1 Peter 2:1-9
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 2
1 Rid yourselves, therefore, of all malice, and all deceit, hypocrisy, and envy, and all slander. 2 Like newborn infants, long for pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may advance on the path to salvation, 3 now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
The Mystery of the Church.[a] 4 Come to him, a living stone, rejected by men but chosen by God and precious. 5 You, too, are like living stones, being built up into a spiritual temple and a holy priesthood[b] to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For it states in Scripture,
“See, I am laying a stone in Zion,
a cornerstone chosen and precious.
Whoever believes in it
will not be put to shame.”
7 Therefore, it is precious to you who believe. However, for those who do not believe,
“The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone,”
8 and
“A stone that makes them stumble,
and a rock that makes them fall.”
They stumble because they disobey the word—for this they were born.[c]
9 But you are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people claimed by God as his own possession,” so that you may proclaim the praise of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
Footnotes
- 1 Peter 2:4 The following terms—spiritual temple, chosen race, royal priesthood, holy nation, a people claimed by God as his own possession—were coined by the Old Testament to express Israel’s awareness of itself as a people called upon to carry out God’s plan. The Church regards herself as chosen by God and called to act in such a way that human life itself becomes a worship of God. This passage can be more profoundly understood by reflecting upon 1 Cor 3:16; Eph 2:20-22. In verses 9 and 10 citations from the Old Testament occur in this order: Isa 43:20-21; Ex 19:5-6; Hos 1:6-9; 2:23-24. These are reminiscences more than citations.
- 1 Peter 2:5 Holy priesthood: all who are united with Christ by faith share in the priesthood of Christ (see note on Heb 8:6-13).
- 1 Peter 2:8 For this they were born: the author states that by rejecting the Gospel, the people of the former Covenant have lost their prerogatives, which have now been given to the people of the New Covenant, i.e., Christians. The Scripture references in vv. 6-10 reflect the concern of early Christianity to explain Israel’s unbelief in light of the Old Testament itself.
