1 PeterChapter 2

Tap any verse to comment or suggest a better wording.

¹So get rid of all hatred and all lying. Stop pretending to be something you're not. Get rid of jealousy and every kind of mean talk. ²Be like newborn babies. Long for pure spiritual milk. It will help you grow up in your salvation. ³Now you have tasted that the Lord is good. ⁴You are coming to him, the living stone. People rejected him. But God chose him, and he is precious to God. ⁵You also are like living stones. You are being built into a spiritual house. You are to be a holy priesthood. You offer spiritual sacrifices that God accepts through Jesus Christ. ⁶Scripture says,
"Look, I am placing a stone in Zion.
It is a chosen and precious cornerstone.
The one who believes in him will never be put to shame." ⁷So to you who believe, this stone is precious. But for those who don't believe,
"The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone." ⁸And,
"He is a stone that makes people trip
and a rock that makes them fall."
They trip because they don't obey the word. And this is what they were appointed to do. ⁹But you are a chosen people. You are a royal priesthood and a holy nation. You are a people who belong to God. You are to tell about the great things he has done. He called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. ¹⁰Once you were not a people. But now you are God's people. Once you had not received mercy. But now you have received mercy. ¹¹Dear friends, you are strangers and foreigners in this world. So I urge you to stay away from the desires of the sinful nature. They fight against your soul. ¹²Live such good lives among the Gentiles that they will see your good deeds. They may say you are doing wrong. But they will see your good deeds and give glory to God on the day he comes to us. ¹³For the Lord's sake, obey every human authority. Obey the king, who is the highest authority. ¹⁴Obey the governors too. The king sends them to punish those who do wrong. He also sends them to praise those who do right. ¹⁵God wants you to do good. When you do, you will silence foolish people who talk without knowing. ¹⁶Live as free people. But don't use your freedom as a cover for doing evil. Live as servants of God. ¹⁷Show respect to everyone. Love your brothers and sisters in the faith. Fear God. Honor the king. ¹⁸Servants, obey your masters with all respect. Obey not only those who are good and kind, but also those who are harsh. ¹⁹If someone suffers pain unfairly and puts up with it because he is thinking of God, that is something to be praised. ²⁰But suppose you are beaten for doing wrong and you put up with it. Is that anything to be praised for? But if you suffer for doing good and put up with it, God is pleased with that. ²¹God called you to this, because Christ also suffered for you. He left you an example, so that you would follow in his steps. ²²"He never sinned.
He never told a lie." ²³When people insulted him, he did not insult them back. When he suffered, he did not threaten anyone. Instead, he trusted himself to God, who judges fairly. ²⁴He himself carried our sins in his body on the cross. He did this so that we might die to sin and live for what is right. "By his wounds you are healed."a ²⁵"You were like sheep that wandered away." But now you have come back to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.