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.

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.

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.

1 ^jSo put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. 2 ^kLike newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual ^lmilk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— 3 if indeed you have ^mtasted that the Lord is good.

4 As you come to him, a living stone ⁿrejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 ^oyou yourselves like living stones are being built up as ^pa spiritual house, to be ^qa holy priesthood, ^rto offer spiritual sacrifices ^sacceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For it stands in Scripture:

7 So the honor is for you who ^vbelieve, but for those who ^vdo not believe,

8 and

They stumble because they disobey the word, ^yas they were destined to do.

9 But you are ^za chosen race, ^aa royal ^bpriesthood, ^ca holy nation, ^da people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you ^eout of darkness into ^fhis marvelous light. 10 ^gOnce you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

11 Beloved, I urge you ^has sojourners and exiles ⁱto abstain from the passions of the flesh, ^jwhich wage war against your soul. 12 ^kKeep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, ^lthey may see your good deeds and glorify God on ^mthe day of visitation.

13 ⁿBe subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution,⁴ whether it be to the emperor⁵ as supreme, 14 or to governors as sent by him ^oto punish those who do evil and ^pto praise those who do good. 15 For this is the will of God, ^qthat by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. 16 ^rLive as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but ^sliving as servants⁶ of God. 17 ^tHonor everyone. ^uLove the brotherhood. ^vFear God. Honor the emperor.

18 ^wServants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust. 19 For this is a gracious thing, when, ^xmindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. 20 For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But ^yif when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. 21 For ^zto this you have been called, ^ybecause Christ also suffered for you, ^aleaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. 22 ^bHe committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. 23 ^cWhen he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, ^dbut continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. 24 ^eHe himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we ^fmight die to sin and ^glive to righteousness. ^hBy his wounds you have been healed. 25 For ⁱyou were straying like sheep, but have now returned to ^jthe Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.