Restoration of Peter

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Raphael, Christ's Charge to Peter, 1515.

The Restoration of Peter (also known as the Re-commissioning of Peter)[1] is an incident described in John 21 of the New Testament in which Jesus appeared to his disciples after his resurrection, and spoke to Peter in particular. Jesus restored Peter to fellowship after Peter had previously denied him, and told Peter to feed Jesus' sheep.

Background

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Jesus' resurrection

According to the New Testament, Jesus rose from the dead and appeared to his disciples. The Gospel of John records a number of such appearances: to Mary Magdalene, to the disciples not including Thomas, and then to the disciples including Thomas. This episode is thus part of the fourth resurrection appearance in John's gospel.

Peter's denial

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Main article: Denial of Peter

All four gospels record Peter's denial of Jesus, and all of the synoptic gospels record how Peter "wept bitterly" after the rooster crowed. John omits this detail, but he is unique in describing the restoration scene between Jesus and Peter. Jesus words in Mark 16:7, however, are often thought to carry the message of Peter's restoration: "But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee...’" (NIV).[2]

William de Brailes, Christ Appears at Lake Tiberias, c. 1250.

Paul Barnett notes that Jesus' approach to Peter in John 21 is "both forgiving and stern."[3]

Meeting by the sea

In John 21, Peter goes fishing with six other disciples. They do not catch any fish all night, but in the morning Jesus meets them, and tells them to throw their net on the other side of the boat. When they do, there is a miraculous catch of 153 fish.

Jesus and his disciples have breakfast on the shore. Jesus prepares the breakfast, including a charcoal fire. Peter also stood near a charcoal fire when he denied Jesus. After they finish eating, Jesus speaks particularly to Peter.

Jesus' three-fold charge to Peter

Comparison with Peter's denial

Earlier Peter had denied Jesus three times. Now, in response to Jesus' questioning, Peter affirms his love for Jesus three times. William Hendriksen notes some other correspondences between this episode and that of Peter's denial. For example, it is at a charcoal (ἀνθρακιὰν) fire where Peter first denied Jesus (John 18:18), and now is asked to confess his love for his master (John 21:9).[4] Ben Witherington III suggests that "John has the threefold restoration take place in a setting similar to where the threefold denial did. It's like revisiting the scene of the crime, only this time getting it right."[5]

"Do you love me more than these?"

Jesus asks Peter, "Do you love me more than these?" The Greek text is ambiguous as to what the "these" refers to, and D. A. Carson notes that there are three possibilities:

  1. Do you love me more than you love these disciples?
  2. Do you love me more than you love this fishing gear?
  3. Do you love me more than these other disciples do?

Carson himself chooses the third option.[6]

Two words used for "love"

The dialogue between Jesus and Peter contains two different words for "love", which some, but not all, commentators deem to be of exegetical significance. The words are agapao (the verb form of the noun agape) and phileo (the verb form of the noun philia). The dialogue proceeds as follows:[7]

  • Jesus asked, "do you agapao me?"
  • Peter replied, "I phileo you."
  • Jesus asked, "do you agapao me?"
  • Peter replied, "I phileo you."
  • Jesus asked, "do you phileo me?"
  • Peter replied, "I phileo you."
Peter Paul Rubens, Christ's Charge to Peter, c. 1616

This is brought out in the 1984 (but not the 2011) edition of the NIV, which renders agapao as "truly love" and phileo as "love". Ben Witherington III suggests that this indicates "Jesus' gracious condescension to the level that Peter was prepared to respond at this juncture."[8] William Hendriksen argues that in his third question, Jesus is calling into question even Peter's "subjective attachment" and affection, and that is why it says "Peter was grieved because he said to him this third time..." (John 21:17).[9]

Other commentators, such as D. A. Carson, reject the idea of a distinction between the meaning of the two words.[10]

Peter appointed as shepherd

In response to Peter's three affirmations of love for him, Jesus gives Peter three commands: "Feed my lambs" / "Take care of my sheep" / "Feed my sheep". Jesus is re-commissioning Peter as an apostle and leader in the church. "Sheep" is a common metaphor in the New Testament to refer to the people of God. This is the origin of the word "pastor", which means "shepherd".

The 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia argues that the title "Vicar of Christ", given to the Pope, is founded on these words of Jesus, "by which He constituted the Prince of the Apostles guardian of His entire flock in His own place, thus making him His Vicar and fulfilling the promise made in Matthew 16:18–19."[11] D. A. Carson, however, argues that "neither founding pre-eminence nor comparative authority is in view" in this passage.[12] Writing from an Orthodox perspective, Victor Potapov argues that the word "feed" does not signify "the supreme authority of pastorship," but simply "the authority and responsibilities of pastorship proper to all the apostles and their successors."[13]

Jesus' prediction of Peter's death

Jesus then describes Peter's future to him, and says "someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go" (John 21:18, NIV). The narrator interprets this as referring to Peter's martyrdom (John 21:19). According to a tradition found in the apocryphal Acts of Peter, Peter was crucified upside-down.

References

  1. ↑ Paul Barnett, John: The Shepherd King (Sydney South: Aquila Press, 2005), p. 314.
  2. ↑ William L. Lane, The Gospel According to Mark (NICNT; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1971), p. 589.
  3. ↑ Paul Barnett, John, p. 321.
  4. ↑ William Hendriksen (London: Banner of Truth, 1961), The Gospel of John, p. 486.
  5. ↑ Ben Witherington III, What Have They Done with Jesus? Beyond Strange Theories and Bad History – Why We Can Trust the Bible (New York: HarperOne, 2006), p. 73.
  6. ↑ D. A. Carson, The Gospel According to John (Leicester: Apollos, 1991), pp. 675–676.
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Ben Witherington III, What Have They Done with Jesus?, p. 74.
  9. ↑ William Hendriksen, John, p. 488.
  10. ↑ D. A. Carson, John, p. 676-677.
  11. ↑ Wikisource-logo.svg Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ D. A. Carson, John, 678.
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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