Greeting

1 ^aJames, a servant¹ of God and ^bof the Lord Jesus Christ,

To ^cthe twelve tribes in ^dthe Dispersion:

Greetings.

Testing of Your Faith

2 ^eCount it all joy, my brothers,² when you meet trials ^fof various kinds, 3 for you know that ^gthe testing of your faith ^hproduces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be ⁱperfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

5 ^jIf any of you lacks wisdom, ^klet him ask God, ^lwho gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 6 But ^mlet him ask in faith, ⁿwith no doubting, for the one who doubts is like ^oa wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 ^phe is a double-minded man, ^qunstable in all his ways.

9 Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, 10 and ^rthe rich in his humiliation, because ^slike a flower of the grass³ he will pass away. 11 For the sun rises with its scorching heat and ^twithers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits.

12 ^uBlessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive ^vthe crown of life, ^wwhich God has promised to those who love him. 13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. 14 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 15 Then desire ^xwhen it has conceived gives birth to sin, and ^ysin when it is fully grown brings forth death.

16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. 17 ^zEvery good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from ^athe Father of lights, ^bwith whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.⁴ 18 ^cOf his own will he ^dbrought us forth by the word of truth, ^ethat we should be a kind of ^ffirstfruits of his creatures.

Hearing and Doing the Word

19 ^gKnow this, my beloved brothers: let every person ^hbe quick to hear, ⁱslow to speak, ^jslow to anger; 20 for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. 21 Therefore ^kput away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with ^lmeekness the implanted word, ^mwhich is able to save your souls.

22 But be ⁿdoers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. 24 For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. 25 But the one who looks into the perfect law, ^othe law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, ^phe will be blessed in his doing.

26 If anyone thinks he is religious ^qand does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s ^rreligion is worthless. 27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: ^sto visit ^torphans and widows in their affliction, and ^uto keep oneself ^vunstained from the world.

Greeting

1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,

To those who are elect exiles of ^athe Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 according to ^bthe foreknowledge of God the Father, ^cin the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and ^dfor sprinkling with his blood:

May ^egrace and ^fpeace be multiplied to you.

Born Again to a Living Hope

3 ^gBlessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! ^hAccording to his great mercy, ⁱhe has caused us to be born again to a living hope ^jthrough the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to ^kan inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and ^lunfading, ^mkept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded ⁿthrough faith for a salvation ^oready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by ^pvarious trials, 7 so that ^qthe tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes ^rthough it is tested by ^sfire—may be found to result in ^tpraise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 ^uThough you have not seen him, you love him. ^vThough you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining ^wthe outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

10 Concerning this salvation, ^xthe prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, 11 inquiring ^ywhat person or time^{1 z}the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating ^awhen he predicted ^bthe sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. 12 ^cIt was revealed to them that ^dthey were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you ^eby the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, ^fthings into which angels long to look.

Called to Be Holy

13 Therefore, ^gpreparing your minds for action,² and ^hbeing sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14 As obedient children, ⁱdo not be conformed to the passions ^jof your former ignorance, 15 but ^kas he who called you is holy, you also be holy ^lin all your conduct, 16 since it is written, ^m“You shall be holy, for I am holy.” 17 And if you ⁿcall on him as Father who ^ojudges ^pimpartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves ^qwith fear throughout the time of your exile, 18 knowing that you ^rwere ransomed from ^sthe futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but ^twith the precious blood of Christ, like that of ^ua lamb ^vwithout blemish or spot. 20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but ^wwas made manifest ^xin the last times for the sake of you 21 ^ywho through him are believers in God, ^zwho raised him from the dead and ^agave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

22 Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for ^ba sincere brotherly love, ^clove one another earnestly from a pure heart, 23 ^dsince you have been born again, ^enot of perishable seed but of imperishable, through ^fthe living and abiding word of God; 24 for

And this word ⁱis the good news that was preached to you.