The Elect

​After a reading of 1 Peter again, I am more convinced than ever that the “elect” of which Paul and the apostles speak in the New Testament are the Jews who have become Christians in the first century.  We know from the counsel in Jerusalem around 50 A.D. that Paul was going to be the evangelist to the gentiles and Peter was going to evangelize the Jews.  I have included some quotes in 1 Peter to support my position.  In fact the opening sentence confirms that his audience are Jews.  “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the elect who dwell as foreigners up and down Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,  chosen in the foreknowledge of God the Father…” 1 Peter 1-2.  God chose a chosen race, the descendants of Abraham, to be the receiver of His Word.  These chosen people were the people of Israel and Judea, the Jews. The word “elect” in every epistle of the New Testament refers to Jews in general terms, and more particularly, Christian Jews. And why would they be called foreigners if they were not Jews living in the land of the gentiles? “Blessed be that God, that Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy has begotten us anew…” 1 Peter 3.  Why were his audience “begotten anew?” This sentence implies that they were begotten a first time by the selection of the Jews as the chosen people through the actions of Abraham and Moses. Then Christ, a Jew, chose them a second time. “What was the ransom that freed you from the vain observances of ancestral tradition?” 1 Peter 18.  Peter is talking about animal sacrifices of the Jews from the traditions of the prophets of the Old Testament.  Why would he make such a statement to gentiles? “Your life amidst the Gentiles must be beyond reproach;” 1 Peter 2:12.  Why would Peter address his audience as living among the gentiles if his letter were to the gentiles?  Peter is addressing his fellow Jews who living amongst the gentiles. “Think how obedient Sara was to Abraham, how she called him her lord; if you would prove yourselves her children, live honestly, and let no anxious thoughts disturb you.” 1 Peter 3:6. Would the gentiles know much about the life of Sara and Abraham in 64 A.D.?  Who are the children of Sara and Abraham but the Jews? “That is why dead men, too, had the gospel message brought to them;” 1 Peter 4:6.  The “dead men” to which Peter refers are the gentiles. The word “too” implies that the gospel was brought to the Jews and also to the “dead men” too. “Do not be surprised, beloved, that this fiery ordeal should have befallen you, to test your quality” 1 Peter 4:12.  What is the “fiery ordeal” of which Peter speaks?  Remember when the Romans completely sacked Jerusalem in 70 A.D.  The Jewish revolt began several years before the final destruction of Jerusalem.  Most Christian Jews fled Jerusalem when the revolt first began (right at the time when this letter was written) and were dispersed throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia. “The time is ripe for judgement to begin, and to begin with God’s own household; and if our turn comes first, what will be its issue for those who refuse credence to God’s message?”  1 Peter 4:17.  The “judgment” is the destruction of Jerusalem and the “time is ripe” meaning that it is happening as he is writing.  Then Peter says the judgment will begin with God’s own household, which is the elect, the Jews. “Our turn comes first” means the Jewish Christians will be persecuted first then the gentile Christians.  Peter is writing from Rome by the hand of Silvanus and Peter’s interpreter, Mark, to their fellow Jews of the diaspora, who were all united by God’s election in the days of Noah and Abraham.