“We have believed.
We have come
To know
That you are
The Holy One
Of God.”
καὶ ἡμεῖς πεπιστεύκαμεν καὶ ἐγνώκαμεν ὅτι σὺ εἶ ὁ Ἅγιος τοῦ Θεοῦ.
John indicated that Peter continued that they, the twelve apostles, had believed (καὶ ἡμεῖς πεπιστεύκαμεν) in Jesus. They had come to know (καὶ ἐγνώκαμεν) that he was the Holy One of God (ὅτι σὺ εἶ ὁ Ἅγιος τοῦ Θεοῦ). This title of the “Holy One of God” can be found also in Mark and Luke. However, there it was the unclean spirits who spoke to Jesus, not Peter or the apostles. Mark, chapter 1:24, said that Jesus was in a synagogue, (Καὶ εὐθὺς ἦν ἐν τῇ συναγωγῇ αὐτῶν) when a man with an unclean spirit (ἄνθρωπος ἐν πνεύματι ἀκαθάρτῳ,) cried out or shouted out to Jesus (καὶ ἀνέκραξεν). He asked Jesus of Nazareth (Ἰησοῦ Ναζαρηνέ) what he had to do with them (λέγων Τί ἡμῖν καὶ σοί). Had Jesus come to destroy or kill them (ἦλθες ἀπολέσαι ἡμᾶς)? He said that he knew who he was (οἶδά σε τίς εἶ), the Holy One of God (ὁ Ἅγιος τοῦ Θεοῦ). Luke, chapter 4:34. said that the evils spirits in this man spoke to Jesus. They asked Jesus of Nazareth (Ἰησοῦ Ναζαρηνέ) what he had to do with them (Ἔα, τί ἡμῖν καὶ σοί). Had Jesus come to destroy or kill them (ἦλθες ἀπολέσαι ἡμᾶς)? He said that he knew who he was (οἶδά σε τίς εἶ), the Holy One of God (ὁ Ἅγιος τοῦ Θεοῦ). This unclean spirit world was alive and active in first century Israelite culture. The term “Holy One of God” had been applied to the prophet Elisha in 2 Kings, chapter 4:9, as another name for a prophet, which was not as strong as the “Son of God,” a more powerful term. Thus, the evil spirits were able to recognize Jesus of Nazareth as a special person. However, here Peter has used this term as a profession of faith instead of the messianic term of Christ (ὁ Χριστὸς) as in the synoptic professions of faith in Jesus. Do you believe that Jesus is the Holy One of God?