1 Peter 1:22–2:10

²²Now that you have purifiedⁿ yourselves by obeying^o the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply,^p from the heart.^{b 23}For you have been born again,^q not of perishable seed, but of imperishable,^r through the living and enduring word of God.^{s 24}For,

“All people are like grass,

and all their glory is like the flowers of the field;

the grass withers and the flowers fall,

²⁵but the word of the Lord endures forever.”^ct

And this is the word that was preached to you.

2Therefore, rid yourselves^u of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander^v of every kind. ²Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk,^w so that by it you may grow up^x in your salvation, ³now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.^y

The Living Stone and a Chosen People

⁴As you come to him, the living Stone^z—rejected by humans but chosen by God^a and precious to him—⁵you also, like living stones, are being built^b into a spiritual house^ac to be a holy priesthood,^d offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.^{e 6}For in Scripture it says:

“See, I lay a stone in Zion,

a chosen and precious cornerstone,^f

and the one who trusts in him

will never be put to shame.”^bg

⁷Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe,^h

“The stone the builders rejectedⁱ

has become the cornerstone,”^cj

⁸and,

“A stone that causes people to stumble

and a rock that makes them fall.”^dk

They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for.^l

⁹But you are a chosen people,^m a royal priesthood,ⁿ a holy nation,^o God’s special possession,^p that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.^{q 10}Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God;^r once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.