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Content

Keywords: First Letter of Peter; royal priesthood; patristic exegesis; descensus ad inferos; the first Christians in Rome
1. Un testo difficile?; 2. Il sacerdozio regale: un enunciato continuamente ripensato; 3. Le “strane” parole di 1Pt sul presunto descensus ad inferos; 4. Prima di Ireneo: la conoscenza di 1Pt nella chiesa di Roma

 

ABSTRACT

 

The First Letter of Peter has been highly regarded since the earliest centuries, yet it was rarely the subject of a complete commentary— likely because many of its themes also appear in Paul’s letters, while others, of an ethical nature, lend themselves easily to paraenetic use. Nonetheless, the epistle offers original elements that have enjoyed a long and varied exegetical reception: the royal priesthood of the faithful (1Pet 2:9) and Christ’s proclamation to the “spirits in prison” (1Pet 3:19-20), which raises the question of whether the passage attests to belief in the descensus ad inferos. The article concludes with a series of arguments supporting the Roman origin of the letter.