A Loving Father and An Impartial Judge

Peter reminds believers that God is both our loving Father and an impartial Judge. Christian theology holds these truths in tension: through Christ we are adopted as God’s children (Galatians 4:4–6), yet God’s holy nature means He judges sin without favoritism. Thus, “holy confidence in God as a Father” goes hand-in-hand with an “awful (reverential) fear of Him as a Judge,” and these are “very consistent” attitudes.