1 Peter 2:11–25

¹¹Dear friends, I urge you as foreigners and temporary residents to abstain from fleshly desires which wage war against your^* soul, ¹²maintaining your good conduct among the Gentiles, so that in the things in which they slander you as evildoers, by seeing your good deeds they may glorify God on the day of visitation.

Submission to Established Authority

¹³Subject yourselves to every human authority for the sake of the Lord, whether to a king^g as having supreme authority, ¹⁴or to governors as those sent out by him for the punishment of those who do evil and the praise of those who do good. ¹⁵For the will of God is as follows: by^* doing good to silence the ignorance of foolish people. ¹⁶Live as free persons, and not using your^* freedom as a covering for evil, but as slaves of God. ¹⁷Honor all people, love the community of believers, fear God, honor the king.^h

¹⁸Domestic slaves, be subject to your^* masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are unjust. ¹⁹For this finds favor, if because of consciousness of God someone endures sorrows while^* suffering unjustly. ²⁰For what credit is it if, when you^* sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if you endure when you^* do good and suffer for it, this finds favor with God. ²¹For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his footsteps, ²²who did not commit sin, nor was deceit found in his mouth,^{i 23}who when he^* was reviled, did not revile in return; when^* suffering, he did not threaten, but entrusted himself to the one who judges justly, ²⁴who himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we may die to sins and live to righteousness, by whose wounds you were healed. ²⁵For you were going astray like sheep, but you have turned back now to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.