Matthew 26:71, commentary and pictures

After his first denial Peter withdrew into the porch or open court around the high priest's palace, where another servant girl recognized him as one who had been with Jesus of Nazareth and told those standing by, making this the second charge in his threefold denial. When so charged he denied being a follower with an oath, even with cursing and swearing, trying to hide his allegiance by acting indifferent. His fall came from self-confident boasting in his own strength, from fear of scorn and suffering, and from failing to watch and pray with his Saviour to be kept by divine power. That denial from a beloved disciple pierced Jesus with a keener pang than all the insults and reviling of His enemies, yet His love for Peter never faltered and did not forsake him. Peter afterward bitterly repented, was thoroughly converted and forgiven, and became through the Holy Spirit firm as a rock and bold before the very leaders he had feared, leaving a lasting warning against self-confidence and hiding faith for fear of reproach.

Setting and Wording

After his first denial Peter withdrew to the porch or courtyard, in part to escape notice, where another maid or servant girl recognized him as one who had been with Jesus of Nazareth and said so to those standing nearby. The recognition came after he left the first place of questioning and moved toward the gateway, and the charge was addressed not to him alone but to the people around him.

This took place in the open court surrounding the high priest's palace, where soldiers, chief priests and the multitude had gathered and Peter had taken his place among them. It was in the early dark morning, after Jesus had been hurried through the dark narrow streets amid insult and mockery to Caiaphas the officiating high priest. There He was coarsely accused by His persecutors, sneeringly questioned by the priest, and reviled by the whole assembly in a mockery of an examination.

The charge in the porch was the second accusation against Peter in the sequence of his repeated, threefold public denial of Jesus. It formed part of his continued disowning of his Lord before witnesses.

When so charged he denied being a follower of Jesus with an oath, even with cursing and swearing. He was so thoroughly intent on carrying out the false character he had assumed that he did not hear the cock crow the second time. To hide his allegiance he tried to act indifferent and joined in the jests of the persecutors, though sorrowful and angry at the abuse heaped on Jesus, and his appearance and behavior were unnatural.

While enduring that mockery Jesus heard His beloved disciple deny Him. His sorrowful, reproving look upon Peter was one of grief and sadness, not hopelessness, and it broke Peter's heart and brought the denial back to his mind.

At that very time Christ was openly confessing Himself as the long-expected Messiah while none of the disciples dared open their lips to acknowledge Him. This stood in stark contrast to Peter's earlier Spirit-given confession that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, for which Christ had called him blessed.

Christ knew beforehand with prophetic eye that this denial and rejection would happen when as a Galilean He would be delivered to be scourged and crucified. The scene passed before Him in Gethsemane as He contemplated the bitter cup and burden of sin. It belonged to the humiliation, self-sacrifice and load of guilt He voluntarily accepted so the plan of redemption would not be frustrated.

Causes of Peter's Denial

Peter's self-confidence failed when tested, and his professed faithfulness and claims of greater loyalty could not withstand trial without being kept by divine power. The second accusation in the porch exposed that failure, showing that testing reveals the need for strength from above and a deeper experience with Christ. Until the devil's temptations overcame him and he denied his Lord, he had not learned to distrust himself. Spiritual safety depends on distrusting self and trusting God's wisdom rather than trusting in oneself.

Fear for his life and safety kept him from openly standing with his Lord, and fear of scorn and reproach led him to deny knowing Jesus after he moved out to the porch to escape notice. When another woman recognized him as a companion of Jesus of Nazareth he denied again, this time with an oath, giving in to fear of scorn and denying his faith to avoid reproach. Because he feared for his life he continued disowning Jesus, and denying Christ to avoid reproach is denial of the Lord in practice. Ridicule and fear of reproach can lead even a disciple who might be courageous in open conflict to deny the Lord, and Christians who hide their faith from fear of suffering or mockery deny Jesus as Peter did. By worldly policy he sought to avoid reproach, persecution and abuse, and when he saw Jesus in humiliation he gave room to unbelief and yielded to temptation instead of showing fidelity in crisis.

He faced the trial in his own weak strength because he had failed to watch and pray with the Saviour, having been overcome with sleep. Watching with the Saviour in prayer would have prepared him and the other disciples to stand securely through the coming trial and could have prevented the denial. Because they did not watch they did not receive the light God desired to give them, the knowledge of the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow. They were slow of heart to believe and little appreciative of the treasure Heaven sought to give them, and they lost the blessing of sharing His self-sacrifice. Had they remained watching, amid the gloom of that terrible trying hour some rays of hope would have lighted the darkness and sustained their faith, so that they would not have lost faith as they beheld the Son of God dying on the cross.

By disguising his faith and placing himself among those hostile to his Master he exposed himself to temptation. Associating with people he should have avoided could lead him to say and do what he otherwise would not, and by concealing his true allegiance he put himself where Satan could tempt him. He tried to hide that he was Jesus' follower by acting indifferent and joining the persecutors' jests, though sorrowful and angry at the abuse of Jesus, and his appearance and behavior were unnatural. In denying with cursing and swearing he gave voice to words Satan suggested to him, failing in the time of test and trial to witness for his Lord because he put confidence in himself.

At that time he was the impulsive, self-confident disciple, a proud boaster, rash, unconverted, not distrustful of self and not filled with the Holy Spirit. A few hours before he had firmly assured his Master he would go with Him to prison and death, but he was self-confident and did not take Christ's words as verity and truth, showing how little he knew himself. Though he had mingled with the disciples with blessed opportunities and had received lesson upon lesson, line upon line and precept upon precept, and though in clear and elevated principles Christ had shown him God's hatred for sin, he had not become transformed in character.

His failure in this crisis followed an earlier experience on the sea that was meant to teach him his weakness and need to depend constantly on Christ. He could stand amid temptation only through self-distrust and reliance on the Saviour. Under trial he failed to show steadfast loyalty and instead revealed infirmity, careless yielding to temptation, and a character unlike Christ's. His denial after self-confident claims of constant loyalty warns Christ's followers against self-confidence and self-righteousness, showing the danger of boastful confidence and refusing to see oneself as Christ does. He needed to seek Christ's help to resist temptation and remain faithful.

Christ's Suffering and Love

The denial belonged to the early dark morning when Jesus, after being hurried through the dark narrow streets amid insult and mockery, stood in the palace of Caiaphas the officiating high priest, coarsely accused by His persecutors, sneeringly questioned by the priest, and reviled by the whole assembly in a mockery of an examination. While enduring that mockery He heard His beloved disciple deny Him with cursing and swearing. That denial pierced His heart with a keener pang than anything His enemies could inflict by insult, mockery, accusation, and reviling.

The charge that Peter had also been with Jesus of Nazareth belongs to the account of Christ's suffering, humiliation, and rejection. After Peter had gone out into the porch, another maid publicly recognized and identified him to those standing nearby as one of Jesus' followers, and that very accusation of association with Him was itself part of Jesus' humiliation. Peter's failure showed that even Jesus' own disciples were vulnerable to Satan's temptations, and their actions disappointed Him. His denial afterward became a painful memory that stirred the disciples' hearts as they recognized their unbelief.

During that failure Jesus' love for Peter never faltered, and He did not forsake His poor disciple. Though Peter hated himself, the Lord loved him still, and after His resurrection called him by name and sent him a loving message. This proves He is a kind, loving, compassionate Saviour who gave Himself for sinners and will not thrust away one who is tempted and in weakness is overcome, but loves still though we err. From that unfailing love Peter learned to treat those in his care with patience, sympathy, forgiveness, tenderness, and forgiving love toward those who fail, remembering his own weakness and failure.

Repentance and Restoration

Peter afterward bitterly repented, was thoroughly converted, and was forgiven by Christ, his remorse being complete and fully known in heaven. His denial had been a great sin and a shameful crime that left him the most despondent of all Christ's followers, yet his failure humbled him and fitted him to warn the presumptuous and strengthen his fellow believers. His zeal and boldness remained valuable, but he needed mild caution to keep his ardor from going too far.

Holy angels felt tender compassion for him as wayward and sorrowing. By expressly naming Peter as one to whom the women from the tomb were to carry the news of the resurrection, they showed him a solicitude that proved his repentance was accepted and his shameful denial forgiven.

Though forgiven and later honored with divine light and power in faithful service, his fearful fall remained a humiliating, humbling memory throughout his life. He knew that only Christ's grace could overcome the weakness of character that had caused his fall, and he found nothing in himself to boast about. His continuing repentance and humility showed that suffering for Christ willingly and gladly, rather than complaining, leads to victory.

His denial dishonored Christ, damaged his trust among the other disciples, and threatened his standing and influence as a minister. As representative of the twelve he had to give evidence to all the disciples that he sincerely repented before he could resume his apostolic work. Christ placed him where he could regain their entire confidence and remove as far as possible the reproach his sin had brought on the gospel, lest their distrust because of his former failure would cripple his usefulness in time of emergency. His later three assurances of love and loyalty show his repentance and humility after that failure; he was no longer self-confident and was better prepared to shepherd Christ's flock.

After conversion he became distrustful of self and no longer a proud boaster, whereas before he had been the impulsive, self-confident disciple, unconverted and not filled with the Holy Spirit. Through the power of the Holy Spirit he became firm as a rock, courageous yet modest in magnifying Christ, and stood forth a bold witness. He boldly honored the name he had disowned, with cursing and swearing, before the same leaders in the same room where he had shamefully denied, though they remembered the part he had acted at his Master's trial and expected to intimidate him by threat of imprisonment and death, and thus he redeemed his former wicked cowardice and apostasy and removed the stain it left. When later called to die for his faith, he asked to be crucified head downward because he felt unworthy of the honor of dying as his Lord had.

His own weakness and failure humbled him and taught him pity for the tempted and weak. After becoming aware of his weakness, and remembering his own fall, he could teach and help those who had fallen with tender sympathy, and learned to treat those in his care, who were tempted or had done wrong, with patience, sympathy, forgiveness and tender love. In this way he was fitted to warn the presumptuous, strengthen his fellow believers, and care for those who err.

Warning and Instruction for Believers

Ridicule and fear of scorn, reproach, suffering and mockery can lead even a disciple to deny the Lord, and one who might be courageous in open conflict can become cowardly when faced with scorn. Hiding faith from such fear, disguising connection with Jesus to avoid suffering or reproach, and denying Christ to avoid reproach is itself a practical denial of Him as Peter did. Placing oneself among those hostile to the Master and associating with people who should be avoided exposes the believer to temptation to say and do what otherwise would not be said or done.

Professed love and loyalty to Christ can fail when tested and when allegiance is tried in the judgment hall. A few hours before, Peter had firmly assured his Master he would go with Him to prison and death, yet he was self-confident, did not take Christ's words as verity and truth, and showed how little he knew himself. In the very hour he should have watched with Him in fervent prayer he denied Him thrice before the cock crew when circumstances tested him, and at the third accusation emphasized his denial with cursing and swearing. The look Jesus gave him was one of grief and sadness, not hopelessness, and it broke his heart.

Peter's repeated denials after confidently declaring loyalty warn followers against self-confidence, self-righteousness, boastful confidence, and claims of greater or constant faithfulness, which do not protect in trial. His failure under trial revealed infirmity, careless yielding to temptation, and a character unlike Christ's, showing the danger of trusting in self and of refusing to see oneself as Christ does. The lesson is humility, spiritual discernment, distrust of self, trust in God's wisdom, seeking Christ's help to resist temptation, and care for those who err, as Peter himself afterward bitterly repented. Self-confidence fails under pressure, and professed faithfulness cannot withstand testing without strength from above and a deeper experience with Christ.

He could stand amid temptation only through self-distrust and constant reliance on the Saviour, a lesson first meant to be taught him by his earlier experience on the sea. He did not learn to distrust himself until the devil's temptations overcame him and he denied his Lord. Having failed to watch with Jesus and being overcome with sleep, he faced the trial in his own weak strength, and watching with the Saviour in prayer would have prepared him and the other disciples to stand securely and might have prevented the denial.

The failings of Bible believers are recorded as lessons for later generations, revealing human weakness yet encouraging those who struggle and fall to take heart again and conquer through God's grace. Peter's cowardly denial remained a humbling memory throughout his life amid deep conversion, continuing repentance and humility, and when later called to die for his faith he asked to be crucified head downward as unworthy to die as his Lord had. Willingly and gladly suffering for Christ rather than complaining leads to victory. Since in Christ's greatest trial Peter thrice denied Him while another disciple betrayed Him and all forsook Him and fled, though He was without taint of sin, His followers should not expect any better portion when they meet opposition and desertion.

By failing to watch and pray and being overcome with sleep, the disciples did not receive the light God desired to give them, the knowledge of the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow. They were slow of heart to believe and little appreciative of the treasure Heaven sought to give them, and they lost the blessing of sharing His self-sacrifice. Had they remained watching, they would not have lost faith as they beheld the Son of God dying on the cross, and amid the gloom of that terrible trying hour some rays of hope would have lighted the darkness and sustained their faith.