10 But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. 11 To him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. 12 By Silvanus, a faithful brother unto you, as I suppose, I have written briefly, exhorting, and testifying that this is the true grace of God wherein ye stand. 13 The church that is at Babylon, elected together with you, saluteth you; and so doth Marcus my son. 14 Greet ye one another with a kiss of charity. Peace be with you all that are in Christ Jesus. Amen. (1 Peter 5:10-14 KJV)
Farewell and Peace
We come now to the conclusion of this letter, which the apostle begins with a weighty prayer addressed to God as the God of all grace—the source of every good and spiritual gift. He acknowledges that God had already called them to share in eternal glory, which, being God’s own, He had promised and granted through the merit and intercession of Jesus Christ.
He prays not that they might be spared from suffering, but that their sufferings might be brief, and that after enduring them for a while, God would restore them to peace and complete His work in them—establishing them in faith and duty, strengthening the weak, and settling them firmly on Christ the foundation so that their union with Him would be unshakable and everlasting (1 Peter 5:10).
All grace comes from God; He restrains, transforms, comforts, and saves by His grace. Everyone called into grace is also called to eternal glory. Even so, those called to eternal life through Jesus Christ must still suffer in this world, but their suffering will only last a little while. The work of perfecting, strengthening, and establishing believers is so challenging that only the God of all grace can accomplish it. For this reason, we must seek Him continually in prayer and trust His promises.
To this, the apostle adds a doxology: “To Him be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen” (1 Peter 5:11). Those who receive grace from the God of all grace should—and will—give Him glory and praise forever.
He then explains the purpose of his letter (1 Peter 5:12): to testify and strongly assure them that the message of salvation he had taught—and they had accepted—was the true grace of God, as foretold by the prophets and revealed by Jesus Christ. He urges them to remain steadfast in the gospel, despite the schemes of false teachers or the pressures of persecution. The main goal of gospel ministers is to convince people of the truth and excellence of Christianity, and this the apostles did with all their strength. A firm conviction that we are on the right path to heaven is the strongest motivation to stay the course.
He commends Silvanus, the one who delivered this brief letter, as a faithful brother. Though some among them may have been wary of him as a minister to the Gentiles, Peter hopes they would see him as trustworthy and friendly. Respect for faithful ministers of the gospel greatly enhances the effectiveness of their work. Once convinced of Silvanus’s faithfulness, any prejudice they held would fade.
Peter, writing from Babylon in Assyria—where he had traveled as the apostle to the Jews—sends greetings from the church there (1 Peter 5:13), telling them that the believers in Babylon were also chosen by God to receive eternal salvation through Christ, just like them. He includes a greeting from Mark the evangelist, his spiritual son, likely converted through his ministry. All churches of Christ should have sincere love and concern for one another, praying for and helping each other as much as possible.
He urges them to continue showing love and charity to one another, expressed in that culture by a kiss of peace (1 Peter 5:14). He closes with a blessing of peace to all who are in Christ Jesus—those united with Him by faith and members of His body—and ends with a heartfelt “Amen,” expressing both his deep desire and confident expectation that peace would be the portion of all true believers.