A Chosen People, A Royal Priesthood, A Holy Nation and A Peculiar People
A peculiar person could signify a curious, eccentric, exceptional, odd and/or unconventional individual. Have friends and/or family members described you in such a way? Could you see others perceiving you as a bit strange or bizarre? In 1 Peter 2:9, the apostle describes Yahweh’s people as a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation and a peculiar people. How well do you fit this description? The people of Yahweh must measure themselves against this standard to see how well they measure up. Let’s read Peter’s description of the people of Yahweh below:
But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:
Peter says we are a special people for God’s own possession, so that we may proclaim the excellencies or the wonderful deeds and virutes and perfections of Yahweh who called us out of darkness into His marvelous light (Amplified).
Living In A Foreign Land While Fighting Viciously Against Sinning Against Our God
Peter goes on to say that we as aliens and strangers in this world must abstain from all things that wage a war against our soul. We must fight viciously and with all our might to overcome sin by the power of Yahweh’s Holy Spirit living within us.
Keep your behavior excellent among the [unsaved] Gentiles [conduct yourself honorably, with graciousness and integrity], so that for whatever reason they may slander you as evildoers, yet by observing your good deeds they may [instead come to] glorify God in the day of visitation [when He looks upon them with mercy]. (1 Peter 2:9 Amplified)
For it is the will of God that by doing right you may silence (muzzle, gag) the [culpable] ignorance and irresponsible criticisms of foolish people. 16 Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover or pretext for evil, but [use it and live] as bond-servants of God. 17 Show respect for all people [treat them honorably], love the brotherhood [of believers], fear God, honor the king. (1Peter 2:16-17)
Doing What’s Right Gives You Favor With Yahweh
For those who still think Yahweh’s royal priesthood a peculiar people can still feel comfortable living a life of sin, let me point the following:
After all, what kind of credit is there if, when you do wrong and are punished for it, you endure it patiently? But if when you do what is right and patiently bear [undeserved] suffering, this finds favor with God. (1 Peter 2:20)
Who is our model?
For [as a believer] you have been called for this purpose, since Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you may follow in His footsteps. (1 Peter 2:21)
We are to walk as he walks in His righteous footsteps. He is our model and standard to reach towards attaining this peculiar people and royal priesthood status.
He committed no sin, nor was deceit ever found in His mouth. While being reviled and insulted, He did not revile or insult in return; while suffering, He made no threats [of vengeance], but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges fairly. 24 He personally carried our sins in His body on the cross [willingly offering Himself on it, as on an altar of sacrifice], so that we might die to sin [becoming immune from the penalty and power of sin] and live for righteousness; for by His wounds you [who believe] have been healed. For you were continually wandering like [so many] sheep, but now you have come back to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls. (1 Peter 2:22-25)
We are now a peculiar people and royal priesthood of God. We no longer wander lost entrapped to sin. We know who we are; we know where we are from. We know Yahweh and He knows us. We know how much we are loved. We know the terrible price Yeshua paid to set us free from death. We ought to detest sin. We should no longer want to entangle ourselves in a life enslaved to sin, bondage, pain, darkness and emptiness.
The Holy Spirit Empowers Us to Shine Brightly For All The World To See Yahweh In Us
Yeshua sets us free from bondage to sin to exhibit these peculiar characteristics of love and freedom in a world engulfed in darkness and sin. The light of God emanates through us. The Holy Spirit changes us day by day into the perfect image of Yeshua: love.
We now know how to reject sin and live. We know what sin is, why it is so detestable to God and why God and sinners cannot coexist. We understand that Yeshua died for our sins so that we can live once again in the presence of Yahweh and His Holy Spirit. He did not die for us to continue to think it is okay to live a sinful life. He died to break the curse of sin from off of our backs so that we can truly live in peace and in freedom apart from sin, darkness, pain, fear, death and slavery to Satan.
When others see us, they should see Yeshua and the kingdom of Yahweh within us via the Holy Spirit empowering and directing our lives.
We Are The People Of Yahweh And We Possess The Characteristics Of Our God: Love!
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a consecrated nation, a [special] people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies [the wonderful deeds and virtues and perfections] of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. Once you were not a people [at all], but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. (1 Peter 2:9-10)
We are Yahweh’s royal priesthood and a peculiar people indeed to the eyes of those in this world living it up in darkness and chasing the wind–lost and dead sinners to Yahweh juxtaposed to the few with the power of eternal life (the Holy Spirit living within them) that know and understand the ways of Yahweh. Peculiar People are different than common people in this world; they know the creator of all things: Yahweh.
Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. (Titus 2:14)
Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: (Exodus 19:5)
6 For thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God: the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth. (Deuteronomy 7:6)
7 The Lord did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: (Deuteronomy 7:7)
8 But because the Lord loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers, hath the Lord brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. (Deuteronomy 7:8)
9 Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations; (Deuteronomy 7:9)
10 And repayeth them that hate him to their face, to destroy them: he will not be slack to him that hateth him, he will repay him to his face. (Deuteronomy 7:10)
43. Peculiar People–Chapter 43 from The Swedenborg Digital Library
This site above goes in-depth about the phrase peculiar people.