In his letter to the Corinthians Paul details the
hardships he endured for the sake of the Gospel – beatings, imprisonment, stoning,
shipwrecks, dangers – and while Peter doesn’t compile his own litany of suffering
we know he was beaten and imprisoned more than once. So Psalm 34 is a fitting Psalm
for the feast of these two followers of Jesus who “cried out” and were “delivered
from trouble” for their lives were redeemed and we are the living legacy of
their faithful witness. That is not to say Peter and Paul always got along and
I imagine that Peter might have thought Paul guilty of speaking deceit,
especially when Paul accused Peter of hypocrisy! (Galatians 2:11-14) And Paul
endured the attacks of James’s people (closely connected to Peter) who accused Paul
of all manner of evil teachings and practices. So the righteous are not always right
which should make us even more grateful that the Lord listens to those who are
all too human – even if they happen to be Peter and Paul.
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