1 Peter 4
Common English Bible
4 Therefore, since Christ suffered as a human, you should also arm yourselves with his way of thinking. This is because whoever suffers is finished with sin. 2 As a result, they don’t live the rest of their human lives in ways determined by human desires but in ways determined by God’s will. 3 You have wasted enough time doing what unbelievers desire—living in their unrestrained immorality and lust, their drunkenness and excessive feasting and wild parties, and their forbidden worship of idols. 4 They think it’s strange that you don’t join in these activities with the same flood of unrestrained wickedness. So they slander you. 5 They will have to reckon with the one who is ready to judge the living and the dead. 6 Indeed, this is the reason the good news was also preached to the dead. This happened so that, although they were judged as humans according to human standards, they could live by the Spirit according to divine standards.
7 The end of everything has come. Therefore, be self-controlled and clearheaded so you can pray. 8 Above all, show sincere love to each other, because love brings about the forgiveness of many sins. 9 Open your homes to each other without complaining. 10 And serve each other according to the gift each person has received, as good managers of God’s diverse gifts. 11 Whoever speaks should do so as those who speak God’s word. Whoever serves should do so from the strength that God furnishes. Do this so that in everything God may be honored through Jesus Christ. To him be honor and power forever and always. Amen.
Stand firm in the last times
12 Dear friends, don’t be surprised about the fiery trials that have come among you to test you. These are not strange happenings. 13 Instead, rejoice as you share Christ’s suffering. You share his suffering now so that you may also have overwhelming joy when his glory is revealed. 14 If you are mocked because of Christ’s name, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory—indeed, the Spirit of God—rests on you.
15 Now none of you should suffer as a murderer or thief or evildoer or rebel. 16 But don’t be ashamed if you suffer as one who belongs to Christ. Rather, honor God as you bear Christ’s name. Give honor to God, 17 because it’s time for judgment to begin with God’s own household. But if judgment starts with us, what will happen to those who refuse to believe God’s good news? 18 If the righteous are barely rescued, what will happen to the godless and sinful? 19 So then, those who suffer because they follow God’s will should commit their lives to a trustworthy creator by doing what is right.
1 Peter 4
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 4
1 Therefore, since Christ suffered in the flesh, you should arm yourselves also with the same intention. For anyone who has suffered in the flesh has finished with sin 2 and for the remainder of life on earth must be ruled not by human passions but by the will of God.
3 You have already spent enough time in doing what the Gentiles like to do, pursuing a life of debauchery, licentiousness, drunkenness, orgies, carousing, and sacrilegious idolatry. 4 They are surprised that you no longer join them in a life of dissipation, and they revile you as a result. 5 However, they will have to render an account to him who stands ready to judge[a] the living and the dead.
6 And this is the reason why the gospel was preached even to the dead, so that, although they might be judged in the flesh like men, they might enjoy the life of God in the spirit.
Qualities of a Christian Community Waiting for Christ.[b] 7 The end of all things is near. Therefore, lead disciplined lives and be watchful in prayer. 8 Above all, maintain the fervor of your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins.
9 Be hospitable to one another without complaining. 10 Like good stewards of the varied graces of God, use whatever gift each one of you has received to serve one another.
11 Whoever speaks should do so as one who is speaking the very words of God. Whoever serves should do so with the strength that God provides. In all things, let God be glorified through Jesus Christ, for to him belong all glory and power forever and ever. Amen.
12 Courage and Joy in Suffering.[c] Beloved, do not be surprised that you are being tested by a fiery ordeal,[d] as though it were something extraordinary. 13 But rejoice insofar as you are sharing in the sufferings of Christ, so that your joy will be without limit when his glory is revealed.
14 If you are reviled for the name of Christ, consider yourself blessed, for upon you rests the Spirit of glory[e] and of God. 15 [f]However, let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, or any other kind of criminal, or as one who meddles in another person’s business. 16 Let it be because you are a Christian,[g] not considering it a disgrace, but glorifying God because you bear this name.
17 The time has come for the judgment of the household of God to begin. If it begins with us, how will it end for those who refuse to obey the gospel of God?
18 And:
“If it is hard for the righteous to be saved,
what will become of the godless and those who are sinners?”
19 And so, those who suffer in accordance with God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator, while continuing to do good.
Footnotes
- 1 Peter 4:5 Him who stands ready to judge: the New Testament assigns judgment to both the Father and the Son on the last day (see Jn 5:27; Acts 17:31). The living and the dead: i.e., those who are alive as well as those who have died when the last day arrives.
- 1 Peter 4:7 Living in expectation of the Lord’s Second Coming, Christian communities are characterized by a serious atmosphere, by relationships of responsibility and fraternity, and by concern for prayer and the Liturgy.
- 1 Peter 4:12 Hostility seems to be unleashed against the communities. We will always be astounded by the conviction of the first Christian generations in the face of persecution. They do not regard it as a strange fate but as something that indicates the arrival of a new age, that of the last times of history. It announces a change in the course of the things of the world. The destiny of Christ is not only an example to consider but a mystery to share in these conditions. However, the persecution in question must be a real one against the faith and not a reaction against the abuses committed by Christians themselves. Concerning the necessity of persecution and the meaning of the announcement of a change, see Mt 5:11-12; Lk 6:22-23; 21:12-19.
- 1 Peter 4:12 Fiery ordeal: literally, “fire for testing.” Suffering is a source of purification.
- 1 Peter 4:14 Spirit of glory: because the Spirit bestows glory after trials.
- 1 Peter 4:15 There is suffering that believers bring down upon themselves by their own sins and weaknesses and suffering that God allows to afflict them. In both instances, they should entrust themselves to God and offer their sufferings to him.
- 1 Peter 4:16 Christian: this word occurs only here and in Acts 11:26; 26:28 in the New Testament.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
