For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God.

 

Peter the Rock

(AD 30 – AD 68)

Syriac: ܫܸܡܥܘܿܢ ܟܹ݁ܐܦ݂ܵܐ, Šemʿōn Kēp̄ā; Hebrew: שמעון בר יונה‎ Šimʿōn bar Yōnāh; Greek: Πέτρος, translit. Petros; Coptic: translit. Petros; Latin: Petrus; also known as Simon Peter, Simeon, or Simon

“But the end of all things is at hand:
be ye therefore sober, and watch..”

Imminence in Peter

• Acts 2:16-17 “But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days..”
• Acts 3:23-24 “every soul, which shall not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people. Yea, and all the prophets.. have likewise foretold of these days.”
• I Peter 1:4-6 “To an inheritance incorruptible.. reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”
•  I Peter 1:7 “That the trial of your faith.. though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing (parousia) of Jesus Christ.”
• I Peter 1:9-10 “receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls. Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you.”
• I Peter 1:13 “Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation (parousia) of Jesus Christ.”
• I Peter 1:20 “Who (Christ) verily was fore ordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.”
• I Peter 4:5 “Who shall give account to him that is ready to judge the quick and the dead.”
• I Peter 4:7 “But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch..”
• I Peter 4:17 “For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God.”
• I Peter 5:1 “…as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is about to be revealed.”
• II Peter 3:12 “Looking for and hasting unto the coming (parousia) of the day of God.”
• II Peter 1:19 “We have the prophetic word …which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the Day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts.”
• II Peter 2:3 “Their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.”
• I Peter 3:3,5 “In the last days mockers will come. …For this they willingly are ignorant of…”
• II Peter 3:10-12 “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God.”

MAIN ARTICLE COLLECTION
Typically Organized by Author’s First Name

1 Peter 4:7 Study Archive

But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch

2 Peter 3:10 Study Archive

the ELEMENTS shall melt with fervent heat

Adam Maarschalk: The Two Witnesses Killed by the Beast (2014)

Having seen that it was the Zealots and the Idumeans who trampled Jerusalem for 3.5 years (42 months), we also see in Revelation 11:3 that God gave power to His two witnesses to prophesy for 3.5 years (1260 days). These time periods were identical in length, but did they begin and end at the same time?

Alexander Gibb: Jerusalem was Babylon the Great, the Mystery is History (2015)

Alexander has been a Christian for 46 years. Over the past decade he has studied ‘the end times’ from a Preterist’s perspective.

Allen Baily: Clouds of Judgment and Glory (2003)

The elements of the previous dispensation must give way for a more transcending and glorious kingdom of the Son of God Himself where He now indwells His people by His Own Spirit, and walks in them and dwells in them

Andrew Perriman: The Narrative-Historical Reading of the New Testament (2012)

the theological content of the New Testament—its proclamations, arguments, instructions, doctrines, etc.—cannot be properly understood apart from the historical narrative by which, explicitly or implicitly, this material is framed.

Andrew Perriman: Two Unconventional Ways of Thinking about the Delay of the Parousia (2016)

The problem is not that the “end” that Jesus had in view has been delayed. If the end was a a war against Rome, there is nothing implausible about his prediction that the present generation of rebellious Israel would not pass away until all these things take place

Andrew Perriman: Why I Don’t like Being Labelled a “Preterist” (2016)

Modern preterism, it seems to me, is almost entirely focused on, and defined by, the controversy over the fulfilment of prophecy.

Andrew Perriman: Wright and the Mission of the Early Church (2012)

the pouring out of the Spirit at Pentecost is also an eschatologically determined event: it is the empowering of the disciples to preach the same message of judgment and renewal as the Jewish War loomed ever larger on the horizon.

Augustine: Letters on Matthew 24 and “The End of the World” (400-430)

I think that the one about the weeks of Daniel in particular should be understood in terms of time that is already past. He was correct to tell the Jews that the times were completed, because their times came to an end thirty-five or forty years after he preached.

Bob Algood: Mystery Babylon, Mother of Harlots (1999)

The Arminian premillennial dispensationalist who believe in the Postponed Kingdom Theory say most of the things in Revelation have not yet been fulfilled.

Bob Allgood: Mystery Babylon Come Out of Her My People (1999)

One can see from these words that scriptural justification can be made for an application of “the great whore” to “the Jerusalem that now is”.  Nor would it be too extreme to assign the judgment of “the great whore” and “that great city” to the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple by Titus in 70AD

Brian Abshire: Why I Believe We Are Not Living in “The Last Days” (1999)

But if the destruction of Jerusalem was about to occur, if the land was invaded and the city about to be surrounded, how much clearer could he make it? The 70 AD scenario is the only one that really does justice to John’s sense of expectancy

C.C. Torrey: The Apocalypse of John (1958)

It is to be observed how the result thus reached―a date shortly before the year 70―confirms the explicit statement of the author of Revelation that he wrote in the time of the sixth emperor, before the seventh had come to the throne; that is, the year 68.

 

C.C. Torrey: The Aramaic Period of the Nascent Christian Church (1950)

A significant feature of the new age, then, would be literature; inspired writings, in which the voice of the spirit of prophecy would again be heard in Israel.

Charles Terpstra: Reformed Eschatology Has Been Amillennial Since the Reformation (1999)

the Reformers did not develop the doctrines of eschatology, at least not very far. Witness the fact that neither Luther nor Calvin produced a commentary on the book of Revelation. They basically repeated what the church had held for over a thousand years.

Chris Strevel: Rome or Jerusalem? A Comparative Analysis of the Harlot Imagery in Revelation 17 (2005)

I have endeavored to demonstrate that advocates of the Jerusalem=harlot view have a strong case to offer… This view is certainly consistent with John’s stated theme: God’s great divorce of Israel and Christ’s judgment upon her.

Chuck Schussman: When Was The Book of Revelation Written? (2016)

Most arguments for the date of Revelation only look strong to the one making them. This is true whether one supports an early or a late date.

D. Ragan Ewing: The Identification Of Babylon The Harlot In The Book Of Revelation (2002)

Given thoughtful investigation, none of the objections raised decisively precludes Jerusalem as the harlot of the Apocalypse. The burden of proof still lies on the cumulative evidence that can be used to support this interpretation.

DeMar and Chilton: 2 Peter 3 – The Passing Away of Heaven and Earth (2010)

They scoffed at the claims made by Jesus that the temple would be destroyed and Jesus Himself would be the one to make it happen before their generation passed away. Since more than 30 years had passed since Jesus made this prediction, and the temple was still standing with no indication that it would be destroyed in less than a decade, they began to mock the words of Jesus.

Don Preston: Babylon The Great of Revelation

The coming of Jesus as foretold in Revelation was at hand (Revelation 22:6, 10-12, 20). The coming of Jesus as foretold in Revelation was to come at the end of the millennium. Therefore, the end of the millennium was at hand.

Don Preston: The Passing of the Elements: 2 Peter 3:10

Just as in Galatians — and 2 Peter 3 — we find the discussion of the elements, the world, and the passing of the world. Yet it is abundantly clear that for Paul, the passing of the elements, and thus the destruction of the world, meant the passing of the Old Covenant World.

Duncan McKenzie: Babylon was not First-Century Jerusalem (2004)

While equating Jerusalem with Babylon is essentially correct, it does need some refinement.

Duncan McKenzie: The Merchandise of Babylon (2006)

Why are we being bored with this listing of the merchandise of Babylon? What exactly is the purpose of giving us the details of these materials and products?Why are we being bored with this listing of the merchandise of Babylon? What exactly is the purpose of giving us the details of these materials and products?

 

Ernest L. Martin: The Seven Hills of Jerusalem (2000)

Those “seven hills” are easy to identify. If one starts with the Mount of Olives just to the east of the main City of Jerusalem (but still reckoned to be located within the environs of Jerusalem), there are three summits to that Mount of Olives.

Frank Daniels: Days of Future Passed: You Missed It (2016)

Gentry claims to provide “a brief introduction, summary, and critique of the system.” This is something that he truly does not do. Nowhere in the book does he lay out in detail the support for the Full Preterist viewpoint

Gabor Gombor: Aramaic and Preterism; Dating the Book of Revelation (2002)

f we can accept an early Aramaic manuscript of the Revelation written definitely before AD 70 as original, as the Peshito (later revision of Peshitta) versions claim, we would see that LATER a Greek version needed for the growing membership of gentile churches who did not speak Aramaic.

Gary DeMar: Beware of End-Time Prophets who Keep Crying Prophetic Wolf (2018)

Jesus is answering a question put to Him by the Pharisees about the coming of the kingdom of God. To their surprise, Jesus said, “the kingdom of God is in your midst”, implying the kingdom was linked to the first coming of Jesus.

Gary DeMar: The Passing Away of Heaven and Earth (1999)

Commentators often argue that Matthew 24 contains both a discussion of the A.D. 70 destruction as well as a reference to a yet-future return of Christ. This supposed distinction is drawn by contrasting “this generation” and “that day and hour.”

Greg Kiser: Here is why I believe… Peter was referring to Jerusalem as Babylon in 1 Peter 5:13 (2001)

Fourteen years after his conversion, Paul again returns to Jerusalem with Barnabas and Titus. Peter is there again and even named as a “pillar” in the church at Jerusalem

H.L. Nigro: Response to the Preterist Position as Outlined by Sproul (2001)

The gospel was not preached to all nations at the time Jerusalem was destroyed. It had been preached only to the known world.

J. Marcellus Kik: The Appearance of the Sign (1971)

Many commentators cannot see how this was fulfilled before the year 70 A. D. Yet the New Testament itself reveals that this prophecy was fulfilled, and for those who regard the New Testament as authoritative, this should be convincing enough.

James Glasgow: The Apocalypse: Translated and Expounded (1872)

If Jesus came spiritually, invisibly, but personally and potentially, on the day of Pentecost, and judicially as King of Nations and Head of the Church, to judge Jerusalem and terminate the Jewish kingdom, all the intimations of His coming quickly are plain, easy, instructive, and accordant with the grammatical and scriptural use of language.

James Stuart Russell: Old Jerusalem is the City Identified with “Mystery Babylon” (1878)

The well-known commentator, John David Michaelis, shrewdly conjectured that Babylon is identical with Jerusalem. Speaking of the place from which the First Epistle of Peter was written, he says:

James Swann: Charles Spurgeon, Full-Preterism, and Figurative Language

Those involved with Preterism appear to look for anything written by anybody in regard to A.D. 70 and the fall of Jerusalem (simply skim through the pages at the Preterist Archive).

Jarrod Drawbaugh, Reflections of a Former Full Preterist: Part 1 – The Book of Revelation (2018)

By this point it was apparent that A.D. 70 was a far more significant event and played a far more significant role in scripture than I had realized. Previously obscure passages were coming to light, and with it the Bible was coming alive in a whole new and exciting way.

Jarrod Drawbaugh: Reflections of a Former Full Preterist, Part 4 – 1 Thes.4, 2 Thes.2, & 2 Pet.3

The entirety of New Testament eschatology seemed to be a unified whole. Splitting between A.D. 70 and a yet future return seemed to be a false dichotomy.  But there was one huge problem: the resurrection.

 

Jerusalem as Babylon Study Archive

If the City is Jerusalem, how can she be said to wield this kind of worldwide political power?  The answer is that Revelation is not a book about politics; it is a book about the Covenant.  Jerusalem did reign over the nation.

John Owen: On the ‘New Heavens and Earth’ in 2 Peter 3

He will come – He will not tarry; and then the heavens and earth that God Himself planted, – the sun, moon, and stars of the Judaical polity and church, – the whole old world of worship and worshippers

John Owen: ΟURΑΝΩΝ ΟURΑΝΙΑ, The Shaking and Translating of Heaven and Earth (1649)

Understanding, as I suppose, that the things here said to be shaken were the Jewish ordinances, they translated their disposition a “removal;” as the truth is they were removed.

John Reilly: Book Review: Beyond the End Times (1999)

The fact is that the sack of Jerusalem by the Romans just was not big enough to be the fulfillment of the prophecies of the Book of Revelation, or even of the Olivet Discourse. To try to limit the “end times” to that single event smacks of the complacent surmise by Tacitus that the whole of Jewish messianic prophecy was fulfilled by the ascension of Vespasian to the imperial title in Rome.

Joseph Balyeat: Babylon, The Great City of Revelation (1991)

He readily admits that this took place in A.D.70 (p.119), yet, he cannot bring himself to conclude that this was also the Second Coming. Balyeat insists that this is yet to come “at the end of history, a ‘coming’ that will be visible across the whole sky — from East to West.” Isn’t this what Jesus said would happen in A.D.70?

Ken Gentry: As Lightning Comes From the East (2001)

The specter of A.D. 70 haunts the New Testament record (being frequently and vigorously prophesied). Its occurrence dramatically impacts first-century history (being one of its more datable and catastrophic events).

Kurt Simmons: Rethinking II Peter III: Toward a More Expansive Understanding of the Eschaton (2003)

It is almost universally assumed that the bondage Paul avers to is the bondage of tutelage under the law, and that the tutors and governors are equated with the elements of the world. However, this seems plainly mistaken.

Letter to Some Brethren on 2 Peter 3 Regarding the Destruction of the Heavens and the Earth (2004)

Jerusalem, along with the Old Covenant worship system ended in 70 AD. Now, whatever has an “end” also has its “last days” just prior to that end.

Marcus Booker: Peter’s Epistles: Short Summaries (2003)

His concluding message is for them to “stand firm” in the grace of God. He thus encourages his brethren on the basis of the promises that would soon be fulfilled among them.

Michael Bull: Cosmic Language, or, Ethnic Cleansing as Mercy (2012)

In representative terms, the people of God are no longer the Land but the heavenly Sea. The Church herself is the oncoming storm.

Michael Bull: Rescuing Revelation (2017)

The event commonly referred to as Jesus’ ‘second coming’ is history. He came ‘without delay’ in 70AD, just as He said He would. He now rules the nations with a rod of iron, but the final judgment is yet to come.

Michael Krall: A Look at Who Babylon is in the Book of Revelation (2005)

Who persecuted the Apostles? Since that was a first century office can it be the Roman Catholic Church? Were they around to persecute the apostles?

Milton Terry: Apocalyptic Elements in Hebrew Song (1883)

It borders on folly to ask, in the study of such a psalm, when and where God actually bent down the visible heaven and made a pathway of clouds on which David or anyone else saw him descend. But we do see, in all such emo­tional word-pictures, how vividly the Hebrew poets apprehended the presence of God in human experience, and also in the phenomena of the natural world.

Milton Terry: The Apocalypse of the Gospels (1898)

The teaching of Jesus concerning “the end of the age,” and the Son of man coming in the clouds,” appears to have been given in the latter days of his ministry, in connection with the overthrow of the Jewish temple at Jerusalem.

Pete Stoller: Renewed Creation: Preterism and 2 Peter 3 (2007)

All of the discussion above hinges on an understanding of ‘the day of the Lord’ in 2 Peter being about the end of history judgment rather than AD70 judgment.

Peter J. Leithart: The Promise of His Appearing (2004)

preterism is not merely a way of interpreting New Testament prophecy but also provides a framework for understanding New Testament theology as a whole.

Peter Leithart: Decreation in Jeremiah 4 (2010)

Jeremiah is using this image to convey the idea of a dramatic decreation: God is going to unmake the world. This kind of catastrophic language is often used when talking about the death of a king or the fall of a city.

Rick Chromey: A Student’s Research Paper on 2 Peter 3 (2002)

Too many futuristic views have placed the church as some intermediate substitute until Christ can finish the work He started. He said He was going to come back in their generation and set up His kingdom, but He got delayed.

Samuel Dawson: II Peter 3: Destruction of the Universe or Destruction of Jerusalem? (1997)

The false teachers were denying the coming of Christ, and it is about this coming we now concern ourselves. Was Jesus coming in the person of the Roman army to destroy Jerusalem in 70 A.D., or was he coming at the end of time?

Sheila Busby: Could JERUSALEM be Mystery Babylon the Great? (1997)

Maybe that is how the mother-child worship (thus referring to her as “Babylon”) comes to be included in her harlotries. I can’t be sure yet, but I just don’t feel comfortable with the other explanations I’ve heard.

Stanley Phillips: A Refutation of Preterism: Second Peter, Chapter 3

But, while stating that their position is that all the prophecies of end times were fulfilled in a.d. 70, there is at least one that is now being fulfilled.

Terry Siverd: Identifying Babylon in the New Testament

Peter was an apostle to the circumcision. He resided in Jerusalem but undertook to write to Jewish Christians who had been scattered (driven away from Jerusalem). He wrote in the shadow of Jerusalem’s fall in A.D. 70. He wrote admonitions in the language of covenant wrath.

Clement of Rome (c.A.D. 96)
“Through envy and jealousy, the greatest and most righteous pillars have been persecuted and put to death. Let us set before our eyes the illustrious apostles. Peter, through unrighteous envy, endured not one or two, but numerous labours and when he had at length suffered martyrdom, departed to the place of glory due to him. ” (The First Epistle of Clement,5,in ANF,I:6)

Dionysius of Corinth (178)
‘You have thus by such an admonition bound together the plantings of Peter and Paul at Rome and Corinth.” (Epistle to Pope Soter, fragment in Eusebius’ Church History,II:25,in NPNF2,I:130)

Irenaeus (180)
“Matthew also issued a written Gospel among the Hebrews in their own dialect, while Peter and Paul were preaching at Rome, and laying the foundations of the Church.” (Against Heresies,3:1:1,in ANF,I:414)

“As Peter had preached the Word publicly at Rome, and declared the Gospel by the Spirit, many who were present requested that Mark, who had followed him for a long time and remembered his sayings, should write them out.” Clement of Alexandria, fragment in Eusebius Church History,VI:14,6(A.D. 190), in NPNF2,I:261

‘We read the lives of the Caesars: At Rome Nero was the first who stained with blood the rising blood. Then is Peter girt by another, when he is made fast to the cross.” Tertullian, Scorpiace,15:3(A.D. 212),in ANF,III:648

“[W]hat utterance also the Romans give, so very near (to the apostles), to whom Peter and Paul conjointly bequeathed the gospel even sealed with their own blood.” Tertullian, Against Marcion,4:5(inter A.D. 207-212),in ANF,III:350

“It is, therefore, recorded that Paul was beheaded in Rome itself, and that Peter likewise was crucified under Nero. This account of Peter and Paul is substantiated by the fact that their names are preserved in the cemeteries of that place even to the present day. It is confirmed likewise by Caius, a member of the Church, who arose under Zephyrinus, bishop of Rome. He, in a published disputation with Proclus, the leader of the Phrygian heresy, speaks as follows concerning the places where the sacred corpses of the aforesaid apostles are laid: ‘But I can show the trophies of the apostles. For if you will go to the Vatican or to the Ostian way, you will find the trophies of those who laid the foundations of this church.’ ” Gaius, fragment in Eusebius’ Church History,2:25(A.D. 198),in NPNF2,I:129-130

“Peter…at last, having come to Rome, he was crucified head-downwards; for he had requested that he might suffer this way.” Origen, Third Commentary on Genesis, (A.D. 232) fragment in Eusebius 3:1:1,in NPNF2,X:132

“Thus Peter, the first of the Apostles, having been often apprehended, and thrown into prison, and treated with igominy, was last of all crucified at Rome.” Peter of Alexandria, The Canonical Epistle, Canon 9(A.D. 306),in ANF,VI:273

“[W]hich Peter and Paul preached at Rome…” Lactantius, The Divine Institutes,4:21(A.D. 310),in ANF,VII:123

“Peter…coming to the city of Rome, by the mighty cooperation of that power which was lying in wait there…” Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History,II:14,5 (A.D. 325),in NPNF2,X:115

“This man [Simon Magus], after he had been cast out by the Apostles, came to Rome…Peter and Paul,a noble pair, chief rulers of the Church, arrived and set the error right…For Peter was there, who carrieth the keys of heaven…” Cyril of Jerusalem, Catechetical Lectures,6:14-15(c.A.D. 350),in NPNF2,VII:37-38

Athanasius
“And Peter, who had hid himself for fear of the Jews, and the Apostle Paul who was let down in a basket, and fled, when they were told, ‘Ye must bear witness at Rome,’ deferred not the journey; yea, rather, they departed rejoicing…” Defense of his Flight,18(c.A.D. 357),in NPNF2,IV:261

“I think it my duty to consult the chair of Peter, and to turn to a church whose faith has been praised by Paul…My words are spoken to the successor of the fisherman, to the disciple of the cross.” Jerome, To Pope Damasus, Epistle 15 (A.D. 377),in NPNF2,VI:18

“Where the Cherubim sing the glory, where the Seraphim are flying, there shall we see Paul, with Peter, and as a chief and leader of the choir of the Saints, and shall enjoy his generous love. For if when here he loved men so, that when he had the choice of departing and being with Christ, he chose to be here, much more will he there display a warmer affection. I love Rome even for this, although indeed one has other grounds for praising it, both for its greatness, and its antiquity, and its beauty, and its populousness, and for its power, and its wealth, and for its successes in war. But I let all this pass, and esteem it blessed on this account, that both in his lifetime he wrote to them, and loved them so, and talked with them whiles he was with us, and brought his life to a close there. Wherefore the city is more notable upon this ground, than upon all others together. And as a body great and strong, it hath as two glistening eyes the bodies of these Saints. Not so bright is the heaven, when the sun sends forth his rays, as is the city of Rome, sending out these two lights into all parts of the world. From thence will Paul be caught up, from thence Peter. Just bethink you, … what a sight Rome will see, when Paul ariseth suddenly from that deposit, together with Peter, and is lifted up to meet the Lord. What a rose will Rome send up to Christ! what two crowns will the city have about it! what golden chains will she be girded with! what fountains possess! Therefore I admire the city, not for the much gold, not for the columns, not for the other display there, but for these pillars of the Church.” Chrysostom, Epistle to the Romans, Homily 32 (c.A.D. 391),in NPNFI,XI:561-562

“Which was mere to the interest of the Church at Rome, that it should at its commencement be presided over by some high-born and pompous senator, or by the fisherman Peter, who had none of this world’s advantages to attract men to him?” Gregory of Nyssa, To the Church at Nicodemia, Epistle 13 (ante A.D. 394),NPNF2,V:535

“For if the lineal succession of bishops is to be taken into account, with how much more certainty and benefit to the Church do we reckon back till we reach Peter himself, to whom, as bearing in a figure the whole Church, the Lord said: ‘Upon this rock will I build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it !’ The successor of Peter was Linus, and his successors in unbroken continuity were these: — Clement, Anacletus, Evaristus, Alexander, Sixtus, Telesphorus, Iginus, Anicetus, Pius, Soter, Eleutherius, Victor, Zephirinus, Calixtus, Urbanus, Pontianus, Antherus, Fabianus, Cornelius, Lucius, Stephanus, Xystus, Dionysius, Felix, Eutychianus, Gaius, Marcellinus, Marcellus, Eusebius, Miltiades, Sylvester, Marcus, Julius, Liberius, Damasus, and Siricius, whose successor is the present Bishop Anastasius. In this order of succession no Donatist bishop is found. But, reversing the natural course of things, the Donatists sent to Rome from Africa an ordained bishop, who, putting himself at the head of a few Africans in the great metropolis, gave some notoriety to the name of ‘mountain men,’ or Cutzupits, by which they were known.” Augustine, To Fortunatus,Epistle 53(A.D. 400),in NPNFI,I:298

“But some people in some countries of the West, and especially in the city,[ie. Rome] not knowing the reason of this indulgence, think that a dispensation from fasting ought certainly not to be allowed On the Sabbath, because they say that on this day the Apostle Peter fasted before his encounter with Simon [Magus].” John Cassian, Institutes, X(ante A.D. 435),in NPNF2,XI:218

“The whole world, dearly-beloved, does indeed take part in all holy anniversaries[of Peter & Paul], and loyalty to the one Faith demands that whatever is recorded as done for all men’s salvation should be everywhere celebrated with common rejoicings. But, besides that reverence which to-day’s festival has gained from all the world, it is to be honoured with special and peculiar exultation in our city, that there may be a predominance of gladness on the day of their martyrdom in the place where the chief of the Apostles met their glorious end. For these are the men, through whom the light of Christ’s gospel shone on thee, O Rome, and through whom thou, who wast the teacher of error, wast made the disciple of Truth. These are thy holy Fathers and true shepherds, who gave thee claims to be numbered among the heavenly kingdoms, and built thee under much better and happier auspices than they, by whose zeal the first foundations of thy walls were laid: and of whom the one that gave thee thy name defiled thee with his brother’s blood.” Pope Leo the Great(regn. A.D. 440-461),Sermon LXXXII(ante A.D. 461),in NPNF2,XII:194

“Some Protestant controversialists have asserted that Peter was never in Rome…I think the historical probability is that he was…Protestant champions had undertaken the impossible task of proving the negative, that Peter was never in Rome. They might as well have undertaken to prove out of the Bible that St. Bartholomew never preached in Pekin…For myself, I am willing, in absence of any opposing tradition, to accept the current account that Peter suffered martyrdom at Rome. If Rome, which early laid claim to have witnessed that martrydom, were not the scene of it, where then did it take place? Any city would be glad to claim such a connexion with the name of the Apostle, and none but Rome made the claim…If this evidence for Peter’s martydom be not be deemed sufficient, there are few things in the history of the early Church which it will be possible to demonstrate” G. Salmon “Infallibilty of the Church” (Grand Rapids:Baker,1959) pp. 348-9(a critic of the Catholic faith)

“…to deny the Roman stay of Peter is an error which today is clear to every scholar who is not blind. The Martyr death of Peter at Rome was once contested by reason of Protestant prejudice.’ A. Harnack

‘It is sufficient to let us include the martyrdom of Peter in Rome in our final historical picture of the early Church, as a matter of fact which is relatively though not absolutely assured. We accept it, however facts of antiquity that are universally accepted as historical. Were we to demand for all facts of ancient history a greater degree of probability, we should have to strike from our history books a large portion of their contents.” Oscar Cullman “Peter, Disciple, Apostle, Martyr” (London:SCM,1962) p. 114

“That Peter and Paul were the most eminent of many Christians who suffered martyrdom in Rome under Nero is certain…”  F.F. Bruce “NT History” (New York:Doubleday,1971) p. 410

“It seems certain that Peter spent his closing years in Rome” JND Kelly “The Oxford Dictionary of Popes” (Oxford:Oxford,1986) p. 6

“The martrydom of both Peter and Paul in Rome…has often been questioned by Protestant critics, some of whom have contended that Peter was never in Rome. But the archeaological researches of the Protestant Historian Hans Lietzmann, supplemented by the library study of the Protestant exegete Oscar Cullman, have made it extremely difficult to deny the tradition of Peter’s death in Rome under the emperor Nero. The account of Paul’s martydom in Rome, which is supported by much of the same evidence, has not called forth similar skepticism.” Jaroslav Pelikan, “The Riddle of Catholicism”, (New York:Abingdon,1959) p. 36

THE APOCALYPSE OF PETER

1 . . . . many of them will be false prophets, and will teach divers ways and doctrines of perdition: but these will become sons of perdition. 3. And then God will come unto my faithful ones who hunger and thirst and are afflicted and purify their souls in this life; and he will judge the sons of lawlessness.

4. And furthermore the Lord said: Let us go into the mountain: Let us pray.. And going with him, we, the twelve disciples, begged that he would show us one of our brethren, the righteous who are gone forth out of the world, in order that we might see of what manner of form they are, and having taken courage, might also encourage the men who hear us.

6. And as we prayed, suddenly there appeared two men standing before the Lord towards the East, on whom we were not able to look; 7, for there came forth from their countenance a ray as of the sun, and their raiment was shining, such as eye of man never saw; for no mouth is able to express or heart to conceive the glory with which they were endued, and the beauty of their appearance. 8. And as we looked upon them, we were astounded; for their bodies were whiter than any snow and ruddier than any rose; 9, and the red thereof was mingled with the white, and I am utterly unable to express their beauty; 10, for their hair was curly and bright and seemly both on their face and shoulders, as it were a wreath woven of spikenard and divers-coloured flowers, or like a rainbow in the sky, such was their seemliness.

11. Seeing therefore their beauty we became astounded at them, since they appeared suddenly. 12. And I approached the Lord and said: Who are these? 13. He saith to me: These are your brethren the righteous, whose forms ye desired to see. 14. And I said to him: And where are all the righteous ones and what is the aeon in which they are and have this glory?

15. And the Lord showed me a very great country outside of this world, exceeding bright with light, and the air there lighted with the rays of the sun, and the earth itself blooming with unfading flowers and full of spices and plants, fair-flowering and incorruptible and bearing blessed fruit. 16. And so great was the perfume that it was borne thence even unto us. 17. And the dwellers in that place were clad in the raiment of shining angels and their raiment was like unto their country; and angels hovered about them there. 18. And the glory of the dwellers there was equal, and with one voice they sang praises alternately to the Lord God, rejoicing in that place. 19. The Lord saith to us: This is the place of your high-priests, the righteous men.

20. And over against that place I saw another, squalid, and it was the place of punishment; and those who were punished there and the punishing angels had their raiment dark like the air of the place.

21. And there were certain there hanging by the tongue: and these were the blasphemers of the way of righteousness; and under them lay fire, burning and punishing them. 22. And there was a great lake, full of flaming mire, in which were certain men that pervert righteousness, and tormenting angels afflicted them.

23. And there were also others, women, hanged by their hair over that mire that bubbled up: and these were they who adorned themselves for adultery; and the men who mingled with them in the defilement of adultery, were hanging by the feet and their heads in that mire. And I said: I did not believe that I should come into this place.

24. And I saw the murderers and those who conspired with them, cast into a certain strait place, full of evil snakes, and smitten by those beasts, and thus turning to and fro in that punishment; and worms, as it were clouds of darkness, afflicted them. And the souls of the murdered stood and looked upon the punishment of those murderers and said: O God, thy judgment is just.

25. And near that place I saw another strait place into which the gore and the filth of those who were being punished ran down and became there as it were a lake: and there sat women having the gore up to their necks, and over against them sat many children who were born to them out of due time, crying; and there came forth from them sparks of fire and smote the women in the eyes: and these were the accursed who conceived and caused abortion.

26. And other men and women were burning up to the middle and were cast into a dark place and were beaten by evil spirits, and their inwards were eaten by restless worms: and these were they who persecuted the righteous and delivered them up.

27. And near those there were again women and men gnawing their own lips, and being punished and receiving a red-hot iron in their eyes: and these were they who blasphemed and slandered the way of righteousness.

28. And over against these again other men and women gnawing their tongues and having flaming fire in their mouths: and these were the false witnesses.

29. And in a certain other place there were pebbles sharper than swords or any spit, red-hot, and women and men in tattered and filthy raiment rolled about on them in punishment: and these were the rich who trusted in their riches and had no pity for orphans and widows, and despised the commandment of God.

30. And in another great lake, full of pitch and blood and mire bubbling up, there stood men and women up to their knees: and these were the usurers and those who take interest on interest.

31. And other men and women were being hurled down from a great cliff and reached the bottom, and again were driven by those who were set over them to climb up upon the cliff, and thence were hurled down again, and had no rest from this punishment: and these were they who defiled their bodies acting as women; and the women who were with them were those who lay with one another as a man with a woman.

32. And alongside of that cliff there was a place full of much fire, and there stood men who with their own hands had made for themselves carven images instead of God. And alongside of these were other men and women, having rods and striking each other and never ceasing from such punishment.

33. And others again near them, women and men, burning and turning themselves and roasting: and these were they that leaving the way of God

FRAGMENTS OF THE APOCALYPSE OF PETER.

1. CLEMENS ALEXANDRINUS, Eclog. 48. For instance, Peter in the Apocalypse says that the children who are born out of due time shall be of the better part: and that these are delivered over to a care-taking angel that they may attain a share of knowledge and gain the better abode [after suffering what they would have suffered if they had been in the body: but the others shall merely obtain salvation as injured beings to whom mercy is shown, and remain without punishment, receiving this as a reward].*

2. CLEM. ALEX. Eclog. 49. But the milk of the women running down from their breasts and congealing shall engender small flesh eating beasts: and these run up upon them and devour them.

3. MACARIUS MAGNES, Apocritica iv., 6 cf. 16. The earth, it (sc. the Apoc. of Peter) says, “shall present all men before God at the day of judgment, being itself also to be judged, with the heaven also which encompasses it.”

4. CLEM. ALEX. Eclog. 41. The scripture says that infants that have been exposed are delivered to a care-taking angel, by whom they are educated and so grow up, and they will be, it says, as the faithful of a hundred years old are here.

5. METHODIUS, Conviv. ii., 6. Whence also we have received in divinely-inspired scriptures that untimely births are delivered to care-taking angels, even if they are the offspring of adultery.

Date: 29 Aug 2003
Time: 11:30:01

I believe that a pastor I know is a modern-day Peter. His dealings and experineces with his church appear to parallel scripure and Jesus’ admonishments of Peter in his faith, from walking on water to being ashamed of Him.

Date: 16 Sep 2003
Time: 14:23:06

[John 17:5] And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was. [John 17:6] I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world; thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. Peter was one of the twelve men that God placed all together in Galilee to assist the Master in the building of his church (Matt 16.19] and the preaching of the gospel of salvation as opposed to the slaughter of innocent animals. The Twelve were ministers from the court of glory (angels, if one prefers) and they came, the assisted and they gave their lives – if not in physical death, certainly in physical service. Peter was but one of the twelve whom the Father sent to be with Jesus in his “hour” on earth. rclgh@cs.com

Date: 04 Oct 2003
Time: 22:28:51

The Apostle Peter was afraid of the death awaiting him at Rome. He remembered the word of Jesus Chirst, Verily, verily I say unto thee ,when thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walk whither thou wouldst. But thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not. (Jn 21:18) According to history, Peter envisions meeting Jesus on the Road away from Rome. In this vision Jesus supposedly persuades Peter to go back and face his destiny to die by crucifixion. After this encounter with the Lord, Peter decides to go back to Rome. Eventually getting caught and crucified. Peter’s only documented reply was, that he be crucified upside down because he didn’t feel worthy in dying the same way that the Lord Jesus Christ died. So with that only request the Apostle Peter was crucified upside down in respect of the Lord.

Date: 19 Nov 2003
Time: 08:16:09

This page is so good. I am using it for a report that is due in my class thanks for all the help!

Date: 29 Nov 2003
Time: 11:36:17

Peter was a great Apostle and a great leader. Peter was very loyal to God. Peter was a good man. powerofjay15@yahoo.com

Date: 02 Feb 2004
Time: 13:32:19

Although the proposals for solving the riddle on the number of the beast (666) at Revelation l3:l8 are legion . . . HERE IS ONE MORE! NEBEKEDNESSER, that is, the Greek letters Nu (50) + Eta (8) + Beta (2) + Eta (8) + Kappa (20) + Eta (8) + Delta (4) + Nu (50) + Eta (8) + Sigma (200) + Sigma (200) + Eta (8) + Rho (l00) = 666. For the variant numbers, I propose: For, 606, BAEL MARDUK / My Lord Marduk; for 6l6, KAISAR THEOS / Lord God; for 646, AMIL MARDUK / Man Of Marduk; for 665, a transliterization of the Greek word for beast (therion) into Hebrew, namely (from right to left) Tav (400) + Resh (200) + He (5) + Yod (l0) + Nun (50) = 665; and, for 747, APAOL MARDUK / Heir or Marduk. The reasons for proposing the above solutions are: The Jewish HOUSE OF JESUS (See SEPTUAGINT, Ezra 2:36) was captive/exiled in 6th century b.c. Babylon; The Book of Jeremiah 4:l6 mentions that God gave Nebuchadnezzer the mind of a beast; The 2nd century b.c. apocryphal work titled JUDITH refers variously to Nebuchadnezzer as “Lord of the whole world,” “Who is God except Nebuchadnezzer,” “All nations shall call upon Nebuchadnezzer as God,”; Midrash Rabbach Ecclesiastes mentions that the Roman emperor Trajan was “a descendant of Nebuchadnezzer” (typologically speaking); The lst century a.d. New Testament letter titled FIRST PETER at 5:l3 states, “Greetings from her who dwells in Babylon . ..” [Walter C. Cambra]

Date: 07 Feb 2004
Time: 07:24:34

You need more info, but it’s cool all the same.

Date: 24 Mar 2004
Time: 14:00:05

yes where is the scripture about apostle peter being crucified upside down located in the bible? please give me the chapter and the verse. thank you

Date: 12 Apr 2004
Time: 12:21:24

Josephus wrote that Peter and Paul were executed in Rome and possibly on the same day in different parts of the city. Where is this located in the writing of Josephus?

Date: 19 Apr 2005
Time: 23:47:17

the previous comments are right.There is no scripture to support their claim regarding peter dying in rome.Athough the catholic church wants you to believe it.Their pope is supposedly doing his work after his death.

Date: 15 Sep 2006
Time: 18:29:35

I would love to prove that Peter was martyred in Jerusalem and not Rome. Not to disprove Roman Catholic dogma but to shed light on Babylon representing Jerusalem and NOT ROME. The book of Revelation has never opened up to understanding it all the other ways I was taught as it does referring to Jerusalem and not Rome or the revived Roman Empire or world system etc…

Also, could he be referring to Babylon as Jerusalem in 1 Peter in which he writes from?

Tom Manna

Date: 26 Nov 2007
Time: 06:50:46

Hi Tom, I noticed what you wrote in since September. I have to say, you’re on the right track. While I understand what your saying, you are partly right. The unfaithful woman the the cup of blood of the prophets and saints in her hands is in fact the city of ancient Jerusalem that was destroyed and burned in AD70. However, the name “Babylon” in the phrase “MYSTERY BABYLON, MOTHER OF ALL THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH” written on her forehead is the a reference to the Roman Empire (the empire named after its central city, in the same way the ancient empire of Babylon was) The woman bears that name on her forehead because she broke covenant with God and didn’t recognize the hour of her visitation by Messiah Jesus. So she bears this mark on her forehead–the mark of the beast (which is Rome). *Note: it is a Biblical concept that the whole body is named after the head (just like Christians in the body of Christ, Christ being the Godhead, through whom the whole family of God is named according to the epistles of the apostle Paul). Consider Daniel’s vision of the large statue, where the head was Nebuchadnezzar on behalf of Babylon, all the way down to the legs and feet of iron (which is the fourth empire, the Roman Empire). Therefore in a spiritual sense, the Roman kingdom is also identified by the name of Babylon. Furthermore, if you read of the destruction of the woman (the great city/harlot) who is hated by the beast (Roman Empire), her destruction is described word for word identically with the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians as recorded in Jeremiah. So you might be thinking I take it, that the two Olive Branches (similar to the descriptions of Moses and Elijah) in actuality refer to Peter and Paul? If so, then your conclusions may be right. This is a very reasonable conclusion to come to.