Book of Common Prayer

Beloved, Keep Your Conduct Praiseworthy In The World So That God May Be Glorified

¹¹ Beloved, I exhort you as foreigners^[a] and pilgrims to be abstaining from fleshly desires which wage-war against the soul, ¹² holding your conduct good^[b] among the Gentiles in order that in what they are speaking-against you as evil-doers^[c], they may by observing your good works glorify God on the day of visitation^[d].

Be Subject To Human Institutions For The Lord’s Sake

¹³ Be subject to every human institution for the Lord’s sake— whether to a king as being superior, ¹⁴ or to governors as being sent by him^[e] for the punishment of evil-doers and praise of good-doers. ¹⁵ Because thus is the will of God, that while doing-good you may be silencing the ignorance of foolish people.

Honor Everyone

¹⁶ As^[f] free ones, and not having the freedom as a covering of evilness, but as slaves of God, ¹⁷ honor everyone: be loving the brotherhood^[g], be fearing God, be honoring the king;

Be Subject To Your Masters, Whether Good Or Bad, Following Christ’s Example

¹⁸ ... servants, being subject to your masters with all fear^[h], not only to the good and kind ones, but also to the crooked^[i] ones. ¹⁹ For this finds favor— if for the sake of a consciousness^[j] of God one bears-up^[k] while suffering sorrows unjustly. ²⁰ For what-kind-of credit^[l] is it if while sinning and being beaten, you will endure? But if while doing-good and suffering you will endure, this finds favor with God. ²¹ For you were called to this^[m]. Because Christ also suffered for you, leaving-behind a pattern for you in order that you might follow-after His footsteps—

Christ Suffered Unjustly, Entrusting Himself To God

²² ... Who “did not commit sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth” [Isa 53:9]; ²³ Who while being reviled, was not reviling-in-return; while suffering, was not threatening, but was committing Himself ^[n] to the One judging righteously; ²⁴ Who Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross in order that we, having died^[o] to sins, might live for righteousness; by Whose bruise you were healed. ²⁵ For you were going-astray like sheep, but now you returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

20 ¹ For the kingdom of the heavens is like a man who is a house-master, who went out together-with early-morning to hire workers into his vineyard. ² And having made-an-agreement with the workers for a denarius^[a] for the day, he sent them out into his vineyard. ³ And having gone out around the third^[b] hour, he saw others standing idle in the marketplace. ⁴ And to those he said, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and I will give you whatever may be right’. ⁵ And the ones went. And again having gone out around the sixth and the ninth hour, he did similarly. ⁶ And having gone out around the eleventh^[c] hour, he found others standing there. And he says to them, ‘Why are you standing here idle the whole day? ⁷ They say to him, ‘Because no one hired us’. He says to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard’. ⁸ And having become evening, the master of the vineyard says to his manager^[d], ‘Call the workers, and pay them the wages— beginning from the last ones, up to the first ones’. ⁹ And having come, the ones hired around the eleventh hour received a denarius apiece. ¹⁰ And having come, the first ones thought that they would receive more. And they also themselves received the denarius apiece. ¹¹ And having received it, they were grumbling against the house-master, ¹² saying, ‘These last ones did one hour, and you made them equal to us— the ones having borne the burden of the day and the burning-heat’. ¹³ But the one, having responded, said to one of them, ‘Friend, I am not wronging you. Did you not make-an-agreement with me for a denarius? ¹⁴ Take what is yours and go. But I want to give to this last one as I also gave to you. ¹⁵ Or is it not lawful for me to do what I want with my things? Or is your eye^[e] evil because I am good?’ ¹⁶ Thus the last ones will be first, and the first ones, last”.