“By Silvanus, our faithful brother as I consider him, I have written to you briefly, exhorting and testifying that this is the true grace of God in which you stand” (1 Peter 5:12).
Silvanus (also known as Silas) was a well-known minister within the early Christian community. For instance, Acts 15:22 identifies him as a “leading man” among the members of the first-century church in Jerusalem. Acts 15:32 further identifies him as a prophet, and 2 Corinthians 1:19 recognized him as a preacher as well.
Interestingly, it seems that Peter (along with Paul the Apostle) preferred to use the name Silvanus (the Roman form of his name) instead of “Silas” as he is known throughout the Biblical book of Acts (see Acts 17:1-9). Like Paul, Silvanus was a Roman citizen, and may have used that citizenship to a similar advantage.
It appears that Silvanus spent several years with the Apostle Paul during a missionary journey that is chronicled for us in Acts chapter sixteen. It also seems clear that Paul and Silvanus enjoyed a close relationship. For instance, we know that Paul and Silvanus traveled to the city of Antioch together (Acts 15). They were also imprisoned together in the town of Philippi (Acts 16:19-24). Finally, Paul and Silvanus were caught up together in a riot that occurred in the city of Thessalonica (Acts 17:1-9).
With these things in mind, it should not be surprising to learn that Peter acknowledged Silvanus as someone “…who is, in my opinion, a very faithful brother” (TLB). But how did Silvanus end up assisting Peter after so many years of ministry with the Apostle Paul? One commentary offers a potential answer: “It has been supposed that Paul, then a prisoner at Rome, had sent Silvanus to Peter.” (1)
Another commentator directs our attention to an important lesson from Silvanus’ life and ministry…
“Silvanus was one of those men the Church can never do without. He was content to take the second place and to serve almost in the background so long as God’s work was done. It was enough for him that he was Paul’s assistant, even if Paul for ever overshadowed him. It was enough for him to be Peter’s penman, even if it meant only a bare mention of his name at the end of the letter… The Church always has need of people like Silvanus and many who cannot be Peters or Pauls can still assist the Peters and Pauls to do their work.” (2)
(1) Johnson, B. W., The People’s New Testament [1 Peter 5:12-14]. Public Domain https://ccel.org/ccel/johnson_bw/pnt/pnt.pnt2105.html
(2) Barclay, William. William Barclay’s Daily Study Bible, “A Faithful Henchman Of The Apostles (1Pe_5:12).”