having cast all your care upon him, for he cares about you.
This word about anxiety is not a comfort that stands on its own. It hangs on the command just before it: humble yourself under God's mighty hand. So two questions press. What does anxiety have to do with humbling yourself? And how do you hand a burden over and leave it there?
The mighty hand you bow under
The setting is God's dealings with His own people, and those dealings can feel crushing rather than kind. One writer refuses to soften the description:
J. G. BellettWe can't tell what form that "mighty hand" will take. It may remove prop after prop, disappointing one hope of the heart after another. God may humble you in terrible ways. Worst of all, while He is doing it, He may seem to be against you... It is a "mighty hand," but let that comfort you instead of frightening you. There is a great comfort in this word "mighty." It is not a "soothing hand"; it is a "mighty hand" that seems set on bruising. Well, what does the Spirit of God say? "Humble yourselves" under it, for "He will exalt you."
Another writer holds the power and the tenderness together:
F. A. HughesThat hand of power is the hand of love — "He will tend His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs in His arms; He will carry them in His bosom."
Two different words for "care"
The verse uses one word for what we carry and another for what God does. The difference is the whole argument:
Truth & TestimonyThe first word for care in 1 Peter 5:7 signifies anxious, distracting care. W. E. Vine, in his "Expository Dictionary of Bible Words", says it is probably linked to a word that means to draw in different directions. Who has not known this kind of care, this anxiety? It is care that robs you of quiet and sleep. God directs us to cast this care on Him — not part of it, but all of it. Then He gives the reason: "because He cares for you." Here the verse uses a different word for care. This is care of forethought and interest.
Casting: letting go, not lifting again
The verb is stronger than "mention in prayer."
F. A. Hughes"Casting (or, having cast) all your care (every anxiety) upon Him." The word "casting" is a strong word. It means "to fling" — to part company with a thing completely. It is used that way in Luke 19:35, where the people threw their cloaks on the colt and let them go.
This explains why so much prayer leaves the heart no lighter:
A. J. PollockMany bring their cares to God in prayer, but get little or no benefit. They carry them away again instead of leaving them in His presence.
Every care, small or large
The word "all" is not decoration, and the alternative to casting is not calm but a quiet accusation against God:
Arno Clemens GaebeleinAll means all. All cares, whatever they are; all burdens, all anxieties, we can roll upon Him. And we can do it with the perfect assurance that He does care. Sadly, our anxieties, our heavy feelings, our worry and our hurry all speak the same language of unbelief: "Lord, do You not care?"
His care comes first
The reason given is a statement of fact, not a reward offered for casting. One commentator makes the logic blunt:
Leslie M. GrantThis is true whether or not we cast our care on Him. He cares anyway. So we might as well take advantage of His unfailing kindness.
Once that settles, your energy goes somewhere better:
W. T. P. WolstonIs it worthwhile for two to care for the same thing? If you are carrying the care, you take it out of His hands. If He is carrying it, you can afford to be free of care. You can throw yourself into your Father's arms and rest there without fear. When you learn how perfect His care for you is, you are free to care for His things and His interests, because He is taking care of yours.
Peter's own storm
The writer had personal history behind this sentence:
J. T. MawsonWhen Peter wrote, "Casting all your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you," did he remember the storm on the sea? He and his companions were in a panic of fear. They woke their sleeping Lord with the faithless cry, "Do You not care that we are perishing?" After that experience, he would never doubt his Lord's care again.
Summary
- Bow first. The casting follows the humbling. The same mighty hand that seems set on bruising is the hand that will exalt you in due time.
- Name the care. The word for your care means anxiety that pulls you in different directions and robs you of sleep. The word for His care means interest and forethought.
- Fling it. "Casting" means to part company with a thing completely — prayer that picks the burden back up has not obeyed the verse.
- All of it. Every burden qualifies, and carrying them ourselves speaks the language of unbelief: "Lord, do You not care?"
- Then be free. He cares whether or not you cast. Once that settles, you stop caring for what He holds. You start caring for His interests.