7 Peter then exhorts believers to "cast all your anxiety" on the Lord. He does not say what the anxiety is; perhaps he had persecution in mind. The application of his exhortation embraces all the difficulties believers who want to live godly in a fallen world must face. The "casting" entails an act of the will and should be done prayerfully and in obedience to Jesus' teaching about anxiety (Mt 6:25-34). "He cares for you" means that God is not indifferent to our sufferings. This conception of God's concern for human affliction is one of the peculiar treasures of the Judeo-Christian faith; though Greek philosophy at its highest could formulate a doctrine of God's perfect goodness, it could not even imagine his active concern for humankind. The Incarnation reveals a caring God, and Christ's teaching about his heavenly Father stresses his intimate concern for his children (Mt 10:29-31).

1:5 The wisdom God gives is not necessarily information on how to get out of trouble but rather insight on how to learn from one’s difficulties (see also Prov. 29:15). It is not more information about how to avoid times of testing but instead a new perspective on trials. The wisdom of God begins with a genuine reverence for the Almighty (see “the fear of the Lord” in Ps. 111:10; Prov. 9:10) and a steadfast confidence that God controls all circumstances, guiding them to His good purposes (Rom. 8:28).

21:4, 5 Wipe away every tear fulfills the promises in 7:17 and Is. 25:8. No more death … no more pain goes far beyond the earlier promise of 7:16, which promises freedom from hunger, thirst, and scorching heat. Former things have passed away echoes both v. 1 and 2 Cor. 5:17. The believer’s rebirth through faith in Christ brings newness to that person’s life, but it is only in the eternal state that God will make all things new.