You never knew him, but you love him; for the moment you do not see him, but you believe in him, and you will thrill with an unspeakable and glorious joy

as He who called you is holy, so you must be holy too in all your conduct ??16 for it is written, You shall be holy because I am holy.

So off with all malice, all guile and insincerity and envy and slander of every kind!

a stone over which men stumble and a rock of offence; they stumble over it in their disobedience to God's word. Such is their appointed doom.

But you are the elect race, the royal priesthood, the consecrated nation, the People who belong to Him, that you may proclaim the wondrous deeds of Him who has called you from darkness to his wonderful light ??10 you who once were no people and now are God's people, you who once were unpitied and now are pitied.

Conduct yourselves properly before pagans; so that for all their slander of you as bad characters, they may come to glorify God when you are put upon your trial, by what they see of your good deeds.

Submit for the Lord's sake to any human authority; submit to the emperor as supreme,

In the same way, you wives must be submissive to your husbands, so that even those who will not believe the Word may be won over without a word by the behaviour of their wives,

when they see how chaste and reverent you are.

In the same way you husbands must be considerate in living with your wives, since they are the weaker sex; you must honour them as heirs equally with yourselves of the grace of Life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.

see that you have a clean conscience, so that, for all their slander of you, these libellers of your good Christian behaviour may be ashamed.

who had disobeyed at the time when God's patience held out during the construction of the ark in the days of Noah ??the ark by which only a few souls, eight in all, were brought safely through the water.)

who is at God's right hand ??for he went to heaven after angels, authorities, and powers celestial had been made subject to him.)

You must serve one another, each with the talent he has received, as efficient stewards of God's varied grace.

If anyone preaches, he must preach as one who utters the words of God; if anyone renders some service, it must be as one who is supplied by God with power, so that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. The glory and the dominion are his for ever and ever: Amen.

You are sharing what Christ suffered; so rejoice in it, that you may also rejoice and exult when his glory is revealed.

It is time for the Judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the fate of those who refuse obedience to God's gospel?

So let those who are suffering by the will of God trust their souls to him, their faithful Creator, as they continue to do right.

Humble yourselves under the strong hand of God, then, so that when it is time, he may raise you;

Your sister-church in Babylon, elect like yourselves, salutes you. So does my son Mark.