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But he denied it, saying, “I neither know, nor understand what you are saying.” He went out on the porch, and the rooster crowed.
The maid saw him, and began again to tell those who stood by, “This is one of them.” But he again denied it. After a little while again those who stood by said to Peter, “You truly are one of them, for you are a Galilean, and your speech shows it.” But he began to curse, and to swear, “I don’t know this man of whom you speak!”
Mark 14:68-71 sits inside this longer paragraph.
But he denied it, saying, “I neither know, nor understand what you are saying.” He went out on the porch, and the rooster crowed.
The maid saw him, and began again to tell those who stood by, “This is one of them.” But he again denied it. After a little while again those who stood by said to Peter, “You truly are one of them, for you are a Galilean, and your speech shows it.” But he began to curse, and to swear, “I don’t know this man of whom you speak!” The rooster crowed the second time. Peter remembered the word, how that Jesus said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny me three times.” When he thought about that, he wept.
But he denied it, saying, “I neither know, nor understand what you are saying.” He went out on the porch, and the rooster crowed.
The maid saw him, and began again to tell those who stood by, “This is one of them.”
But he again denied it. After a little while again those who stood by said to Peter, “You truly are one of them, for you are a Galilean, and your speech shows it.”
But he began to curse, and to swear, “I don’t know this man of whom you speak!”
And he denyed it sayinge: I knowe him not nether wot I what thou sayest. And he went out into the poorche and the cocke crewe.
And a damsell sawe him and agayne beganne to saye to the that stode by this is one of them.
And he denyed it agayne. And anone after they that stode by sayde agayne to Peter: suerly thou arte one of the for thou arte of Galile and thy speache agreth therto.
And he beganne to cursse and to sweare sayinge: I knowe not this man of whom ye speake.
But he denied it, saying, I knowe him not, neither wot I what thou saiest. Then he went out into the porche, and the cocke crewe.
Then a maid sawe him againe, and bega to say to them that stood by, This is one of them.
But hee denied it againe: and anon after, they that stoode by, sayde againe to Peter, Surely thou art one of them: for thou art of Galile, and thy speach is like.
And he began to curse, and sweare, saying, I knowe not this man of whom ye speake.
Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On v69 If we compare the Evangelists diligently together, we shall…
If we compare the Evangelists diligently together, we shall perceive that Peter was known of many through the maiden’s report: yea, and in Luke, when the second denial is spoken of, there is a manservant mentioned, and not a maid.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv68, 71 67 And when she saw Peter warming himself, she…
67 And when she saw Peter warming himself, she looked upon him, and said, And thou also wast with Jesus of Nazareth.
68 But he denied, saying, I know not, neither understand I what thou sayest. And he went out into the porch; and the cock crew.
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Ver. 68. He went out] Thinking to steal away, and here he heard the cock, but recanted not.
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.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On v68 And the second time the cock crew,.... Immediately, as…
And the second time the cock crew,.... Immediately, as soon as he had so said and swore, as the Vulgate Latin, Syriac, and Ethiopic versions read, and as it is read in one of Beza's copies; which was about three of the clock in the morning, and is what is properly called the cock crowing:
and Peter called to mind; upon hearing the cock crow a second time,
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the word that Jesus said unto him, before the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny me thrice: as he now had done twice, to the maid or maids, and a third time to the servants that stood by the fire along with him:
and when he thought thereon; on the words of Christ, and on his sin in denying him, and on the aggravated circumstances of it. The Arabic version renders it, "he turned himself to weep"; he turned away from the company, he threw himself out of it, and got out of doors as fast as he could, and broke out into a violent fit of weeping. The Syriac, Persic, and Vulgate Latin versions, render it, "he began to weep"; this phrase is omitted in the Ethiopic version: some choose to render it, "he looked upon him", that is, on Christ: as Christ looked upon him; which produced true evangelical repentance in him, so Peter looked upon his dear Lord with concern, whom he so had shamefully denied; he looked upon him and mourned, he looked upon him with an eye of faith, and sorrowed for his sin after a godly sort: but the true sense of the word is, "he covered himself"; he cast his garment over his head, he veiled himself as mourners did, who covered their heads, and their faces, and even their lips. So Maimonides (o);
"from whence, says he, is uncovering the head, forbidden a mourner? For, lo! it is said to Eze 24:17, "cover not thy lips" at all, for the rest of mourners are obliged to the covering of the head; the linen cloth, or veil, with which he covers his head, he covers with a part of it, a little over his mouth; as it is said, Lev 13:45, "He shall put a covering upon his upper lip": and Onkelos paraphrases it, , "as a mourner he shall cover himself".''
And so it is said of Haman (p),
"that he went to his house, and mourned for his daughter, , "and put a covering on his head as a mourner": for his daughter, and for his reproach.''
And this, it seems, was the custom of the Ishmaelites: hence that saying (q),
"all veiling (in mourning) which is not as the veiling of the Ishmaelites (who cover all the face), is no veiling?''
And thus Peter, through shame, and as a token of sorrow and mourning for his sin, threw his garment over him:
and he wept; as Matthew says, "bitterly": being fully convinced of his sin, and heartily sorry lot it; See Gill on Mat 26:75.
(o) Hilch. Ebel, c. 5. sect. 19. (p) Targum in Esther vi. 12. Vid. Targum in Mic. iii. 7. (q) T. Bab. Moed. Katon, fol. 24. 1.
Next: Mark Chapter 15
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On v71 In this one apostle, Peter, the first and chief…
In this one apostle, Peter, the first and chief in the order of apostles, in whom the Church was figured, both sorts were to be signified, viz. the strong and the weak, because the Church is not without both. (St. Augustine, Serm. xiii. de verb. Do.) --- Again, our Saviour would shew by the example of the chief apostle, that no man ought to presume of himself, when even St. Peter was not secure and immoveable. (St. Augustine, tract. lxvi. in Evan. Joan. and St. Leo, serm. ix. de Pass. Do.)
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).
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On v70 PETER’S DENIAL OF CHRIST, Mar_14:66-72.
PETER’S DENIAL OF CHRIST, Mar_14:66-72.
70. A Galilean, and thy speech agreeth thereto — The broad Galilean brogue was the jest of the more refined speakers of Jerusalem. As many of the Hebrew words resemble each other, with but a slight difference, a Galilean would frequently by his provincial mispronunciation produce an unintended meaning. Many anecdotes are in the Rabbins of these double meanings, as amusing as occur in English of the wrong use or disuse of the initial H.
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 On vv68–71 68. but he denied] Thrown off his guard and…
68. but he denied] Thrown off his guard and perhaps disconcerted by the searching glances of the bystanders, Peter replied at first evasively, that he neither knew nor understood what she meant. See Lange, Life, iv. p. 316. Others think it means, “I know Him not, neither understand I what thou sayest.”
into the porch] Anxious probably for a favourable opportunity of retiring altogether, the Apostle now moved towards the darkness of the porch. Here the second denial took place (Mat_26:71-72), and for the first time a cock crew.
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 On vv68–70 (68) And he went out into the porch.—The noun…
(68) And he went out into the porch.—The noun is not the same as that used by St. Matthew, but signifies literally “the space before the palace,” i.e., the vestibule. Substantially, of course, it comes to much the same meaning.
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 On vv68, 70 But he denied, saying, I neither know, nor understand…
But he denied, saying, I neither know, nor understand what thou sayest. "This shows the great terror of Peter," says St. Chrysostom, "who, intimidated by the question of a poor servant-girl, denied his Lord; and who yet afterwards, when he had received the Holy Spirit, could say, "We ought to obey God rather than man. I neither know, nor understand what thou sayest. Every word here is emphatic. It amounts to this: "So little do I know who this Jesus is, that I know not what you say or what you ask concerning him. I know not who or what he is or anything about him. A question has been raised as to the number of times that Peter denied our Lord. The narratives are best explained by the consideration that all the denials took place in the house of Caiaphas. Furthermore, the accounts of the evangelists may be reconciled thus: First, Peter denied the Lord in the court of the high priest, when he was first asked by the maidservant, as he sat over the fire; (Mat_24:6-9) secondly, he denied him with an oath; thirdly, when urged still more, he denied him with many oaths and execrations. The cock crew the first time after the first denial, when we read (Mat_26:71) that he went out into the porch (proaulion). This crowing would be about one or two in the morning. The second crowing would not be until five or six. This shows us the length of time that the proceedings lasted. It was doubtless as Jesus through the court that he gave Peter that look of unutterable pain and grief which moved him at once to repentance.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On v68 Mar_14:68; Mar_14:72
Mar_14:68; Mar_14:72
But he denied.
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The foulness of Peters sin
1. He denies flatly and peremptorily.
2. He gives a double denial; implying more resolution. And both his denials are distinct and manifest lies.
3. He denies Christ before a multitude.
(1) Bad enough to have denied Christ before one witness. How much worse before so many?
(2) He who denies Christ before any man, shall be denied by Him before the Father. What a great sin to deny Him before all men!
(3) In so great a company were a number of wicked men, and now Peter exposes the name of Christ to all their scorn and opprobrium. He animates and hardens them, and takes part with them in the rejection of Christ.
(4) There were also some weak ones and well-wishes to Christ. Peters action weakens and scandalizes these, and perhaps prevents some of them coming forward in defence of the Lord. (Dr. Thomas Taylor.)
It is hard to confess Christ in danger
1. Because of Satans malice. He will do all in his power to keep men from confessing Christ openly, and to make them deny Him.
2. The strength of our natural corruption makes it difficult to resist Satans attacks.
3. Weakness of faith and graces.
(1) Think it not an easy thing to confess Christ in trial, nor a thing to be performed by our own power; but pray for the Spirit of strength.
(2) Pray for wisdom when and how to confess.
(3) Pray for faith. (Dr. Thomas Taylor.)
The porch of sin
Many step out of the midst of sin but hang about the porch. They would not be outrageous sinners, but retain a snatch or taste; not open adulterers, but adulterous eyes, thoughts, and speeches; not noted drunkards, but company keepers and bibbers; not blasphemous swearers by wounds and bloods, but by faith, troth, God, etc. All this is to remain in the porch of sin. (Dr. Thomas Taylor.)
Difficult to quit bad company
In that Peter sticks in the porch, and comes back among those whom he had forsaken, learn how difficult it is for a man who has been long used to bad company and courses, to be brought to leave it altogether. He will either look back, or else tarry in the porch. Sin and sinners are like bird lime. The more Peter strives to get out, the more he finds himself limed and entangled. (Dr. Thomas Taylor.)
Why God did not prevent Peters fall
1. He would give us and the whole Church an example of infirmity and weakness, by the fall of such a man.
2. The strongest must learn fear and watchfulness, and while they stand take heed lest they fall, lest the enemy suddenly overcome them as he did Peter.
3. To crush mens presumption, and teach them to attribute more to the word of Christ than their own strength. Had Peter done this, he had not so shamefully fallen.
4. To take away all excuse for men in after ages setting up Peter as an idol. (Dr. Thomas Taylor.)
To avoid sin, avoid occasions
He that would avoid sin must carefully avoid occasions, which are the stronger because of our own natural inclination to evil. He that would not be burnt must not touch fire, or go upon the coals. Beware of evil company. Consider thine own weakness, and the power of evil to seduce. (Dr. Thomas Taylor.)
To avoid sin, keep close to Gods Word
He that would avoid occasion of sin, must hold himself to Gods commandment, and within the limits of his own calling. If Peter had done this, he had not fallen so foully. Christ having expressed His will and pleasure, he should not have so much as deliberated upon it, much less resolved against it. But he forgets the word and commandment of Christ, and so falls into sin. (Dr. Thomas Taylor.)
How we are to show love to a friend
Here is a notable rule to be observed in friendships. Examine the love thou showest to thy friend, by the love of God.
1. Take heed thy love be subordinate to the love of God; so that, if thou canst not please both, thou please not thy friend at the cost of Gods displeasure (Mat_10:37). Peter should first have loved Christ as his Lord, and then as his friend. Had he so done, he would have kept His word.
2. Love the Word better than thy friend. Peter should have stuck to Christs road, instead of His person.
3. See thy love to thy friend be not preposterous, that thy affection destroy him not. The subtlety of Satan creeps into our friendships and fellowships, so that by our improvidence, instead of helping, we hurt them more than their enemies could do. We must pray for wisdom and judgment, that neither willingly nor unawares we either council or lead them into any sin, or uphold any sin in them, or hinder in them any good. (Dr. Thomas Taylor.)
The corrupting influence of bad company
See how soon even Gods children are corrupted with wicked company. Even Peter, a great and forward disciple of Christ, full of zeal and courage, who will pray, profess, and immediately before draw the sword in Christs quarrel, now can deny Him among persecutors. Great is the force of wicked company to pervert even a godly mind.
1. There is a proneness in godly men to be withdrawn by evil company. As the body is infected by pestilential air, so the mind by the contagion of bad company.
2. There is a bewitching force in evil company to draw even a good mind beyond his own purpose and resolution. (Dr. Thomas Taylor.)
Reasons for avoiding evil company
1. There cannot be true fellowship with God and His enemies too.
2. Every mans company tells what he is. Ravens flock together by companies; and so do doves. The good man will not willingly stand in the way of sinners.
3. The practice of wicked men should make good men shun their company; for wherein are their sports and delights, but in things which displease God and grieve His Spirit, and the spirits of all who love God and His glory? What can a good man see in such company, but must either infect him, or at least offend him in almost everything? (Dr. Thomas Taylor.)
Godly company the best
It seems very sweet to sit warm among wicked men, to eat and drink and be jovial with them; but there is a bitter sauce for such meats. On the contrary, in company of godly men thou art under the shadow of Gods mercy for their sakes. God loves His children and their friends. For Lots sake His family was saved. (Dr. Thomas Taylor.)
The fall of Peter
A great study in human nature is here presented.
I. The origin of Peters fall. Do not overlook-
1. The quarrel in Peters heart with Christs methods. Christs plan was to conquer by suffering; Peters to conquer by resisting. This inward divergence produced the outward separation. Beware of quarrelling with Gods dealings, or methods, or demands; the most common of all sources of backsliding.
2. Peters pride helped his fall.
II. The process of Peters fall.
1. Following Christ afar off (Luk_22:54)-half-heartedly, not close, not to testify to the Sanhedrin for Him, but simply to see the end (Mat_26:58). Close to Christ in the path of duty you are kept warm; sluggish and distant, the heart chills and grows feeble.
2. He entered into temptation.
3. A subtle snare is laid for him. If the three challenges had taken place in a reversed order, probably Peter would not have fallen by them. Had the men come first, his manhood might have risen to meet the challenge. But a housemaid does not put him on his mettle. Thrown off his guard, he tells his first lie, and it has afterwards to be backed up by more falsehoods and deadlier denials, putting a gulf between himself and Christ which, but for Christs grace, would have been eternal.
III. The commonness of similar transgression. Not a question of who is guilty, but who is guiltless of this fault. All hiding of the face from Christ, all secrecy of fear, which leads people to assume we have nothing to do with Christ, all leaving Him unowned and undefended, is a sin identical in nature with Peters. Each should ask, Lord, is it I? (R. Glover.)
St. Peters fall
Let us take warning from this-
1. Not to rely on our own strength for steadfastness in the moment of trial, but to trust only in Divine grace.
2. Not to suppose our own power of resistance to temptation is greater than that of others. Rather, when we see another sin, let us in him see our own selves, and pray God for him as we would for ourselves. When we see another steadfast in the faith, let us pray that he may preserve that gift which he has unto the end.
3. To heed every warning that is mercifully given us. When the cock crew for the first time, it seems wonderful that St. Peter was not reminded of Christs prediction, nor restrained from subsequent denials. But sin deafens the heart to every voice, and blinds the eye to all signs. (W. Denton, M. A.)
Fall and restoration
There are MSS., you know, called palimpsest, i.e., written upon twice. The original inscription upon them, which was fair, and full of Divine wisdom, has been defaced, and in its place may now be seen letters and words and sentences in contrast to what was described before. So with the characters of men-even good men. Over their better nature you may see scratched in ugly scrawls very obvious imperfections and frailties. But, thank God, often do we witness, after the process of defacement, a process of restoration. Divine grace, through discipline of various descriptions, rubs out the evil and brings back the good, and causes the soul at last to reveal again most distinctly what had only been dimmed and not destroyed; even as there has been discovered a method by which such ancient writings can be made to exhibit once more what seemed-but only seemed-forever spoiled. (Dr. Thomas Taylor.)
Danger of one false step
We see in Peters fall the danger of a first false step. As he entered the house he denied his discipleship to the portress; he did wrong that good might come. He loved his Master; he sought to be with or near Him; he desired to see the end. What was the harm of merely a white lie to gain this great advantage? But the white lie led to black denial, and to a false oath. When he had assured Jesus that, though all might deny Him, yet would not he, Peter had supposed the case of his being brought up for trial before the Sanhedrin. And it is possible that he would have stood firm under such a trial, but this temptation came on him from an unexpected quarter, and when he was unprepared to meet it; that is why he fell. He would have confessed his discipleship before the High Priest, but he denied it to the young woman who kept the gate. From this we learn that we must be always prepared to meet temptation, and that the most treacherous and dangerous of temptations come upon us suddenly, without giving us time to prepare, and in a way unexpected. Peters heart was sound from first to last; he never wavered in his love. His spirit was willing, but the flesh was very weak. This makes the difference between venial and wilful sin. Wilful sin is committed by deliberate consent of the will to what is evil. The fall of Peter was not wilful. Venial sin is the fault of infirmity, the fall through weakness against the propose of the heart. Such was the fall of Peter. We see in his repentance the harmfulness of venial sin. We are apt to make light of sin if it be not wilful. This sin of Peters was not wilful, yet his heart was broken and contrite for it. (S. Baring Gould, M. A.)
Discrepancies in the narratives of the Evangelists may be harmonized
It is well known that there are varieties of detail in the four records of St. Peters three-fold denial. The discrepancies have been spoken of as irreconcilable, and attempts to shake the credibility and trustworthiness of Holy Scripture have been based upon this supposition. Careful examination will show that the incidents given by the different Evangelists are completely in harmony with the belief that there were three denials, i.e., three acts of denial, of which the several writers have taken such features as seemed to be most significant for their purpose. The multiplicity of charges may well be illustrated out of our own experience. We have witnessed, no doubt, a scene in which a crowd of people in a state of excitement are setting upon an individual whom they believe to have done something of which they disapprove. No sooner has one begun to accuse him of it than another comes up and adds to the charge, another insists upon it with gestures of violence, another can prove it if they will only let him speak, and then perhaps several cry out at once. The bewildered man tries to exculpate himself from the Babel of charges. He says anything and everything in the excitement of the moment, and at last, when matters become desperate, loses all control over his words. This is almost exactly what happened in the last act of denial in the courtyard of the High Priests palace. St. Peter was driven to bay by a multitude of excited assailants, and perhaps hardly knowing, certainly not realizing, what he said, he appealed to heaven, and called down Divine vengeance upon his head if his denial were untrue. (H. M. Luckock, D. D.)
Peter denies his Lord
I. The circumstances under which this great guilty act was performed are exceedingly dramatic. The story shifts its phases like pictures in a play.
1. The scene is laid in the quadrangle of the High Priests house in Jerusalem, whither the miscellaneous mob of people had hurried Jesus after His apprehension in the garden of Gethsemane. It will be necessary for those who desire to understand this narrative to form for themselves a conception of Peters precise whereabouts during such a grand crisis of his history. Eastern dwellings of the better sort appear to have been built around a four-sided court-an interior space like a private yard enclosed-frequently paved with flat flagging stone, and open to the sky overhead. Into this area a passage from the street led by an arched opening through one side of the house. Heavy folding doors guarded the entrance, leaving a smaller wicket gate near by for the convenience of visitors who came familiarly or one at a time. Usually this was kept by a porter. Such, in all likelihood, was the general fashion of Caiaphas palace. Simon Peter was inside of the wicket standing there in the courtyard.
2. The company into the midst of which before this John, the beloved disciple, had found his way, and which he does not appear to have unused even to notice as he hurried through, was made up of servants and soldiers. Belated and bewildered by their unwonted excitements on the night of our Saviours trial, they had kindled a fire of coals out in the area. The hour of this arraignment was unusual, the air was chilly, and the confusion was full of discomfort. The entire group appears irritable and maliciously disposed. The girls are coarse, the military men boisterous and brutal, the Levites insolently triumphant, as they see their victim now in what they deem the right hands, and the waiters abusive and impudent. Everything shows picturesquely there among the flitting dresses and uniforms. The flame makes all the quadrangle dance with uncouth shadows, and the faces of the men and maidens are ruddy under the red glow of the coals. Ill-tempered and testy with the raw air of the midnight, they jostle each other and join roughly in gibes about the discomfiture and capture of this Nazarene prophet at last.
3. Enter Simon Peter now, the chief actor in this awful tragedy of the denial. Into the midst of the throng comes a burly figure, a quick-stepping individual, evidently trying to do that peculiar thing which almost everybody, one time or another in his life, has tried to do, and nobody at any time has ever succeeded in accomplishing, namely, to look unconscious and unconcerned when absorbently anxious, and to seem unnoticed and unembarrassed when he knows the rest are all staring at him. That newcomer is our well-known friend Simon, the son of Jonas; and he is now endeavouring to act at perfect ease, although he is certain that he is and ought to be an object of suspicion from the beginning. He sat with the servants (Mar_14:54), and warmed himself at the fire. Picture him now, away from all his friends, among the sullen enemies of his Lord. There is some evidence that this disciple imagined he might pass himself off for one of the crowd who went out to apprehend Jesus, if only he mingled unabashed with the chilly company around the coals. So he pressed nearer, and this was exactly what hastened his exposure.
4. Now commences the dialogue of the drama. A girl kept the outer door; this reminds us of the office of the damsel named Rhoda (Act_12:13), whom we meet in another part of Peters history farther on.
II. We must arrest our study of the melancholy story here, for it is high time that we should seek for the practical lessons taught in this transgression of Peter.
1. We see, for one thing, how commonplace is even the most notable of human sins. This denial of his Lord will always be quoted as the characteristic wickedness of Simon Peter. It stands out in history as one of the vast crimes of the world and the race. To deny Christ is so simple a thing that we can fall into it, and hardly know it at the time. This sin is not singular nor unusual. Christs cause is on trial now as really as was Christ Himself in the High Priests palace. We stand in jeopardy every hour. Satans ingenious policy is to come suddenly upon us with the surprise of a question with ridicule in it. So small a matter as emitting family prayer because a stranger is in our dwelling, as putting on a ribald air when one twits us with being serious, may have in it all the meaning and the meanness of Peters sin. Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.
2. Again: we see the immeasurable peril of just one act of wrongdoing. Indeed, one act never seems to remain alone. This first denial led to two more of the same sort; then to lying, then to profanity. It is as supreme a folly to talk of a little sin as it would be to talk of a small decalogue that forbids it, or a diminutive God that hates it, or a shallow hell that will punish it. Sin is registered according to heavenly measurements of holiness and majesty.
3. We see, likewise, a ready explanation of the mysterious falls into sin sometimes noticed in the lives of really good men. No one doubts that Simon Peter was a regenerate Christian man: how happens it that he crashes down into wickedness so suddenly? The answer to this question must be found in the disclosures of this disciples previous history. He had for a long time been preparing for this disaster. One of the brightest of our modern writers has given us a simile somewhat like this. If a careless reader lets fall a drop of ink in among the leaves of a book he is just closing, it will strike through the paper both ways. When he opens the volume again, he can begin with the earliest faint appearance of the stain, and measure by its increase his progress towards the great black point of defacement. Open it now anywhere, and he will detect some traces of the coming spot. He can turn back to it; he can turn forward from it. So of this great base act of the Apostle Peter, which we call emphatically the denial. It is a stain in the middle of his life. Most of us have a profound admiration and a tender love for this old Bethsaida fisherman, even if we do deny he was ever set up for the first pope. But hitherto, as we have been studying his biography, we might often have seemed to see the denial coming. Along the way hints of it appear. One who reads the Gospels for the first time would be likely to remark, Here is a man who will be in awful shame and trouble some day, for he thinks he stands safely; he is going to fall. This might be true of most self-confident Christians who lapse into sin; the wickedness has been growing upon them longer than they thought. Men fall, so once said Guizot, on the side towards which they lean. (C. S. Robinson, D. D.)
Peters denial of Jesus
We speak of a sudden death; when the doctor had long been warning the man who has just died that he might die at any moment. We speak of a sudden bankruptcy; which, however, the commercial prophets had long secretly foretold. We speak of the sudden fall of a tree in a tempest; when, under a fair bark and a leafy shade, it had long been only a thing of powder. We speak of the sudden fall of a soul; when in that soul the causation of that fall had long been working out of sight.
I. Think of this deed in connection with a certain weakness in which it began. That sin began, not in a sin, but in a weakness. The strength of a rope is to be measured, not according to what it is in its strongest, but in its weakest point. The strength of a ship is to be estimated, not according to her strongest, but her weakest part; let but the strain come on that, let that be broken, no matter how strong in any other part she may be, the mighty ship, being conquered there, will go down. So it is with the strength of a soul. Peter had many strong points, but one weak one; and that one, undetected by himself, was at the beginning of this disaster. It was the weakness of excessive constitutional impulsiveness. Impulse is beautiful and good; but impulse is only like steam in the works of a factory, or wind in the sails of a yacht. Impulse is a good servant of the soul, but a bad master. Impulse may act with as much emotional force in a wrong direction as in a right. Even when its direction is right, if left to itself, it is not safe. But for this weakness, a soul might often be saved just in time from the special kind of danger to which other weaknesses specially lead. There is a man who feels it a pain to contradict, and a pleasure to acquiesce; and when in the company of errorists, this weakness is his danger. There is a man whose weakness is an agonizing consciousness of ridicule. There is a man, a favourite with us all, whose simplicity we love, at whose heroics we smile, but whose weakness is that he is apt to think too highly of himself. Did any man with all these foibles but take the steadfast poise of principles, did he but take time, he might be saved from the action of them all.
II. Think of this act of Peter in connection with his entrance into the temptation to commit such an act. Enter not into temptation, said the Master; and within a few minutes from the time of that order the servant entered into it. He loved Christ far too deeply to deny Him; be had never denied Him yet, and was not likely to do so now. Ah! he had never yet been tried. You, perhaps, are a man of splendid morality, but you hardly know how much your integrity depends upon circumstances; you have never yet had it tried. There may be no accident before a train starts from the station; but let there be an undetected flaw only in one axle, and, when the locomotive is spinning along the line at the rate of forty miles an hour, there may be a great crash of property and life. Peter thought himself an iron man; but there was a flaw in his iron, though he knew it not until he had entered into a trial for which he was not fitted; then the iron broke!
III. Think of Peters denial of Christ in connection with the account of its three occasions. God pity that youth who has just uttered his first lie! If eventually saved from the evil it has already set working, God alone can save him. No liar can alter the law of the lie, and that law is, that the first lie has a generative power, that one lie compels another, that one lie requires another to back it, that one lie spreads and ramifies into endless evolutions.
IV. Think of Peters denial in connection with the treatment that Christ was receiving at the time. A seer tells us that he once saw heaven, and had a glimpse of the treatment Jesus receives there. This is his report: I saw also the Lord, sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and His train filled the temple. Now turn to this place on earth, and see how the Holy One is treated there. Do you not now see how the pictured memory of this episode came into the phrase of John the Divine, the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ?
V. Think of Peters denial of Christ in connection with Christs act of restoring love. Simultaneously, the startled man turned to look at his Master, and his Master turned to look at him. We are awed before the calm sovereignty of that look, no less than by its loving kindness. He spoke with His eye, says Erasmus. We may not imagine what the look was like, but we know what effect it had upon the disciple. The outgoing power of the Lord that went with it struck his heart, as once the prophets rod struck the rock, and made the waters flew. It touched, and set flowing, frozen memories. With only self to lean upon, lower and lower would have been the inevitable fall; but just in time the Lord lifted him by a look! Some structures can only be saved by being ruined. They have in them such slack work and such bad materials, that it is of no use to patch them, or to shore them up; the only thing to be done is to pull them down altogether and build them again. Some lives can only be saved by a desperate operation. Some souls can be saved only through being for an instant hung, as by a hair, over the pit of the lost. A certain man was seen for many years rich, prosperous, influential in the State; that very man was afterwards seen, down on his hands and knees, in the livery of degradation, scrubbing the floor of a convict prison. In his days of worldly honour he had made profession of the Christian faith, and not without sincerity; but egotism was suffered to master him. He fell. In the shock of that fall, in the recoil that comes of despair, he was saved as by fire. (Charles Stanford, D. D.)
Peters denial
I. Peter never meant to deny his Lord. He believed now, as clearly as he did that day at Caesarea Philippi, Thou art the Christ, etc. He was honest in saying, Though I should die with Thee, yet will I not deny Thee. He proved that soon after by drawing his sword in defence of Christ. Any believer may have a like assurance. There is the peril. If there should come to a Sabbath congregation a voice from heaven, declaring that someone there would one day turn out a thief, how impossible it would seem! Every one would think there must be a mistake; the message has come to the wrong church, or, at least, it does not mean me. Of course not. Satan says to us all, Think of your faith, your virtue, your blood, your position. And when he has beguiled us into such self-complacency, he begins his manoeuvres, not asking us at first to do anything dishonest, but commencing on the borderline between his kingdom and the Lords, knowing if we yield to him in things that are doubtful, we will soon yield to him in things that are sure. A leading member of a city church, caught in a shameful crime, wrote his friends: I am astonished at the blindness and wickedness of my course.
II. Peter went voluntarily into the way of temptation. Peter thought very likely that he was safe in such company, because nobody would know him. A Christian had better not stay at the fire with the ungodly. Satan did not come to him as a roaring lion, but in a mere whisper. Who could draw a sword at a young girl? If he had contemplated her question, he might have had ready an answer that would have been truthful without giving offence. Often the science of truth-telling is to look out for emergencies; to have ready an answer that shall be polite and true. But that is essentially the science of all virtue. It is the trials which take us by surprise that measure our strength; it is at these crises that destiny is made. And such unlooked-for assaults are sure to come to a Christian who goes voluntarily into the way of temptation. One who does not watch has no right to pray. A man, exhorted to abandon a habit of drinking that was fast dragging him to ruin, replied: I magnify more than you do the grace of God. Without drinking anyone could save himself. I believe in grace that can save a man when he does drink. He held that delusion till he died a sot. That is a Divine law with reference to all sin. If you throw yourself from the top of the temple, God has power to keep your bones from breaking; but you had better not do so, for it is written: Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. The precept, Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall, means, if you are walking in slippery places, watch every little danger, every least step. One may slip as badly on a foot of ice as on an acre. Peter would not have fallen if he had remembered Christs caution spoken to him: Watch and pray that ye enter not into temptation.
III. Peter repented. There is no other way back to Christ for one who has fallen.
IV. Peter found mercy. (T. J. Holmes.)
The denier
Let us endeavour to understand this melancholy event, Peters denial of his Lord. In order to this, let us advert to the circumstances which attended it, and the causes which led to it; and then consider seriously the improvement which we should make of it.
I. The circumstances under which an offence is committed often greatly affect its character; they sometimes even change its complexion altogether. The first circumstance of aggravation is found in the repeated warnings which he received. Forewarned is forearmed; when, therefore, Peter had been warned by our Lord of his danger, we might have expected on his part the utmost vigilance and prayerfulness. The second circumstance of aggravation is found in the solemn protestations and vows which he made. After each warning he solemnly avowed his willingness to go with his Lord to prison and to death. Humility, self-abasement, prayers, tears, had been far more suitable in his case than those solemn protestations. And ever does it become us to say, Hold Thou me up, and I shall be safe. The third circumstance of aggravation is found in the recentcy of the warnings and vows to which we have adverted. If the warnings had been given, and the vows made, some years before, they might have been forgotten; but they were all given and made the same night in which the offence was committed. A very few hours only could have elapsed between the last warning especially, and the first denial. A fourth circumstance of aggravation is found in the repetition of the offence. It was not once that he denied his Lord, but a second, and again a third time. And this leads to another circumstance of aggravation, that is to say, the profaneness and the perjury with which his denial was attended. We have just seen that the second time he did not simply deny his Lord, but he did it with an oath. He appealed to high heaven as his witness and his judge-when he swore falsely. The last circumstance of aggravation which we shall notice is, that all this was done in the very presence of the Redeemer. It was not done in a corner: it was not a secret offence, which might forever remain unknown; but it was done publicly, before many witnesses. John was there. It was in the presence of this faithful friend that Peter denied his Lord-with oaths and curses. Above all, Jesus was there.
II. Such are the circumstances of aggravation which marked the offence of Peter; we shall now advert with great brevity to the causes of this strange conduct. How can we account for it?
1. One cause is found in the known character of Peter. He was a man of ardour, impetuosity, zeal; but, like many others of a similar temperament, he was destitute of moral courage. There is no necessary connection between physical and moral courage, some of the finest specimens of the former having proved themselves utterly destitute of the latter. How many there are who suffer from the same moral infirmity! Let our young friends especially guard against it, and labour to correct it. In order to this I would earnestly recommend two things.
(1) An intimate acquaintance with some of the noble characters presented to us in history, as well as with some of the writings of choice spirits which have the most direct tendency to strengthen the mind. Let them steep their minds in the noble sentiments which are there so appropriately expressed.
(2) An habitual realization of the Divine presence. Let them feel that Gods eye is ever upon them; and let it be their study to approve themselves to Him.
2. We have another cause in the state of mind which he had recently indulged. I refer particularly to his overweening confidence and pride. The solemn warnings of his Lord ought to have humbled him; but his confidence was in himself, not in his God. God will humble the proud, but will give grace to the lowly.
3. A third cause is found in the danger, real or imaginary, in which he was placed. It would not appear that there was any danger involved in the fact of his discipleship. John was a disciple; known as such to the High Priest, and yet he was in the palace, and appears to have apprehended no danger. But Peter had been active, in one sense mischievously active, in the garden. He had cut off the ear of the servant of the High Priest, and this might be construed into a crime; an attempt to rescue or prevent the capture of a criminal. Hence Peters fears; his wish to be unknown; his denial. How closely rashness and cowardice are allied!
III. Let us now see what instruction we may derive from this mournful spectacle. We regard it as an affecting illustration of the frailty of our nature; as a melancholy proof of what man can do under the influence of temptation, considered simply as a morally imperfect being. It thus presents one phasis at least of human character in an instructive light. Let us illustrate this. We may divide the human family into three classes. First, there are, in the worst sense of the term, wicked beings-beings whose moral nature is entirely perverted, whose good is evil; malevolent beings who can do evil for evils sake, and have real delight in mischief. There are others who have by no means attained to this completeness in evil, who are, nevertheless, the slaves of some one dominant passion. And from his affecting ease we see what evil a man may commit, how low he may sink in moral degradation from mere frailty, from inherent defectiveness of character, when sore pressed by a temptation adapted to his weakness. It may be proper to remark here, that one act, whether good or bad, does not constitute a character. We should guard against the severity, the injustice of representing men as guilty of hypocrisy, of insincerity, because they have once, or even twice, under the influence of temptation, acted in opposition to their professions. The fall of Peter is further instructive to us, as it affords a striking illustration of mans ignorance of himself. How little man knows-can know of what is in him! The fall of Peter calls upon us to review our past history, and to look carefully into our own hearts. We may learn from the case of Peter the nature of true repentance. Peter went out and wept bitterly. If we compare the case of Peter with that of Judas, we shall learn the nature of true repentance, we shall perceive the characteristic difference between that which is true and that which is false, that which is saving and that which is destructive. Wherein does the difference consist?
1. Judas saw clearly the enormity of his conduct, but it was only in and through its consequences; he had no perception of the evil of his conduct in itself.
2. The second point of difference between the repentance of Judas and of Peter is in the subject. (J. J. Davies.)
Peters second denial of Christ
He who once cracks his conscience will not much strain at it the second time.
1. Sin is very bold when once it is bid welcome. If it once enter, it knows the way again, and once admitted will plead, not possession, but prescription. An army is easier kept out than beaten out.
2. The sinner is less able to resist the second time than he was the first. Grace is weakened and decayed by yielding to the first temptation, and the strength of God, which only makes the way of grace easy, is plucked away by grieving His Holy Spirit.
3. The way of sin once set open, is as the gates of a city thrown open for an enemy, by which Satan bringing in his forces, strongly plants them, and quickly so fortifies them, that it will require great strength to remove them.
4. Every sin admitted, not only weakens, but corrupts the faculties of the soul by which it is upheld. It darkens the understanding, corrupts the will, disturbs the affections, and raises a cloud of passions to dazzle reason. (Dr. Thomas Taylor.)
Peters degeneration
A dicer, they say, will grow to be a beggar in a night; and in a night Peter will grow from a dissembler to be a swearer and forswearer. (Dr. Thomas Taylor.)
Why Christians are allowed to fall
Why (it may be asked) does the Lord leave His saints and children to themselves, by withdrawing His grace from them, and so suffer them to fall into sin?
1. To correct their carelessness and carnal security.
2. To stir them up to more watchfulness over themselves for time to come, when they know their own weakness.
3. To pull down their pride, and humble them more thoroughly before God (2Co_12:7).
4. To drive out of them all confidence in themselves, and presumption of their own strength.
5. To make them more compassionate toward others (Luk_22:32).
6. That by this means He may make them examples, and grounds of comfort to other poor sinners. (George Petter.)
The heinousness of Peters third denial
Peter was now in great danger. He hears of the garden, and is likely to be revenged for his tumult, his quarrel, and wronging Malchus. He is pressed by evident signs that he was with Christ, and now if he bestir him not, he shall not avoid present danger; or if he do, he shall be branded for a common liar and perjured person forever; and therefore out of great fear he more stoutly denies his Master than before, and because neither his simple denial will serve him as in the first instance, nor his binding it with oaths and swearing as in the second, as if he had not done enough, he curses and imprecates himself, wishing not only mischief to himself, but calling on God, a just Judge, to avenge that falsehood, and inflict the deserved punishment if he knew Him of Whom they spake. Oh, fearful sin!
1. To deny his Lord and dear Master.
2. After so many warnings on Christs part.
3. After so many confessions and professions of his own.
4. After so often, three several times, so much time of deliberation coming between. One might seem infirmity, but thrice argues resolution.
5. With lying and perjury.
6. With cursing and imprecation. Thus Peter is among the forwardest of those who make falsehood their refuge, and who trust in lies. (Dr. Thomas Taylor.)
Lying a slough of despond
Benvenuto Cellini records in his autobiography the bitter experiences he endured in being tempted to lie to the Duke, his patron, lest he should forfeit the favours of the Duchess-he, who was always a lover of truth and an enemy to falsehood, being then under a necessity of telling lies. As I had begun to tell lies, I plunged deeper and deeper into the mire, till a very slough of despond it became to him. (Francis Jacox.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v69 The second and third denials:
The second and third denials:
v. 69. And a maid saw him again, and began to say to them that stood by, This is one of them.
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v. 70. And he denied it again. And a little after, they that stood by said again to Peter, Surely thou art one of them; for thou art a Galilean, and thy speech agreeth thereto.
v. 71. But he began to curse and to swear, saying, I know not this Man of whom ye speak.
v. 72. And the second time the cock crew. And Peter called to mind the word that Jesus said unto him, Before the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny Me thrice. And when he thought thereon, he wept.
The servants were naturally excited over the trial that was taking place upstairs, and many were the conjectures that were made concerning the Nazarene and His followers. That they were in no gentle mood with respect to the disciples of Jesus may be readily surmised. It was not long, therefore, before a maid, one that had probably heard the first one speak or had now come to take her place, once more pointed out Peter to the others that were nearby: This man belongs to the party of the accused. Hardly had the words left her mouth when Peter denied the accusation. But his very eagerness and a certain furtiveness in his behavior now made him a marked man in the court. An hour later, therefore, the attack was renewed. A number of bystanders joined forces in questioning Peter. In addition to other proofs which pointed in his direction, there was the matter of his dialect, which openly proclaimed him a Galilean. The disciples were known to be men of Galilee, and so the inference was plain. Peter was in hot water. He had forgotten his fervent promise to his Master of a few hours ago. His one thought was to save himself from this predicament and to escape with his life. And so he denies his Lord for the third time. And not satisfied with a mere denial, which seemed too tame under the circumstances, he added cursing and an oath. Thus Peter had renounced his Lord and Master, his Savior, absolutely. He had fallen from grace, he had denied the faith. But the Lord had not forgotten him. The second crowing of the cock reminded Peter of the word of the Lord concerning his threefold denial. And thinking thereon, or, covering his head in bitter shame, he rushed forth into the night and wept bitterly. That was true repentance. Peter knew that he no longer was worthy to be called a disciple of the Lord, but he remembered also that the Lord was long-suffering and merciful and had given him many splendid promises as to his future life. Trusting in the mercy of the Lord he sought and found forgiveness of his sin and again was assured of the love of his Master.
Summary.Judas makes an offer to betray Jesus after the Lord has been anointed in the house of Simon of Bethany; Christ celebrates the paschal meal with His disciples, institutes the Lord’s Supper, warns them against being offended, suffers the agony of Gethsemane, is betrayed and captured, tried by the council of the Jews, condemned to death, and denied by Peter.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv69, 71 the servant girl
the servant girl
This is the same servant girl who identified Peter previously.
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one of them
The people were identifying Peter as one of Jesus' disciples. This can be made more clear. AT: "one of Jesus' disciples" or "one of those who have been with that man they arrested" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
translationWords
servant
Peter
Galilee
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv68, 69, 71 14:68 Peter denied that he knew Jesus. To escape…
14:68 Peter denied that he knew Jesus. To escape further questions, he left the courtyard and went to the entryway.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.