22 By obedience to the truth,[a] having purified yourselves[b] for sincere love of the brothers, love one another(A) earnestly[c] from a pure[d] heart,(B) 23 since you have been born again(C)—not of perishable seed(D) but of imperishable—through the living and enduring word of God.(E) 24 For

All flesh is like grass,
and all its glory(F) like a flower of the grass.
The grass withers, and the flower falls,
25 but the word of the Lord endures forever.(G)[e]

And this is the word that was preached as the gospel to you.

The Living Stone and a Holy People

So rid yourselves of(H) all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all slander.(I) Like newborn infants, desire the pure spiritual milk,(J) so that you may grow by it for your salvation,[f] since you have tasted(K) that the Lord is good.(L)[g] Coming to Him, a living stone—rejected by men but chosen and valuable to God— you yourselves, as living stones, are being built into a spiritual house for a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God(M) through Jesus Christ. For it is contained in Scripture:

Look! I lay a stone in Zion,(N)
a chosen and honored[h] cornerstone,[i](O)
and the one who believes in Him
will never be put to shame![j](P)[k]

So honor will come to you who believe, but for the unbelieving,

The stone that the builders rejected—
this One has become the cornerstone,(Q)[l]

and

A stone to stumble over,[m]
and a rock to trip over.[n](R)[o]

They stumble because they disobey the message; they were destined(S) for this.

But you are a chosen race,[p](T)[q] a royal priesthood,(U)[r]
a holy nation,(V)[s] a people for His possession,(W)[t]
so that you may proclaim the praises[u](X)[v]
of the One who called you out of darkness
into His marvelous light.(Y)
10 Once you were not a people,
but now you are God’s people;
you had not received mercy,(Z)
but now you have received mercy.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Peter 1:22 Other mss add through the Spirit
  2. 1 Peter 1:22 Or purified your souls
  3. 1 Peter 1:22 Or intensely
  4. 1 Peter 1:22 Other mss omit pure
  5. 1 Peter 1:25 Is 40:6-8
  6. 1 Peter 2:2 Other mss omit in your salvation
  7. 1 Peter 2:3 Ps 34:8
  8. 1 Peter 2:6 Or valuable
  9. 1 Peter 2:6 Lit head of the corner
  10. 1 Peter 2:6 Or be disappointed
  11. 1 Peter 2:6 Is 28:16 LXX
  12. 1 Peter 2:7 Ps 118:22
  13. 1 Peter 2:8 Or a stone causing stumbling
  14. 1 Peter 2:8 Or a rock to trip over
  15. 1 Peter 2:8 Is 8:14
  16. 1 Peter 2:9 Or generation, or nation
  17. 1 Peter 2:9 Dt 7:6; 10:15; Is 43:20 LXX
  18. 1 Peter 2:9 Ex 19:6; 23:22 LXX; Is 61:6
  19. 1 Peter 2:9 Ex 19:6; 23:22 LXX
  20. 1 Peter 2:9 Ex 19:5; 23:22 LXX; Dt 4:20; 7:6; Is 43:21 LXX
  21. 1 Peter 2:9 Or the mighty deeds
  22. 1 Peter 2:9 Is 42:12; 43:21

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