The Bible — World English Bible

1 Peter 5

In brief

1 Peter 5 closes the letter to believers whose faith costs them dearly. Peter speaks to the elders: shepherd the flock willingly, as examples. He calls everyone to clothe themselves with humility, because God gives grace to the humble, to cast their worries on him, to stay alert against the adversary and to resist with a firm faith. The letter ends with a promise: after a little suffering, the God of all grace restores, establishes and strengthens his people.

The chapter in 5 parts

  1. v. 1-4To the elders: shepherd the flock with devotion
  2. v. 5-7Clothe yourselves with humility and cast your worries on him
  3. v. 8-9Be alert and resist with a firm faith
  4. v. 10-11The God of all grace will establish you
  5. v. 12-14Final greetings

1Therefore I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and who will also share in the glory that will be revealed.

2Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, exercising the oversight, not under compulsion, but voluntarily, not for dishonest gain, but willingly;

3not as lording it over those entrusted to you, but making yourselves examples to the flock.

4When the chief Shepherd is revealed, you will receive the crown of glory that doesn’t fade away.

5Likewise, you younger ones, be subject to the elder. Yes, all of you clothe yourselves with humility, to subject yourselves to one another; for “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

6Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time,

7casting all your worries on him, because he cares for you.

8Be sober and self-controlled. Be watchful. Your adversary, the devil, walks around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

9Withstand him steadfast in your faith, knowing that your brothers who are in the world are undergoing the same sufferings.

10But may the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a little while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.

11To him be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.

12Through Silvanus, our faithful brother, as I consider him, I have written to you briefly, exhorting, and testifying that this is the true grace of God in which you stand.

13She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, greets you. So does Mark, my son.

14Greet one another with a kiss of love. Peace be to all of you who are in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Key verses

Verse 5
Likewise, you younger ones, be subject to the elder. Yes, all of you clothe yourselves with humility, to subject yourselves to one another; for “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

Peter asks everyone to clothe themselves with humility in their relationships. The “for” that follows links our attitude toward others to the way God acts toward us: he resists pride and gives his grace to humility.

Verse 7
casting all your worries on him, because he cares for you.

A concrete invitation: hand your worries over to God instead of turning them over alone. The reason given is simple, he cares for us. It applies to the small worries of ordinary life too.

Verse 8-9
Be sober and self-controlled. Be watchful. Your adversary, the devil, walks around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Withstand him steadfast in your faith, knowing that your brothers who are in the world are undergoing the same sufferings.

The adversary is pictured as a roaring lion on the prowl, which calls for sober-mindedness and watchfulness. The response suggested is not fear but resistance through a firm faith, in solidarity with believers around the world.

Verse 10
But may the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a little while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.

Peter does not play down suffering, he says it is brief and places it within God's plan to restore, establish and strengthen. It is not our steadiness that holds us, it is his.

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What the sermons say

1 Peter 5: Clothed in Humility, Like Your LordFrantz Galland preaches 1 Peter 5:5-11 and presents humility as a priority of the Christian life, not an option. He reminds us that Peter, who had denied Jesus, knows what it is to be humbled and then restored, and he draws very practical lessons for relationships.Read the summary →In This Season of Deliverance: Stand Firm and Take the VictoryFrom 1 Peter 5:8-9, the preacher keeps three postures for a time of deliverance: watchfulness, resistance and firmness in faith. The enemy does not sit with his arms crossed, but victory is taken by standing firm.Read the summary →The Faith That Does Not Let GoDavid Pothier quotes 1 Peter 5:7 when the urge to give up everything returns: hand your burdens to God, who wants to take them but does not tear them from you. A small weight carried a short distance is nothing, a weight carried too long crushes.Read the summary →Matthew 6: The Lord's Prayer, Seven Requests for Learning to PrayWhile teaching how to pray with the Lord's Prayer, the teacher relies on 1 Peter 5:7 to answer a simple question: can we pray about very ordinary worries? Yes, because God cares for us in the small things as in the big ones.Read the summary →Discipleship: Shining Through Formation That TransformsPastor Malu Bialuta links 1 Peter 5:6 to the training of disciples: God lifts up in due time, and someone who has not been teachable risks being exposed on the day the opportunity comes.Read the summary →Crave the Pure Word Like a Newborn Craves MilkThe preacher ends on 1 Peter 5:10: the God of all grace establishes and strengthens. He concludes that it is not our steadiness that holds us, but God's.Read the summary →

Frequently asked questions about 1 Peter 5

What does 1 Peter 5:7 mean when it says to cast all your worries on him?

Peter invites us to hand over to God what concerns us rather than carry it alone. The reason is given in the verse itself: he cares for us. It does not remove the difficulties, but it changes the way we carry them, through prayer and trust.

What does it mean that God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble?

Peter is quoting the book of Proverbs here. Someone who thinks they are self-sufficient cuts themselves off from grace, while someone who admits their need receives it. The text ties this humility to our relationships with others: we clothe ourselves with humility toward one another.

What does it mean that your adversary prowls like a lion?

The image describes an enemy who seeks to bring down believers who are going through trials. Peter does not call for panic but for sober-mindedness, watchfulness and a firm faith, reminding us that Christians around the world go through similar sufferings.

What is the main message of 1 Peter 5?

Humility, trust and perseverance. Leaders serve with devotion, everyone humbles themselves before God, casts their worries on him and resists with faith, because the God of all grace restores and establishes after a brief suffering.

Articles quoting 1 Peter 5

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World English Bible translation — public domain.