1 Peter 3–4

Wives and Husbands

3^*In the same way you wives must submit to your husbands, so that if any of them do not believe God’s word, your conduct will win them over to believe. It will not be necessary for you to say a word, ²because they will see how pure and reverent your conduct is. ^3*You should not use outward aids to make yourselves beautiful, such as the way you do your hair, or the jewellery you put on, or the dresses you wear. ⁴Instead, your beauty should consist of your true inner self, the ageless beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of the greatest value in God’s sight. ⁵For the devout women of the past who placed their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful by submitting to their husbands. ^6*Sarah was like that; she obeyed Abraham and called him her master. You are now her daughters if you do good and are not afraid of anything.

^7*In the same way you husbands must live with your wives with the proper understanding that they are weaker than you. Treat them with respect, because they also will receive, together with you, God’s gift of life. Do this so that nothing will interfere with your prayers.

Suffering for Doing Right

⁸To conclude: you must all have the same attitude and the same feelings; love one another as brothers and sisters, and be kind and humble with one another. ⁹Do not pay back evil with evil or cursing with cursing; instead, pay back with a blessing, because a blessing is what God promised to give you when he called you. ^10*As the scripture says:

“Whoever wants to enjoy life

and wishes to see good times,

must keep from speaking evil

and stop telling lies.

^11*They must turn away from evil and do good;

they must strive for peace with all their heart.

^12*For the Lord watches over the righteous

and listens to their prayers;

but he opposes those who do evil.”

¹³Who will harm you if you are eager to do what is good? ^14*But even if you should suffer for doing what is right, how happy you are! Do not be afraid of anyone, and do not worry. ^15*But have reverence for Christ in your hearts, and honour him as Lord. Be ready at all times to answer anyone who asks you to explain the hope you have in you, ¹⁶but do it with gentleness and respect. Keep your conscience clear, so that when you are insulted, those who speak evil of your good conduct as followers of Christ will be ashamed of what they say. ¹⁷For it is better to suffer for doing good, if this should be God’s will, than for doing evil. ¹⁸For Christ died^c for sins once and for all, a good man on behalf of sinners, in order to lead you to God. He was put to death physically, but made alive spiritually, ¹⁹and in his spiritual existence he went and preached to the imprisoned spirits. ^20*These were the spirits of those who had not obeyed God when he waited patiently during the days that Noah was building his boat. The few people in the boat—eight in all—were saved by the water, ²¹which was a symbol pointing to baptism, which now saves you. It is not the washing away of bodily dirt, but the promise made to God from a good conscience. It saves you through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, ²²who has gone to heaven and is at the right-hand side of God, ruling over all angels and heavenly authorities and powers.

Changed Lives

4Since Christ suffered physically, you too must strengthen yourselves with the same way of thinking that he had; because whoever suffers physically is no longer involved with sin. ²From now on, then, you must live the rest of your earthly lives controlled by God’s will and not by human desires. ³You have spent enough time in the past doing what the heathen like to do. Your lives were spent in indecency, lust, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and the disgusting worship of idols. ⁴And now the heathen are surprised when you do not join them in the same wild and reckless living, and so they insult you. ⁵But they will have to give an account of themselves to God, who is ready to judge the living and the dead. ⁶That is why the Good News was preached also to the dead, to those who had been judged in their physical existence as everyone is judged; it was preached to them so that in their spiritual existence they may live as God lives.

Good Managers of God’s Gifts

⁷The end of all things is near. You must be self-controlled and alert, to be able to pray. ^8*Above everything, love one another earnestly, because love covers over many sins. ⁹Open your homes to each other without complaining. ¹⁰Each one, as a good manager of God’s different gifts, must use for the good of others the special gift he has received from God. ¹¹Whoever preaches must preach God’s messages; whoever serves must serve with the strength that God gives, so that in all things praise may be given to God through Jesus Christ, to whom belong glory and power for ever and ever. Amen.

Suffering as a Christian

¹²My dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful test you are suffering, as though something unusual were happening to you. ¹³Rather be glad that you are sharing Christ’s sufferings, so that you may be full of joy when his glory is revealed. ¹⁴Happy are you if you are insulted because you are Christ’s followers; this means that the glorious Spirit, the Spirit of God, is resting on you. ¹⁵If any of you suffer, it must not be because you are a murderer or a thief or a criminal or a meddler in other people’s affairs. ¹⁶However, if you suffer because you are a Christian, don’t be ashamed of it, but thank God that you bear Christ’s name.

¹⁷The time has come for judgement to begin, and God’s own people are the first to be judged. If it starts with us, how will it end with those who do not believe the Good News from God? ^18*As the scripture says:

“It is difficult for good people to be saved;

what, then, will become of godless sinners?”

¹⁹So then, those who suffer because it is God’s will for them, should by their good actions trust themselves completely to their Creator, who always keeps his promise.