GOING DEEPER — 1 PETER 5:12–14
WHY DOES PETER END HIS LETTER WITH “BABYLON”?
Peter closes his letter with only a few sentences, but those sentences tell us something about the letter itself and the Christians connected with Peter.
He begins:
“Through Silvanus, a faithful brother, as I consider him, I have written to you briefly...”
— 1 Peter 5:12
Who was Silvanus, and what did Peter mean when he said he had written “through” him?
WHO WAS SILVANUS?
Silvanus is generally understood to be the same man called Silas in Acts.
Silas was an important worker in the early church.
He was one of the men chosen to carry the Jerusalem church’s letter to Antioch in Acts 15. Later, he traveled with Paul on the second missionary journey.
Paul also names Silvanus alongside himself and Timothy in his letters to the Thessalonians.
So Silvanus was no stranger to apostolic teaching or missionary work.
Peter calls him:
“a faithful brother.”
DID SILVANUS HELP PETER WRITE THE LETTER?
Peter says:
“Through Silvanus ... I have written to you.”
Exactly how much this tells us about Silvanus’s role is uncertain.
He may simply have carried the letter.
He may also have served as Peter’s secretary or helped put Peter’s thoughts into polished Greek.
Both kinds of assistance were common in the ancient world.
We should be careful not to claim more than the text tells us.
What Peter clearly wants his readers to know is that Silvanus is trustworthy.
WHY DID PETER WRITE?
Peter then gives us his own summary of the letter:
“encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand firm in it!”
That may be one of the best summaries of 1 Peter.
The letter has talked about:
hope,
holiness,
suffering,
submission,
good conduct,
Christian relationships,
leadership,
humility,
and standing firm against the devil.
But Peter gathers all of it under one great idea:
“the true grace of God.”
Then he says:
“Stand firm in it!”
Grace is not merely where the Christian life begins.
It is where Christians are to remain.
WHO IS “SHE WHO IS IN BABYLON”?
Peter continues:
“She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you greetings...”
— 1 Peter 5:13
Who is “she”?
Most likely Peter is speaking of a congregation—a church chosen by God just as his readers were.
But why Babylon?
The ancient Babylonian Empire had disappeared long before Peter wrote.
There was still a settlement in Mesopotamia called Babylon, so some have understood Peter literally.
But there is another strong possibility.
Babylon may be Peter’s name for Rome.
WHY CALL ROME “BABYLON”?
Babylon had become a powerful biblical symbol.
Old Testament Babylon was the great pagan power that conquered Jerusalem, destroyed the temple, and carried God's people into exile.
Peter has already described Christians as “exiles” and “strangers.”
Calling Rome “Babylon” would therefore fit the language of the letter very naturally.
Later, Revelation clearly uses Babylon symbolically for a great persecuting city and power.
If Peter is writing from Rome, the name carries a message:
God’s people are again living as strangers in a world dominated by powerful human kingdoms.
But Babylon does not win in the end.
God does.
WHO IS MARK?
Peter adds:
“and so does Mark, my son.”
This almost certainly refers to John Mark, the man associated with both Peter and Paul.
Mark had accompanied Paul and Barnabas early in their missionary work. Later Paul spoke warmly of him and described him as useful for ministry.
Early Christian testimony also closely associates Mark with Peter and connects Mark’s Gospel with Peter’s preaching.
Peter calls him:
“my son.”
That probably describes a close spiritual relationship rather than a biological one.
It gives us a small glimpse of the personal relationships behind the New Testament.
Peter, Silvanus, Mark, Paul, and others were not isolated names on pages.
Their lives and ministries crossed repeatedly.
“GREET ONE ANOTHER WITH A KISS OF LOVE”
Peter's final instruction is:
“Greet one another with a kiss of love.”
The kiss was a normal expression of affection and fellowship in their culture.
The exact cultural expression may vary from place to place, but Peter's point remains important.
Christians who have spent the letter hearing about suffering and hostility are reminded that within God's family there should be genuine affection.
Then Peter finishes:
“Peace to all of you who are in Christ.”
That is a fitting ending.
His readers were living in a world that did not always give them peace.
Peter points them to the peace found “in Christ.”
THE BIGGER POINT
Peter began his letter by calling his readers exiles.
He ends it with greetings from Babylon.
Between those two statements he has explained how Christians live when this world does not feel like home.
They do not retreat from the world.
They do not become bitter toward it.
They do not abandon holiness in order to fit into it.
They continue doing good.
They love one another.
They endure suffering.
They humble themselves before God.
They resist the devil.
And above all:
They stand firm in the true grace of God.
That may be Peter’s own best summary of his entire letter.
QUESTIONS TO THINK ABOUT
What role might Silvanus have played in the writing or delivery of 1 Peter?
Why does Peter describe his entire message as “the true grace of God”?
What evidence suggests that “Babylon” may refer to Rome?
How does the image of Babylon fit Peter’s description of Christians as strangers and exiles?
What do Peter’s references to Silvanus and Mark tell us about the relationships among early Christian workers?
And after studying the entire letter, perhaps Peter leaves us with one final question:
Whatever happens around us, will we stand firm in the true grace of God?
Return to HOME page
Return to PETER page