7 - From House to House of God

Summary

In 2:4-10, the author weaves together the source domains of house/household, family, temple, priesthood, stone, and nation to describe believers’ identity and relationship to Christ, each other, and those who do not believe. This chapter first examines the οἶκος language in 1 Peter 2:4-6 (§7.2-3). At 2:5, the author simultaneously actives two meaning of οἶκος to transition smoothly from the semantic domain of the house to that of the temple, the house of God. Next, this chapter briefly surveys “community-as-temple” language at Qumran and the New Testament in order to trace the some of the streams of tradition which may lie behind 1 Peter (§7.4-5). Finally, this chapter looks at 1 Peter 2:4-10 in detail to examine how the construction of Christian ethnic identity concludes the author’s theme of divine regeneration (§7.6-9).