John Gill's Bible Commentary Ver. 4. And patience experience , etc..] As tribulations tend to exercise and increase patience, so patience being exercised and increased, enlarges the saints' stock and fund of experience; of the love and grace of God communicated to them at such seasons; of his faithfulness in fulfilling his promises; of his power in supporting them; and of their own frailty and weakness; and so are taught humility, thankfulness, and resignation to the will of God: and experience, hope ; hope is a gift of God's grace, and is implanted in regeneration, but abounds, increases, and becomes more strong and lively by experience of the love, grace, mercy, power, and faithfulness of God.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 1-5 - A blessed change takes place in the sinner's state, when he becomes true believer, whatever he has been. Being justified by faith he ha peace with God. The holy, righteous God, cannot be at peace with sinner, while under the guilt of sin. Justification takes away the guilt, and so makes way for peace. This is through our Lord Jesu Christ; through him as the great Peace-maker, the Mediator between God and man. The saints' happy state is a state of grace. Into this grac we are brought, which teaches that we were not born in this state. We could not have got into it of ourselves, but we are led into it, a pardoned offenders. Therein we stand, a posture that denote perseverance; we stand firm and safe, upheld by the power of the enemy And those who have hope for the glory of God hereafter, have enough to rejoice in now. Tribulation worketh patience, not in and of itself, but the powerful grace of God working in and with the tribulation. Patien sufferers have most of the Divine consolations, which abound a afflictions abound. It works needful experience of ourselves. This hop will not disappoint, because it is sealed with the Holy Spirit as Spirit of love. It is the gracious work of the blessed Spirit to she abroad the love of God in the hearts of all the saints. A right sens of God's love to us, will make us not ashamed, either of our hope, or of our sufferings for him.
Greek Textus Receptus
η 3588 T-NSF δε 1161 CONJ υπομονη 5281 N-NSF δοκιμην 1382 N-ASF η 3588 T-NSF δε 1161 CONJ δοκιμη 1382 N-NSF ελπιδα 1680 N-ASF
Vincent's NT Word Studies
4. Experience (dokimhn). Wrong. The word means either the process of trial, proving, as 2 Cor. viii. 2, or the result of trial, approvedness, Philip. ii. 22. Here it can only be the latter: tried integrity, a state of mind which has stood the test. The process has already been expressed by tribulation. Rev. renders probation, which might be defended on the ground of English classical usage. Thus Shakespeare:"And of the truth herein This present object made probation.
"Hamlet," i., 1 Jeremy Taylor: "When by miracle God dispensed great gifts to the laity, He gave probation that He intended that all should prophecy and preach." But probation has come to be understood, almost universally, of the process of trial. The more accurate rendering is proof or approval.
Robertson's NT Word Studies
5:4 {Knowing} (eidotes). Second perfect participle of eidon (oida), giving the reason for the previous exhortation to glory in tribulations. He gives a linked chain, one linking to the other (tribulation qliyis, patience hupomone, experience dokime, hope elpis) running into verse #5. On dokime, see #2Co 2:9.
