In Sunday’s service, we read 2 Peter 1:3-11. Consider verse 3 in the ESV:
His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence [emphasis added].
That is, God has given and continues to give us everything we need to live a life oriented toward Him. We especially need to know Him: to know and to trust Who He is: His power, His majesty, His justice, His holiness, His mercy, His kindness, His faithfulness, His grace. Furthermore, He called us effectually as His own for this very purpose: according to verse 4, we become partakers or sharers [koinonoi] of the divine nature, thus displaying His glory and excellence, thereby fulfilling that calling. Verses 5 to 7 then detail some of the ways we display that divine nature: through faith, virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness (being oriented toward God), brotherly affection, and love.
But many English translations render the last phrase of verse 3 not “to His own glory and excellence” but “by His own glory and excellence.” If this is what Peter meant, he would be saying God’s entire plan of redemption is a manifestation and implementation of His character. He perfectly displays His justice in seeing that every sin is paid for. He perfectly displays His mercy in redeeming guilty rebels. He perfectly displays His kindness in showering us with His goodness for all eternity.
So which is right? Is “by” or “to” the better translation?
Commentaries argue both ways and, as you might expect, the Greek is ambiguous.
It is healthy for seminary students to struggle with such questions and to understand the arguments for one rendering or another.
But as those called to or by His own glory and excellence, we don’t have to choose one or the other. For both truths are biblical; both truths are precious.
God calls us to His glory. He saves us and enables us to fulfill our being created in His image, transforming us through the renewal of our minds into the character of Jesus. We are as He His is in the world (1 John 4:17). We proclaim His goodness and live out His mercy.
And He calls us by His glory. God’s plan of redemption is not an afterthought, not an accident, not contingent, not something that God happened to choose to do. Rather, it flows out of Who He is and thus displays the depths of His character as nothing else could. We could say God’s glory generates the Gospel.
Question, then: Was Peter intentionally ambiguous? Did He – and the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21) – choose to write the sentence in this way so that in one phrase both truths are stated?
Note that great poets do that frequently. They choose a word or a phrase not only for its primary meaning, but also because its secondary connotations communicate even more of the author’s intention.
Why shouldn’t the authors of Scripture do the same?
We can’t know if Peter was intentionally ambiguous in this particular verse. But we nevertheless can and should delight in both truths.
God calls us by His own glory and excellence.
And God calls us to His own glory and excellence.
So live to His glory, confident that His unchanging character assures us that He will fulfill this great plan.
