How many times is Peter mentioned in the Bible?
The word Peter appears 158 times in the King James Version, in 153 verses. Counting every form (Peter, Peter's), it appears 162 times in 156 verses across 8 of the 66 books. The World English Bible uses Peter 158 times (162 with every form).
Peter in the King James Version and the World English Bible
Each form of Peter counted in each translation.
| Form | KJV | WEB |
|---|---|---|
| Peter | 158 | 158 |
| Peter's | 4 | 4 |
| Total | 162 | 162 |
What the name Peter means
Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary glosses Peter as "a rock or stone".
This is the 1869 traditional meaning; modern scholars often read names differently.
See every name and place with its meaning and count on Bible names and their meanings.
Source: Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary (1869), checked 2026-10-06.
First and last mention of Peter
And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.
Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:
The verse that uses it most is Luke 22:61, 2 times (tied with John 13:6, John 18:16, John 21:7, Acts 9:40, Acts 12:14):
And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.
Where the two translations differ
1 verse matches in the KJV but not in the World English Bible, and 2 verses match only in the World English Bible, usually because the other translation chose a different word there.
Luke 22:62: counted in the KJV only
And Peter went out, and wept bitterly.
He went out, and wept bitterly.
John 1:42: counted in the World English Bible only
And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.
He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him, and said, “You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas” (which is by interpretation, Peter).
Acts 4:7: counted in the World English Bible only
And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, By what power, or by what name, have ye done this?
When they had stood Peter and John in the middle of them, they inquired, “By what power, or in what name, have you done this?”
Verses with Peter on our topic pages
17 verses that use Peter in the World English Bible are in our topic collections.
Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
On: Forgiveness, Baptism, Repentance, What Does the Bible Say About Speaking in Tongues? 22 Verses
I also tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my assembly, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.
On: Hell, Spiritual Warfare, Church
Then Peter came and said to him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Until seven times?”
On: Forgiveness, Mercy
But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back part of the price of the land?
On: What Does the Bible Say About Lying? 28 Verses, What Does the Bible Say About Stealing? 30 Verses
Peter answered him and said, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the waters.”
On: Faith
He said, “Come!” Peter stepped down from the boat, and walked on the waters to come to Jesus.
On: Faith
After six days, Jesus took with him Peter, James, and John his brother, and brought them up into a high mountain by themselves.
But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.
On: Obedience
But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!
Now on the next day as they were on their journey, and got close to the city, Peter went up on the housetop to pray at about noon.
A voice came to him, “Rise, Peter, kill and eat!”
But Peter said, “Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.”
Common questions
How many times is Peter in the Old Testament and the New Testament?
In the King James Version, counting every form, 0 of the 162 uses are in the Old Testament and 162 in the New Testament. Peter appears in 8 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Acts has the most (58), then John (34) and Matthew (24).
Where is Peter first mentioned in the Bible?
The first use in the King James Version is Matthew 4:18: "And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers." The last is 2 Peter 1:1.
What does the name Peter mean in the Bible?
Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary glosses Peter as "a rock or stone".
More word counts: seven, forty, twelve, wine, drunk, dragon, unicorn, woman, or all 253 words.
Counted by Bible Says About from the full public-domain text of the King James Version (1769 edition) and the World English Bible. Verse text only: headings and psalm titles are left out. A word is a run of letters: a hyphenated name like Beer-sheba counts as two, and an apostrophe stays inside its word (LORD'S is one). Matching ignores capital letters. Data compiled 2026-10-06.