God's New Bible

The First Epistle General of Peter

Unlocked Dynamic Bible :: World English Bible Catholic

- Chapter 3 -

(Song of Solomon 1:1–17; Ephesians 5:22–33)
1
You women believers should submit yourselves to your husbands. Do this in order that if any of them do not believe the message about Messiah, they may become believers without your having to say anything to them.
2
They will believe in Messiah when they see that you honor them and that you are completely faithful to them.
3
Do not try to do this by decorating the outside of your bodies, such as having fancy hair arrangements or wearing gold jewelry and fine clothes.
4
Instead, make your inner beings beautiful in a way that will not fade. I mean, have a humble and quiet attitude, which is something that God considers to be very valuable.
5
The women who honored God, who lived long ago, made themselves beautiful in this way. They trusted in God and obeyed their husbands.
6
Sarah, for example, obeyed her husband Abraham and called him master. God will consider you to be her daughters if you do what is right and are not afraid of what your husbands or anyone else may do to you because you are believers.
7
You men who are believers, just as your wives should respect you, you should conduct your lives in an appropriate way with them. Treat them respectfully, realizing that they are usually weaker than you are. But also realize that God is making them to live forever, just like you. Do this so that nothing will hinder you from praying.

Turning from Evil

8
To end this part of my letter, I say to all of you, agree with each other in what you think. Be sympathetic toward each other. Love each other as members of the same family should. Act compassionately toward each other. Be humble.
9
When people do evil things to you or insult you, do not do the same to them. Instead, ask God to help them, because that is what you have been chosen by God to do, in order that he may help you.
10
Consider what the psalmist wrote about the proper way of conducting our lives: “As for those who want to enjoy life and for good things to happen to them, they must not say what is evil or speak words that deceive others.
11
They must continually refuse to do evil, and do what is good instead. They must try to help people act peacefully toward each other; they must earnestly urge people to act in a peaceful way,
12
because the Lord accepts what righteous people do. He listens to righteous people when they pray, and he answers them. But he rejects those who do evil.”
13
Who is going to harm you if you are making every effort to do what is good?

Suffering for Righteousness

14
But even if you suffer because you did what was right, God will bless you. “Do not be afraid of the things that others fear; and do not be troubled when people treat you badly.”
15
Instead, acknowledge in your inner beings that Messiah is your master, whom you love. Always be ready to answer anyone who demands that you tell them about what you are confidently expecting God to do for you. But answer them humbly and respectfully,
16
and make sure that you do nothing wrong, in order that those who speak evil about you may be ashamed when they see the good way in which you are conducting yourselves because you are joined to Messiah.
17
It may be that God wants you to suffer. If so, it is better to do good deeds, even if you suffer for doing them, than to do evil deeds.
18
I say that because Messiah died once for the sake of people who have sinned. He was a righteous person who died for unrighteous people. He died in order that he might bring us to God. During the time that he had an ordinary body, he was killed, but God’s Spirit caused him to become alive again.
19
The Spirit also enabled him to go proclaim God’s victory to the evil spirits whom God had imprisoned.
20
Long ago, during the time that Noah was building a big boat, those evil spirits disobeyed God when he waited patiently to see if people would turn from their evil behavior. Only a few people were saved in that boat. Specifically, God brought only eight persons safely through the waters of the flood, while all the others drowned in it.
21
That water represents the water in which we are baptized, by which God saves us because he raised Jesus Christ from the dead. This water, of course, removes no dirt from our bodies. Instead, it shows that we are requesting God to assure us that he has removed our guilt for having sinned.
22
Messiah has gone into heaven and is ruling in the place of highest honor next to God, after God caused all the evil and powerful spirit beings to be made obedient to him.
(Song of Solomon 1:1–17; Ephesians 5:22–33)
1
In the same way, wives, be in subjection to your own husbands, so that, even if any don’t obey the Word, they may be won by the behavior of their wives without a word,
2
seeing your pure behavior in fear.
3
Let your beauty come not from the outward adorning of braiding your hair, and of wearing gold ornaments or of putting on fine clothing,
4
but from the hidden person of the heart, in the incorruptible adornment of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in God’s sight.
5
For this is how in the past the holy women who hoped in God also adorned themselves, being in subjection to their own husbands.
6
So Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, whose children you now are if you do well and are not put in fear by any terror.
7
You husbands, in the same way, live with your wives according to knowledge, giving honor to the woman as to the weaker vessel, as also being joint heirs of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered.

Turning from Evil

8
Finally, all of you be like-minded, compassionate, loving as brothers, tenderhearted, courteous,
9
not rendering evil for evil or insult for insult; but instead blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing.
10
For,He who would love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit.
11
Let him turn away from evil and do good. Let him seek peace and pursue it.
12
For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears open to their prayer; but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”(a)
13
Now who will harm you if you become imitators of that which is good?

Suffering for Righteousness

14
But even if you should suffer for righteousnesssake, you are blessed. “Don’t fear what they fear, neither be troubled.”(b)
15
But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts. Always be ready to give an answer to everyone who asks you a reason concerning the hope that is in you, with humility and fear,
16
having a good conscience. Thus, while you are spoken against as evildoers, they may be disappointed who curse your good way of life in Christ.
17
For it is better, if it is God’s will, that you suffer for doing what is right than for doing evil.
18
Because Christ also suffered for sins once, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring you to God, being put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the Spirit,
19
in whom he also went and preached to the spirits in prison,
20
who before were disobedient when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ship was being built. In it, few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water.
21
This is a symbol of baptism, which now saves younot the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward Godthrough the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
22
who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, angels and authorities and powers being made subject to him.

Footnotes

(a)3:12 ℘ Psalms 34:12-16
(b)3:14 ℘ Isaiah 8:12