Q: In Matthew 16:22-23, Jesus tells Peter, "Get thee behind me, Satan" -- a fine way to address his holiness, the first pope! Isn't this kind of language uncalled for?
A: When objecting that Jesus called his opponents snakes and hypocrites, its nice to recollect that Jesus also called his disciple Simon Peter Satan. There are a few things Id like to point out here:
(1) Peter is nowhere called the first pope in the Bible. Peter was married. Peter did not preside over the first church council (James did). In his first letter, Peter did not claim any superapostolic authority; he graciously appealed to elders as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ.
(2) However stunned and surprised Peter may have been to be called Satan, he got over it.
(3) It was entirely appropriate for Jesus to call Peter Satan on this occasion, because Peter was ignorantly doing Satans work by encouraging Jesus to avoid crucifixion. The surrounding verses tell the full story.
(4) Though it's practically automatic for modern readers to equate Satan with "The Devil," the term, standing alone, means "adversary." So it's not quite like Jesus called Peter the devil; it's more like Jesus addressed him so as emphasize that Peter was, momentarily, in the devil's role/function.
Yours in Christ,
Waterrock
A: When objecting that Jesus called his opponents snakes and hypocrites, its nice to recollect that Jesus also called his disciple Simon Peter Satan. There are a few things Id like to point out here:
(1) Peter is nowhere called the first pope in the Bible. Peter was married. Peter did not preside over the first church council (James did). In his first letter, Peter did not claim any superapostolic authority; he graciously appealed to elders as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ.
(2) However stunned and surprised Peter may have been to be called Satan, he got over it.
(3) It was entirely appropriate for Jesus to call Peter Satan on this occasion, because Peter was ignorantly doing Satans work by encouraging Jesus to avoid crucifixion. The surrounding verses tell the full story.
(4) Though it's practically automatic for modern readers to equate Satan with "The Devil," the term, standing alone, means "adversary." So it's not quite like Jesus called Peter the devil; it's more like Jesus addressed him so as emphasize that Peter was, momentarily, in the devil's role/function.
Yours in Christ,
Waterrock
