Arguments Against Petrine Authorship

Additional evidence in support of Petrine authorship includes the acceptance of the letter by the early church. Sproul states that the “epistle was received in the very earliest times of Christian history, in the middle of the first century, as having come from Peter.” This is supported because some of the early church fathers made use of the letter which indicates their recognition of and acceptance of its source. If they doubted its source, it would have been natural for it to be rejected but “there is no evidence that anyone in the early church believed that the letter was written by anyone other than Peter.” John MacArthur while upholding Petrine authorship of the letter because of the attitude of the early church quoted the fourth century

Peter H. Davids notes that the Greek of 1 Peter was one of the finest in the New Testament which suggests a degree of sophistication that Peter could not have had since he was a fisherman. And, one that is not reflected in the language of 2 Peter. They also opine that the citations from the Old Testament originated from the Septuagint which do not align with Peter’s native language. Sproul argues that Peter was bilingual though and these reasons cannot rule out his authorship of the book. Another argument against Petrine authorship is “Paulinisms.” Some scholars argue that the theology of 1 Peter appears to be Pauline in nature. Sproul acknowledged this similarity but argued that it should be accepted as evidence of the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in the life of both men since they were communicating the “same gospel, the same ethic, the same truth.”

Along with the above, other arguments against Peter’s authorship of the letter include the supposition that it was written by Silvanus, its lack of information about the historical Jesus, and the dating of the letter in relation to the persecution described in the letter. On the whole, though, the evidence for Petrine authorship of 1 Peter is convincing. The words of R. C. Sproul are apt here, “if you come to the text already persuaded that it is the Word of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit, then God has to say only once that this letter was written by the Apostle