1 Peter 5:8

1 Peter 5:8 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
• New International Version (NIV)Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

Context of 1 Peter 5:8

6And God will exalt you in due time, if you humble yourselves under his mighty hand 7by casting all your cares on him because he cares for you. Be sober and alert. Your enemy the devil, like a roaring lion, is on the prowl looking for someone to devour. 9Resist him, strong in your faith, because you know that your brothers and sisters throughout the world are enduring the same kinds of suffering. 10And, after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace who called you to his eternal glory in Christ will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.

1 Peter 5:8 word by word

νήψατε, γρηγορήσατε ὁ ἀντίδικος ὑμῶν διάβολος ὡς λέων ὠρυόμενος περιπατεῖ ζητῶν τινα καταπιεῖν·Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Be soberνήφωnēphō · be soberG3525
• be vigilantγρηγορέωgrēgoreuō · to keep watchG1127
• becauseὅτιhoti · that/since: thatG3754
• yourσύsu · youG4771
• adversaryὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• adversaryἀντίδικοςantidikos · opponentG476
• the devilδιάβολοςdiabolos · devilish/the DevilG1228
• asὡςhōs · as/whenG5613
• a roaringὠρύομαιōruomai · to roarG5612
• lionλέωνleōn · lionG3023
• walketh aboutπεριπατέωperipateō · to walkG4043
• seekingζητέωzēteō · to seekG2212
• whomτίςtis · which?G5101
• he may devourκαταπίνωkatapinō · to swallowG2666

Cross-references for 1 Peter 5:8

• 1 Peter 1:13Therefore, get your minds ready for action by being fully sober, and set your hope completely on the grace that will be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed.
• 1 Peter 4:7For the culmination of all things is near. So be self-controlled and sober-minded for the sake of prayer.
• Matthew 24:48But if that evil slave should say to himself, ‘My master is staying away a long time,’
• Luke 12:45But if that slave should say to himself, ‘My master is delayed in returning,’ and he begins to beat the other slaves, both men and women, and to eat, drink, and get drunk,
• Luke 21:34“But be on your guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day close down upon you suddenly like a trap.
• Romans 13:11And do this because we know the time, that it is already the hour for us to awake from sleep, for our salvation is now nearer than when we became believers.
• 1 Thessalonians 5:6So then we must not sleep as the rest, but must stay alert and sober.
• 1 Timothy 2:9Likewise the women are to dress in suitable apparel, with modesty and self-control. Their adornment must not be with braided hair and gold or pearls or expensive clothing,
• 1 Timothy 3:2The overseer then must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, an able teacher,
• Esther 7:6Esther replied, “The oppressor and enemy is this evil Haman!” Then Haman became terrified in the presence of the king and queen.
• Job 1:6Now the day came when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord – and Satan also arrived among them.
• Job 2:2And the Lord said to Satan, “Where do you come from?” Satan answered the Lord, “From roving about on the earth, and from walking back and forth across it.”
• Psalms 109:6Appoint an evil man to testify against him! May an accuser stand at his right side!
• Isaiah 50:8The one who vindicates me is close by. Who dares to argue with me? Let us confront each other! Who is my accuser? Let him challenge me!
• Zechariah 3:1Next I saw Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, with Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him.
• Luke 22:31“Simon, Simon, pay attention! Satan has demanded to have you all, to sift you like wheat,

Commentaries on 1 Peter 5:8

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8Be sober - Avoid drunkenness of your senses, and drunkenness in your souls; be not overcharged with the concerns of the world. Be vigilant - Awake, and keep awake; be always watchful; never be off your guard; your enemies are alert, they are never off theirs. Your adversary the devil - This is the reason why ye should be sober and vigilant; ye have an ever active, implacable, subtle enemy to contend with. He walketh about - he has access to you…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8Be sober - While you cast your cares Upon God, and have no anxiety on that score, let your solicitude be directed to another point. Do not doubt that he is able and willing to support and befriend you, but be watchful against your foes. See the word used here fully explained in the notes at 1 Thessalonians 5:6. Be vigilant - This word ( ́ grēgoreō) is everywhere else in the New Testament rendered “watch.” See Matthew 24:42-43; Matthew 25:13; Matthew…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 5-9Verses 5-9 Humility preserves peace and order in all Christian churches and societies; pride disturbs them. Where God gives grace to be humble, he will give wisdom, faith, and holiness. To be humble, and subject to our reconciled God, will bring greater comfort to the soul than the gratification of pride and ambition. But it is to be in due time; not in thy fancied time, but God's own wisely appointed time. Does he wait, and wilt not thou? What…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-14Peter concludes the letter with directions to: elders (5:1–4), younger people (5:5), and the entire church (5:5–11). He then gives final greetings and ends the letter (5:12–14).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 88. Peter has in mind Christ's warning to himself to watch against Satan, from forgetting which he fell. Be sober ... vigilant--"Care," that is, anxiety, will intoxicate the soul; therefore be sober, that is, self-restrained. Yet, lest this freedom from care should lead any to false security, he adds, "Be vigilant" against "your adversary." Let this be your "care." God provides, therefore do not be anxious. The devil seeks, therefore watch [Bengel]…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Peter 5:8

• Commandments
• Decision
• Lion
• Perseverance
• Satan
• Sobriety
• War
• Watchfulness

In the dictionaries

• Adversary
• Constraint
• Devour
• Ensample
• Heritage
• Oversight
• Satan
• Stedfast
• Vigilant
• Witness

Commentaries on 1 Peter 5

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings