¹From Peter, apostle of Jesus Christ— To God's chosen people who live as refugees scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia.

²You were chosen according to the purpose of God the Father and were made a holy people by his Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be purified by his blood. May grace and peace be yours in full measure.

A Living Hope

³Let us give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! Because of his great mercy he gave us new life by raising Jesus Christ from death. This fills us with a living hope,

⁴and so we look forward to possessing the rich blessings that God keeps for his people. He keeps them for you in heaven, where they cannot decay or spoil or fade away.

⁵They are for you, who through faith are kept safe by God's power for the salvation which is ready to be revealed at the end of time.

⁶Be glad about this, even though it may now be necessary for you to be sad for a while because of the many kinds of trials you suffer.

⁷Their purpose is to prove that your faith is genuine. Even gold, which can be destroyed, is tested by fire; and so your faith, which is much more precious than gold, must also be tested, so that it may endure. Then you will receive praise and glory and honor on the Day when Jesus Christ is revealed.

⁸You love him, although you have not seen him, and you believe in him, although you do not now see him. So you rejoice with a great and glorious joy which words cannot express,

⁹because you are receiving the salvation of your souls, which is the purpose of your faith in him.

¹⁰It was concerning this salvation that the prophets made careful search and investigation, and they prophesied about this gift which God would give you.

¹¹They tried to find out when the time would be and how it would come. This was the time to which Christ's Spirit in them was pointing, in predicting the sufferings that Christ would have to endure and the glory that would follow.

¹²God revealed to these prophets that their work was not for their own benefit, but for yours, as they spoke about those things which you have now heard from the messengers who announced the Good News by the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. These are things which even the angels would like to understand.

A Call to Holy Living

¹³So then, have your minds ready for action. Keep alert and set your hope completely on the blessing which will be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.

¹⁴Be obedient to God, and do not allow your lives to be shaped by those desires you had when you were still ignorant.

¹⁵Instead, be holy in all that you do, just as God who called you is holy.

¹⁶The scripture says, “Be holy because I am holy.”

¹⁷You call him Father, when you pray to God, who judges all people by the same standard, according to what each one has done; so then, spend the rest of your lives here on earth in reverence for him.

¹⁸For you know what was paid to set you free from the worthless manner of life handed down by your ancestors. It was not something that can be destroyed, such as silver or gold;

¹⁹it was the costly sacrifice of Christ, who was like a lamb without defect or flaw.

²⁰He had been chosen by God before the creation of the world and was revealed in these last days for your sake.

²¹Through him you believe in God, who raised him from death and gave him glory; and so your faith and hope are fixed on God.

²²Now that by your obedience to the truth you have purified yourselves and have come to have a sincere love for other believers, love one another earnestly with all your heart.

²³For through the living and eternal word of God you have been born again as the children of a parent who is immortal, not mortal.

²⁴As the scripture says, “All human beings are like grass, and all their glory is like wild flowers. The grass withers, and the flowers fall,

²⁵but the word of the Lord remains forever.” This word is the Good News that was proclaimed to you.

The Living Stone and the Holy Nation

¹Rid yourselves, then, of all evil; no more lying or hypocrisy or jealousy or insulting language.

²Be like newborn babies, always thirsty for the pure spiritual milk, so that by drinking it you may grow up and be saved.

³As the scripture says, “You have found out for yourselves how kind the Lord is.”

⁴Come to the Lord, the living stone rejected by people as worthless but chosen by God as valuable.

⁵Come as living stones, and let yourselves be used in building the spiritual temple, where you will serve as holy priests to offer spiritual and acceptable sacrifices to God through Jesus Christ.

⁶For the scripture says, “I chose a valuable stone, which I am placing as the cornerstone in Zion; and whoever believes in him will never be disappointed.”

⁷This stone is of great value for you that believe; but for those who do not believe: “The stone which the builders rejected as worthless turned out to be the most important of all.”

⁸And another scripture says, “This is the stone that will make people stumble, the rock that will make them fall.” They stumbled because they did not believe in the word; such was God's will for them.

⁹But you are the chosen race, the King's priests, the holy nation, God's own people, chosen to proclaim the wonderful acts of God, who called you out of darkness into his own marvelous light.

¹⁰At one time you were not God's people, but now you are his people; at one time you did not know God's mercy, but now you have received his mercy.

Slaves of God

¹¹I appeal to you, my friends, as strangers and refugees in this world! Do not give in to bodily passions, which are always at war against the soul.

¹²Your conduct among the heathen should be so good that when they accuse you of being evildoers, they will have to recognize your good deeds and so praise God on the Day of his coming.

¹³For the sake of the Lord submit yourselves to every human authority: to the Emperor, who is the supreme authority,

¹⁴and to the governors, who have been appointed by him to punish the evildoers and to praise those who do good.

¹⁵For God wants you to silence the ignorant talk of foolish people by the good things you do.

¹⁶Live as free people; do not, however, use your freedom to cover up any evil, but live as God's slaves.

¹⁷Respect everyone, love other believers, honor God, and respect the Emperor.

The Example of Christ's Suffering

¹⁸You servants must submit yourselves to your masters and show them complete respect, not only to those who are kind and considerate, but also to those who are harsh.

¹⁹God will bless you for this, if you endure the pain of undeserved suffering because you are conscious of his will.

²⁰For what credit is there if you endure the beatings you deserve for having done wrong? But if you endure suffering even when you have done right, God will bless you for it.

²¹It was to this that God called you, for Christ himself suffered for you and left you an example, so that you would follow in his steps.

²²He committed no sin, and no one ever heard a lie come from his lips.

²³When he was insulted, he did not answer back with an insult; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but placed his hopes in God, the righteous Judge.

²⁴Christ himself carried our sins in his body to the cross, so that we might die to sin and live for righteousness. It is by his wounds that you have been healed.

²⁵You were like sheep that had lost their way, but now you have been brought back to follow the Shepherd and Keeper of your souls.

¹You have been raised to life with Christ, so set your hearts on the things that are in heaven, where Christ sits on his throne at the right side of God.

²Keep your minds fixed on things there, not on things here on earth.

³For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

⁴Your real life is Christ and when he appears, then you too will appear with him and share his glory!

The Old Life and the New

⁵You must put to death, then, the earthly desires at work in you, such as sexual immorality, indecency, lust, evil passions, and greed (for greed is a form of idolatry).

⁶Because of such things God's anger will come upon those who do not obey him.

⁷At one time you yourselves used to live according to such desires, when your life was dominated by them.

⁸But now you must get rid of all these things: anger, passion, and hateful feelings. No insults or obscene talk must ever come from your lips.

⁹Do not lie to one another, for you have put off the old self with its habits

¹⁰and have put on the new self. This is the new being which God, its Creator, is constantly renewing in his own image, in order to bring you to a full knowledge of himself.

¹¹As a result, there is no longer any distinction between Gentiles and Jews, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarians, savages, slaves, and free, but Christ is all, Christ is in all.

¹²You are the people of God; he loved you and chose you for his own. So then, you must clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.

¹³Be tolerant with one another and forgive one another whenever any of you has a complaint against someone else. You must forgive one another just as the Lord has forgiven you.

¹⁴And to all these qualities add love, which binds all things together in perfect unity.

¹⁵The peace that Christ gives is to guide you in the decisions you make; for it is to this peace that God has called you together in the one body. And be thankful.

¹⁶Christ's message in all its richness must live in your hearts. Teach and instruct one another with all wisdom. Sing psalms, hymns, and sacred songs; sing to God with thanksgiving in your hearts.

¹⁷Everything you do or say, then, should be done in the name of the Lord Jesus, as you give thanks through him to God the Father.

Personal Relations in the New Life

¹⁸Wives, submit yourselves to your husbands, for that is what you should do as Christians.

¹⁹Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them.

²⁰Children, it is your Christian duty to obey your parents always, for that is what pleases God.

²¹Parents, do not irritate your children, or they will become discouraged.

²²Slaves, obey your human masters in all things, not only when they are watching you because you want to gain their approval; but do it with a sincere heart because of your reverence for the Lord.

²³Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as though you were working for the Lord and not for people.

²⁴Remember that the Lord will give you as a reward what he has kept for his people. For Christ is the real Master you serve.

²⁵And all wrongdoers will be repaid for the wrong things they do, because God judges everyone by the same standard.

¹Masters, be fair and just in the way you treat your slaves. Remember that you too have a Master in heaven.

Instructions

²Be persistent in prayer, and keep alert as you pray, giving thanks to God.

³At the same time pray also for us, so that God will give us a good opportunity to preach his message about the secret of Christ. For that is why I am now in prison.

⁴Pray, then, that I may speak, as I should, in such a way as to make it clear.

⁵Be wise in the way you act toward those who are not believers, making good use of every opportunity you have.

⁶Your speech should always be pleasant and interesting, and you should know how to give the right answer to everyone.

Final Greetings

⁷Our dear friend Tychicus, who is a faithful worker and fellow servant in the Lord's work, will give you all the news about me.

⁸That is why I am sending him to you, in order to cheer you up by telling you how all of us are getting along.

⁹With him goes Onesimus, that dear and faithful friend, who belongs to your group. They will tell you everything that is happening here.

¹⁰Aristarchus, who is in prison with me, sends you greetings, and so does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas. (You have already received instructions to welcome Mark if he comes your way.)

¹¹Joshua, also called Justus, sends greetings too. These three are the only Jewish believers who work with me for the Kingdom of God, and they have been a great help to me.

¹²Greetings from Epaphras, another member of your group and a servant of Christ Jesus. He always prays fervently for you, asking God to make you stand firm, as mature and fully convinced Christians, in complete obedience to God's will.

¹³I can personally testify to his hard work for you and for the people in Laodicea and Hierapolis.

¹⁴Luke, our dear doctor, and Demas send you their greetings.

¹⁵Give our best wishes to the believers in Laodicea and to Nympha and the church that meets in her house.

¹⁶After you read this letter, make sure that it is read also in the church at Laodicea. At the same time, you are to read the letter that the believers in Laodicea will send you.

¹⁷And tell Archippus, “Be sure to finish the task you were given in the Lord's service.”

¹⁸With my own hand I write this: Greetings from Paul Do not forget my chains! May God's grace be with you.

¹⁰Never criticize servants to their master. You will be cursed and suffer for it.

¹¹There are people who curse their fathers and do not show their appreciation for their mothers.

¹²There are people who think they are pure when they are as filthy as they can be.

¹³There are people who think they are so good—oh, how good they think they are!

¹⁴There are people who take cruel advantage of the poor and needy; that is the way they make their living.