Sharing in Christ’s Glory : a study of Doxa in 1 Peter

Abstract

The renaissance in Petrine studies during the latter half of the 20th century saw a number of scholarly works examining 1 Peter with renewed vitality. Rather than being primarily concerned to identify possible underlying baptismal sources, scholars assumed the genuineness of the letter which in turn led to significant fresh academic endeavours that sought to help modern readers understand more fully Peter’s overarching message, the purpose of the letter, and the social setting of its first readers in Asia Minor. This study begins (Chapter 2) by presenting some underlying presuppositions concerning the authorship, date and provenance of the epistle before examining the setting and the religious and social background of the original recipients. The chapter then briefly outlines the arguments for accepting 1 Peter as a genuine letter to an audience with real concerns. Chapter 3 reflects on some of the major works by Petrine scholars and their various hypotheses to fully understand the epistle. This study notes that some of these academic hypotheses have offered differing hermeneutical keys, usually based on the occurrences of particular Greek terms. Interestingly, however, none of these studies have considered the author of 1 Peter’s frequent use of δόξα (doxa, glory) and its cognates. This study, therefore, considers the Jewish background of dbk (kabod, glory) in the Hebrew Bible (Chapter 4), the Jewish Apocalyptic literature (Chapter 5) and the use of δόξα in the Septuagint (Chapter 6). In Chapter 7, this study considers the use of δόξα and its cognates in 1 Peter as seen in the context of the overall letter. It examines how this term is intricately linked to the author’s Christology and soteriology. It also considers the author’s use of δόξα to encourage his original recipients who were suffering for their faith in Jesus Christ with the eschatological hope of sharing ultimately in Christ’s glory.