The Bible doesn’t flinch from exposing the sins of key figures. With Abraham’s deception, Moses’ anger, and David’s adultery, we get frank accounts of human failure.
Peter’s outright denial of Christ is no different. Picture the scene: Peter, the bold fisherman turned disciple, standing in the shadows of a courtyard fire, his heart pounding as he’s pressed with the question, “You aren’t one of this man’s disciples too, are you?” He replies, “I am not.”
The Bible paints a portrait of a man unraveling under fear. Three times he denies Jesus before the rooster’s cry breaks the morning. These accounts (Matthew 26:69–74, Mark 14:66–72, Luke 22:55–62, and John 18:15–18, 25–27) reveal Peter’s cowardice, crumbling under pressure and collapsing in bitter tears. After the third denial:
“The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: ‘Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.’ And he went outside and wept bitterly.” (Luke 22:61–62)
Some Mormon leaders and influential voices have sought to mitigate the disgrace of Peter’s betrayal. They suggest that Peter may have heeded protective counsel from Jesus himself, casting his denial as strategic rather than sinful and as justified loyalty in disguise.
“Justified expediency”
Spencer W. Kimball (1971):
“Is it possible that there might have been some other reason for Peter’s triple denial? Could he have felt that circumstances justified expediency? When he bore a strong testimony in Caesarea Philippi, he had been told that “they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ” (Matthew 16:20).
“When the three Apostles came down from the Mount of Transfiguration, they were again charged implicitly, “Tell the vision to no man, until the Son of man be risen again from the dead” (Matthew 17:9). Could Peter have felt this was not the time to tell of Christ? …
“Surely Peter did not think of this escape as cowardice but as wise expediency. Christ’s time was not come…
“What more could Peter do? How else could he show his loyalty and courage? Could it be that in these last hours Peter realized that he should stop protecting his Lord, that the Crucifixion was inevitable, and that regardless of all his acts, the Lord was moving toward his destiny? I do not know. I only know that this Apostle was brave and fearless…
“What would his further defense of the Lord accomplish in this situation? Would it displease Jesus? Would it only destroy Peter himself without beneficial effect?
“What was he to do? Could he do more? What would have been the result had he admitted his connection? Would he have lived to preside over the church? Peter had seen the Savior escape from crowds many times and hide from assassins. Is it conceivable that Peter also saw advisable advantage to the cause in his denial? Had Peter come to fully realize the hidden meaning in the oft-repeated phrase “Mine hour is not yet come” (John 2:4), and did he now understand that “now is the Son of man glorified” (John 13:31)?”1
“A command”
Andrew C. Skinner (2004):
“In sum, it is apparent that Jesus knew of Peter’s fearlessness in defending him. He had seen several manifestations of Peter’s unswerving, almost reckless, commitment to prevent any physical harm to the Savior. And this was something Jesus knew could get Peter into trouble if it were not tempered. It would put the chief apostle in grave physical danger. Therefore, it is possible that when Jesus told Peter he would deny him thrice before the cock crowed twice, it was not a prediction—it was a command.”2
“Protective counsel”
Jeffrey R. Holland in the April 2009 General Conference:
“Later, after Jesus’s arrest and appearance at trial, Peter, accused of knowing Jesus and being one of His confidants, denies that accusation not once but three times. We don’t know all that was going on here, nor do we know of protective counsel which the Savior may have given to His Apostles privately, but we do know Jesus was aware that even these precious ones would not stand with Him in the end, and He had warned Peter accordingly.”3
In the published version of this talk, Holland references Spencer W. Kimball’s 1971 BYU speech, “Peter, My Brother.”
“It wasn’t a prediction”
LDS philosopher Blake T. Ostler holds that God does not have definite knowledge of future human choices, and thus can’t predict the future with certainty. Thus, the narrative of Jesus predicting betrayal is problematic. In 2022 he explained:
“I think the toughest scripture from my position is, how did Jesus predict that Judas would betray him? And my response is that Jesus didn’t need to predict anything—Judas had already betrayed him.
“The second most difficult is where Christ says, ‘Before the rooster crows three times, you’re going to deny me.’ …
“I would say that it wasn’t a prediction at all. It was a command… What he was telling him is, rather than give up your life, when they ask if you know me, deny me. Because otherwise they’re going to kill you…
“Christ was saying, ‘Peter, you’ve got to survive.’”4
Conclusion
We don’t need to sanitize what Peter did. It was bad. It was really bad—denying his Lord three times as the pressure closed in. Jesus foretold it:
“Will you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the rooster will not crow till you have denied me three times.” (John 13:38)
Peter’s denial sets the stage for Christ’s forgiveness. Why did Peter’s faith not finally fail? Because Jesus prayed for him:
“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” (Luke 22:31–32)
After the resurrection of Jesus we quickly see restoration and forgiveness. The angel at the tomb singles out Peter:
“Go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.” (Mark 16:7)
As Peter denied Christ three times, Jesus asked Peter three times, “Do you love me?”
“Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’ and he said to him, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my sheep.’ (John 21:17)
Friends, “There is more mercy in Christ than sin in us.”5 If Christ can forgive Abraham for deception, Moses for anger, David for murder, and Peter for betrayal, then Christ can forgive you. Listen to Peter himself:
“He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” (1 Peter 2:24-25)
See also
- John F. Hall in New Testament Witnesses of Christ: Peter, John, James, and Paul (2002)
- What We Might Be Getting Wrong About Peter’s Denial, by Braxton Young Church (2019)
- The Accounts of Peter’s Denial: Understanding the Texts and Motifs, by Eric D. Huntsman
- Did Christ Command Peter To Deny Him? (discussion thread)
- Peter’s Denial – Prediction or Command?, by Troy G. Parker
References
- Spencer W. Kimball, “Peter, My Brother” (devotional address, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, July 13, 1971). Link. The address is reproduced as a transcript in The Ministry of Peter, the Chief Apostle, by Frank F. Judd Jr., Eric D. Huntsman, and Shon D. Hopkin. Link. ↩︎
- Andrew C. Skinner, Golgotha (2004), 47. ↩︎
- Jeffrey R. Holland, “None Were with Him” (General Conference, April 2009). Link. ↩︎
- Blake Ostler. “Theology Talk Ep 2: The Logical Contradiction of Foreknowledge and Agency?” YouTube video, 23:28. Posted July 24, 2022. Link. ↩︎
- Richard Sibbes. The Bruised Reed, 1630. ↩︎
You must be logged in to post a comment.