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:
• 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.
• New Living Translation (NLT)Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.

Context of 1 Peter 5:8

6Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. 7Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 9Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings. 10And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.

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, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming.
• 1 Peter 4:7The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray.
• Matthew 24:48But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, ‘My master is staying away a long time,’
• Luke 12:45But suppose the servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the other servants, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk.
• Luke 21:34“Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you suddenly like a trap.
• Romans 13:11And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.
• 1 Thessalonians 5:6So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober.
• 1 Timothy 2:9I also want the women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, adorning themselves, not with elaborate hairstyles or gold or pearls or expensive clothes,
• 1 Timothy 3:2Now the overseer is to be above reproach, faithful to his wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,
• Esther 7:6Esther said, “An adversary and enemy! This vile Haman!” Then Haman was terrified before the king and queen.
• Job 1:6One day the angels came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them.
• Job 2:2And the Lord said to Satan, “Where have you come from?” Satan answered the Lord, “From roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it.”
• Psalms 109:6Appoint someone evil to oppose my enemy; let an accuser stand at his right hand.
• Isaiah 50:8He who vindicates me is near. Who then will bring charges against me? Let us face each other! Who is my accuser? Let him confront me!
• Zechariah 3:1Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him.
• Luke 22:31“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as 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