¹Therefore, putting away all wickedness, all deceit, hypocrisies, envies, and all slander,

²y’all should crave pure spiritual milk like newborn babies, that by it y’all may grow up in salvation,

³if y’all have tasted that the Lord is kind.

The Living Stone and Royal Priesthood

⁴As y’all come to him, the living stone, rejected by humans but chosen and precious to God,

⁵y’all also, as living stones, are being built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

⁶For this is upheld in Scripture,

“See, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, chosen and precious.

The one who believes in him will never be put to shame.”

⁷This precious value, therefore, is for y’all who believe. But for those who disbelieve,

“The stone that the builders rejected

has become the cornerstone,”

⁸and,

“a stumbling stone and a rock of offense.”

For they stumble because they are disobedient to the word, as they were also appointed to do.

⁹But y’all are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy ethnic group, a people of God’s own possession, that y’all may proclaim the virtues of ʜɪᴍ who called y’all out of darkness into ʜɪꜱ marvelous light.

¹⁰Formerly, not a people,

now the people of God.

Formerly not receiving mercy,

but now receiving mercy.

Beautiful Lives in a Pagan Society

¹¹Beloved, I beg y’all as foreigners and immigrants to abstain from fleshly desires that war against the soul,

¹²maintaining such an excellent way of life among the ethnic groups that, though they accuse y’all of being evildoers, they may see y’all’s excellent deeds and glorify God in the day of visitation.

¹³Therefore, for the Lord’s sake, y’all should submit to every human institution: whether to the king, as the supreme authority,

¹⁴or to governors, as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for praise to those who do good.

¹⁵For this is the will of God, that doing good would silence the ignorance of foolish humans.

¹⁶Live as free people, not using freedom as a covering for evil, but as slaves of God.

¹⁷Y’all are to honor all people and love the family of siblings. Y’all are to fear God and honor the emperor.

¹⁸Servants, submit to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and equitable ones, but also to those who are crooked.

¹⁹For it is commendable if, because of a consciousness of God, someone endures hardships and unjust suffering.

²⁰But what credit is it if y’all endure a beating for doing wrong? But if y’all endure suffering when doing good, this is commendable before God.

²¹To this y’all were called, because Christ suffered for y’all, leaving an example, so that y’all would follow his steps.

²²He “committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth.”[#Isaiah 53:9]

²³When he was insulted, he did not retaliate. When he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he committed himself to ʜɪᴍ who judges righteously.

²⁴“He himself bore our sins” in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. “By his wounds, y’all were healed.”[#Isaiah 53:4; #Isaiah 53:5]

²⁵For y’all were “like sheep going astray,” but now y’all have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of y’all’s souls.[#Isaiah 53:6]