1 Peter 3
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Wives and Husbands
3 In the same way, wives,(A) submit yourselves to your own husbands so that, even if some disobey the Christian message,(B) they may be won over[a](C) without a message by the way their wives live(D) 2 when they observe your pure, reverent lives.(E) 3 Your beauty should not consist of outward things like elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold ornaments[b] or fine clothes.(F) 4 Instead, it should consist of what is inside[c] the heart(G) with the imperishable quality of a gentle(H) and quiet(I) spirit, which is very valuable in God’s eyes. 5 For in the past, the holy(J) women who put their hope(K) in God also beautified themselves in this way, submitting to their own husbands, 6 just as Sarah(L) obeyed Abraham, calling him lord. You have become her children when you do what is good and are not frightened by anything alarming.(M)
7 Husbands,(N) in the same way, live with your wives with an understanding of their weaker nature[d](O) yet showing them honor as coheirs of the grace of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered.
Do No Evil
8 Now finally, all of you should be like-minded and sympathetic, should love believers,[e](P) and be compassionate(Q) and humble,[f] 9 not paying back evil for evil(R) or insult for insult but, on the contrary, giving a blessing,(S) since you were called for this, so that you can inherit a blessing.
10 For the(T) one who wants to love life
and to see good days
must keep his tongue from evil(U)
and his lips from speaking deceit,(V)
11 and he must turn away(W) from evil
and do what is good.
He must seek peace(X) and pursue it,
12 because the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous
and His ears are open to their request.
But the face of the Lord is against
those who do what is evil.[g]
Undeserved Suffering
13 And who will harm[h] you if you are deeply committed to what is good?[i] 14 But even if you should suffer for righteousness,(Y) you are blessed. Do not fear what they fear(Z) or be disturbed,(AA)[j] 15 but honor[k] the Messiah[l] as Lord in your hearts. Always be ready to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason[m] for the hope that is in you.(AB) 16 However, do this with gentleness and respect, keeping your conscience clear,[n][o](AC) so that when you are accused,[p] those who denounce your Christian life[q] will be put to shame. 17 For it is better to suffer(AD) for doing good, if that should be God’s will,[r] than for doing evil.
18 For Christ also suffered(AE) for sins once for all,[s](AF)
the righteous for the unrighteous,[t]
that He might bring you[u] to God,(AG)
after being put to death in the fleshly realm[v](AH)
but made alive in the spiritual realm.[w]
19 In that state[x] He also went and made a proclamation to the spirits(AI) in prison[y] 20 who in the past were disobedient, when God patiently waited in the days of Noah(AJ) while an ark was being prepared. In it a few—that is, eight people[z](AK)—were saved through water. 21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you (not the removal of the filth of the flesh,(AL) but the pledge[aa] of a good conscience toward God) through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.(AM) 22 Now that He has gone into heaven,(AN) He is at God’s right hand(AO) with angels, authorities, and powers subject to Him.(AP)
Footnotes
- 1 Peter 3:1 Lit may be gained
- 1 Peter 3:3 Lit and of putting around of gold items
- 1 Peter 3:4 Lit Instead, the hidden man of
- 1 Peter 3:7 Lit understanding as the weaker vessel
- 1 Peter 3:8 Lit sympathetic, loving the brothers
- 1 Peter 3:8 Other mss read courteous
- 1 Peter 3:12 Ps 34:12-16
- 1 Peter 3:13 Or mistreat, or do evil to
- 1 Peter 3:13 Or you are partisans for the good; lit you are zealots
- 1 Peter 3:14 Is 8:12
- 1 Peter 3:15 Or sanctify; lit set apart
- 1 Peter 3:15 Other mss read set God
- 1 Peter 3:15 Or who demands of you an accounting
- 1 Peter 3:16 Lit good
- 1 Peter 3:16 Or keeping a clear conscience
- 1 Peter 3:16 Other mss read when they speak against you as evildoers
- 1 Peter 3:16 Lit your good behavior in Christ
- 1 Peter 3:17 Lit if the will of God should will
- 1 Peter 3:18 Other mss read died for sins on our behalf; other mss read died for our sins; other mss read died for sins on your behalf
- 1 Peter 3:18 Or the Righteous One in the place of the unrighteous many
- 1 Peter 3:18 Other mss read us
- 1 Peter 3:18 Or in the flesh
- 1 Peter 3:18 Or in the spirit, or in the Spirit
- 1 Peter 3:19 Or In whom, or At that time, or In which
- 1 Peter 3:19 Perhaps fallen supernatural beings or angels; 2Pt 2:4; Jd 6
- 1 Peter 3:20 Lit souls
- 1 Peter 3:21 Or the appeal
1 Peter 3
English Standard Version
Wives and Husbands
3 Likewise, wives, (A)be subject to your own husbands, so that (B)even if some do not obey the word, (C)they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, 2 when they see your (D)respectful and pure conduct. 3 (E)Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— 4 but let your adorning be (F)the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious. 5 For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands, 6 as Sarah obeyed Abraham, (G)calling him lord. And you are her children, if you do good and (H)do not fear anything that is frightening.
7 Likewise, (I)husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker (J)vessel, since they are heirs with you[a] of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.
Suffering for Righteousness' Sake
8 Finally, all of you, (K)have unity of mind, sympathy, (L)brotherly love, (M)a tender heart, and (N)a humble mind. 9 (O)Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, (P)bless, for (Q)to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. 10 For
(R)“Whoever desires to love life
and see good days,
let him keep his tongue from evil
and his lips from speaking deceit;
11 let him turn away from evil and do good;
let him seek peace and pursue it.
12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
and his ears are open to their prayer.
But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”
13 Now (S)who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good? 14 (T)But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed. (U)Have no fear of them, (V)nor be troubled, 15 but (W)in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, (X)always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and (Y)respect, 16 (Z)having a good conscience, so that, (AA)when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. 17 For (AB)it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil.
18 For Christ also (AC)suffered[b] (AD)once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, (AE)that he might bring us to God, being put to death (AF)in the flesh but made alive (AG)in the spirit, 19 in which[c] he went and (AH)proclaimed[d] to the spirits in prison, 20 because[e] they formerly did not obey, (AI)when God's patience waited in the days of Noah, (AJ)while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, (AK)eight persons, were brought safely through water. 21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, (AL)now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but (AM)as an appeal to God for a good conscience, (AN)through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22 who has gone into heaven and (AO)is at the right hand of God, (AP)with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.
Footnotes
- 1 Peter 3:7 Some manuscripts since you are joint heirs
- 1 Peter 3:18 Some manuscripts died
- 1 Peter 3:19 Or the Spirit, in whom
- 1 Peter 3:19 Or preached
- 1 Peter 3:20 Or when
1 Peter 3
The Message
Cultivate Inner Beauty
3 1-4 The same goes for you wives: Be good wives to your husbands, responsive to their needs. There are husbands who, indifferent as they are to any words about God, will be captivated by your life of holy beauty. What matters is not your outer appearance—the styling of your hair, the jewelry you wear, the cut of your clothes—but your inner disposition.
4-6 Cultivate inner beauty, the gentle, gracious kind that God delights in. The holy women of old were beautiful before God that way, and were good, loyal wives to their husbands. Sarah, for instance, taking care of Abraham, would address him as “my dear husband.” You’ll be true daughters of Sarah if you do the same, unanxious and unintimidated.
7 The same goes for you husbands: Be good husbands to your wives. Honor them, delight in them. As women they lack some of your advantages. But in the new life of God’s grace, you’re equals. Treat your wives, then, as equals so your prayers don’t run aground.
Suffering for Doing Good
8-12 Summing up: Be agreeable, be sympathetic, be loving, be compassionate, be humble. That goes for all of you, no exceptions. No retaliation. No sharp-tongued sarcasm. Instead, bless—that’s your job, to bless. You’ll be a blessing and also get a blessing.
Whoever wants to embrace life
and see the day fill up with good,
Here’s what you do:
Say nothing evil or hurtful;
Snub evil and cultivate good;
run after peace for all you’re worth.
God looks on all this with approval,
listening and responding well to what he’s asked;
But he turns his back
on those who do evil things.
13-18 If with heart and soul you’re doing good, do you think you can be stopped? Even if you suffer for it, you’re still better off. Don’t give the opposition a second thought. Through thick and thin, keep your hearts at attention, in adoration before Christ, your Master. Be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are, and always with the utmost courtesy. Keep a clear conscience before God so that when people throw mud at you, none of it will stick. They’ll end up realizing that they’re the ones who need a bath. It’s better to suffer for doing good, if that’s what God wants, than to be punished for doing bad. That’s what Christ did definitively: suffered because of others’ sins, the Righteous One for the unrighteous ones. He went through it all—was put to death and then made alive—to bring us to God.
19-22 He went and proclaimed God’s salvation to earlier generations who ended up in the prison of judgment because they wouldn’t listen. You know, even though God waited patiently all the days that Noah built his ship, only a few were saved then, eight to be exact—saved from the water by the water. The waters of baptism do that for you, not by washing away dirt from your skin but by presenting you through Jesus’ resurrection before God with a clear conscience. Jesus has the last word on everything and everyone, from angels to armies. He’s standing right alongside God, and what he says goes.
Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville Tennessee. All rights reserved.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson