excluded from those means, but the main dependence is to be on a holy life. This is to be so, because:
(a) most persons form their notions of religion from what they see in the lives of its professed friends. It is not so much what they hear in the pulpit, because they regard preaching as a mere professional business, by which a man gets a living; not so much by books in defense and explanation of religion, for they seldom or never read them; not by what religion enabled the martyrs to do, for they may have scarcely heard the names of even the most illustrious of the martyrs; but by what they see in the walk and conversation of those who profess to be Christians, especially of those who are their near relations. The husband is forming his views of religion constantly from what he sees on the brow and in the eye of his professedly Christian wife; the brother from what he sees in his sister; the child from what he sees in the parent.
(b) Those who profess to be Christians have an opportunity of showing the power of religion in a way which is superior to any abstract argument. It controls their temper; it makes them kind and gentle; it sustains them in trial; it prompts them to deeds of benevolence; it disposes them to be contented, to be forgiving, to be patient in the reverses of life. Everyone may thus be always doing something to make an impression favorable to religion on the minds of others. Yet it is also true that much may be done, and should be done for the conversion of others, by conversation properly so called, or by direct address and appeal. There is nothing, however, which requires to be managed with more prudence than conversation with those who are not Christians, or direct efforts to lead them to attend to the subject of religion. In regard to this it may be observed:
(a) that it does no good to be always talking with them. Such a course only produces disgust.
(b) It does no good to talk to them at unseasonable and improper times. If they are specially engaged in their business, and would not like to be interrupted - if they are in company with others, or even with their family - it does little good to attempt a conversation with them. It is “the word that fitly spoken that is like apples of gold in pictures of silver,” Pro 25:11.
(c) It does no good to scold them on the subject of religion, with a view to make them Christians. In such a case you show a spirit the very reverse of that religion which you are professedly endeavoring to persuade them to embrace.
(d) All conversation with impenitent sinners should be kind, and tender, and respectful. It should be addressed to them when they will be disposed to listen; usually when they are alone; and especially when from trials or other causes they may be in such a state of mind that they will be willing to listen. It may be added, that impenitent sinners are much more frequently in such a state of mind than most Christians suppose, and that they often wonder that their Christian friends do not speak to them about the salvation of the soul.
From the exposition given of the important 1Pe 3:18-21, we may derive the following inferences:
(1) The pre-existence of Christ. If he preached to the antediluvians in the time of Noah, he must have had an existence at that time.
(2) His divinity. If he was “quickened” or restored to life by his own exalted nature, he must be divine; for there is no more inalienable attribute of the Deity than the power of raising the dead.
(3) If Christ preached to the pagan world in the time of Noah, for the same reason it may be regarded as true that all the messages which are brought to people, calling them to repentance, in any age or country, are through him. Thus, it was Christ who spake by the prophets and by the apostles; and thus he speaks now by his ministers.
(4) If this interpretation is wellfounded, it takes away one of the strongest supports of the doctrine of purgatory. There is no stronger passage of the Bible in support of this doctrine than the one before us; and if this does not countenance it, it may be safely affirmed that it has not a shadow of proof in the sacred Scriptures.
(5) It follows that there is no hope or prospect that the gospel will be preached to those who are lost. This is the only passage in the Bible that could be supposed to teach any such doctrine; and if the interpretation above proposed be correct, this furnishes no ground of belief that if a man dies impenitent he will ever be favored with another offer of mercy. This interpretation also accords with all the other representations in the Bible. “As the tree falleth, so it lies.” “He that is holy, let him be holy still; and he that is filthy, let him be filthy still.” All the representations in the Bible lead us to suppose that the eternal destiny of the soul after death is fixed, and that the only change which can ever occur in the future state is that which will be produced by development: the developement of the principles of piety in heaven; the development of the principles of evil in hell.
(6) It follows, that if there is not a place of purgatory in the future world there is a place of punishment. If the word prison, in the passage before us, does not mean purgatory, and does not refer to a detention with a prospect or possibility of release, it must refer to detention of another kind, and for another purpose, and that can be only with reference “to the judgment of the great day,” 2Pe 2:14; Jud 1:6. From that gloomy prison there is no evidence that any have been, or will be, released.
(7) People should embrace the gospel at once. Now it is offered to them; in the future world it will not be. But even if it could be proved that the gospel would be offered to them in the future world, it would be better to embrace it now. Why should people go down to that world to suffer long before they become reconciled to God? Why choose to taste the sorrows of hell before they embrace the offers of mercy? Why go to that world of woe at all? Are people so in love with suffering and danger that they esteem it wise to go down to that dark prison-house, with the intention or the hope that the gospel may be offered to them there, and that when there they may be disposed to embrace it? Even if it could be shown, therefore, that they might again hear the voice of mercy and salvation, how much wiser would it be to hearken to the voice now, and become reconciled to God here, and never experience in any way the pangs of the second death! But of any such offer of mercy in the world of despair, the Bible contains no intimation; and he who goes to the eternal world unreconciled to God, perishes for ever. The moment when he crosses the line between time and eternity, he goes forever beyond the boundaries of hope.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Jesus now as our Redeemer, and as man, sitteth…
Jesus now as our Redeemer, and as man, sitteth on the right hand of God, (see Mark xvi. 19.; Colossians i.; Hebrews i. 3. &c.) having swallowed up[4] (devoured or destroyed) death; having conquered and triumphed over the devil, sin, and death, that by his grace and his merits we might become heirs of eternal life; and is gone into heaven, Angels, &c. being made subject to him. (Witham)
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[BIBLIOGRAPHY]
These words, found in all Latin copies, and cited by the Latin Fathers, are scarce found in any Greek manuscript and so are omitted in the Protestant translation.
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George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain (Psa 110:1; Rom 8:34, Rom 8:38; Co1 15:24; Eph…
(Psa 110:1; Rom 8:34, Rom 8:38; Co1 15:24; Eph 1:21; Eph 3:10; Col 1:16; Col 2:10-15). The fruit of His patience in His voluntary endured and undeserved sufferings: a pattern to us, Pe1 3:17-18.
gone-- (Luk 24:51). Proving against rationalists an actual material ascension. Literally, "is on the right hand of God, having gone into heaven." The oldest manuscripts of the Vulgate and the Latin Fathers, add what expresses the benefit to us of Christ's sitting on God's right hand, "Who is on the right hand of God, having swallowed up death that we may become heirs of everlasting life"; involving for us A STATE OF LIFE, saved, glorious, and eternal. The Greek manuscripts, however, reject the words. Compare with this verse Peter's speeches, Act 2:32-35; Act 3:21, Act 3:26; Act 10:40, Act 10:42.
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Next: 1 Peter Chapter 4
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 22. Gone into heaven—At his ascension, to take his…
22. Gone into heaven—At his ascension, to take his place as crowned King, to send the Holy Spirit, and to exercise kingly power in bringing men to God.
The right hand—The place of highest honour, to which God exalted him. See notes on Acts 12:55, and Rom_8:34.
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Made subject—To him, the glorified God-man, as supreme Lord. Whether, as Steiger considers, the authorities be reigning authorities, and the powers acting powers, we know not. But see notes on Rom_8:38; Eph_1:21; and Col_2:15.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 22. who is gone into heaven] The parallelism between…
22. who is gone into heaven] The parallelism between the substance of this verse and that of 1Ti_3:16, and of both with the closing clauses of the second section of the Apostles’ Creed, leaves scarcely any room for doubt that we have here a precious fragment of the baptismal profession of faith of the Apostolic Church. The train of thought of the previous verse naturally led on to this. This was what the answer of a good conscience towards God involved. In the union of confession with the mouth and belief in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, in Rom_10:9, we may probably trace a reference to a like formulary. The word for “he is gone” is the same participle as that in 1Pe_3:19 and is important as determining its meaning. If there was a real Ascension into Heaven, there was also a real descent into Hades. St Peter seems to echo the words of St Paul, “Now that he ascended, what is it but that He also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?” (Eph_4:9.)
angels and authorities and powers] Here again the phraseology reminds us of that of the twin Epistles of St Paul (Eph_1:21, Col_1:16). “Authorities” and “powers” are used as comprehensive terms, including the whole hierarchy of heaven, Cherubim, Seraphim and the like; probably also, looking to Col_2:15, Php_2:10, and the manifest sequence of thought from 1Pe_3:19, the powers of evil who had been subdued by the conquering Christ in His descent into Hades.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (22) Who is gone into heaven, and is on…
(22) Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God.—This verse (which partakes of the character of a doxology) serves two purposes. First, it carries on the history of Jesus Christ. How carefully, in spite of what seem at first irrelevant digressions, St. Peter holds his threads. Christ’s passion and death, activity among the dead, resurrection from among them, ascension into heaven, perpetual session in glory, follow one another in due order. The second purpose of the clause runs parallel to the first. St. Peter is teaching the entire conformity of the believer to the Lord. If the believer will but retain his good conscience, he may hope for a precisely similar experience. The Latin and several other good versions, together with several Latin Fathers, add a curious sentence after the words “on the right hand of God,” which runs: swallowing up death, that we might be made heirs of eternal life; but there is no sufficient authority for the sentence. The first notion of being “on the right hand of God,” taken, probably, from Psa_110:1, seems to be that of occupying the highest post of honour possible, next after that of God—i.e., the Father—Himself It is not necessary here to consider what else may be implied in the phrase as to the conditions of our Lord’s human existence; but when we compare St. Paul’s statement, in Eph_4:10, about His now “filling all things,” we feel that these pictorial words, such as “heaven” and “right hand of God,” are intended to convey the notion that His humanity is now entirely without conditions, though still retaining all that is truly essential to humanity. It may be observed that, assuming (as even most sceptical critics do) the genuineness of this Epistle, we have here at first hand the deliberate evidence of one who had been perfectly familiar with Jesus Christ as man with man. By what stretch of imagination can we suppose that such a person could ever have invented, or have accepted from others this mode of speaking about his former Teacher, had he not been conscious of the resurrection and ascension of Jesus as simply historical facts, of the same order as the fact of His death?
Angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.—There can be no doubt that this whole verse is coloured by recollection of the circular letter which St. Paul had sent to the Churches of Asia, which we call the Epistle to the Ephesians. Perhaps the heresy which St. Paul lamented in that Epistle may still have lingered in existence, in cabalistic Jewish circles, among those same Churches when St. Peter thus wrote to them. He may, for the moment, be glancing away from his faint-hearted Hebrew brethren, who, in fear of persecution, were slinking back into Judaism, and turning rather to those Gnosticising Jews who began to abound in Asia, who made “genealogies” of æons, and gave Christ a place among them. In favour of such an opinion one might appeal to the vivid picture of licentiousness in the next chapter, and the development of the same, manifestly under Gnostic influence, in the Second Epistle and in the Apocalypse. From the expression “being made subject,” or, literally, having been subdued (or, subjected) “we may infer that St. Peter meant evil spirits, this being a crowning triumph of Christ, and not only a mark of His exaltation. We need not think that St. Peter, any more than St. Paul, is distinctly teaching that there are such grades of spiritual beings; he is probably only borrowing the titles from the heretics glanced at, and saying that, whatever unseen powers there are, whatever they may be called, they are now cubdued to Christ.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Who is gone into heaven. The word here rendered…
Who is gone into heaven. The word here rendered "gone" is that used in ver. 19, "he went and preached (poreuqeiv)" (comp. Eph_4:9, "Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? And is on the right hand of God. (comp. Psa_110:1; Rom_8:34; Colossians Eph_1:20 Heb_1:3) It is better to suffer for well-doing than for evil-doing, for he who is the signal Example, who suffered, the Just for the unjust, is now exalted to the right hand of the Majesty on high; and "is able to save them to the uttermost that come to God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them." Angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him. God "hath set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come." All the angels of God, in the various grades of the heavenly hierarchy, are made subject to Christ. The words seem to include, especially when read in comparison with Col_2:15, the evil angels also; they are made subject against their will to Christ; they asked him once if he was come to torment them before the time. He can restrain their malice and save his people from their power.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson 1891 · Public Domain 22. Who is on the right hand of God.…
22. Who is on the right hand of God. Christ's exaltation followed his death and resurrection. See Eph. 1:20–23.
B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain (See Scofield "Heb 1:4").
angels
(See Scofield "Heb 1:4").
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 3:22 all the angels and authorities and powers accept…
3:22 all the angels and authorities and powers accept his authority: In the ancient world, spiritual beings were widely believed to directly affect the course of affairs on earth. Christians needed to be reminded that Christ has already won his victory over these spiritual powers. It means that we don’t need to fear even the spiritual realm (cp. 3:14).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.