He might have been able to read at a 2nd grade level,
Ha. Come on now, you are guessing. There were many years after Jesus ascended into heaven before Peter wrote his books also. People can learn.
Plus, paper and ink was pricy, they would have wanted a practiced, steady hand for said documents, and there is a good chance Peter's writing wouldn't have been particularly attractive, as is the case with most people.
Paul was known to have written in his own hand. Come on now how broke do you think apostles were?? They were big cheeses. Head honchos. There were rich friends and etc.
The big problem isn't whether or not Peter would have been physically able to write, since he could have just had someone ghost write for him anyways. The issue is the time frame in which the verses attributed to him were actually written. Even you have to admit Peter couldn't author a text written long after he died.
Looking at this site, it doesn't seem to be a big issue.
"
When it was written
The book claims to be written by Peter. Those claims are substantiated by the letter itself, as it shows evidence of someone who was an eyewitness to the life of Jesus. Historically, this is also substantiated by evidence from early Christian writers. Thus, I believe that the author is the Apostle Peter. This means that the book has to be written, while Peter was alive (yes, I know that is a deep statement).
Historically speaking, we are fairly confident that Peter died under the reign of Nero. The story goes that he was crucified upside down. This would be around A.D. 67, 68. Thus we know the book has to be written before then.
Secondly, the book claims to be written from Babylon (5:13). There is debate about whether this is actual Babylon or, like in the book of Revelation, it is referring to Rome. My belief is that it is referring to Rome because Babylon was a small village town at this point. If this is the case, and if we believe history, then Peter was in Rome around A.D. 64.* Thus our lower date is A.D. 64.
Therefore, the book is written somewhere between 64-68 A.D."
When and To Whom was 1 Peter written? | Study Your Bible Online