“Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ: grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord”—2 Peter 1:1, 2.
“FAITH... through the righteousness of God.” This is an expression peculiar to Peter. Paul speaks of the righteousness of God by faith, which is the standing of all who believe (Rom. 3:22). But here the terms are reversed. Men are said to have shared in “like precious faith... through the righteousness of God.” God could not be righteous if He denied faith to any who sought to know His grace. That faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God (Rom. 10:17). If, as Scripture says, “All men have not faith” (2 Thess. 3:2), it is not because God has made it impossible for them to have it, but because they refuse to hear the Word. In His righteousness God has made faith available for all.
“Grace and peace be multiplied... through... knowledge.” The more we study God’s Word, the better we come to know Him who gave it, and our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom it speaks. As we thus increase in the knowledge of the Father and the Son, our experiences are deepened and we find all needed grace for the path, coupled with an ever-deepening peace.
“Lord, Thy Word abideth.
And our footsteps guideth:
Who its truth believeth
Light and joy receiveth.
Who can tell the pleasure,
Who recount the treasure,
By Thy Word imparted
To the simple hearted?”
— Henry Williams Baker.