Scattered
1 Peter
Session 1 of 9 · 1 Peter 1:1-12
A living hope
Write your HEAR journal on this passage: highlight, explain, apply, respond.
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To the elect who are exiles of the Dispersion throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, chosen
1 Peter 1:1
The big idea
Peter writes to believers scattered far from the centre of things and, before anything else, tells them who they are: chosen, born again into a living hope, and loved by a Jesus they have never seen. Distance from the centre is not distance from God.
The passage
1 Peter 1:1-12
Every verse this session works through, in order.
1Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To the elect who are exiles of the Dispersion throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, chosen
2according to the foreknowledge of God the Father and sanctified by the Spirit for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by His blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.
3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
4and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, reserved in heaven for you,
5who through faith are shielded by God’s power for the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.
6In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in various trials
7so that the proven character of your faith—more precious than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
8Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and rejoice with an inexpressible and glorious joy,
9now that you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
10Concerning this salvation, the prophets who foretold the grace to come to you searched and investigated carefully,
11trying to determine the time and setting to which the Spirit of Christ in them was pointing when He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow.
12It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, when they foretold the things now announced by those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.
Berean Standard Bible (BSB), public domain
This week's passage in 3 minutes
Study it with HEAR
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Highlight
Go around: which verse or phrase stood out to you, and why? Don't explain anything yet. Just collect the highlights.
- Which phrase caught you, and what did you feel when you heard it?
- Did anyone pick the same verse for a different reason?
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Explain
Now ask what it meant to the people who first read it. Use the background below only as much as the group needs; this isn't a lecture.
"The Dispersion" (diaspora) was the word for God's people living scattered outside their homeland. Peter applies it to believers spread across five Roman provinces in what is now Turkey: Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia.
Peter likely wrote from Rome ("Babylon" in 5:13), with the letter carried by Silvanus (5:12), most likely in the 60s AD. Many readers were probably Gentile believers, people who had left "the empty way of life you inherited from your forefathers" (1:18).
These were not big city churches. They were small groups meeting in homes, often misunderstood by their neighbours. Peter opens by calling them "the elect": chosen, not forgotten.
Verse 3 grounds their hope in the resurrection. Verse 7 compares tested faith to gold refined by fire. Verses 10–12 say the prophets served people they would never meet, and that this news is something "even angels long to look into."
Commentaries on 1 Peter 1: Matthew Henry · Enduring Word (David Guzik)
- What would it have felt like to be called "chosen" while living as an exile?
- Why does Peter put the living hope (v. 3) before the trials (v. 6)?
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Apply
Don't teach the application. People will start to say what they notice for their own lives. When they do, respond by taking it back to the passage: "Where do you see that in these verses?" Read that verse again together and let Scripture confirm, sharpen or gently correct it. The text does the work, not the leader.
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Respond
Ask each person: what is God asking you to do with this? Keep it to one concrete thing for this week. Then pray for each other's responses, briefly and by name.
- What is one thing you'll do this week because of this passage?
- Who in the group will check in with you about it?
Two moments from the session
Go deeper
- John 20:29
- Jesus blesses "those who have not seen and yet have believed": the people 1 Peter 1:8 describes.
- James 1:2-3
- Another letter to the scattered, with the same link between trials and tested faith.
Share it
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Lead this study
Anyone leading a small group through this passage: a Discord voice channel, a Zoom room, a home group, a youth group. You don't need to be a pastor. Your job is to keep the group in the text and make room for everyone to speak.
Before you meet
- Read 1 Peter 1:1–12 twice this week, once out loud.
- Watch the two moments from Tuesday's session linked below (about 2 minutes each), or the whole replay if you have time.
- Pray for each person by name. In an online group, check that everyone has the link and can unmute.
Notes for leaders
- Silence is fine. Count to ten before you fill it.
- In an online group, call on people by name, gently. Chat-only voices count: read their typed answers aloud.
- If someone shares something heavy, like grief, a crisis or thoughts of self-harm, pause the study and care for the person first. If anyone is in danger, contact local emergency services. In the US you can call or text 988. Outside the US, https://findahelpline.com lists local lines.
- You don't have to have the answers. "Let's look at the text together" is always a good reply.
Preview
Be holy, because the word endures
Thursday, October 22 at 5:00 PM ET
1 Peter 1:13–25, Peter's first "therefore", with a call to set our hope fully on God's grace and a word that endures. Live on Twitch, Tuesday at 5:00 PM ET.
This week's devotionals
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Read the full devotionalListen as a podcast
Each session, and the week's devotionals read aloud.
Watch the session
Watch the replay and read the transcript
With Flatcap and Ian Kirk.
