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The Apocalypse of Peter
Written circa 100-150.
Peter goes through hell on a Dante-style tour.
Peter goes through hell on a Dante-style tour.
- GenresReligion
Unknown Binding
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* They are officially published under that name
* They are traditional stories not attributed to a specific author
* They are religious texts not generally attributed to a specific author
Books whose authorship is merely uncertain should be attributed to Unknown.
See also: Anonymous
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
November 7, 2024
The Apocalypse of Peter is an early 2nd-century Christian text, notable for being one of the first works to detail a Christian vision of heaven and hell. Claimed to be narrated by Peter, the disciple, through a revelation from Christ, it provides an intense portrayal of the afterlife with influences from Jewish apocalyptic literature and Greek philosophy. The text exists in two forms—a shorter Greek fragment and a longer Ethiopic version.
The narrative begins with Peter asking Jesus for signs of the Second Coming. Jesus then grants Peter a vision of the afterlife: heaven, a realm of beauty, light, and harmony, and hell, where sinners face graphic punishments that fit their specific sins, embodying the principle of "an eye for an eye." For example, blasphemers are hung by their tongues, liars have their lips cut off, and the rich who ignored the poor must walk on sharp stones in rags. Each punishment is physical, vivid, and symbolizes the nature of each crime committed on earth.
Though The Apocalypse of Peter was influential and even listed in the early Muratorian fragment, it was excluded from the New Testament canon, likely for its graphic content and doubtful authorship. Its detailed vision of hell influenced other Christian apocalyptic works like The Apocalypse of Paul and prefigures literary explorations of the afterlife, such as Dante's Divine Comedy.
The text also includes a unique theological idea: that the righteous can intercede for souls in hell, possibly leading to their salvation—a concept touching on divine mercy. Overall, The Apocalypse of Peter is a compelling early Christian exploration of moral accountability, divine justice, and the boundaries of forgiveness in the afterlife.
The narrative begins with Peter asking Jesus for signs of the Second Coming. Jesus then grants Peter a vision of the afterlife: heaven, a realm of beauty, light, and harmony, and hell, where sinners face graphic punishments that fit their specific sins, embodying the principle of "an eye for an eye." For example, blasphemers are hung by their tongues, liars have their lips cut off, and the rich who ignored the poor must walk on sharp stones in rags. Each punishment is physical, vivid, and symbolizes the nature of each crime committed on earth.
Though The Apocalypse of Peter was influential and even listed in the early Muratorian fragment, it was excluded from the New Testament canon, likely for its graphic content and doubtful authorship. Its detailed vision of hell influenced other Christian apocalyptic works like The Apocalypse of Paul and prefigures literary explorations of the afterlife, such as Dante's Divine Comedy.
The text also includes a unique theological idea: that the righteous can intercede for souls in hell, possibly leading to their salvation—a concept touching on divine mercy. Overall, The Apocalypse of Peter is a compelling early Christian exploration of moral accountability, divine justice, and the boundaries of forgiveness in the afterlife.
November 11, 2020
The Apocalypse of Peter is an early Christian book that focuses on rewards in heaven and punishments in hell. It is listed in the Muratorian fragment and so was probably written sometime in the early second century. Different versions exist but the two most cited are the Greek and Ethiopic. The book adds clarity to early Christian attitudes towards some social issues that are growing in acceptance today.
"26 And hard by that place I saw another strait place wherein the discharge and the stench of them that were in torment ran down, and there was as it were a lake there. And there sat women up to their necks in that liquor, and over against them many children which were born out of due time sat crying: and from them went forth rays of fire and smote the women in the eyes: and these were they that conceived out of wedlock (?) and caused abortion."
"32 And other men and women being cast down from a great rock (precipice) fell (came) to the bottom, and again were driven by them that were set over them, to go up upon the rock, and thence were cast down to the bottom and had no rest from this torment. And these were they that did defile their bodies behaving as women: and the women that were with them were they that lay with one another as a man with a woman."
"26 And hard by that place I saw another strait place wherein the discharge and the stench of them that were in torment ran down, and there was as it were a lake there. And there sat women up to their necks in that liquor, and over against them many children which were born out of due time sat crying: and from them went forth rays of fire and smote the women in the eyes: and these were they that conceived out of wedlock (?) and caused abortion."
"32 And other men and women being cast down from a great rock (precipice) fell (came) to the bottom, and again were driven by them that were set over them, to go up upon the rock, and thence were cast down to the bottom and had no rest from this torment. And these were they that did defile their bodies behaving as women: and the women that were with them were they that lay with one another as a man with a woman."
August 20, 2020
Some say this is about Peter in hell but the version I had was basically Peter having the anxieties of evangelism and complaining to Jesus about it and Jesus was like let them have their delusions and then Peter woke up. Interestingly, Jesus throws shade at the shepherd of Hermas- a non- Gnostic yet mysteriously non- canonical book popular amongst early Christians.
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October 4, 2025Wow! As apocalypses go, this one is a doozy. In many ways it surpasses Dante's Divine Comedy in sheer imagination. This is an essential read for those that study apocalyptic literature.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews