Grace to you and peace be multiplied in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord,
Parallel Translations
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Grace to you and peace be multiplied in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord,
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Grace with you and peace be multiplied in the knowledge of God and of Iesus oure Lorde.
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Grace and peace be multiplied to you, through the acknowledging of God, and of Iesus our Lord,
Cross-references (17)
Passages linked to 2 Peter 1:2 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- 2 Peter 3:18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.
- John 17:3 This is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and him whom you sent, Jesus Christ.
- Philippians 3:8 Yes most certainly, and I count all things to be a loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord, for whom I suffered the loss of all things, and count them nothing but refuse, that I may gain Christ
- 1 Peter 1:2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, that you may obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with his blood: Grace to you and peace be multiplied.
- Numbers 6:24-26 ‘Yahweh bless you, and keep you. Yahweh make his face to shine on you, and be gracious to you. Yahweh lift up his face toward you, and give you peace.’
- Isaiah 53:11 After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light and be satisfied. My righteous servant will justify many by the knowledge of himself; and he will bear their iniquities.
- Jude 1:2 Mercy to you and peace and love be multiplied.
- Romans 1:7 to all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
- Daniel 4:1 Nebuchadnezzar the king, to all the peoples, nations, and languages, who dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied to you.
- Luke 10:22 Turning to the disciples, he said, “All things have been delivered to me by my Father. No one knows who the Son is, except the Father, and who the Father is, except the Son, and he to whomever the Son desires to reveal him.”
- 2 Corinthians 4:6 seeing it is God who said, “Light will shine out of darkness,” who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
- 1 John 5:20-21 We know that the Son of God has come, and has given us an understanding, that we know him who is true, and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. Little children, keep yourselves from idols.
- 2 Peter 1:3 seeing that his divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and virtue,
- 2 Peter 1:8 For if these things are yours and abound, they make you to not be idle or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
- 2 Peter 2:20 For if, after they have escaped the defilement of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in it and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first.
- Revelation 1:4 John, to the seven assemblies that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from God, who is and who was and who is to come; and from the seven Spirits who are before his throne;
- Daniel 6:25 Then king Darius wrote to all the peoples, nations, and languages, who dwell in all the earth: “Peace be multiplied to you.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (17 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 2. Grace and peace. By grace is designated God’s…
2. Grace and peace. By grace is designated God’s paternal favor towards us. We have indeed been once for all reconciled to God by the death of Christ, and by faith we come to the possession of this so great a benefit; but as we perceive the grace of God according to the measure of our faith, it is said to increase according to our perception when it becomes more fully known to us.
Peace is added; for as the beginning of our happiness is when God receives us into favor; so the more he confirms his love in our hearts, the richer blessing he confers on us, so that we become happy and prosperous in all things,
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Through the knowledge, literally, in the knowledge; but the preposition ἐν often means “through” or “with:” yet both senses may suit the context. I am, however, more disposed to adopt the former. For the more any one advances in the knowledge of God, every kind of blessing increases also equally with the sense of divine love. Whosoever then aspires to the full fruition of the blessed life which is mentioned by Peter, must remember to observe the right way. He connects together at the same time the knowledge of God and of Christ; because God cannot be rightly known except in Christ, according to that saying,
“No one knoweth the Father but the Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal him.” (Matthew 11:27)
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.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Faith is the acknowledging of God and Christ, from…
Faith is the acknowledging of God and Christ, from whence all our blessedness issueth and showed.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 2 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through…
2 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,
Ver. 2. Through the knowledge] There is not a new notion, or a further enlargement of saving knowledge, but it brings some grace and peace with it. All the grace that a man hath, it passeth through the understanding; and the difference of stature in Christianity grows from different degrees of knowledge. "Grace and truth came by Jesus Christ," Joh 1:17.
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 Through the knowledge of God; or acknowledgment, i.e. faith,…
Through the knowledge of God; or acknowledgment, i.e. faith, whereby we are made partakers of all the saving graces of the Spirit; and whereby being justified, we are at peace with God, Rom 5:1.
And of Jesus our Lord; there being no saving knowledge of God, or faith in him, but by Christ.
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 The person saluting, and the parties saluted, were mentioned…
The person saluting, and the parties saluted, were mentioned in the former verse; here we have the salutation itself, 1. The matter of it, Grace and peace; grace to free us from God’s wrath, and reinstate us in his favour; peace to quiet our own consciences, and reconcile us to ourselves.
Observe,2. The measure of it, grace and peace be multiplied; they had both grace and peace already, yet the apostle prays for the farther increase of them; there is no complete perfection in grace attainable in this life. The best of saints must be multiplying and increasing their stores; for they are but imperfectly perfect, when at the best.
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Observe, 3. The means for multiplying grace and peace, through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Learn, That the knowledge of God, in, by, and through our Lord Jesus Christ, is the special mean of multiplying grace and peace in our hearts; and indeed there is no comfortable knowledge of God, but in and through Christ, This is life eternal , &c Joh 17:3. Out of Christ God is a revenger, in Christ a reconciled Father.
William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain Grace and peace be multiplied unto you,.... By a…
Grace and peace be multiplied unto you,.... By a multiplication of grace may be meant a larger discovery of the love and favour of God; which though it admits of no degrees in itself, being never more or less in God's heart, yet, as to the manifestations of it, it is different, and capable of being increased, and drawn out to a greater length; or else an increase of the internal graces of the Spirit of God, as to the actings and exercise of them; or a larger measure of the gifts of the Spirit, for greater usefulness among them; or a clearer view, and a more enlarged knowledge of the Gospel of the grace of God, and the truths of it; and indeed, the word grace may take in all these senses: and by a multiplication of peace, which the apostle in this salutation also wishes for, may be designed an affluence of all kind of prosperity, temporal, and spiritual, external and internal; and more especially an increase of spiritual peace, a fulness of joy and peace in believing, arising from a sense of free justification by Christ's righteousness, and full pardon and atonement by his blood and sacrifice:
through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord; which is to be understood, not of a natural, but of a spiritual and evangelical knowledge; of a knowledge of God, not as the God of nature and providence, but as the God of all grace, as in Christ, and a covenant God in him, and of the person, offices, and grace of Christ; and which designs true faith in him, by which means larger discoveries of the grace of God are made, and a greater enjoyment of spiritual peace is had: or it may be rendered, "with the knowledge of God", &c. and the sense then is, that the apostle prays, as for a multiplication of grace and peace, so along with it, an increase of spiritual and evangelical knowledge; which in the best is imperfect, but may be increased by the blessing of God on those means which he has appointed for that end, such as the word and ordinances. The Syriac version renders this clause, "through the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ", leaving out the word "God", and the copulative "and", and adding the word "Christ"; and the Ethiopic version reads, "in the knowledge of our God, Christ Jesus our Lord", without any distinction. After the inscription and salutation begins the epistle, with an account of various special favours bestowed upon these persons; and are mentioned by the apostle to encourage his faith and theirs, in expectation of enjoying what he here wishes unto them, since already such great and good things had been bestowed upon them.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Through the divine, experimental knowledge of God and of…
Through the divine, experimental knowledge of God and of Christ.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 2. Grace] God's favour; peace-the effects of that…
Verse 2. Grace] God's favour; peace-the effects of that favour in the communication of spiritual and temporal blessings.
Through the knowledge of God] ενεπιγνωσει. By the acknowledging of God, and of Jesus our Lord. For those who acknowledge him in all their ways, he will direct their steps. Those who know Christ; and do not acknowledge him before men, can get no multiplication of grace and peace.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the…
Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord - That is, grace and peace abound to us, or may be expected to be conferred on us abundantly, if we have a true knowledge of God and of the Saviour. Such a knowledge constitutes true religion: for in that we find “grace” - the grace that pardons and sanctifies; and “peace” - peace of conscience, reconciliation with God, and calmness in the trials of life. See the notes at Joh 17:3.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain Grace . . . peace-- (Pe1 1:2).
Grace . . . peace-- (Pe1 1:2).
through--Greek, "in": the sphere IN which alone grace and peace can be multiplied.
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knowledge--Greek, "full knowledge."
of God, and of Jesus our Lord--The Father is here meant by "God," but the Son in Pe2 1:1 : marking how entirely one the Father and Son are (Joh 14:7-11). The Vulgate omits "of God and"; but oldest manuscripts support the words. Still the prominent object of Peter's exhortation is "the knowledge of Jesus our Lord" (a phrase only in Rom 4:24), and, only secondarily, of the Father through Him (Pe2 1:8; Pe2 2:20; Pe2 3:18).
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 2. Grace—In which the believer lives.
2. Grace—In which the believer lives.
Peace—Its fruit.
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Be multiplied— With this prayer for increase agrees the final exhortation to growth, in chap. 2Pe_3:18.
Through the knowledge—’Επιγνωσις, knowledge upon, full knowledge; the keynote of the epistle. It occurs, also, in 2Pe_1:3; 2Pe_1:8, and 2Pe_2:20.
Of God—The Father, who is truly known only as revealed in the Son.
Of Jesus our Lord—The Saviour, who is also supreme Lord. This unusual expression, found only here and in Rom_4:24, lifts the standard against the deniers of 2Pe_2:1. This knowledge is both doctrinal and experimental. It lies at the foundation of all true religion, and is the element in which all grace and peace begin and grow. Moreover, increase of the knowledge is the indispensable condition of increase in the grace.
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 2. Grace and peace be multiplied unto you] Here…
2. Grace and peace be multiplied unto you] Here the writer falls into the phraseology of the First Epistle (see note on 1Pe_1:2), but adds to the simple benediction the words “through (better in) the knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord.” The word for “knowledge” (epignosis) hovers between the meaning of “complete knowledge” and the recognition which implies love. It does not occur in the First Epistle. In St Paul’s Epistles it meets us first in Rom_1:28; Rom_3:20, and occurs more or less frequently in most of the subsequent Epistles. In 1Co_13:8; 1Co_13:12 the verb from which it is formed is contrasted with the less perfect knowledge expressed by gnosis. Looking to the history of the words, it would seem probable that in proportion as rash and self-asserting teaching boasted of the higher gnosis, the “science, falsely so called,” of 1Ti_6:20, which afterwards developed into the heresies of the Gnostic sect, the true teachers set up the other word as expressing something nobler and more excellent. “Not gnosis,” they seem to say, “but epignosis, not an abstract speculative knowledge, but that which implies a fulness of contemplation, loving as well as knowing.” St Peter’s use of the word in this Epistle, obviously written after closer contact with false teachers of this kind than is traceable in the First, admits, probably, of this explanation.
Jesus our Lord] The peculiar construction, as distinct from “Christ Jesus” and “the Lord Jesus,” occurs elsewhere only in Rom_4:24.
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 (2) Grace and peace be multiplied unto you.—Identical with…
(2) Grace and peace be multiplied unto you.—Identical with the last clause of 1Pe_1:2, and with no other greeting in any Epistle. What follows here is peculiar to this Epistle, which begins and ends with grace and knowledge. (Comp. 2Pe_3:18.)
Through the knowledge.—Better, as before, in. The preposition indicates the sphere or element in which the action takes place, or the aspect in which it is contemplated. Tyndale and the Rhemish version have “in.”“ Knowledge” is not quite strong enough. In the original we have a compound word, which implies fuller, riper, more minute knowledge. But any of these expressions would be a little too strong, as the simple word is a little too weak. The same compound recurs 2Pe_1:3. It is rare in St. Paul’s earlier letters, but is more common in the later ones. This fact, coupled with its appearance here, agrees well with the more contemplative aspect in which the Gospel began gradually to be presented; a change which finds its fullest expression in the transition from the first three Gospels to the fourth. The word is introduced here with telling emphasis; “in the fuller knowledge of God” anticipates the attack that is coming upon the godless speculations of the “false teachers” in 2 Peter 2.
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And of Jesus our Lord.—Deliberately added. These false teachers “denied the Lord that bought them” (2Pe_2:1), and promised all kinds of high-sounding benefits to their followers (2Pe_2:18). The Apostle assures his readers that only in fuller knowledge of their Lord can grace and peace be multiplied to them. The combination “Jesus our Lord” is unusual; elsewhere only Rom_4:24. Another small indication of independence (see first Note). There should be a fullstop at “Lord;” so Tyndale, Cranmer, and Geneva.
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 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you. The order…
Grace and peace be multiplied unto you. The order of the words in the Greek is the same as ingnwsiv) 1Pe_1:2. The exact correspondence should be noticed. The writer of the Second Epistle, if not St. Peter himself, must have been attempting to imitate of set purpose the opening salutation of the First Epistle. Through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord; rather, in the knowledge. The knowledge of God is the sphere in which grace and peace are communicated to the soul; they cannot be found outside that sphere. "Full knowledge" (ejpi) may be regarded as the key-note of this Epistle, as "hope" is of the first. jEpignwsiv is a stronger word than gnwsiv; it means "knowledge" directed towards an object, gradually approaching nearer and nearer to it, concentrated upon it, fixed closely upon it. So it comes to mean the knowledge, not merely of intellectual apprehension, but rather of deep contemplation; the knowledge which implies love for only love can concentrate continually the powers of the soul in close meditation upon its object.
Comp. 1Co 13, where, after saying in verse 8 that "knowledge (gnwsiv) shall be done away," St. Paul continues, in verse 12, "Now I know (ginwskw) in part, but then I shall know (ejpignwsomai) even as also I am known (ejpegnwsqhn)." He contrasts our present imperfect knowledge with the full knowledge which the blessed will have in heaven, and which God now has of us, using the verb ejpiginwdkw of that fuller knowledge, as he had used gnwsiv of the imperfect knowledge. The word ejpignwsiv occurs several times in the Gospels, and is common in St. Paul"s Epistles; it seems to imply a sort of protest against the knowledge that "puffeth up", (1Co_8:1) and especially against the knowledge "falsely so called", (1Ti_6:20) which was claimed by the false teachers, who were the precursors of the coming Gnosticism. (Col_1:9, 10 2:2 3:10) St. Peter had learned mere of the doings of these false teachers since he wrote the First Epistle, and this may perhaps be a reason for his frequent use of the word ejpignwsiv in the second. "Jesus our Lord" is a variation of the more common form, such as "the Lord Jesus;" it occurs only here and in Rom_4:24.
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HOMILIES BY C. NEW
Vers. 2, 3.
Increase of spiritual life dependent on the knowledge of God.
Our text strikes the key-note of the Epistle the need of watchfulness against error. Scripture demands a clear knowledge of revealed truth. On this the maintenance of spiritual life depends; to swerve from Divine truth is to suffer spiritual loss.
I A GREAT INCREASE OF SPIRITUAL BLESSING IS POSSIBLE TO THE BELIEVER. "Grace and peace" we may take as including all spiritual good. Grace is God"s part therein; peace is man"s. God"s attitude towards us is grace; our attitude towards him, for that is the end of righteousness, is to be peace. Between these two lies all that pertains to life and godliness. And the apostle says this may be multiplied to the Christian.
1. Because of the great capacity of his nature. The life imparted in regeneration has almost unlimited possibilities; it is Heaven"s germ, from which will be developed the pure and perfect spirit which will gaze on the face of God, and reflect his glory. The believer is joint-heir with Christ; where Christ is, he is to be. Heaven will be a constant advance into the character of God; that is the capacity of spiritual life in the soul, "filled with all the fullness of God.
2. Because God has already given us all things that pertain to life and godliness. The power which God is prepared to manifest towards his people is equal to that which raised Christ from the helplessness of the grave to the supreme dominion of the universe. And in what way, but in giving us all things that pertain to life and godliness? Who can enumerate what is included in that "all things"? We do not always realize that with Christ God has already "freely given us all things." True, he holds them still, but it is on our behalf.
3. Because what we receive is through the Divine glory and virtue. In the Revised Version the third verse reads thus: "He hath called us by his own glory and virtue;" and that is the ground of our hopes, and triumphs over our sense of ill desert. God"s glory is his mercy, and it is set free to exercise itself by Christ in the atonement; and he finds there the reason why he should enrich us.
II THIS INCREASE OF BLESSING DEPENDS ON THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD. God does not give us mature spiritual blessings, but rather supplies us with the means of acquiring them. When we can do anything to secure the answer to our prayers, God gives the answer by blessing our own efforts, and, apart from the effort, the answer does not come. He will not give spiritual enrichment to spiritual inaction. In answer to our prayers for grace and peace to be multiplied, God shows us how we may have it.
1. The means of spiritual increase is the knowledge of himself. Scripture invariably makes spiritual good to rest on the knowledge of God. For instance: Security have escaped the corruptions of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ." Peace now thyself with him, and be at peace." Strength people that do know their God shall be strong." Obedience we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments." Love that loveth not knoweth not God, for God is Love." Our Lord Jesus Christ sums it up in one sentence, "This is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent? But there is a difference between knowing about God, and knowing God, and the difference is vital; the one knowledge is fruitful, the other barren. There is a natural connection between the increase of knowledge and the increase of grace.
2. Knowledge quickens desire. We cannot know God without longing to possess more of him and of what he has to give; and that longing means prayer for more, which will be answered, and effort for more, which will be successful.
3. Knowledge increases faith. Faith being the hand by which we appropriate and so possess. Why do we not take God as our own, with a confidence nothing can shake? To a great extent because we do not know him how real he is, how vast his love, how infinitely trustworthy his nature. If we only knew more of him, we should hold him in the embrace of a strong, restful assurance.
4. Knowledge tends to participation. Personal acquaintance with God must have incalculable results. We should have a new power constraining us to righteousness. The grace and peace of his own nature would reflect themselves in us.
III THIS INCREASE OF KNOWLEDGE SHOULD BE THE BELIEVER"S AIM. The difference in spiritual stature comes from different degrees of spiritual knowledge: then how can we know God better?
1. Greater knowledge is granted as the result of obedience. Unless God reveal himself, we cannot know him; and he reveals himself to him who lives in his fear. Sin blinds and deafens us; to do wrong is to put ourselves further from the knowledge of God; to do right is to thin the veil that hides him from us. If you would know him, obey him.
2. Greater knowledge is granted as the fruit of study and fellowship. It is only in face-to-face communion with God, such as is possible through the teaching of his Word, that we can really know him; therein he speaks to us, and in prayer we speak to him.
3. Greater knowledge is granted as the end of Divine discipline. That we may know him is the object of many of our sorrows. Sickness is often God shutting the busy soul up to himself. Trouble is often God showing us how tender a Father he is. Darkness is often God compelling us to look up
Darkness revealing worlds of light We never saw by day.
Presently the need of discipline will be ended, and from knowing God in part, we shall enter into his presence. C.N.
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 2. Grace and peace. The usual apostolic benediction. These…
2. Grace and peace. The usual apostolic benediction. These come through the knowledge, etc. Those who have learned to know God and his Son have eternal life (John 17:3). This knowledge is one that comes from fellowship with Christ.
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.
William B. Godbey 1900 · Public Domain 2. “Grace and peace be multiplied unto you in…
2. “Grace and peace be multiplied unto you in the perfect knowledge of Jesus our Lord.” This beautiful verse contains the paradoxical problem of spiritual mathematics. Conversion is addition; sanctification, subtraction; the filling of the Holy Ghost, multiplication; and soul-saving benefaction, division. We do not teach four works of grace in salvation, but only two, as in arithmetic. Multiplication is but a rapid form of addition, while division is simply a wonderfully expeditious method of subtraction. No teacher is tolerated in the public schools who does not understand the elementary rules. Well did Jesus say, “The children of this world are wiser in their generation than the children of light.” How deplorable to find teachers everywhere in the school of Christ, i.e., the churches, who have never so much as reached subtraction, i.e., sanctification, to say nothing of multiplication and division. Good Lord, have mercy.
William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain Grace (imparted). Rom 6:1; 2Pe 3:18
grace
Grace (imparted). Rom 6:1; 2Pe 3:18
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.