according to a foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, to obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace be multiplied!

Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who, according to the abundance of His kindness did beget us again to a living hope, through the rising again of Jesus Christ out of the dead,

who, in the power of God are being guarded, through faith, unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time,

to whom it was revealed, that not to themselves, but to us they were ministering these, which now were told to you (through those who did proclaim good news to you,) in the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, to which things messengers do desire to bend looking.

who through him do believe in God, who did raise out of the dead, and glory to him did give, so that your faith and hope may be in God.

being begotten again, not out of seed corruptible, but incorruptible, through a word of God -- living and remaining -- to the age;

and the saying of the Lord doth remain -- to the age; and this is the saying that was proclaimed good news to you.

to whom coming -- a living stone -- by men, indeed, having been disapproved of, but with God choice, precious,

and ye yourselves, as living stones, are built up, a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

who were once not a people, and are now the people of God; who had not found kindness, and now have found kindness.

having your behaviour among the nations right, that in that which they speak against you as evil-doers, of the good works having beheld, they may glorify God in a day of inspection.

whether to governors, as to those sent through him, for punishment, indeed, of evil-doers, and a praise of those doing good;

because, so is the will of God, doing good, to put to silence the ignorance of the foolish men;

as free, and not having the freedom as the cloak of the evil, but as servants of God;

to all give ye honour; the brotherhood love ye; God fear ye; the king honour ye.

The domestics! be subjecting yourselves in all fear to the masters, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the cross;

for this is gracious, if because of conscience toward God any one doth endure sorrows, suffering unrighteously;

for what renown is it, if sinning and being buffeted, ye do endure it? but if, doing good and suffering for it, ye do endure, this is gracious with God,

but -- the hidden man of the heart, in the incorruptible thing of the meek and quiet spirit, which is, before God, of great price,

for thus once also the holy women who did hope on God, were adorning themselves, being subject to their own husbands,

as Sarah was obedient to Abraham, calling him 'sir,' of whom ye did become daughters, doing good, and not fearing any terror.

for 'he who is willing to love life, and to see good days, let him guard his tongue from evil, and his lips -- not to speak guile;

let him turn aside from evil, and do good, let him seek peace and pursue it;

and who is he who will be doing you evil, if of Him who is good ye may become imitators?

and the Lord God sanctify in your hearts. And be ready always for defence to every one who is asking of you an account concerning the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;

having a good conscience, that in that in which they speak against you as evil-doers, they may be ashamed who are traducing your good behaviour in Christ;

for it is better doing good, if the will of God will it, to suffer, than doing evil;

because also Christ once for sin did suffer -- righteous for unrighteous -- that he might lead us to God, having been put to death indeed, in the flesh, and having been made alive in the spirit,

who sometime disbelieved, when once the long-suffering of God did wait, in days of Noah -- an ark being preparing -- in which few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water;

also to which an antitype doth now save us -- baptism, (not a putting away of the filth of flesh, but the question of a good conscience in regard to God,) through the rising again of Jesus Christ,

who is at the right hand of God, having gone on to heaven -- messengers, and authorities, and powers, having been subjected to him.

no more in the desires of men, but in the will of God, to live the rest of the time in the flesh;

for for this also to dead men was good news proclaimed, that they may be judged, indeed, according to men in the flesh, and may live according to God in the spirit.

each, according as he received a gift, to one another ministering it, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God;

if any one doth speak -- 'as oracles of God;' if any one doth minister -- 'as of the ability which God doth supply;' that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom is the glory and the power -- to the ages of the ages. Amen.

if ye be reproached in the name of Christ -- happy are ye, because the Spirit of glory and of God upon you doth rest; in regard, indeed, to them, he is evil-spoken of, and in regard to you, he is glorified;

and if as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; and let him glorify God in this respect;

because it is the time of the beginning of the judgment from the house of God, and if first from us, what the end of those disobedient to the good news of God?

so that also those suffering according to the will of god, as to a stedfast Creator, let them commit their own souls in good doing.

feed the flock of God that is among you, overseeing not constrainedly, but willingly, neither for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind,

In like manner, ye younger, be subject to elders, and all to one another subjecting yourselves; with humble-mindedness clothe yourselves, because God the proud doth resist, but to the humble He doth give grace;

be humbled, then, under the powerful hand of God, that you He may exalt in good time,

And the God of all grace, who did call you to His age-during glory in Christ Jesus, having suffered a little, Himself make you perfect, establish, strengthen, settle you;

Through Silvanus, to you the faithful brother, as I reckon, through few words I did write, exhorting and testifying this to be the true grace of God in which ye have stood.