1 Peter 1–2

Greeting

1Peter, ^aan apostle of Jesus Christ:

To the temporary residents ^bdispersed ^cdin Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, ^echosen ^f2according to the foreknowledge ^gof God the Father and set apart by the Spirit ^hfor obedience ⁱand for sprinkling with the blood ^jof Jesus Christ.

May grace and peace be multiplied to you.

A Living Hope

³Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. ^kAccording to His great mercy, ^lHe has given us a new birth ^minto a living hope ⁿthrough the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead ^o4and into an inheritance that is imperishable, ^puncorrupted, and unfading, kept in heaven ^qfor you. ⁵You are being protected by God’s power ^rthrough faith for a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. ^s6You rejoice in this, ^tthough now for a short time you have had to struggle in various trials ^u7so that the genuineness of your faith ^v—more valuable than gold, which perishes though refined by fire ^w—may result ^xin ^ypraise, glory, and honor ^zat the revelation of Jesus Christ. ^a8You love Him, ^bthough you have not seen ^cHim. And though not seeing Him now, you believe in Him and rejoice ^dwith inexpressible and glorious joy, ⁹because you are receiving the goal of your ^efaith, the salvation of your souls. ^f

¹⁰Concerning this salvation, the prophets ^gwho prophesied about the grace that would come to you searched and carefully investigated. ¹¹They inquired into what time or what circumstances ^hthe Spirit of Christ ⁱwithin them was indicating when He testified in advance ^jto the messianic sufferings ^kland the glories ^mthat would follow. ⁿ¹²It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you. These things have now been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you ^oby the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. ^pAngels desire to look into these things.

A Call to Holy Living

¹³Therefore, with your minds ready for action, ^qrbe serious ^sand set your hope ^tcompletely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation ^uof Jesus Christ. ¹⁴As obedient children, ^vdo not be conformed to the desires of your former ignorance. ¹⁵But as the One who called you ^wis holy, ^xyou also are to be holy in all your conduct; ¹⁶for it is written, Be holy, because I am holy. ^yz

¹⁷And if you address as Father the One who judges impartially ^abased on each one’s work, ^byou are to conduct yourselves in fear ^cduring the time of your temporary residence. ¹⁸For you know that you were redeemed from your empty way of life ^dinherited from the fathers, not with perishable things like silver or gold, ^e19but with the precious blood of Christ, ^flike that of a lamb ^gwithout defect or blemish. ²⁰He was chosen ^hibefore the foundation of the world but was revealed at the end of the times ^jfor you ²¹who through Him are believers in God, ^kwho raised Him from the dead ^land gave Him glory, ^mso that your faith and hope are in God.

²²By obedience to the truth, ⁿhaving purified yourselves ^ofor sincere love of the brothers, love one another ^pearnestly ^qfrom a pure ^rheart, ^s23since you have been born again ^t—not of perishable seed ^ubut of imperishable—through the living and enduring word of God. ^v24For

All flesh is like grass,

and all its glory ^wlike a flower of the grass.

The grass withers, and the flower falls,

²⁵but the word of the Lord endures forever. ^xy

And this is the word that was preached as the gospel to you.

The Living Stone and a Holy People

2So rid yourselves of ^zall malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all slander. ^a2Like newborn infants, desire the pure spiritual milk, ^bso that you may grow by it for your salvation, ^c3since you have tasted ^dthat the Lord is good. ^ef4Coming to Him, a living stone—rejected by men but chosen and valuable to God— ⁵you yourselves, as living stones, are being built into a spiritual house for a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God ^gthrough Jesus Christ. ⁶For it is contained in Scripture:

Look! I lay a stone in Zion, ^h

a chosen and honored ⁱ cornerstone, ^jk

and the one who believes in Him

will never be put to shame! ^lmn

⁷So honor will come to you who believe, but for the unbelieving,

The stone that the builders rejected—

this One has become the cornerstone, ^op

⁸and

A stone to stumble over, ^q

and a rock to trip over. ^rst

They stumble because they disobey the message; they were destined ^ufor this.

⁹But you are a chosen race, ^vwxa royal priesthood, ^yz

a holy nation, ^aba people for His possession, ^cd

so that you may proclaim the praises ^efg

of the One who called you out of darkness

into His marvelous light. ^h

¹⁰Once you were not a people,

but now you are God’s people;

you had not received mercy, ⁱ

but now you have received mercy.

A Call to Good Works

¹¹Dear friends, I urge you as strangers and temporary residents ^jto abstain ^kfrom fleshly ^ldesires that war against you. ^mn12Conduct ^oyourselves honorably among the Gentiles, ^pso that in a case where they speak against you as those who do what is evil, they will, by observing your good works, glorify God on the day of visitation. ^qr

¹³Submit ^sto every human authority ^tbecause of the Lord, whether to the Emperor ^uas the supreme authority ^v14or to governors as those sent out by him to punish those who do what is evil and to praise those who do what is good. ¹⁵For it is God’s will ^wthat you silence the ignorance ^xof foolish people by doing good. ¹⁶As God’s slaves, ^ylive as free people, but don’t use your freedom as a way to conceal evil. ^z17Honor everyone. Love ^athe brotherhood. ^bFear God. ^cHonor the Emperor. ^d

Submission of Slaves to Masters

¹⁸Household slaves, submit with all fear ^eto your masters, ^fnot only to the good and gentle but also to the cruel. ^gh19For it brings favor ⁱif, mindful of God’s will, ^jksomeone endures grief from suffering unjustly. ²⁰For what credit is there if you sin and are punished, and you endure it? But when you do what is good and suffer, ^lif you endure it, this brings favor with God.

²¹For you were called to this,

because Christ also suffered ^mfor you,

leaving you an example, ⁿ

so that you should follow ^oin His steps.

²²He did not commit sin, ^p

and no deceit ^qwas found in His mouth; ^rs

²³when He was reviled,

He did not revile in return;

when He was suffering,

He did not threaten

but entrusted Himself to the One who judges ^tjustly.

²⁴He Himself bore our sins ^u

in His body ^von the tree, ^w

so that, having died to sins, ^x

we might live for righteousness; ^y

you have been healed by His wounds. ^za

²⁵For you were like sheep going astray, ^bc

but you have now returned

to the Shepherd ^dand Guardian ^eof your souls.