bore our sins
The Greek word for "bore" (ἀνήνεγκεν) is a term used in the context of carrying a burden or offering a sacrifice. This reflects the Old Testament sacrificial system where sins were symbolically placed on a scapegoat or a sacrificial animal. Jesus, as the ultimate sacrificial Lamb, took upon Himself the sins of humanity, fulfilling the prophecies and typologies of the Old Testament sacrifices. This act signifies the transfer of our guilt onto Christ, who bore the weight of our sins on the cross.

in His body
The phrase "in His body" (ἐν τῷ σώματι αὐτοῦ) emphasizes the physical reality of Christ's suffering. It was not merely a spiritual or symbolic act; Jesus physically endured pain and death. This counters early heresies that denied the physical suffering of Christ. The incarnation, where God took on human flesh, is central to understanding the significance of Jesus' sacrifice. His bodily suffering underscores the reality of His humanity and the extent of His love.

on the tree
The term "tree" (ξύλον) is a reference to the cross, drawing from Deuteronomy 21:23, which states that anyone hung on a tree is under God's curse. By using this term, Peter connects Jesus' crucifixion to the curse of the law, indicating that Christ became a curse for us (Galatians 3:13). This highlights the redemptive purpose of the cross, where Jesus took upon Himself the curse of sin, providing a way for humanity to be reconciled with God.

so that we might die to sin
The purpose of Christ's sacrifice is articulated here. The phrase "die to sin" (ἀπογενόμενοι ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις) suggests a decisive break from the power and penalty of sin. Through Christ's atoning work, believers are called to a new life, free from the dominion of sin. This reflects the transformative power of the Gospel, where believers are not only forgiven but also empowered to live righteously.

and live to righteousness
The Greek word for "live" (ζήσωμεν) indicates a continuous, active state of living. This new life is characterized by righteousness, a state of being in right relationship with God. Righteousness here is not merely moral behavior but a reflection of the believer's new identity in Christ. This transformation is made possible through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, who enables believers to live according to God's will.

By His stripes
The term "stripes" (μώλωπι) refers to the wounds and scourging that Jesus endured before His crucifixion. This imagery is drawn from Isaiah 53:5, which prophesies the suffering of the Messiah. The physical suffering of Christ is directly linked to the healing and restoration of humanity. It is through His wounds that believers find spiritual healing and wholeness.

you are healed
The healing mentioned here (ἰάθητε) is comprehensive, encompassing spiritual, emotional, and ultimately physical restoration. While the immediate context emphasizes spiritual healing from sin, the broader biblical narrative assures believers of complete restoration in the eschaton. This promise of healing is a source of hope and encouragement, affirming the sufficiency of Christ's sacrifice for all aspects of human brokenness.

Bare our sins . . . on the tree.--This brings us face to face with a great mystery; and to add to the difficulty of the interpretation, almost each word is capable of being taken in several different ways. Most modern scholars are agreed to reject "on the tree," in favour of the marginal "to," the proper meaning of the Greek preposition, when connected (as here) with the accusative, being what is expressed in colloquial English by the useful compound "on-to the tree." It is, however, not obligatory to see motion consciously intended in this preposition and accusative everywhere. It is used, for instance, Mark 4:38, of sleeping on the pillow; in 2Corinthians 3:15, of the veil resting upon their hearts; in Revelation 4:4, of the elders sitting upon their thrones. This word, then, will give us but little help to discover the meaning of the word translated "bare." (1) That verb means literally "to carry or take up," and is used thus in Matthew 17:1, Mark 9:2, of taking the disciples up the Mount of Transfiguration; and in Luke 24:51, of Jesus being carried up into heaven: therefore Hammond, Grimm, and others would here understand it to be, "He carried our sins up with Him on-to the tree," there to expiate them by His death. (2) A much commoner meaning of the word is that which it bears in 1Peter 2:5, "to offer up" (so also in Hebrews 7:27; Hebrews 13:15; James 2:21). The substantive formed from it (Anaphora) is still the liturgical term for the sacrificial section of the Eucharistic service. This interpretation is somewhat tempting, because the very preposition here used, with the very same case, appears in James 2:21, and frequently in the Old Testament, together with our present verb, for "to offer up upon the altar." In this way it would be, "He offered up our sins in His own body on the altar of the cross." So Luther and others take it. This would be perfect, were it not for the strangeness of regarding the sins themselves as a sacrifice to be offered on the altar. The only way to make sense of it in that case would be to join very closely "our sins in His own body"--i.e., as contained and gathered up in His own sinless body, which might come to nearly the same thing as saying that He "offered up His own body laden with our sins" upon that altar. (3) Both these renderings, however, pass over the fact that St. Peter is referring to Isaiah 53. In the English version of that chapter, "hath borne," "shall bear," "bare," appears in 1Peter 2:4; 1Peter 2:11-12, indifferently; but the Hebrew is not the same in each case, for in 1Peter 2:11 the word for "shall bear" is identical with that rightly rendered "carry" in 1Peter 2:4, and has not the same signification as that which appears as "to bear" in 1Peter 2:4; 1Peter 2:12. The difference between these two Hebrew roots seems to be that the verb sabal in 1Peter 2:11 means "to carry," as a porter carries a load, or as our Lord carried His cross; while the verb nasa,' used in 1Peter 2:4 and 1Peter 2:12, means rather "to lift or raise," which might, of course, be the action preparatory to that other of "carrying." Now, the Greek word which we have here undoubtedly better represents nasa' than sabal, but the question is complicated by the fact that the LXX. uses it to express both alike in 1Peter 2:11-12, observing at the same time the distinction between "iniquities" and "sin," while in 1Peter 2:4 (where again it reads "our sins" instead of "our griefs") it adopts a simpler verb; and St. Peter's language here seems to be affected by all three passages. The expression "our sins" (which comes in so strangely with the use of "you" all round) seems a reminiscence of 1Peter 2:4 (LXX.). The order in which the words occur is precisely the order of 1Peter 2:11, and the tense points to 1Peter 2:12, as well as the parallel use in Hebrews 9:28, where the presence of the words "of many" proves that the writer was thinking of 1Peter 2:12. We cannot say for certain, then, whether St. Peter meant to represent nasa' or sabal. We have some clue, however, to the way in which the Greek word was used, by finding it in Numbers 14:33, where the "whoredoms" of the fathers are said to be "borne" by their children (the Hebrew there being nasa'). Many instances in classical Greek lead to the conclusion that in such cases it implies something being laid or inflicted from without upon the person who "bears." Thus, in Numbers 14:33, it will be, "your children will have to bear your whoredoms," or, "will have laid upon them your whoredoms." In Hebrews 9:28 it will be, "Christ was once for all presented (at the altar), to have the sins of many laid upon Him." Here it will be, "Who His own self had our sins laid upon His body on the tree." Then comes a further question. The persons who hold the substitute theory of the Atonement assert that "our sins" here stands for "the punishment of our sins." This is, however, to use violence with words; we might with as good reason translate 1Peter 2:22, "Who did, or performed, no punishment for sin." St. Peter asserts that Christ, in His boundless sympathy with fallen man, in His union with all mankind through the Incarnation whereby He became the second Adam, actually took, as His own, our sins, as well as everything else belonging to us. He was so identified with us, that in the great Psalm of the Messianic sacrifice, He calls them "My sins" (Psalm 40:12), sinless as He was. (See St. Matthew's interpretation of the same thought, Matthew 8:17.) . . .