THUS SARAH OBEYED ABRAHAM
CALLING HIM LORD: os Sarra hupekousen
(3SAAI) to Abraam kurion auton kalousa (PAPFSN):
Obeyed
(5219)
(hupakouo from hupó = under + akoúo = physical
hearing and apprehension of something with the mind) (Click
for study on related word
hupakoe) means
literally to "hear under" and conveys the meaning of
subordinating one’s self to the person or thing heard, hence to
obey. The word means to hearken or to give respectful
attention and so to obey. This word was used to describe one
coming to the door upon hearing a knock, a good picture of obedience.
Wuest says that
Obeyed" is constative (of,
relating to, or being a verbal form that expresses past completed
action)
aorist in Greek which
speaks of an action going on over a long period of time, looking at it
in one single panoramic view. The whole tenor of Sarah’s life was one
of obedience to her husband.
(Wuest,
K. S. Wuest's Word Studies from the Greek New Testament: Eerdmans
or
Logos)
Calling him
lord - Obviously not in the sense that he was a "god" although
unfortunately some husbands do place themselves in such an exalted
position (at least in their own mind).
Lord (2962)
(kurios from kúros = might, power in turn from kuróo = give authority,
confirm) describes One who has absolute ownership and uncontrolled
power. signifies sovereign power and authority. In the NT, Jesus
is referred to some ten times as Savior and some 700 times as
Lord. When the two titles are mentioned together, Lord
always precedes Savior. Is He your kurios? In classical
Greek, kurios was used of gods and was found on inscriptions
applied to different gods such as Hermes, Zeus, etc. Secular Greek
also used kurios to describe the head of the family, the one who is
"lord" of wife and children (although that does not give him the right
to "lord" it over them!).
Kurios
was used by Philippian jailer when he said to Paul and Silas after a
great earthquake rocked the prison, opening the doors to their prison
cell...
“Sirs,
(kurios) what must I do to be saved?” (Acts
16:30)
Jesus used
kurios in teaching that
"No one can serve two masters; (kurios) for either he will hate
the one and love the other, or he will hold to one and despise the
other. You cannot serve God and mammon" (see note
Matthew 6:24)
Kurios was used in secular Greek as a title of honor
addressed by subordinates to their superiors, or as a courteous name
in the case of persons closely related. In a petition to a high Roman
authority we have, “I became very weak, my
lord”
and in another example “I entreat you,
sir,
to hasten to me.” Sarah used it as a wifely courtesy to her husband,
as a recognition of her willing submission to Abraham's authority over
her.
Moses records
Sarah's reaction to the prophecy that she would bear a son...
And Sarah laughed to herself,
saying, "After I have become old, shall I have pleasure, my lord
(kurios in the
LXX
referring in this context to her husband Abraham) being old also?"
(Ge 18:12)
In a similar
used of kurios Ruth addressed Boaz saying...
"I have found
favor in your sight, my lord (kurios in the
LXX), for you have comforted me and indeed
have spoken kindly to your maidservant, though I am not like one of
your maidservants." (see note
Ruth 2:13)
AND YOU HAVE
BECOME HER CHILDREN IF YOU
(continually)
DO WHAT IS RIGHT
WITHOUT BEING FRIGHTENED BY ANY FEAR: es egenethete (2PAPI) tekna agathopoiousai (PAPFPN)
kai me phoboumenai (PPPFPN) medemian
ptoesin: (Ro
9:7-9;
Gal
4:22-26) (14,15;
Ge18:15;
Is57:11;
Da3:16-18;
Mt26:69-75;
Ac4:8-13,19)
Wuest
translates it
whose children [namely, Sarah’s]
you become if the whole course of your life is in the doing of good,
and you are not being caused to fear by even one particle of terror.
The NLT is even more to the point:
You are her daughters when you do
what is right without fear of what your husbands might do.
The Amplified Version
adds that...
you are now her true daughters if
you do right and let nothing terrify you [not giving way to hysterical
fears or letting anxieties unnerve you].
The whole matter of subjection is
illustrated by a reference to Sarah, who referred to Abraham as lord.
Peter is saying that if Sarah ‘obeyed’ Abraham and called him Lord, the Christian wives in Asia should also treat their husbands
with deference and respect. Christian women have become the offspring
of Sarah, spiritually speaking, and continually do what is right
without fear of what their husbands might do.
Lenski explains that...
Without being frightened by any
fear” is not a condition for becoming a true daughter of Sarah in
addition to doing what is right. It is rather the consequence of
adopting the behavior that Peter advocated. If a Christian wife was
suffering for her faith because of her conduct, she could gain great
confidence by doing what Peter counseled and what Sarah practiced. She
could understand that any suffering that came her way was not a result
of her sinful behavior but in spite of her godly behavior (cf. 2:20;
Pr 3:25). The sense is that these Christian women are to let
nothing terrifying frighten them from their course. Pagan women may
disdain and insult them because they have adopted a nobler wifehood,
they yet remain unafraid. Pagan husbands may resent their
Christianity; this, too, does not frighten them. (Lenski, Richard C.
H. The Interpretation of the Epistles of St. Peter, St. John and St.
Jude. Augsburg Publishing House, 1961)
The daughters of Sarah are not
to fear anything but displeasing God. They
know that following Christ will mean suffering. But they believe God's
promises...
But even if you should suffer for
the sake of righteousness, you are blessed. AND DO NOT FEAR THEIR
INTIMIDATION, AND DO NOT BE TROUBLED (see note
1 Peter 3:14)
Holy women who fix their hope in God take this promise
of blessing through suffering, and they fight the tendency to fear by
dwelling on the
faithfulness of God.
"Sarah considered Him faithful Who
had promised!" (see note
Hebrews 11:11).
And then they do what Peter says in
chapter 4
Therefore, let those also who
suffer according to the will of God entrust their souls to a faithful
Creator in doing what is right. (see note
1 Peter 4:19)
These women affirm the sovereign
rule of God over their suffering and that they do not suffer apart
from His will, ultimately resting their souls in the firm and
omnipotent hands of their faithful Creator. They cast out fear and
they hope in God. And so they prove themselves to
"not be sluggish, but imitators of
those who through faith and patience inherit the promises (as
daughters of Sarah) (see note
Hebrews 6:12).
