Luke 22:56, commentary and pictures

A servant girl fixed her eyes on Peter as he sat by the fire in the high priest's house and recognized him as a companion and follower of Jesus while his Master was being mocked, abused and examined before Annas and Caiaphas. Her charge was the first that drew him into three public denials of knowing Jesus, in which he disowned his Teacher and at last denied with cursing and swearing, adding to Christ's anguish with a keener pain than the insults of His enemies. He fell through self-confident boasting of superior fidelity and readiness to follow to prison and death, then through fear of scorn and suffering and by placing himself among Christ's revilers to hide his true character with an air of indifference. After the third denial the sorrowful yet compassionate look of Jesus broke his heart, sending him alone with bitter tears to Gethsemane to repent, be pardoned and reconverted to strengthen his brethren and care for the flock. The fall warns that any disciple today who from dread of suffering or reproach disguises faith and turns toward Christ's persecutors denies the Lord as virtually as Peter did, and that self-confidence must give way to self-distrust, watchfulness and trust in God.

Scene and Sequence

A servant girl fixed her eyes earnestly upon Peter as he sat by the fire in the high priest's house, in the judgment hall, and recognized him as one who had been with Jesus, as His companion and follower. This took place while Jesus was being examined before Annas and Caiaphas and mocked and abused by the high priest's household. The Teacher thus pointed out was the One Peter had acknowledged as the Son of God and the source of eternal life. Her charge was the first of the accusations that drew him into denying that he knew Jesus.

That first recognition opened into three public denials in which he disowned his Master whom he had loved and served, after ardent zeal and confident assertion that he would suffer and die with Him, even after his impulsive sword stroke in Gethsemane cutting off the high priest's servant's ear. At the last he denied with cursing and swearing. His failure under the test proved ardent zeal is not conversion, and his self-sufficient declaration that he was ready to go with Christ to prison and to death, resenting Christ's compassionate warning that Satan desired to sift him as wheat, proved his ruin and left him standing on the enemy's side when Christ needed him most.

His denial added to Christ's anguish in the midst of mockery and abuse, piercing His heart with a keener pain than the insults of His enemies could inflict. The cowardly denial took place in that very room where Annas and Caiaphas with the other dignitaries of the temple later met, and before some of those very men, when Peter was brought there as a prisoner for healing the cripple. The memory came distinctly to his mind there and gave him opportunity to make amends for his cowardice and to remove the stain of apostasy by faithfully honoring the name he had disowned. The Peter who denied at his Master's trial was impulsive and self-confident, proud and boastful, widely different from the converted Peter brought before the Sanhedrin, who was modest and self-distrustful, no longer boasting, filled with the Holy Spirit, firm as a rock, courageous yet modest in magnifying Christ.

Causes of Denial

Peter fell through self-confidence, self-love, self-assurance and self-trust after ardent zeal and loud, earnest, forward boasts of a fidelity and love superior to the other disciples. He had declared readiness to follow his Master to prison and to death and to suffer and die for Him, affirming a constancy he would never abandon. When Christ in true friendship and compassion faithfully warned him that Satan desired to have him to sift him as wheat, he resented the warning and in self-sufficiency confidently declared he would never do what he was warned against. That self-confidence proved his ruin and invited temptation, so that when the storm of opposition came like a sweeping tempest and all forsook Christ and fled, Peter failed just when he could have shown bravery and fidelity, and the maid's recognition of him as he sat by the fire became the first charge leading him to deny repeatedly that he knew Jesus. Safety lies not in such unreliable self-trust but in distrusting self, being thoroughly converted, and trusting God.

Fear for his own safety and dread of scorn, reproach, suffering and ridicule overcame his earlier confident claim and made him a coward when the finger of scorn was pointed at him. He would have been bold and courageous if called to fight for his Master, as shown by his impulsive sword stroke in Gethsemane cutting off the high priest's servant's ear, proving that ardent zeal is not conversion. Yet driven by ridicule he began to deny, at last with cursing and swearing, and disguising faith from fear of suffering or reproach is itself as much a denial as what he did in the judgment hall. He placed himself in the way of temptation by associating with those he should have avoided and joining those who opposed and reviled Christ, thereby inviting the enemy to tempt him to do and say what under other circumstances he would never have been guilty of. To hide his true character he assumed an air of indifference and appeared disinterested in his Master's trial, putting himself on the enemy's ground and becoming an easy subject to temptation, in contrast to openly following Jesus as John did.

While appearing unconcerned his heart was wrung with sorrow as he heard the cruel taunts and saw the mockery and abuse Jesus suffered. He was surprised and angry that Jesus humiliated himself and his followers by submitting passively to such treatment. Under these conflicting emotions he could not keep up a natural appearance of indifference, and his appearance became unnatural as he tried to join the persecutors in untimely jests to cover his true feelings. Overcome by the devil and coming under the control of an evil spirit that took possession of him, he fell under the arts of the wily foe and when Christ needed him most stood on the enemy's side in open denial. In so doing he denied the truth received, voiced the sentiments and suggestions of Satan, exchanged leaders from Christ to Satan, and, by linking with worldlings and talking their language, lost grace through feeling no need of it and did not know what spirit he was of.

The fall showed he had not yet learned the lesson to distrust and be jealous over himself, nor learned Christ's lessons and stood right with God so as to stand firm, nor learned what constitutes Christian character. Though not a perfect man, he had been connected with Christ as a co-laborer to be constantly learning lessons correcting wrong ideas and incorrect views, and this defeat taught him self-distrust. True conversion therefore means overcoming a hasty, quick temper and becoming patient through the sanctifying influence of truth, prayer, and lifelong persevering effort rather than momentary zeal. The same warning applies to men connected with God's work who are not perfect and unerring and without defects of character, but must remain learners constantly studying how to copy the pattern and perfect character in their sphere. Even after that fall and restoration, and after long service, intimate acquaintance with Christ, knowledge of His straightforward practice of right principles, instruction received, and gifts and knowledge and influence gained by preaching and teaching the Word, Peter still dissembled and evaded gospel principles through fear of man and to gain esteem, wavering in adherence to right, which shows man's helplessness and inability to steer himself straight and safe into the harbor.

Repentance and Warning

After the third denial the sorrowful yet compassionate look of love broke the heart, brought remembrance of the warning, and led to bitter repentance, pardon, reconversion and preparation to strengthen brethren, caution the presumptuous, and care for sheep and lambs and help tempted disciples. The look assured pardon and exposed weakness, and the denial with cursing and swearing gave way to true conversion in which hasty temper is overcome to become patient through the sanctifying influence of truth, prayer and lifelong persevering effort rather than momentary zeal. With blinding tears the way was made alone to Gethsemane to prostrate where the Saviour had been prostrated in bloody sweat forced by great agony. Sleeping while Jesus prayed through those fearful hours was remembered, the heart was broken, penitential tears moistened the sod stained with the sweat drops of the Son, and the garden was left as a converted man, humbled and broken, ready to pity the tempted and sympathize with the weak and erring.

Some lessons are never learned except through failure, and the fallen one was a better man afterward. The Lord permits His children to fall and then, if they repent of wrongdoing without a heart hardened by disregard of great light, helps them to stand on vantage ground. As fire purifies gold so Christ purifies His people by temptation and trial, with humble fervent prayer saving the soul from death and confession and restitution hiding a multitude of sins. Later assurance of love and loyalty answered the three public denials and showed penitence and humility. Sincere repentance was needed before resuming apostolic work and regaining fellow disciples' confidence, after which forgiveness was given with the high commission to feed the sheep and lambs of the flock.

The impulsive, self-confident, proud and boastful one who denied in the Master's trial with cowardice and apostasy disowning the name became widely different after conversion. The converted one became modest and self-distrustful, no longer boasting, filled with the Holy Spirit, firm as a rock, courageous yet modest in magnifying Christ, and resolved to remove the stain of apostasy by honoring the name once disowned and redeeming cowardice when opportunity came. The memory remained and was lived with in repentance and humility, never forgiving self, so that even the prospect of the agonies of a terrible death could not lessen the bitterness of sorrow and repentance. Feeling unworthy of so great an honor as to die in the same manner as the Master, the request was made to executioners to be nailed to the cross with head downward.

The faithful record of the sin of one favored of God and entrusted with great responsibility, overcome by temptation as people today strive, waver and fall into error, lifts the veil from the human heart. It proves the authenticity and divine wisdom of Scripture, which does not gloss over faults but obeys justice by narrating facts for the benefit of readers. It stands as a lesson to all following generations that fallen believers can through grace gain fresh vigor to rise above evil nature, take heart again, conquer, press on and surmount obstacles, so sinful people need not despair of reaching excellence but are encouraged to renew the conflict. Any disciple today who from dread of suffering or reproach disguises faith, refuses to live by known truth, clings to old habits and practices, or turns from Christ toward His persecutors under trial denies the Lord as virtually as was done in the judgment hall, showing a failure to count the cost and to be converted and losing the blessing given at every step to those who follow on to know the Lord. Joining those who oppose or revile Christ puts a disciple in the way of temptation to do and say what would otherwise be avoided, while openly following Jesus avoids the false position assumed in trying to hide true character.

Those who boast of freedom of thought and action and laugh at the scruples of the conscientious who fear to do wrong act as agents of Satan to persuade the righteous to yield faith to ruin and then despise them. Linking with worldlings and talking their language leads to denying truth received, voicing sentiments of Satan, exchanging leaders from Christ to Satan, feeling no need of grace and losing it, and not knowing what spirit one is of while coming under the control of an evil spirit. Failure under pressure warns that self-confidence cannot secure faithfulness, for safety lies in distrusting self and trusting God. Men connected with God's work are not perfect, unerring or without defects of character, but must remain constant learners correcting wrong ideas and incorrect views of what constitutes Christian character, keeping jealous watch over self, copying the pattern and perfecting character in their sphere, with defeat teaching self-distrust.