For God resisteth the proud but giveth grace to the humble. That is, those who will not give place God casts down; and on the other hand, he exalts those who humble themselves. It is a common expression—would to God he lived like common folks.
V. 6. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God. Since God requires that each should be subject to the other; if it is done willingly and cheerfully, he will exalt you. But if you will not do it willingly, you shall do it from constraint. He will cast you down.
That He may exalt you in his own time. It seems, when God suffers his own children to be cast down, as though he would at length desert them. Therefore he says: Do not mistake on this account, and suffer yourself to be blinded, but be confident, since you have a sure promise that it is God's hand and will. Therefore should you not regard the time, however long it be, that you are brought low; for though He has cast you down, He will yet lift you up. Hence it follows:
V. 7. Cast all your cares upon Him, for He careth for you. You have such a promise as this, whereby you may rest secure that God doth not forsake you, but careth for you. Therefore let all your cares go, and cast your burden on Him. These words are exceedingly precious; how could He have made them more sweet or tender? Why does He employ so great allurement? It is in order that no one might easily despond and give up his purpose. Therefore He gives us such consolation as this: that God not only looks upon us, but cares also for us, and has a heartfelt regard for our lot. He further says:
V. 8. Be sober, be vigilant, for your adversary the devil goeth about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Here he gives us a warning, and would open our eyes, and it would be well worthy that the text should be written in golden letters. Here you perceive what this life is, and how it is described, so that we might well be ever wishing that we were dead. We are here in the devil's kingdom, just as in case a pilgrim should arrive at an inn, where he knew that all in the house were robbers; if he must enter there he will yet arm himself in the best way he can devise, and will sleep but little: so are we now on earth, where the prince is an evil spirit, and has the hearts of men in his power, doing by them as he will. It is a fearful thought if we properly regard it. Therefore St. Peter would warn us to take heed to ourselves, and act the part of a faithful servant, who knows the state of things here. For this reason he says: be sober, for they who indulge themselves here in eating and drinking, and are like fat swine, are such as can be fitted for nothing useful. Therefore must we have ever by us such a talisman as this.
And be vigilant (he says), not only as to the spirit but also as to the body. For a vitiated body, prone to sleep when it eats and drinks itself full, will give the devil no opposition, though it belong even to those swine who have a faith and spirit.
Wherefore should we then be sober and vigilant? Because your enemy the devil goeth about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. The evil spirit, sleeps not—is cunning and wicked. He has purposed with himself that he will assault us, and he knows the right trick therefor; goes about like a lion that is hungry, and roars as though he would gladly devour all. Here St. Peter gives us an important admonition, and forewarns us of our enemy, that we may protect ourselves against him; as Paul also says, "we are not ignorant of the devices of the wicked spirit." That "going about" tends to make us heedless, and thereupon follow wrath, hatred, pride, lust, contempt of God.
And here observe especially, that he says the devil goeth about. He does not pass before your eyes, when you are armed against him, but looks out before and behind you, within and without, where he may attack you. If he now meets you here, he will quickly return there, and attack you in another place; he changes from one side to the other, and employs every kind of cunning and art that he may bring you to fall; and if you are well prepared in one place, he will quickly fall in upon another; and if he cannot overthrow you there, then he assaults you somewhere else, and so never gives it up, but goes round and round, and leaves no rest to any one. If we then are fools and do not regard it, but go on and take no heed, then has he as good as seized upon us.
Let every one now look to this; surely each shall trace something of this in his own experience. He that has examined knows it well. Therefore it is so sad for us that we go about so heedlessly. If we rightly regard it, we should cry out, death rather than life. Job has spoken thus: "Man's life on earth is nothing but an encampment, a mere conflict and strife." Why then does God thus leave us in life and misery? In order that faith may be exercised and grow, and that hastening out of this life, we may have a desire of death, and an anxiety to depart.
V. 9. Whom withstand, firm in the faith. Sober you should be, and vigilant, but to this end,—the body must be in a proper frame. Yet with all this, the devil is not routed; this only suffices to afford the body less occasion for sin. The true sword is this, that ye be strong and firm in the faith. If you in heart grasp hold of the word of God and maintain your hold by faith, then the devil cannot gain the advantage, but will be compelled to fly. If you can say, "This has my God said—on this I stand," then shall ye see that he will quickly depart, and ill-humor, evil lusts, wrath, avarice, melancholy and doubt, will all vanish. But the devil is artful, and does not readily permit you to come to this, and so assaults you in order to take the sword out of your hand; if he can make you full, so that your body is unguarded and inclined to wantonness, then will he quickly wrench the sword from your grasp. Thus He served Eve: she had God's word; if she had continued to depend on it she would not have fallen, but when the devil saw that she held the word so loosely, he tore it from her heart, so that she let it go and he triumphed.