"He" in 1 Peter 4:1-2

From: Questions and Answers on Scripture: From the Bible Treasury

• 1 min. read • grade level: 8

Question: 1 Peter 4:1, 2¹Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; ²That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God. (1 Peter 4:1‑2). “For he that hath suffered in the flesh,” &c. To whom does the “he” refer in these two verses? R.M.

Answer: To the believer—who, refusing to yield to the solicitations of sin, suffers thereby instead of gratifying the flesh. As Christ once suffered for sins not His own—Himself the ever sinless One—but ours, so are we called to let this suffice, as well as “the time past of our life,” and if now we suffer from without it should be not for sins but for righteousness (3:14), or as a Christian (4:14-16). Arming ourselves “with the same mind” we refuse the evil at whatever cost, that we may live to the will of God.

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