“From Peter, apostle of Jesus Christ— To God’s chosen people who live as refugees scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia” (1 Peter 1:1 GNB).
The Biblical book of Acts relates the account of Saul of Tarsus, a man who “…made havoc of the church, entering every house, and dragging off men and women, committing them to prison” (Acts 8:3). Of course, Saul of Tarsus is better known to us today as Paul the Apostle. However, Paul’s campaign to incarcerate first-century Christians (and the efforts of others like him) is of greater interest in our study of 1 Peter.
The effect of those efforts is described for us in Acts 8:4: “Therefore those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word.” Undoubtedly, there were some (or perhaps many) of these dispersed individuals living in the regions mentioned here in 1 Peter 1:1. Thus, this reference to sojourners (ASV), pilgrims (NKJV), or exiles (AMP) represented a spiritual and political reality for the members of Peter’s original audience.
In this respect, these readers were not unlike other members of God’s family who faced similar realities. For instance, the people of Israel were sojourners in the Sinai wilderness following their departure from the land of Egypt (Numbers 32:13). The Biblical patriarch Abraham was a self-described foreigner and a stranger in his relationship to the native people of Canaan as well (Genesis 23).
Abraham’s grandson, Jacob, referred to the “years of his pilgrimage” on earth in speaking with Pharaoh (Genesis 47:9). Later, Joseph, Mary, and the infant Jesus sojourned for a time in the nation of Egypt in the interval following Jesus’ birth (Matthew 2:13–15). So those who similarly feel as if they are sojourners, pilgrims, or exiles in our modern-day world find themselves in good company.
Nevertheless, we should guard against the tendency to feel as if we are doing little more than passing through this earthly life…
“…this does not mean withdrawal from the world; but it does mean that the Christian sees all things in the light of eternity and life as a journey towards God. It is this which decides the importance which he attaches to anything; it is this which dictates his conduct. It is the touchstone and the dynamic of his life. …It would be wrong to think that this makes the Christian a bad citizen of the land in which he lives. It is because he sees all things in the light of eternity that he is the best of all citizens, for it is only in the light of eternity that the true values of things can be seen.” (1)
(1) Barclay, William. “Commentary on 1 Peter 1”. “William Barclay’s Daily Study Bible”. https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/eng/dsb/1-peter-1.html. 1956-1959.