ABSTRACT
The New Testament mentions Peter more than any other apostle, including Paul.1 All four Gospels list him among the first called to follow Jesus (Mark 1:16–17; Matt 4:18–20; Luke 6:12–16; John 1:40–42). Along with James and John (sons of Zebedee), Peter was in the inner circle of Jesus, but even within this select group he is clearly the leader. Thus, he was uniquely present at the healing of Jairus’s daughter (Mark 5:37; Luke 8:51), the transfiguration (Mark 9:2–13; Matt 17:1–8; Luke 9:28–36), and Jesus’s agony in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:32–42; Matt 26:36–46). He is regularly depicted as the spokesman for the Twelve (e.g. Mark 10:28; Matt 19:27; Luke 12:41). And in all three Synoptics, only Peter confesses that Jesus is the Christ (Mark 8:29; Matt 16:16; Luke 9:20). Peter is also the primary character throughout the first 15 chapters of Acts.2 Paul corroborates the leading role of Peter in his letters as well (1 Cor 15:13; Gal 1:18; 2:9). The significance of Peter is further portrayed in the sheer number of pseudepigraphical works attributed to him.3 In light of these facts, Martin Hengel understandably considers Peter “the apostolic foundational figure of the church.”4
