Simon Peter
- James Collazo
- Apr 21, 2019
- 9 min read
Updated: 2d
Introduction
Simon, son of Jonah (Aramaic: Shimon bar Yonah—Greek: Simōn Bariōnas) was born around AD 1 in the Roman district of Gaulanitis. He is better known as Peter (Greek: Petros, G4074), a name Jesus gave him as a ministry title (Matt. 16:18). Simon grew up as a fisherman in Bethsaida, a Jewish village on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee (John 1:44). His father's name was either Jonah (Matt. 16:17) or John (John 1:42, 21:15–17), as the New Testament authors used both—likely because they share the same Hebrew consonants (יוחנן Yochanan, H3110, and יונה Yonah, H3123).
Simon's brother, Andrew, worked with him in a fishing business at Capernaum, alongside the sons of Zebedee, James and John (Luke 5:10). Peter probably came from a lower-middle-class background, similar to that of a blue-collar worker today. His impulsive nature often got him into trouble with Jesus and the Judean authorities. Peter acted first and thought later—a true "better to beg forgiveness than ask permission" type. Though Jesus frequently called the Pharisees and other religious leaders "vipers" (Matt. 12:34, 23:33) or "thieves" (John 10:8–10), he once rebuked Peter directly, calling him "Satan" (Matt. 16:23).
Peter's impulsiveness appears throughout the gospels: he stepped out of the boat but sank when he took his eyes off Jesus on the Sea of Galilee (Matt. 14:28–31); he denied Jesus three times (Matt. 26:33–35; Mark 14:29–31; Luke 22:33–34; John 13:36–38); he cut off of Malchus—a servant to Caiaphas, the high priest—during Jesus' arrest (John 18:10–11); and he often answered eagerly, usually incorrectly (Mark 9:5–6; Luke 9:33). However, Peter's story is ultimately one of God's mercy—the transformation of a hotheaded, provincial fisherman into the "rock of the church."
A Galilean Accent
Beyond his work as a fisherman, another clue to Peter's provincial background was his Galilean accent, which others mocked during his denial of Jesus in Jerusalem (Matt. 26:73). This accent likely reflected cultural and linguistic differences between the northern kingdom of Ephraim and the southern kingdom of Judah following David's reign (1 Kings 12:19). Northerners lived far from Jerusalem, the cosmopolitan center of Israel, and their speech marked them as outsiders. Fishing played a central role in the towns along the Sea of Galilee, as archaeology confirms through discoveries of discarded fish bones. Many first-century Judeans disparaged the Galilean accent, and even the authors of the Talmud acknowledged this prejudice:
A certain Galilean went around saying . . . "Who has amar? Who has amar?" They said to him, "You Galilean fool, do you mean a donkey (chamor, H2543) for riding, wine (chamar; H2562) for drinking, wool (amar; H6015) for clothing, or a lamb (imar; H563) for slaughtering?" (Eruvin 53b.6).
People in Jerusalem often struggled to understand Peter because Galileans typically pronounced the guttural vowels of Hebrew with a slurred accent. This difficulty in comprehension resembles how modern English speakers sometimes mock accents from the American South or the East End of London. Matthew emphasizes Peter's accent to highlight his transition from fisherman to church leader. After denying Jesus to save his life, Peter returned to fishing, assuming that Jesus' ministry had ended with the crucifixion—perhaps dismissing him too quickly as another false messiah.
Even after being the first apostle to see the empty tomb, Peter was amazed yet went home (Luke 24; John 20:4). Jesus appeared to him soon afterward while he was fishing and reenacted the first time he called Peter at the Sea of Galilee, commanding him to catch a large number of fish. During the following conversation, Jesus asked Peter three times, "Do you love me more than these?" For the first two questions, Jesus used the verb agapaō (G25), then concluded with phileō (G5368). Peter, still unsure of his role, responded with the intent of mere friendship. Jesus, however, spoke of Peter's future martyrdom, knowing that the apostle would ultimately demonstrate his undying love for God (John 21:1–19).
Peter would become the leading voice of the early church, using his Galilean accent to proclaim this foundational truth: Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of the living God (Matt. 16:16). Whereas the Judean religious leaders doubted that the Holy One of Israel could come from Galilee (John 7:52), Peter knew better. The prophet Isaiah writes:
Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the future he will honor Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan—The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned (Isa. 9:1–2; cf. Matt. 4:14–15).
Peter: Like a Rock
Peter's declaration to Jesus, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God," at Caesarea Philippi stands as the most vital creed for the Christian church. It underpins the historical symbols of Nicaea and Chalcedon (see "Confessions of Faith"), as well as all contemporary statements of faith. Peter's confession was so foundational that Jesus called Simon the "rock" upon which he would build his church. At this stage, Peter still struggled to grasp the whole meaning of Jesus' words. Shortly after his bold proclamation, Jesus rebuked him as "Satan" for attempting to prevent his crucifixion.
When Jesus called Simon the "rock," he likely spoke Aramaic, using the words Kephas (G2786) and keph (H3710) as both a new ministry title and a personal name (Matt. 16:13–20). The Greek words Petros (G4074) and petra (G4073) differ only in grammatical gender, with no theological significance. Peter first became the "rock" of the church at Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit empowered him and the other apostles to proclaim the good news. He took the lead as Jews from across the Mediterranean and Near East heard them speaking in various languages. Without formal theological training (Acts 4:13), Peter invoked the prophets Joel and David to show that the Hebrew Scriptures had foretold the Messiah and the outpouring of spiritual gifts. He spoke with such authority that 3,000 people were convicted and baptized that day (Acts 2:1–41).
Throughout his ministry, Peter healed many who were disabled (Acts 3:1, 5:15, 9:32), boldly testified about Jesus before the religious authorities of Jerusalem (Acts 4:1–22), and pronounced God's judgment on Ananias and Sapphira for their deceit (Acts 5:1–11). He imparted the Holy Spirit through the laying on of hands (Acts 8:17) and even raised a disciple, Tabitha, from the dead (Acts 9:36).
Despite Peter's success as an apostle, he still had important lessons to learn. At first, he ministered only to Jews, believing that God's concern was limited to Israel. In a vision, God showed Peter a sheet filled with non-kosher animals—"four-footed animals, as well as reptiles and birds" (Acts 10:12). The four corners of the sheet alluded to the four corners of the earth. God was not primarily teaching Peter about kosher laws, but rather showing that his concern extended to all people, not just Jews. Peter's meeting with Cornelius, a Roman centurion, confirmed that Gentiles could receive baptism (Acts 10).
The vision corrected Peter's latent bias, shaped by his Galilean upbringing. It revealed both his present vocation to the Gentiles and a future indication of his death in Rome, the center of the Gentile world. In the meantime, Peter traveled throughout the Levant with his wife (Mark 1:30; 1 Cor. 9:5) and oversaw the widespread conversion of Jews, Samaritans, and Gentiles. As the leader of the Judaic wing of the early church, he met with James and Paul at the Council of Jerusalem around AD 50 (Acts 15:1–21). He supported the decision that Gentile Christians should not be required to observe the Law of Moses, though many Jewish believers continued to follow it. This issue arose again in Antioch, where Paul confronted Peter for eating with Gentiles while pretending to maintain kosher observance around Jewish Christians (Gal. 2:11–14).
Martyrdom in Rome
Peter died in Rome, although Scripture does not record the details that later popular tradition recounts. When Jesus restored Peter as an apostle, he warned him:
Very truly I tell you, when you were younger, you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go (John 21:18).
In first-century Rome, those executed by burning often wore flammable tunics, which aligns with Jesus' prediction that someone else would dress Peter. Crucifixion, in contrast, typically left victims naked to maximize humiliation, making the "dressed by others" detail inconsistent with a cross (cf. Matt. 27:35; Mark 15:24; Luke 23:34; John 19:24). Stories that Peter was crucified upside down do not appear until the late second or early third century, nearly a century after his death. These accounts demonstrate how historical traditions evolve in response to the influence of religion and culture. Scripture does not give us the specifics of Peter's death.
Evidence suggests that Peter probably died after the Great Fire of Rome in AD 64, when the emperor Nero (r. AD 54–68) executed Christians by sewing them into animal skins for dogs or burning them alive as human torches for public spectacle. Unlike crucifixion, Peter's death involved garments and a belt, which Roman soldiers drenched in flammable substances to carry out immolation. Tacitus (AD 56–c. 120) recounts this method when describing the aftermath of the fire.
Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christ, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilate, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judea, the first source of the evil but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their center and become popular. Accordingly, an arrest was first made of all who pleaded guilty; then, upon their information, an immense multitude was convicted, not so much of the crime of firing the city as of hatred against humankind. Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt to serve as a nightly illumination when daylight had expired. Nero offered his gardens for the spectacle (Annals 15.44).
The earliest record of Peter's martyrdom comes from Clement of Rome (c. AD 30–c. 100):
Let us take the noble examples furnished in our generation. Through envy and jealousy, the greatest and most righteous pillars have been persecuted and put to death . . . Peter, through unrighteous envy, endured not one or two, but numerous labors, and when he had at length suffered martyrdom, departed to the place of glory due to him (1 Clem. 5:5).
Conclusion
Peter occupied a central role in the early church. A fisherman from Galilee, he was distinguished by his passionate temperament and impulsive behavior. While he frequently exhibited remarkable faith, he also struggled with doubt, at times even denying his association with Jesus. Despite these shortcomings, Peter matured and developed through his experiences. When he professed that Jesus was the Messiah, Jesus designated this confession as the foundation—the "rock"—upon which he would establish his church. Peter's life exemplifies how faith, combined with divine grace, can transform an individual and guide them toward a higher purpose.
Prayer
Blessed are you, LORD our God, King of heaven and earth! You inspired Peter, the first among the apostles, to confess Jesus as the Messiah and the Son of the living God. Keep your church firm upon this rock of faith, so that we may stand united in peace and love. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Bibliography
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Bond, Helen K., and Larry W. Hurtado, eds. Peter in Early Christianity. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2015.
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Pfister, Samuel DeWitt. "Where Is Biblical Bethsaida?" Biblical Archaeology Society. November 7, 2024. link.
Strauss, Mark L. Four Portraits, One Jesus: A Survey of Jesus and the Gospels. 2nd ed. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2020.
Tacitus. Complete Works of Tacitus. Translated by Alfred John Church and William Jackson Brodribb. New York: Random House, 1942.
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