1 Peter 1
New King James Version
Greeting to the Elect Pilgrims
1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To the [a]pilgrims (A)of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 (B)elect (C)according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, (D)in sanctification of the Spirit, for (E)obedience and (F)sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ:
(G)Grace to you and peace be multiplied.
A Heavenly Inheritance
3 (H)Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who (I)according to His abundant mercy (J)has begotten us again to a living hope (K)through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance [b]incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, (L)reserved in heaven for you, 5 (M)who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
6 (N)In this you greatly rejoice, though now (O)for a little while, if need be, (P)you have been [c]grieved by various trials, 7 that (Q)the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though (R)it is tested by fire, (S)may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, 8 (T)whom having not [d]seen you love. (U)Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9 receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.
10 Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, 11 searching what, or what manner of time, (V)the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. 12 To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to [e]us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things which (W)angels desire to look into.
Living Before God Our Father
13 Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; 14 as obedient children, not (X)conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; 15 (Y)but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 because it is written, (Z)“Be holy, for I am holy.”
17 And if you call on the Father, who (AA)without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your [f]stay here in fear; 18 knowing that you were not redeemed with [g]corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, 19 but (AB)with the precious blood of Christ, (AC)as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. 20 (AD)He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was [h]manifest (AE)in these last times for you 21 who through Him believe in God, (AF)who raised Him from the dead and (AG)gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.
The Enduring Word
22 Since you (AH)have purified your souls in obeying the truth [i]through the Spirit in [j]sincere (AI)love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, 23 (AJ)having been born again, not of [k]corruptible seed but [l]incorruptible, (AK)through the word of God which lives and abides [m]forever, 24 because
(AL)“All flesh is as grass,
And all [n]the glory of man as the flower of the grass.
The grass withers,
And its flower falls away,
25 (AM)But the [o]word of the Lord endures forever.”
(AN)Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you.
Footnotes
- 1 Peter 1:1 sojourners, temporary residents
- 1 Peter 1:4 imperishable
- 1 Peter 1:6 distressed
- 1 Peter 1:8 M known
- 1 Peter 1:12 NU, M you
- 1 Peter 1:17 sojourning, dwelling as resident aliens
- 1 Peter 1:18 perishable
- 1 Peter 1:20 revealed
- 1 Peter 1:22 NU omits through the Spirit
- 1 Peter 1:22 Lit. unhypocritical
- 1 Peter 1:23 perishable
- 1 Peter 1:23 imperishable
- 1 Peter 1:23 NU omits forever
- 1 Peter 1:24 NU its glory as
- 1 Peter 1:25 spoken word
1 Peter 1
English Standard Version
Greeting
1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who are elect exiles of (A)the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, 2 according to (B)the foreknowledge of God the Father, (C)in the sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and (D)for sprinkling with his blood:
May (E)grace and (F)peace be multiplied to you.
Born Again to a Living Hope
3 (G)Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! (H)According to his great mercy, (I)he has caused us to be born again to a living hope (J)through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to (K)an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and (L)unfading, (M)kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God's power are being guarded (N)through faith for a salvation (O)ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by (P)various trials, 7 so that (Q)the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes (R)though it is tested by (S)fire—may be found to result in (T)praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 8 (U)Though you have not seen him, you love him. (V)Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, 9 obtaining (W)the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
10 Concerning this salvation, (X)the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, 11 inquiring (Y)what person or time[a] (Z)the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating (AA)when he predicted (AB)the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. 12 (AC)It was revealed to them that (AD)they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you (AE)by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, (AF)things into which angels long to look.
Called to Be Holy
13 Therefore, (AG)preparing your minds for action,[b] and (AH)being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14 As obedient children, (AI)do not be conformed to the passions (AJ)of your former ignorance, 15 but (AK)as he who called you is holy, you also be holy (AL)in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, (AM)“You shall be holy, for I am holy.” 17 And if you (AN)call on him as Father who (AO)judges (AP)impartially according to each one's deeds, conduct yourselves (AQ)with fear throughout the time of your exile, 18 knowing that you (AR)were ransomed from (AS)the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but (AT)with the precious blood of Christ, like that of (AU)a lamb (AV)without blemish or spot. 20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but (AW)was made manifest (AX)in the last times for the sake of you 21 (AY)who through him are believers in God, (AZ)who raised him from the dead and (BA)gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.
22 Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for (BB)a sincere brotherly love, (BC)love one another earnestly from a pure heart, 23 (BD)since you have been born again, (BE)not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through (BF)the living and abiding word of God; 24 for
(BG)“All flesh is like grass
and all its glory like the flower of grass.
The grass withers,
and the flower falls,
25 (BH)but the word of the Lord remains forever.”
And this word (BI)is the good news that was preached to you.
Footnotes
- 1 Peter 1:11 Or what time or circumstances
- 1 Peter 1:13 Greek girding up the loins of your mind
1 Peter 1
New International Reader's Version
1 I, Peter, am writing this letter. I am an apostle of Jesus Christ.
I am sending this letter to you, God’s chosen people. You are people who have had to wander in the world. You are scattered all over the areas of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia. 2 You have been chosen in keeping with what God the Father had planned. That happened through the Spirit’s work to make you pure and holy. God chose you so that you might obey Jesus Christ. God wanted you to be in a covenant relationship with him. He established this relationship by the blood of Christ.
May more and more grace and peace be given to you.
Peter Praises God for a Living Hope
3 Give praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. In his great mercy he has given us a new birth and a living hope. This hope is living because Jesus Christ rose from the dead. 4 He has given us new birth so that we might share in what belongs to him. This is a gift that can never be destroyed. It can never spoil or even fade away. It is kept in heaven for you. 5 Through faith you are kept safe by God’s power. Your salvation is going to be completed. It is ready to be shown to you in the last days. 6 Because you know all this, you have great joy. You have joy even though you may have had to suffer for a little while. You may have had to suffer sadness in all kinds of trouble. 7 Your troubles have come in order to prove that your faith is real. Your faith is worth more than gold. That’s because gold can pass away even when fire has made it pure. Your faith is meant to bring praise, honor and glory to God. This will happen when Jesus Christ returns. 8 Even though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not see him now, you believe in him. You are filled with a glorious joy that can’t be put into words. 9 You are receiving the salvation of your souls. This salvation is the final result of your faith.
10 The prophets searched very hard and with great care to find out about this salvation. They spoke about the grace that was going to come to you. 11 They wanted to find out when and how this salvation would come. The Spirit of Christ in them was telling them about the sufferings of the Messiah. These were his sufferings that were going to come. The Spirit of Christ was also telling them about the glory that would follow. 12 It was made known to the prophets that they were not serving themselves. Instead, they were serving you when they spoke about the things that you have now heard. Those who have preached the good news to you have told you these things. They have done it with the help of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.
Be Holy
13 So be watchful, and control yourselves completely. In this way, put your hope in the grace that lies ahead. This grace will be brought to you when Jesus Christ returns. 14 You should obey your Father. You shouldn’t give in to evil desires. They controlled your life when you didn’t know any better. 15 The God who chose you is holy. So you should be holy in all that you do. 16 It is written, “Be holy, because I am holy.” (Leviticus 11:44,45; 19:2)
17 You call on a Father who judges each person’s work without favoring one over another. So live as outsiders during your time here. Live with the highest respect for God. 18 You were set free from an empty way of life. This way of life was handed down to you by your own people of long ago. You know that you were not bought with things that can pass away, like silver or gold. 19 Instead, you were bought with the priceless blood of Christ. He is a perfect lamb. He doesn’t have any flaws at all. 20 He was chosen before God created the world. But he came into the world for your sake in these last days. 21 Because of what Christ has done, you believe in God. It was God who raised him from the dead. And it was God who gave him glory. So your faith and hope are in God.
22 You have made yourselves pure by obeying the truth. So you have an honest and true love for each other. So love one another deeply, from your hearts. 23 You have been born again by means of the living word of God. His word lasts forever. You were not born again from a seed that will die. You were born from a seed that can’t die. 24 It is written,
“All people are like grass.
All their glory is like the flowers in the field.
The grass dries up. The flowers fall to the ground.
25 But the word of the Lord lasts forever.” (Isaiah 40:6–8)
And this is the word that was preached to you.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.®. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
