1 Peter 4
Worldwide English (New Testament)
4 Christ suffered in his body. You also must be ready to have the same trouble happen to you. When a man has suffered in his body, he has stopped doing wrong things.
2 For the rest of his life on earth he will not do what people want to do. He will do what God wants him to do.
3 In the time past you did the same things as people who do not believe God. Let that be enough. You did things you should be ashamed of. You did what you wanted to do. You got drunk. You got into fights. You took part in noisy feasting with dancing. You did wrong by worshipping idols.
4 Those people are surprised now that you do not do the same wrong things they do. And they say wrong things about you.
5 They will have to explain what they are doing. They will have to talk to God about what they have done. He is ready to judge living people and dead people.
6 That is why the good news was also told to those who are now dead. They will be judged like men who are alive. This was done so that they could live like God in the spirit.
7 It is almost the time when the world will end. So be wise and watch and talk to God.
8 Here is something that matters very much. You must love each other very much. Love will cover up many wrong things.
9 Be glad to take other Christians into your house and care for them. And do not grumble about it.
10 God has given each person a gift. That gift is something he can do. Each one should use his gift to help the others. In that way you all make good use of the many blessings God has given you.
11 Has God blessed you by knowing how to talk? Then you should talk the words of God. Are you a helper? Then you should help with the strength God has given you. In all that you do, you should show that God is great through Jesus Christ. He has praise and power for ever. Yes, he has!
12 My dear brothers, do not be surprised by the hard trouble like fire that comes to test you. Do not think some new thing is happening to you.
13 Be glad when you suffer as Christ did. Then you will also be very glad when he comes and you see how great he is.
14 Do men say wrong things about you because you are a Christian? Then you are blessed because the wonderful Spirit, the Spirit of God, is with you.
15 Do not kill. Do not steal. Do not do wrong. Do not try to boss other people. None of you should suffer because you have done these things.
16 But if a man suffers because he is a Christian, he should not be ashamed of it. He should praise God that he is a Christian.
17 The time has come for God to judge people. God's people will be judged first. If we are judged first, what will happen at the end to those who do not obey the good news of God?
18 The holy writings say, `If it is hard for a good person to be saved, what will happen to a person who is against God and lives a bad life?'
19 If God allows you to suffer, trust him. He made you and you can trust him. But keep on doing good things.
1 Peter 4
Living Bible
4 Since Christ suffered and underwent pain, you must have the same attitude he did; you must be ready to suffer, too. For remember, when your body suffers, sin loses its power, 2 and you won’t be spending the rest of your life chasing after evil desires but will be anxious to do the will of God. 3 You have had enough in the past of the evil things the godless enjoy—sex sin, lust, getting drunk, wild parties, drinking bouts, and the worship of idols, and other terrible sins.[a]
4 Of course, your former friends will be very surprised when you don’t eagerly join them anymore in the wicked things they do, and they will laugh at you in contempt and scorn. 5 But just remember that they must face the Judge of all, living and dead; they will be punished for the way they have lived. 6 That is why the Good News was preached even to those who were dead—killed by the flood[b]—so that although their bodies were punished with death, they could still live in their spirits as God lives.
7 The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore be earnest, thoughtful men of prayer. 8 Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love makes up for many of your faults.[c] 9 Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay for the night.
10 God has given each of you some special abilities; be sure to use them to help each other, passing on to others God’s many kinds of blessings. 11 Are you called to preach? Then preach as though God himself were speaking through you. Are you called to help others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies so that God will be glorified through Jesus Christ—to him be glory and power forever and ever. Amen.
12 Dear friends, don’t be bewildered or surprised when you go through the fiery trials ahead, for this is no strange, unusual thing that is going to happen to you. 13 Instead, be really glad—because these trials will make you partners with Christ in his suffering, and afterwards you will have the wonderful joy of sharing his glory in that coming day when it will be displayed.
14 Be happy if you are cursed and insulted for being a Christian, for when that happens the Spirit of God will come upon you with great glory.[d] 15 Don’t let me hear of your suffering for murdering or stealing or making trouble or being a busybody and prying into other people’s affairs. 16 But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being in Christ’s family and being called by his wonderful name! 17 For the time has come for judgment, and it must begin first among God’s own children. And if even we who are Christians must be judged, what terrible fate awaits those who have never believed in the Lord? 18 If the righteous are barely saved, what chance will the godless have?
19 So if you are suffering according to God’s will, keep on doing what is right and trust yourself to the God who made you, for he will never fail you.
Footnotes
- 1 Peter 4:3 other terrible sins, literally, “lawless idolatries.”
- 1 Peter 4:6 killed by the flood, implied; see 3:19-20.
- 1 Peter 4:8 love makes up for many of your faults, or “love overlooks each other’s many faults.”
- 1 Peter 4:14 the Spirit of God will come upon you with great glory, or “the glory of the Spirit of God is being seen in you.”
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The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.