2 Peter 1:7
And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
Original Language Analysis
Cross References
Historical Context
In the ancient world, loyalty to one's ethnic group, social class, or philosophical school was common, but the Christian call to love all believers across traditional boundaries was revolutionary. Roman society was rigidly stratified; Jewish identity centered on ethnic and religious distinctives separating them from Gentiles. The church's practice of philadelphia—slaves and masters, Jews and Gentiles, men and women united as siblings in Christ—challenged social structures and attracted both converts and persecution.
Agapē love wasn't unknown in Greek literature but was relatively rare compared to erōs (romantic love) or philia (friendship). Christians elevated agapē as supreme, defining it by Christ's self-sacrifice and applying it universally, even to persecutors. This ethic of enemy-love distinguished Christianity from surrounding philosophies and religions. Early church communities practiced radical generosity, caring for widows, orphans, and the poor regardless of social status—a witness to gospel transformation. False teachers undermined this unity by creating factions, exploiting the vulnerable, and promoting selfish indulgence (2:10-14).
Questions for Reflection
- How does your local church community reflect—or fail to reflect—genuine brotherly kindness across demographic and preference differences?
- Who are the people you find hardest to love with Christ-like agapē, and what might Spirit-enabled love toward them look like?
- How can you identify false teaching by examining whether it produces self-sacrificing love or self-serving exploitation?
Analysis & Commentary
And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. Peter concludes the virtue list with two relational qualities. "Brotherly kindness" (philadelphia, φιλαδελφία) denotes the warm affection and loyalty characteristic of family bonds, applied to fellow believers. The early church's radical unity across ethnic, economic, and social barriers astonished the pagan world. This familial love for fellow Christians demonstrates that godliness (v. 6) isn't isolated mysticism but community-shaping devotion.
To brotherly kindness add "charity" (agapē, ἀγάπη)—the distinctive Christian love that extends beyond natural affection to sacrificial, self-giving commitment modeled by Christ (John 13:34-35; 15:13). While philadelphia focuses on fellow believers, agapē encompasses all people, including enemies (Matt 5:44). This is the summit of Christian virtue—God-like love that gives without calculation of return, loves the unlovely, and seeks others' good at personal cost.
The progression from faith (v. 5) to love (v. 7) mirrors Paul's triad of faith, hope, and love (1 Cor 13:13), with love as the greatest. Authentic faith necessarily produces love; profession without love exposes spurious faith (1 John 4:20). Peter's list brackets moral transformation (virtue, self-control) and theological growth (knowledge) within relational love, revealing that Christianity is fundamentally about loving God and neighbor. This directly counters false teachers whose doctrine produces division, selfishness, and exploitation (2:1-3, 13-14) rather than sacrificial love.