1 PETER, AN apostle (a special messenger) of Jesus Christ, writing to the elect exiles of the dispersion scattered (sowed) abroad in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,
2 Who were chosen and foreknown by God the Father and consecrated (sanctified, made holy) by the Spirit to be obedient to Jesus Christ (the Messiah) and to be sprinkled with His blood: May grace (spiritual blessing) and peace be given you in increasing abundance that spiritual peace to be realized in and through Christ, freedom from fears, agitating passions, and moral conflicts.
3 Praised (honored, blessed) be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah)! By His boundless mercy we have been born again to an ever-living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
4 Born anew into an inheritance which is beyond the reach of change and decay imperishable, unsullied and unfading, reserved in heaven for you,
5 Who are being guarded (garrisoned) by God's power through your faith till you fully inherit that final salvation that is ready to be revealed for you in the last time.
6 You should be exceedingly glad on this account, though now for a little while you may be distressed by trials and suffer temptations,
7 So that the genuineness of your faith may be tested, your faith which is infinitely more precious than the perishable gold which is tested and purified by fire. This proving of your faith is intended to redound to your praise and glory and honor when Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One) is revealed.
8 Without having seen Him, you love Him; though you do not even now see Him, you believe in Him and exult and thrill with inexpressible and glorious (triumphant, heavenly) joy.
9 At the same time you receive the result (outcome, consummation) of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
10 The prophets, who prophesied of the grace (divine blessing) which was intended for you, searched and inquired earnestly about this salvation.
11 They sought to find out to whom or when this was to come which the Spirit of Christ working within them was indicating when He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories that should follow them.
12 It was then disclosed to them that the services they were rendering were not meant for themselves and their period of time, but for you. It is these very things which have now already been made known plainly to you by those who preached the good news (the Gospel) to you by the same Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Into these things the very angels long to look!
13 So brace up your minds; be sober (circumspect, morally alert); set your hope wholly and unchangeably on the grace (divine favor) that is coming to you when Jesus Christ (the Messiah) is revealed.
14 Live as children of obedience to God; do not conform yourselves to the evil desires that governed you in your former ignorance when you did not know the requirements of the Gospel.
15 But as the One Who called you is holy, you yourselves also be holy in all your conduct and manner of living.
16 For it is written, You shall be holy, for I am holy. Lev. 11:44, 45.
17 And if you call upon Him as your Father Who judges each one impartially according to what he does, then you should conduct yourselves with true reverence throughout the time of your temporary residence on the earth, whether long or short.
18 You must know (recognize) that you were redeemed (ransomed) from the useless (fruitless) way of living inherited by tradition from your forefathers, not with corruptible things such as silver and gold,
19 But you were purchased with the precious blood of Christ (the Messiah), like that of a sacrificial lamb without blemish or spot.
20 It is true that He was chosen and foreordained (destined and foreknown for it) before the foundation of the world, but He was brought out to public view (made manifest) in these last days (at the end of the times) for the sake of you.
21 Through Him you believe in (adhere to, rely on) God, Who raised Him up from the dead and gave Him honor and glory, so that your faith and hope are centered and rest in God.
22 Since by your obedience to the Truth through the Holy Spirit you have purified your hearts for the sincere affection of the brethren, see that you love one another fervently from a pure heart.
23 You have been regenerated (born again), not from a mortal origin (seed, sperm), but from one that is immortal by the ever living and lasting Word of God.
24 For all flesh (mankind) is like grass, and all its glory (honor) like the flower of grass. The grass withers and the flower drops off,
25 But the Word of the Lord (divine instruction, the Gospel) endures forever. And this Word is the good news which was preached to you. Isa. 40:6-9.