1 Peter 1
Greeting and Blessing (1:1–6a)
1 Peter, an Apostle of Jesus Christ, to the chosen of the diaspora who are sojourners away from their place of origin, living in various locations throughout the Roman provinces of Pontus, Bithynia, Galatia, Cappadocia, and Asia, 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in the holiness of the Spirit, in obedience, and unto purification through the blood of Jesus Christ. May graciousness and peace be found and magnified in fullness among you. 3 Praised be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who, according to the abundance of his mercy, has rebegotten us with a living hope because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from among the dead 4 and also with an imperishable, undefiled, and unfading inheritance secured for you in the heavens— 5 you who are kept by the power of God through your trust unto salvation, which is prepared to be openly revealed in the final culminating crucial day. 6 In this, shout hallelujah!
Trials Refine Faith (1:6b–9)
Now, for a little while, if necessary, you suffer in various kinds of trials 7 so that the testing and approval of your faithfulness (which is much more precious than gold, which perishes even though it is refined with fire) might be found worthy of praise, honor, and glory at the revealing and unveiling of Jesus Christ, 8 whom you love, even though you have not seen him or known him in person, unto whom you may now shout hallelujah, trusting—even if not beholding—with inexpressible and glorified joy 9 and thereby obtaining the final object of trustworthiness—namely, the salvation of your souls.
Prophets of Old Knew of Christ (1:10–12)
10 Concerning this salvation, prophets have sought out and made a careful search for and have prophesied concerning this beneficence to you. 11 Specifically, they investigated into what time and manner of salvation the spirit of Christ, which was in them, would visibly appear; and that spirit testified unto them in advance the sufferings that would be inflicted on Christ and also the glories that would come after those incidents. 12 To them it was revealed that they were being shown these things not for their own benefit but so that they would prophesy these things for your benefit. And now these very things have been proclaimed to you through those who have brought you the gospel proclamations by means of the Holy Ghost being sent from heaven. Indeed, the angels in heaven yearn to get even a glance into these things.
Be Ye Therefore Holy (1:13–21)
13 Therefore, gird up the loins of your understanding; be in control of yourself in all situations; and hope perfectly for the grace that is to be brought to you in the coming reappearance of Jesus Christ, 14 as you are acting as obedient children and not behaving in ignorance according to your former desires 15 but according to the Holy One who has called you indeed to become holy in all your conduct; 16 for it is written, “Be ye holy, inasmuch as I am holy” [Lev. 11:44; 19:2; see also Ex. 22:31]. 17 And if you call upon the Father, who judges all people without prejudice according to their deeds, and if you reverently conduct your time as a stranger, 18 you then will know that you have been redeemed from your fruitless traditional conduct, not being redeemed by corruptible things such as silver and gold 19 but by the dearly honored blood of Christ, as a lamb without any blemish or spot, 20 who indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the cosmos, and who also appeared in these most recent times for your sakes, 21 for all you who, because of him, do trust in God, who raised him up from among the dead and gave glory to him so that your faith and hope might be unto God.
Love One Another, Being Born of God (1:22–25)
22 Having consecrated your souls in obedience to the truth and unto unfeigned brotherly love, love one another from a pure heart, tenaciously, 23 having become born again, not of a perishable seed but imperishable, on account of the word of the living God, which endures: 24 For “all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of the flesh is as a head of grass seed. The grass dries up and its head of seed falls off, 25 but the audible declaration of the Lord endures into eternity” [Isa. 40:6–8]. The same is true for the audible declaration of the gospel delivered to you.
