Peter in the Bible

A fisherman from Bethsaida, with a home in Capernaum

John 1:44 calls Bethsaida the town of Andrew and Peter. Mark places the house of Simon and Andrew in the Capernaum setting, where Jesus heals Simon’s mother-in-law. These passages tell us about Peter’s family and home; they do not give his birth date or a full family tree.

In John’s account, Andrew brings Simon to Jesus after following John the Baptist. Jesus tells Simon he will be called Cephas, translated Peter. Matthew describes the brothers leaving their nets when Jesus calls them. Luke tells of Jesus teaching from Simon’s boat, a great catch after an unsuccessful night, and Simon falling at Jesus’ knees. Jesus tells him not to be afraid: he will now catch people alive.

John 1:35–44; Matthew 4:18–22; Mark 1:21, 29–31; Luke 5:1–11

Peter confesses Jesus as Messiah—and needs correction

At Caesarea Philippi, Peter identifies Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the living God. Jesus says this has been revealed by the Father and speaks of Peter, the rock, the building of his church, and the keys of the kingdom. The WEB uses assembly where many English translations use church. Christian traditions differ over how this passage relates Peter, his confession, and later church leadership; the words in Matthew 16:17–19 should be read before drawing those conclusions.

The same chapter records a sharp correction. When Jesus predicts his suffering, death, and resurrection, Peter takes him aside and objects. Jesus rebukes him for setting his mind on human rather than divine concerns. At the transfiguration, Peter is present with James and John; when he proposes three shelters, the voice from the cloud directs them to listen to Jesus.

Matthew 16:13–23; 17:1–9 · Read another moment when Peter trusts Jesus and becomes afraid →

Three denials and a renewed commission

Peter promises that he is ready for prison and death. Jesus predicts that he will deny knowing him three times, but also says he has prayed for Peter and tells him to strengthen his brothers when he turns back. After the arrest, Peter follows at a distance and denies knowing Jesus when challenged in the courtyard. Luke records Jesus turning to look at him; Peter remembers the warning and weeps.

Mark records two rooster crows, with the second after the third denial. Luke records a crow after the third denial. Both preserve Peter’s tears. The danger he faces helps explain his fear, although neither account gives a full explanation of his motives.

After the resurrection, John records Peter entering the empty tomb, then meeting Jesus beside the Sea of Tiberias. Following breakfast, Jesus asks him three times about his love and tells him to feed and tend his flock. Christians commonly read this as Peter’s restoration after the three denials. Peter is grieved by the third question, yet Jesus again calls him to follow.

Luke 22:31–34, 54–62; Mark 14:66–72; John 20:1–10; 21:1–19 · Follow the empty-tomb accounts and resurrection appearances →

Preaching, healing, and imprisonment in Acts

At Pentecost, Peter stands with the eleven and explains the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. He proclaims Jesus’ death and resurrection and calls his hearers to repent and be baptized. Acts says about three thousand people are added that day. When he and John later meet a man unable to walk at the temple gate, Peter tells him to rise in Jesus’ name. He explicitly denies that their own power or godliness caused the healing.

Acts also records Peter telling Aeneas that Jesus Christ heals him, and praying before Tabitha is raised from death. In Joppa, a vision of animals challenges his understanding of what is unclean. When he enters Cornelius’s home in Caesarea, he explains that God has shown him not to call any person unholy or unclean. The Holy Spirit falls on the hearers while he speaks; Peter then commands that they be baptized. He later explains these events to believers in Jerusalem.

Acts 12 places Peter in prison after Herod has killed James, John’s brother. While the church prays, an angel leads Peter out. At the house of Mary, John Mark’s mother, Rhoda recognizes his voice but is so joyful that she leaves him outside while she tells the others. Peter keeps knocking until they open the gate. His rescue does not erase James’s death or promise that every faithful prisoner will be released.

Acts 2:1–41; 3:1–16; 4:1–22; 9:32–43; 10:1–48; 11:1–18; 12:1–19

Peter and Paul: fellowship and confrontation

Galatians 2 names James, Cephas, and John as recognized pillars who extend fellowship to Paul and Barnabas. It also records Paul confronting Peter at Antioch. Peter had eaten with Gentile believers but withdrew when certain people arrived from James, fearing those of the circumcision. Paul calls the conduct hypocrisy, and says even Barnabas was carried along with it.

At the Jerusalem meeting in Acts 15, Peter argues that God gave Gentile believers the Holy Spirit and cleansed their hearts by faith. He speaks of salvation through the grace of Jesus and opposes placing an unbearable yoke on them. His words at that meeting and his conduct at Antioch show why Peter’s leadership cannot be told only as a series of successes.

Galatians 2:1–14; Acts 15:6–11 · Read about Paul’s mission and his work with other apostles →

Peter’s letters and what is known about his death

First and Second Peter identify their sender as Peter or Simon Peter. First Peter encourages believers facing suffering and calls them to holy conduct, humility, and care for one another. Second Peter recalls the transfiguration, warns about false teachers, and addresses the promised return of Christ. These are letters of instruction, not a continuous biography of Peter’s later travels.

John 21:18–19 says Jesus’ words about Peter stretching out his hands indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God. The New Testament does not narrate the execution. Eusebius’s Church History 3.1, citing Origen, reports that Peter was crucified head-down in Rome at his own request. That is a later Christian report, not a detail recorded in Acts or John. It does not make Peter’s exact age or a precise execution date a biblical fact.

1 Peter 1:1–9, 13–16; 4:12–19; 5:1–14; 2 Peter 1:1–18; 2:1–3; 3:1–18; John 21:18–19 · Read Eusebius, Church History 3.1, as a source for the later tradition →

Simon, Cephas, and Peter

Why was Simon called Peter?

Simon was his personal name. Jesus gave him the Aramaic name Cephas, rendered in Greek as Petros and in English as Peter; both are connected with “rock” or “stone.” The New Testament uses Simon, Simon Peter, Cephas, and Peter for the same apostle. Matthew 16 links the name with Jesus’ saying about the rock and the building of his church, a passage interpreted in several Christian traditions.

John 1:42 and the note on Cephas

Read Jesus’ words in Matthew 16:17–19