The second and third denials: V. 69. And a maid saw him again, and began to say to them that stood by, This is one of them. V. 70. And he denied it again. And a little after, they that stood by said again to Peter, Surely thou art one of them; for thou art a Galilean, and thy speech agreeth thereto.
V. 71. But he began to curse and to swear, saying, I know not this Man of whom ye speak.V. 72. And the second time the cock crew. And Peter called to mind the word that Jesus said unto him, Before the cock crow twice, thou shalt deny Me thrice. And when he thought thereon, he wept.
The servants were naturally excited over the trial that was taking place upstairs, and many were the conjectures that were made concerning the Nazarene and His followers. That they were in no gentle mood with respect to the disciples of Jesus may be readily surmised.
It was not long, therefore, before a maid, one that had probably heard the first one speak or had now come to take her place, once more pointed out Peter to the others that were near by: This man belongs to the party of the accused. Hardly had the words left her mouth when Peter denied the accusation.
But his very eagerness and a certain furtiveness in his behavior now made him a marked man in the court. An hour later, therefore, the attack was renewed. A number of bystanders joined forces in questioning Peter. In addition to other proofs which pointed in his direction, there was the matter of his dialect, which openly proclaimed him a Galilean. The disciples were known to be men of Galilee, and so the inference was plain.
Peter was in hot water. He had forgotten his fervent promise to his Master of a few hours ago. His one thought was to save himself from this predicament and to escape with his life. And so he denies his Lord for the third time. And not satisfied with a mere denial, which seemed too tame under the circumstances, he added cursing and an oath. Thus Peter had renounced his Lord and Master, his Savior, absolutely. He had fallen from grace, he had denied the faith.
But the Lord had not forgotten him. The second crowing of the cock reminded Peter of the word of the Lord concerning his threefold denial. And thinking thereon, or, covering his head in bitter shame, he rushed forth into the night and wept bitterly.
That was true repentance. Peter knew that he no longer was worthy to be called a disciple of the Lord, but he remembered also that the Lord was long-suffering and merciful and had given him many splendid promises as to his future life. Trusting in the mercy of the Lord he sought and found forgiveness of his sin and again was assured of the love of his Master.