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Response
As Peter exhorts Jewish believers to Christian behavior in his first letter, he instructs them to “gird up the loins of your mind” «Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; », (1 Peter 1:13). Peter introduces this crucial advice with a “Therefore,” indicating that it is based on preceding statements.
Prior to urging them to gird up their minds, Peter lays a foundation for his exhortation, a common practice in his letters. Following a salutation (1 Peter 1:1-2), Peter praises God for His work in securing our salvation (1 Peter 1:3-5). The doxology in these verses contains numerous affirmations of eternal security and the everlasting nature of our salvation. Encouraged by these words of hope, Peter reminds believers that they can rejoice even in the face of severe trials because they trust in God’s faithfulness to fulfill His promises (1 Peter 1:6-9). Regardless of the challenges Christians encounter, they have confidence that God will ensure their salvation «receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls. », (1 Peter 1:9).
Peter emphasizes that the message is both reliable and glorious «Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to lo
Ok into. 1 Peter 1:12, and because of those factors and the assurances in prior verses, Peter exhorts his direct audience—and secondarily all believers in Christ—to gird up the loins of your mind 1 Peter 1:13. The phrase is clearly a figure of speech, as the mind doesn’t have “loins.”
Similar verbiage is used in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scripture) in 1 Kings 18:46 to illustrate what Elijah did immediately prior to outrunning Ahab to Jezreel. In that culture, the loin cloth hung down, something like a slip, along with the robe, making it difficult to run. By wrapping or tying up the loin cloth and the robe, a person could run much more effectively. The same concept is mentioned in Ephesians 6:14, as Paul explains that the armor of God includes a girding of the loins with truth. For Peter to tell us “to gird up the loins of your mind” 1 Peter 1:13 indicates that he intends for us to be prepared for action; in fact, the NASB translates the phrase in 1 Peter 1:13 as “prepare your minds for action.” While this is not the word-for-word translation of the Greek phrase used (and perhaps not ideal), it does communicate what Peter seemed to imply by using the figure of speech.
Believers are exhorted to gird up the loins of your mind—to be prepared for action and in doing that to keep a sober or alert spirit. Ultimately, we fix our hope steadfastly on the future fulfillment of God’s grace.Through Jesus in our lives when Christ is revealed at His second coming «Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; », (1 Peter 1:13b). The way for us to stand firm in the midst of difficulty and even persecution is by preparing for encountering those things and being well equipped with the knowledge of God’s promises for us. Peter is giving us the recipe for successfully encountering and persevering through difficulty— that we be clear on our assurance of salvation. We can trust in God, as He will keep the promises He has made to us.
