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lambs, etc.— Bengel. Christians are given seven titles in this chapter: babes (v. 2), stones (v. 5), believers (v. 6), priests (v. 9), peculiar people (v. 9); strangers and pilgrims (v. 11), serv ants (v. 16), sheep (v. 25).— Sel. A holy priesthood. In the church of Christ there was to be no separate priesthood in the old sense of the word and with the old functions. All were to offer spiritual sacrifices (Rom. 12; 1) as contrasted with the burnt offerings and meat, offerings of Jewish ritual. The temple and the'priesthood were not as in the old, distinguished from each other but were identical. The priests who sacrificed in the true temple were themselves the stone of which that tem ple was builtsf-Plumptre. Prayer is the highest privilege of a child of God, the mark of greatest nearness and like ness to Him the Great High Priest “ who ever liveth to pray.” A priest is one Who lives with God and for God. His work is as God’s servant to care for His house, His honor and His worship, to make known to men His love and will. He also lives with men and for men. (Heb. 5:2.) His work is to find out their sin and need and to bring it before God. This is the high calling of every believer. They have been re deemed with the one purpose to be in ’the midst of the perishing millions around them, God’s priests who in con formity to Jesus the Great High Priest, are to be the ministers and stewards of the grace of God.—Murray. The min ister is not like the Jewish priest, ad mitted nearer to God than the people, but merely for order’s sake leads the spiritual services of the people.— J. F. & B. Spiritual sacrifices. Among the spiritual sacrifices the first place be longs to the general oblation of our selves, for never can we offer anything to God until we have offered ourselves. (II Cor. 8:5.) There follow afterwards prayer, giving of thanks, alms deeds and all exercises of piety.— Calvin. Ac ceptable by Jesus Christ. As the spirit ual house, so also the priesthood is built on Jesus Christ. Imperfect as are our services we are not with unbelieving timidity to doubt their acceptance through Christ.— Beza. v. 11. Abstain from fleshly lusts. Even the chosen generation, the peo ple of God (v. 9), need an exhortation to abstain from the worst sins. Of all sorts of sin none are more injurious than fleshly lusts. Carnal appetites and
Word of God.— J. F. & B. Sincere is literally “ guileless,” unadulterated. The heretics mix chalk with milk. The article implies that besides the well known pure milk, the Gospel, there is no other pure unadulterated doctrine. It alone cdn make us guileless (v. 1).— Irenaeus. Milk is here not elementary truths in contradistinction to more ad vanced Christian truths as in 1 Cor. 3:2; Heb. 5:12, 13, but in contrast to guile, hypocrisies, etc., in verse 1. The simplicity of Christian doctrine in gen eral to the childlike spirit.-—Steiger. That ye may grow thereby. If you want to grow, bury yourself in the Scriptures. S-Thomas. Oldest manuscripts read “ grow unto salvation.” Being born again into salvation (1:23), we are also to grow unto salvation. The end to which growth leads is perfect salvation. —Alford. The Word is to be desired with appetite as the cause of life, to be swallowed in the hearing, to be chewed as cud is by rumination, with the un derstanding, and to be digested by faith.— Tertullian. v. 3. If ye have tasted. Peter al ludes to Ps. 34:8. The first tastes of God’s goodness are afterward followed by fuller and happier experiences. A taste whets the appetite.— Bengel. The Lord is gracious. Literally “ good, kind.” As God is revealed to us in Christ, we who are born again ought to be good and kind to the brethren (1:22).— Luther. v. 4. Coming unto the living stone. The church is built on Christ the true foundation stone (Acts 4:11). The Spirit foreseeing the Romanist perver sion of Matt. 16:18, makes Peter him self to refute it. Christ. is a living «tone having life in Himself from the beginning, and is raised from the dead to live forevermore. (Rev. 1:18.) Like no earthly rock He lives and gives life to us.— Jamieson. v. 5. ’ Ye also as living stones. The whole imagery changes like a dissolv ing view and in the place of the growth of babes nourished with spiritual milk, we have that of a building in which each disciple of Christ is as a living stone spontaneously taking the. right place in the building that rests on Christ as the chief cornerstone.— Camb. Bible. Par taking of the name and life which is in the living stone (1 Cor. 3:11). Many names which apply to Christ in the sin gular are assigned to Christians in the plural (44 stones, sons, priests, kings,
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