LUKE 22: 54-62 [JESUS’ LAST NIGHT SERIES]
PETER DENIES KNOWING JESUS
After the betrayal of Judas Luke turns his attention to the arrest of Jesus and the denials of Peter. Simultaneous action is taking place in the house of the high priest with Jesus (v. 54) and in its courtyard with Peter (v. 55). Luke separates the two sequences of events instead of intertwining them [as in Matthew and Mark].
Here and throughout the following sections dramatic tension continues to mount. In the light of Jesus’ arrest, Peter is dealing with his fear. The story of Peter’s denial presents a sober and utterly real picture of the prominent apostle, and (along with vv. 31–32) it offers a deep spiritual lesson about humility and the spiritual conflict (CIT).
Peter follows Jesus at a safe distance to the high priest’s house. He settles in the courtyard to watch the proceedings. He is recognized by three different people as one of Jesus’ followers, and each time, out of fear for his own life, denies any connection with Jesus three times. With the crowing of the rooster, Jesus turns and looks at Peter. [Compare parallel accounts in Matt 26:67–75; 27:27–31; Mark 14:65–72; 15:16–20; John 18:12–27; 19:2–3.] Jesus’ look frees the memory and sends grace to the heart.
I. DENIAL’S BEGINNING, 54-57.
II. DENIAL’S GROWTH, 58-60.
III. DENIAL’S RECOVERY, 61–62.
At the arrest of Jesus, the disciples all continued fleeing except for Peter and another disciple (Jn 18:15) who apparently return to follow the crowd. Beginning in verse 54 we learn the story of Peter immediately after Jesus’ official arrest. “Then they seized Him and led Him away, bringing Him into the high priest's house, and Peter was following at a distance.”
Jesus first was taken “into the high priest’s house.” [Annas was a former high priest and the influential father-in-law of Caiaphas, the present high priest (John 18:13,24; Matt. 26:57-58). It is possible that they shared the same house or live around the same court yard.]
Peter, determined to keep his word (22:33;Mk 14:29–31) followed after the crowd. That Peter followed Jesus at all after such a frightening arrest was brave and showed a real concern for his Master. But he followed “at a distance” to stay out of danger. Following Jesus “afar off” is always a dangerous place to be.
Verse 55 points out that a fire was lite to warm those staying up to participate in the events of the night. ‘And when they had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat down among them.’
The fire in the courtyard was needed because the evenings were—and still are—cool in springtime in Jerusalem. The enclosed courtyard might break the wind but the fire would provide warmth. The large fire not only radiated heat, it also emitted light. Peter joined them.
In verse 56 from the light of the fire a servant girl gets a good look at a stranger there. ‘Then a servant girl, seeing him as he sat in the light and looking closely at him, said, “This man also was with Him.”
The denial had three phases. All four Gospels identify the first speaker as “a servant girl.” As many have observed, the girl and what she said were relatively harmless and did not deserve such a drastic response. There was nothing illegal about being in Jesus’ company; if there was, then the authorities would have made more arrests in Gethsemane. But they didn’t. This woman simply observes that Peter was with Jesus. Fear-filled Peter though, realized that many ears were listening. He wanted to avoid any guilt by association with Jesus.
Verse 57 records Peter’s response. ‘But he denied it, saying, “Woman, I do not know Him.”
Peter’s courage in this hostile environment now fails him. His response to the servant girl is his first denial of Jesus. The word “deny” (arneomai) is used in the NT as the polar opposite of the word “confess” (homologeo). We are to confess (i.e., acknowledge) Christ but deny ourselves (i.e., disown our private interests for the sake of Christ, 9:23). Peter here does the reverse. He denies Christ in order to serve his own interests. [Walter L. Liefeld, “Luke,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, ed. Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 8 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984), 1035.]
Before we over-react to Peter’s response in this story, we should remember that each of us at times has been inclined to downplay our commitment to Christ, for various reasons.
II. DENIAL’S GROWTH, 58-60.
After a brief time, someone else, not described by Luke, made another charge found in verse 58. ‘And a little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.” But Peter said, “Man, I am not.”
“Another saw him” refers here to an otherwise unidentified person. Luke’s masculine pronoun “another” refers to a man. Several persons identify Peter as one of Jesus’ disciples. [Mark 14:69 refers to a girl. Matt. 26:71 refers to “another girl.”]
Since the man has drawn even closer scrutiny to Peter, he even more emphatically responses, “Man, I am not!” In Peter’s second denial he disowns Jesus because he now felt he was in even greater distress and danger.
In verse 59 another man (Jn 18;26) becomes certain enough to accuse Peter again of being an associate of Jesus. ‘And after an interval of about an hour still another insisted, saying, “Certainly this man also was with him, for he too is a Galilean.”
This third speaker makes a definite assertion. The verb translated “asserted” (diischyrizeto) means to insist, maintain firmly. This final charge includes evidence of Peter’s association with Jesus: They are both from Galilee. Matthew notes that Peter’s accent gave him away as a Galilean (Matt 26:73). Maybe Peter should have kept his mouth shut.
It was Peter’s accent that gave him away. So, too, believers are identified by their speech. They have an accent because they are of another kingdom. We don’t use the same expressions, tone, or vocabulary as the world (Colossians 3:8). [Jon Courson, Jon Courson’s Application Commentary (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2003), 409.]
III. DENIAL’S RECOVERY, 61–62.
In verse 60 Jesus’ prediction concerning Peter a few hours earlier is completely fulfilled. ‘But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are talking about.” And immediately, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed.’
“I do not know” is Peter’s third denial of Jesus. Peter’s denials became progressively more vehement. Peter’s response is stated more mildly in Luke than in Matthew and Mark, where he accompanies his statement with an oath which includes cursing and swearing in the denial. [Also here Peter does not directly deny Jesus but professes ignorance of Him, though this amounts to the same thing.] Luke emphasizes the fulfillment of Jesus’ words about the cock crowing by indicating that the third denial was just being uttered (parachrema eti lalountos, lit., “immediately while he was still speaking”) when a rooster crowed fulfilling Jesus’ prediction in Luke 22:34.
Even the strongest disciple of Jesus can fall prey to Satan’s traps, but the Lord is there for all who look to Him in their guilt and shame, just like He was for Peter.
In spite of His personal crisis, the Lord had not forgotten His struggling disciple and in verse 61 Jesus reaches out to Peter with a look. ‘And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. And Peter remembered the saying of the Lord, how he had said to him, “Before the rooster crows today, you will deny me three times.”
In telling how the Lord “looked at Peter,” Luke uses the word John used (John 1:42) to describe the way Jesus looked at Peter when they first met, emblepo. It “usually signifies a look of interest, love or concern” (DNTT, 3:519; cf. Mark 10:21).
Even in such a personally stressful situation, Jesus remembered His own. His look grants Peter the grace to recover himself.
Though Peter is guilty of a very great offence in denying his Lord, Christ would not call him out, lest he should shame him or expose him. He only gave him a look which none but Peter would understand. [Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1994), 1905.]
Verse 62 reveals that the brash self-assured man is experiencing the Christ prayed for outcome of Satan’s sifting. ‘And he went out and wept bitterly.’
One look from Christ broke Peter’s heart and melted him into tears of godly sorrow for his sin. Christ looked upon the chief priests and elders in their sin and made no impression upon them. But Peter, was deeply touched, making him aware of what was occurring and brought him to repentance. May each one of us be so receptive to the grace of our Lord shining upon us.
In using a rooster, I believe the Lord was telling Peter that even though he messed up, even though he committed a hideous sin in denying Jesus even as Jesus was about to die for him, there would be a new day dawning—a new day of humility, of brokenness, of forgiveness after which He would use Peter mightily. [Jon Courson, 409.]
The same is true of you. You will find the Lord will do a mighty work in and through you if, at the point of failure, you turn to Him.
In CLOSING
The night before Jesus was crucified, two disciples powerfully rejected their long association with Jesus and emphatically denied Him. Judas betrayed Christ to His enemies and Peter forcefully denied that he even knew the Lord three times.
The difference in what each did next is huge. Peter wept bitter tears of repentance and was lovingly restored (Jn 21:15-17); Judas hanged himself (Mt 27;5).
When we know we have committed a sin, the most important thing is what we do next. If we lose our temper and say something cruel to a family member, what do we do next? If we mistreat a co-worker or friend, what do we do next? If we find we are dwelling on evil thoughts, what do we do next? If we make excuses to justify bad behavior, or blame the other person, or ignore the Spirit’s conviction, we only add more sin to the first.
Perhaps the Holy Spirit has brought to your attention some sin in your life. If so you are faced with a choice; to repent and confess it to God (1 Jn 1:9), or to continue denying that you have a sin problem or that you did wrong.
When you sin, don’t compound it with another sin. Immediately take it to the Lord in prayerful confession. This next action either compounds our sin or cancels it. It either brings us closer to our Lord, or pushes us farther away. [Our Daily Bread]
Peter disowned Christ, yet Christ did not disown Peter. Though Jesus would have been justified after such repeated vigorous and public denials to simply cast him off, and never look with favor upon him again, even denying him before the Father, He would not. He would grant Peter grace, forgiveness, and restoration. It is well for us all that Christ does not deal with us as we deal with Him.
OPENING PRAYER: Father God, Your Great Unfailing Love and Mercy for us compels us to follow You. Because You are with us, we will not back away in fear of the unknown but will instead Prosper in your ways because You have established our every step. You have pulled us out of the miry clay and have set our feet upon the Rock.
We confess that we do not follow Jesus in all that we do. We love with condition. We judge and condemn. We cast the first stone and keep the logs in our own eyes. We do not turn to You as the source of our healing, but You are our rescuer. Your Word is our hope.
You have delivered us out of the bondage of darkness, bringing us into the Light of Your Kingdom filled with Your Love. We will Honor and Worship You, our God, with our whole heart and we will glorify Your Name forever. We can do all things through Christ which Strengthens us.
CLOSING PRAYER: Shepherd God, forgive us for going astray, again and again and again. You seek us out, always looking for us no matter where we are and no matter what we have done. Sometimes we take you for granted and forget to say thank you.” Other times we are fully embraced by your love but don’t really think it could possibly be true. Forgive us, O God. Out of the depths we cry to You, in our suffering and in our pain. Out of the depths God cries to us, asking us to repent, to return to God with our whole hearts, to admit our sin, and to accept forgiveness. I am weak but You are strong. You bless those who mourn, and we trust You to bless us and our families with all that we need. Thank You for loving us and watching over us. Holy God, we ask for your help, your power, your Spirit, so that we can amend our lives and grow more each day into the image of Christ. Let all that we are praise You. We will praise You as long as we live. Our hope is in You, the Lord, our God. You keep every promise forever. We stand amazed at how awesome You are! In Jesus name. Amen.
