Luke 22:31

“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan asked to have you, that he might sift you as wheat,”

There is an important emphasis in this passage that emphasises what has gone before. It is clear that Jesus regularly called Peter ‘Simon', for that was his original given name (Matthew 16:17; Matthew 17:25; Mark 14:37; John 21:15), while His only actual use of the name ‘Peter' was in this passage. To Jesus in their daily activities Peter was always ‘Simon'. This then makes even more emphatic the deliberate alteration in this passage from ‘Simon' to ‘Peter'. ‘Peter' was, as it were, Simon's throne name (Luke 6:14; Mark 3:16; Matthew 16:18; Acts 10:5). It is because he is now about to enter onto a new phase of his life, which will begin with this extraordinary sifting, that the change takes place. It is a further indication of Peter's taking his place on one of ‘the thrones of David'. (By the time that the Gospels were written Peter was established as Peter, but he is never directly addressed as that in the Gospels).

The repetition of Simon's name (Simon = Peter) indicates the intensity of Jesus' words, and the affection that He feels for Peter (compare Luke 10:41. The thought is powerful. Satan has desired that the Apostles (‘you' in the plural) might be put where he can get at them, so that just as wheat is sifted in separating the grain from the chaff, he can give them a thorough going over. Without God's permission he could not do so. But God does allow it for He has confidence in the disciples and knows that it will be for their good. They have been with Him throughout His temptations, and they too will be allowed further testing.

‘Sift you as wheat.' This sifting of wheat imitated the purposes of God. John the Baptiser had declared that one day God would sift men like wheat (Luke 3:17). Thus Satan sought that he too might be allowed to do the same. Satan is confident that if he sifts Peter the grain will fall away and only the chaff will be left. He always had confidence in men that they would fail in the end. What he does not realise is that by his actions in fact the opposite will happen, because of the mercy and goodness of God. For he knows nothing of mercy and goodness. As a result of the coming of the Holy Spirit the wheat will be gathered into the barns of God, and Satan will be left with only the chaff which in the end will burn along with him.

There are similarities between what is happening to Peter here and what happened to Joshua the godly High Priest in Zechariah 3. There too Satan arraigned him before the Lord, only finally to be thwarted because of God's protecting hand. For God will not allow His true servants to fail in their hour of need if their hearts are right towards Him (that is, if they truly believe in Him).