Discovery Box1 Peter 1:13--2:12 
Context1:13 Therefore, get your minds ready for action 1 by being fully sober, and set your hope 2 completely on the grace that will be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed. 3 1:14 Like obedient children, do not comply with 4 the evil urges you used to follow in your ignorance, 5 1:15 but, like the Holy One who called you, become holy yourselves in all of your conduct, 1:16 for it is written, “You shall be holy, because I am holy.” 6 1:17 And if you address as Father the one who impartially judges according to each one’s work, live out the time of your temporary residence here 7 in reverence. 1:18 You know that from your empty way of life inherited from your ancestors you were ransomed – not by perishable things like silver or gold, 1:19 but by precious blood like that of an unblemished and spotless lamb, namely Christ. 1:20 He was foreknown 8 before the foundation of the world but 9 was manifested in these last times 10 for your sake. 1:21 Through him you now trust 11 in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.
1:22 You have purified 12 your souls by obeying the truth 13 in order to show sincere mutual love. 14 So 15 love one another earnestly from a pure heart. 16 1:23 You have been born anew, not from perishable but from imperishable seed, through the living and enduring word of God. 1:24 For
all flesh 17 is like grass
and all its glory like the flower of the grass; 18
the grass withers and the flower falls off,
1:25 but the word of the Lord 19 endures forever. 20
And this is the word that was proclaimed to you.
2:1 So get rid of 21 all evil and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. 2:2 And 22 yearn 23 like newborn infants for pure, spiritual milk, 24 so that by it you may grow up to 25 salvation, 26 2:3 if you have experienced 27 the Lord’s kindness. 28
2:4 So as you come to him, 29 a living stone rejected by men but 30 chosen and priceless 31 in God’s sight, 2:5 you yourselves, as living stones, are built up as a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood and to offer 32 spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 2:6 For it says 33 in scripture, “Look, I lay in Zion a stone, a chosen and priceless cornerstone, 34 and whoever believes 35 in him 36 will never 37 be put to shame.” 38 2:7 So you who believe see 39 his value, 40 but for those who do not believe, the stone that the builders rejected has become the 41 cornerstone, 42 2:8 and a stumbling-stone 43 and a rock to trip over. 44 They stumble 45 because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do. 46 2:9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own, so that you may proclaim the virtues 47 of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 2:10 You 48 once were not a people, but now you are God’s people. You were shown no mercy, 49 but now you have received mercy.
2:11 Dear friends, I urge you as foreigners and exiles to keep away from fleshly desires that do battle against the soul, 2:12 and maintain good conduct 50 among the non-Christians, 51 so that though 52 they now malign you as wrongdoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God when he appears. 53
1 tn Grk “binding up the loins of your mind,” a figure of speech drawn from the Middle Eastern practice of gathering up long robes around the waist to prepare for work or action.
2 tn Grk “having bound up…, being sober, set your hope…”
3 tn Grk “at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (cf. v. 7).
4 tn Or “do not be conformed to”; Grk “not being conformed to.”
5 tn Grk “the former lusts in your ignorance.”
6 sn A quotation from Lev 19:2.
7 tn Grk “the time of your sojourn,” picturing the Christian’s life in this world as a temporary stay in a foreign country (cf. 1:1).
8 tn Grk “who was foreknown,” describing Christ in v. 19. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
9 tn Greek emphasizes the contrast between these two clauses more than can be easily expressed in English.
10 tn Grk “at the last of the times.”
11 tc Although there may be only a slight difference in translation, the term translated as “trust” is the adjective πιστούς (pistous). This is neither as common nor as clear as the verb πιστεύω (pisteuw, “believe, trust”). Consequently, most
tn Grk “who through him [are] trusting,” describing the “you” of v. 20. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
12 tn Grk “having purified,” as the preparation for the love described in the second half of the verse.
13 tc Most later
14 tn Grk “for sincere brotherly love.”
15 tn Verses 22-23 are a single sentence in the Greek text. To improve clarity (and because contemporary English tends to use shorter sentences) these verses have been divided into three sentences in the translation. In addition, “So” has been supplied at the beginning of the second English sentence (v. 22b) to indicate the relationship with the preceding statement.
16 tc A few
17 sn Here all flesh is a metaphor for humanity – human beings as both frail and temporary.
18 tn Or “a wildflower.”
19 sn The word of the Lord is a technical expression in OT literature, often referring to a divine prophetic utterance (e.g., Gen 15:1, Isa 1:10, Jonah 1:1). In the NT it occurs 15 times: 3 times as ῥῆμα τοῦ κυρίου (rJhma tou kuriou; here and in Luke 22:61, Acts 11:16) and 12 times as λόγος τοῦ κυρίου (logo" tou kuriou; Acts 8:25; 13:44, 48, 49; 15:35, 36; 16:32; 19:10, 20; 1 Thess 1:8, 4:15; 2 Thess 3:1). As in the OT, this phrase focuses on the prophetic nature and divine origin of what has been said.
20 sn A quotation from Isa 40:6, 8.
21 tn Or “put away.”
22 tn Here “And” has been supplied in the translation to show clearly the connection between vv. 1 and 2.
23 tn Grk “getting rid of…yearn for.”
24 tn The word for spiritual in Greek is λογικός (logikos), which is a play on words with the reference in 1:23-25 to the living and enduring word (λόγος, logos) of God, through which they were born anew. This is a subtle indication that the nourishment for their growth must be the word of God.
25 tn Or “in, in regard to.” But the focus of “salvation” here, as in 1:5, 9, is the future deliverance of these who have been born anew and protected by God’s power.
26 tc The Byzantine text lacks εἰς σωτηρίαν (ei" swthrian, “to salvation”), while the words are found in the earliest and best witnesses (Ì72 א A B C K P Ψ 33 81 630 1241 1505 1739 al latt sy co). Not only is the longer reading superior externally, but since the notion of growing up [in]to salvation would have seemed theologically objectionable, it is easy to see why some scribes would omit it.
27 tn Grk “have tasted that the Lord is kind.”
28 sn A quotation from Ps 34:8.
29 tn Grk “to whom coming…you are built up…” as a continuation of the reference to the Lord in v. 3.
30 tn Greek emphasizes the contrast between these two phrases more than can be easily expressed in English.
31 tn Grk “chosen, priceless.”
32 tn Grk “unto a holy priesthood to offer.”
33 tn Grk “it contains,” “it stands.”
34 tn Grk “chosen, priceless.”
35 tn Grk “the one who believes.”
36 tn Grk either “in him” or “in it,” but the OT and NT uses personify the stone as the King, the Messiah whom God will establish in Jerusalem.
37 tn The negative (οὐ μή, ou mh) is emphatic: “will certainly not.”
38 sn A quotation from Isa 28:16.
39 tn Grk “to you who believe is the value,” referring to their perception of the stone in contrast to those who reject (vv. 7b-8). But the expression may also be translated as “to you who believe is this honor,” referring to the lack of shame cited in v. 6b.
40 tn Grk “the value” or “the honor,” but the former is preferred since it comes from the same root as “priceless” in vv. 4, 6, and it is in contrast to the negative estimate of the stone by those who reject (vv. 7b-8).
41 tn Grk “the head of the corner.”
42 sn A quotation from Ps 118:22 (cf. Matt 21:42; Mark 12:10; Luke 20:17; Acts 4:11).
43 tn Grk “a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.” The latter phrase uses the term σκάνδαλον (skandalon), denoting an obstacle to faith, something that arouses anger and rejection.
44 sn A quotation from Isa 8:14.
45 tn Grk “who stumble,” referring to “those who do not believe” in vs. 7. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
46 tn Grk “to which they were also destined.”
47 sn This verse contains various allusions and quotations from Exod 19:5-6; 23:22 (LXX); Isa 43:20-21; and Mal 3:17.
48 tn Grk “who,” continuing the description of the readers from vs. 9. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
49 sn The quotations in v. 10 are from Hos 1:6, 9; 2:23.
50 tn Grk “keeping your conduct good.”
51 tn Grk “the Gentiles,” used here of those who are not God’s people.
52 tn Grk “in order that in what they malign you.”
53 tn Or “when he visits.” Grk “in the day of visitation,” denoting a time when God intervenes directly in human affairs, either for blessing (Luke 1:68, 78; 7:16; 19:44) or for judgment (Isa 10:3; Jer 6:15). This phrase may be a quotation from Isa 10:3, in which case judgment is in view here. But blessing seems to be the point, since part of the motive for good behavior is winning the non-Christian over to the faith (as in 3:1; also apparently in 3:15; cf. Matt 5:16).
