1 Peter 4:7

1 Peter 4:7 ‘The end of all things is at hand; therefore, be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of prayer.'

‘The end of all things is at hand' -‘End'-‘termination, the limit' (Thayer p. 619); ‘in the sense of termination, cessation' (Arndt p. 811); ‘the final issue or result of. state or process' (Vine p. 26-27)

Point to Note: The question has been what “end” is under consideration in the above verses? 1. Some say Peter is speaking about the destruction of Jerusalem. ‘It should be remembered that these words of the apostle were written on the eve of the destruction of the Jewish state. Already terminated as. system of acceptable worship, its forms and ceremonies had persisted through the efforts of unbelieving Jews…Soon the temple, the Levitical system, and the Jewish economy were to perish…Aware that Christianity had its origin with. Jew---Christ-the persecutors of the Jews would not distinguish between them and Christians. It was inevitable that they should suffer in consequence of the doom soon to befall the Jewish state.' (Woods pp. 111-112) While this is. good explanation,. couple of things concerning this view don't completely fit. (a) The context is dealing with the final judgment (1 Peter 4:5). (b) Many of these Christians weren't of Jewish ancestry (1 Peter 2:10; 1 Peter 4:1), and they were located far from Jerusalem.

The other view is that the “end” mentioned in this verse is the second coming. But that immediately brings us to the next word. How can Peter say that the ‘end is at hand' in the First Century and yet almost 2000 years later the ‘end' still hasn't arrived?

‘is at hand' -‘draw or come near, come nigh' (Thayer p. 164); ‘lit., has come near' (Vincent p. 662); ‘approach, come near' (Arndt p. 213). The word is used elsewhere of things that were soon to happen (Matthew 26:45; Luke 22:1 ‘was approaching'; Matthew 3:2).

Points to Note: 1. And yet the word seems to be used in other contexts which refer to the Second Coming (Romans 13:11; James 5:8). 2. It is clear that the apostles understood that certain things had to happen before Jesus arrived (2 Thessalonians 2:2) Thus we must reject the view which states that the apostles believed that Jesus would return during their lifetime. If this expression refers to the Second Coming, then in this passage ‘at hand' must mean something like, ‘is approaching'. Grudem writes, ‘means that all the major events in God's plan of redemption have occurred, and now all things are ready for Christ to return….all the previous acts in the drama of redemption have been completed---creation, fall, the calling of Abraham, the exodus from Egypt, the kingdom of Israel, the exile in Babylon and the return, the birth of Christ, his life, death and resurrection, his ascension into heaven, and the pouring out of the Holy Spirit to establish the church…All things are ready: the end of all things (the “goal” to which “all” these events have been leading) is at hand.' (p. 173) Hamilton devotes. tremendous amount of space researching the background and usage of the phrase translated ‘at hand'. He properly notes that if you lean with the destruction of Jerusalem view, then you must take. limited meaning for the phrase “all things”. If you lean with the Second Coming view, then the phrase “at hand” means something that is drawing near and approaching.

‘therefore' -Christians living on the edge of eternity, which is also true during times of persecution. For physical death also ushers one into eternity as well as the Second Coming. Living on the edge means living. life dedicated to God.

‘be of sound judgment' -‘reasonable, sensible, serious, keep one's head' (Arndt p. 802). ‘serious and collected' (Gspd). ‘Steady then, keep cool and pray' (Mof). ‘thinking about and evaluating situations maturely and correctly' (Grudem p. 173) ‘The great characteristic of sanity is that it sees things in their proper proportions; it sees what things are important and what things are not important; it is not swept away by sudden and capricious and transitory enthusiasms; it is prone neither to unbalanced fanaticism nor to unrealizing indifference.' (Barclay p. 298) 1. This is not. time to slip into self-pity or self-indulgence. 2. Neither is it. time to panic or give up. 3. Diligent effort is needed, not carelessness.

‘and sober spirit' -‘calm, collected in spirit, circumspect' (Thayer p. 425); ‘well balanced, self-controlled' (Arndt p. 538); ‘thoughtful men of prayer' (Tay).

Point to Note: Compare this instruction with the practices of modern religious groups who claim that they know when Jesus is coming. In view of persecution, possible death or the Second Coming, the New Testament never instructs Christians to sell all their possessions, live in. commune, find an isolated location in which to dwell or depart from society.

‘for the purpose of prayer' -lit., prayers, whether public or private. ‘not the prayer based on daydreams and unreality, nor the prayer based on surprised desperation, but the prayer that calls upon and submits to God …for proper prayer is not an “opiate” or escape, but rather. function of clear vision ….It is only through clear communication with headquarters that. soldier can effectively stand guard.' (Davids pp. 156-157) The Christian isn't given the right to ‘panic'. This verse also reveals that spiritual alertness and mental calmness are necessary for our prayers to be effective. (Ephesians 6:18) ‘When. man's mind is unbalanced, when he lets his own prejudices run away with him, when his approach to life is frivolous and selfish and irresponsible, he obviously cannot pray as he ought…We only learn to pray when we take life so wisely and so seriously that we begin to say in all things: “Thy will be done”.' (Barclay p. 299)