Greeting to the Elect Pilgrims

1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,

To the 1pilgrims aof the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 belect caccording to the foreknowledge of God the Father, din sanctification of the Spirit, for eobedience and fsprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ:

gGrace to you and peace be multiplied.

A Heavenly Inheritance

3 hBlessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who iaccording to His abundant mercy jhas begotten us again to a living hope kthrough the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance 2incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, lreserved in heaven for you, 5 mwho are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

6 nIn this you greatly rejoice, though now ofor a little while, if need be, pyou have been 3grieved by various trials, 7 that qthe genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though rit is tested by fire, smay be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, 8 twhom having not 4seen you love. uThough now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9 receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.

10 Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, 11 searching what, or what manner of time, vthe Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. 12 To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to 5us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things which wangels desire to look into.

Living Before God Our Father

13 Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; 14 as obedient children, not xconforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; 15 ybut as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 because it is written, z“Be holy, for I am holy.”

17 And if you call on the Father, who awithout partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your 6stay here in fear; 18 knowing that you were not redeemed with 7corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, 19 but bwith the precious blood of Christ, cas of a lamb without blemish and without spot. 20 dHe indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was 8manifest ein these last times for you 21 who through Him believe in God, fwho raised Him from the dead and ggave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

The Enduring Word

22 Since you hhave purified your souls in obeying the truth 9through the Spirit in 1sincere ilove of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, 23 jhaving been born again, not of 2corruptible seed but 3incorruptible, kthrough the word of God which lives and abides 4forever, 24 because

l“All flesh is as grass,

And all 5the glory of man as the flower of the grass.

The grass withers,

And its flower falls away,

25 mBut the 6word of the Lord endures forever.”

nNow this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you.

2 Therefore, alaying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, 2 bas newborn babes, desire the pure cmilk of the word, that you may grow 1thereby, 3 if indeed you have dtasted that the Lord is gracious.

The Chosen Stone and His Chosen People

4 Coming to Him as to a living stone, erejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture,

f“Behold, I lay in Zion

A chief cornerstone, elect, precious,

And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.”

7 Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who 2are disobedient,

g“The stone which the builders rejected

Has become the chief cornerstone,”

8 and

h“A stone of stumbling

And a rock of offense.”

iThey stumble, being disobedient to the word, jto which they also were appointed.

9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of kdarkness into His marvelous light; 10 lwho once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.

Living Before the World

11 Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts mwhich war against the soul, 12 nhaving your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, othey may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.

Submission to Government

13 pTherefore submit yourselves to every 3ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, 14 or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. 15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men—16 qas free, yet not rusing liberty as a cloak for 4vice, but as bondservants of God. 17 Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear sGod. Honor the king.

Submission to Masters

18 tServants, be submissive to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh. 19 For this is ucommendable, if because of conscience toward God one endures grief, suffering wrongfully. 20 For vwhat credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. 21 For wto this you were called, because Christ also suffered for 5us, xleaving 6us an example, that you should follow His steps:

22 “Who ycommitted no sin,

Nor was deceit found in His mouth”;

23 zwho, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but acommitted Himself to Him who judges righteously; 24 bwho Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, cthat we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—dby whose 7stripes you were healed. 25 For eyou were like sheep going astray, but have now returned fto the Shepherd and 8Overseer of your souls.

Submission to Husbands

3 Wives, likewise, be asubmissive to your own husbands, that even if some do not obey the word, bthey, without a word, may cbe won by the conduct of their wives, 2 dwhen they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear. 3 eDo not let your adornment be merely outward—arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel—4 rather let it be fthe hidden person of the heart, with the 1incorruptible beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God. 5 For in this manner, in former times, the holy women who trusted in God also adorned themselves, being submissive to their own husbands, 6 as Sarah obeyed Abraham, gcalling him lord, whose daughters you are if you do good and are not afraid with any terror.

A Word to Husbands

7 hHusbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, ias to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, jthat your prayers may not be hindered.

Called to Blessing

8 Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be 2courteous; 9 knot returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary lblessing, knowing that you were called to this, mthat you may inherit a blessing. 10 For

n“He who would love life

And see good days,

oLet him 3refrain his tongue from evil,

And his lips from speaking deceit.

11 Let him pturn away from evil and do good;

qLet him seek peace and pursue it.

12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,

rAnd His ears are open to their prayers;

But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

Suffering for Right and Wrong

13 sAnd who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good? 14 tBut even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed. u“And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.” 15 But 4sanctify 5the Lord God in your hearts, and always vbe ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the whope that is in you, with meekness and fear; 16 xhaving a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed. 17 For it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.

Christ’s Suffering and Ours

18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring 6us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit, 19 by whom also He went and preached to the spirits in prison, 20 who formerly were disobedient, 7when once the Divine longsuffering waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water. 21 yThere is also an antitype which now saves us—baptism z(not the removal of the filth of the flesh, abut the answer of a good conscience toward God), through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and bis at the right hand of God, cangels and authorities and powers having been made subject to Him.

4 Therefore, since Christ suffered 1for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 2 that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, abut for the will of God. 3 For we have spent enough of our past 2lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles—when