But the word of the Lord is eternal. And this is the word of the good news which was given to you.

To whom you come, as to a living stone, not honoured by men, but of great and special value to God;

You, as living stones, are being made into a house of the spirit, a holy order of priests, making those offerings of the spirit which are pleasing to God through Jesus Christ.

And, A stone of falling, a rock of trouble; the word is the cause of their fall, because they go against it, and this was the purpose of God.

But you are a special people, a holy nation, priests and kings, a people given up completely to God, so that you may make clear the virtues of him who took you out of the dark into the light of heaven.

In the past you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; then there was no mercy for you, but now mercy has been given to you.

Being of good behaviour among the Gentiles; so that though they say now that you are evil-doers, they may see your good works and give glory to God when he comes to be their judge.

Because it is God's pleasure that foolish and narrow-minded men may be put to shame by your good behaviour:

As those who are free, not using your free position as a cover for wrongdoing, but living as the servants of God;

Have respect for all, loving the brothers, fearing God, honouring the king.

Servants, take orders from your masters with all respect; not only if they are good and gentle, but even if they are bad-humoured.

For it is a sign of grace if a man, desiring to do right in the eyes of God, undergoes pain as punishment for something which he has not done.

What credit is it if, when you have done evil, you take your punishment quietly? but if you are given punishment for doing right, and take it quietly, this is pleasing to God.

This is God's purpose for you: because Jesus himself underwent punishment for you, giving you an example, so that you might go in his footsteps:

When they see your holy behaviour in the fear of God.

But let them be those of the unseen man of the heart, the ever-shining ornament of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great price in the eyes of God.

And these were the ornaments of the holy women of the past, whose hope was in God, being ruled by their husbands:

Not giving back evil for evil, or curse for curse, but in place of cursing, blessing; because this is the purpose of God for you that you may have a heritage of blessing.

For it is said, Let the man who has a love of life, desiring to see good days, keep his tongue from evil and his lips from words of deceit:

And let him be turned from evil and do good; searching for peace and going after it with all his heart.

Who will do you any damage if you keep your minds fixed on what is good?

Being conscious that you have done no wrong; so that those who say evil things about your good way of life as Christians may be put to shame.

Because if it is God's purpose for you to undergo pain, it is better to do so for well-doing than for evil-doing.

Because Christ once went through pain for sins, the upright one taking the place of sinners, so that through him we might come back to God; being put to death in the flesh, but given life in the Spirit;

Who, in the days of Noah, went against God's orders; but God in his mercy kept back the punishment, while Noah got ready the ark, in which a small number, that is to say eight persons, got salvation through water:

And baptism, of which this is an image, now gives you salvation, not by washing clean the flesh, but by making you free from the sense of sin before God, through the coming again of Jesus Christ from the dead;

Who has gone into heaven, and is at the right hand of God, angels and authorities and powers having been put under his rule.

So that you may give the rest of your lives in the flesh, not to the desires of men, but to the purpose of God.

For this was the reason why the good news of Jesus was given even to the dead, so that they might be judged as men in the flesh, but might be living before God in the spirit.

Making distribution among one another of whatever has been given to you, like true servants of the unmeasured grace of God;

If anyone has anything to say, let it be as the words of God; if anyone has the desire to be the servant of others, let him do it in the strength which is given by God; so that in all things God may have the glory through Jesus Christ, whose are the glory and the power for ever.

If men say evil things of you because of the name of Christ, happy are you; for the Spirit of glory and of God is resting on you.

But if he undergoes punishment as a Christian, that is no shame to him; let him give glory to God in this name.

For the time has come for the judging, starting with the church of God; but if it makes a start with us, what will be the end of those who are not under the rule of God?

And if it is hard for even the good man to get salvation, what chance has the man without religion or the sinner?

For this reason let those who by the purpose of God undergo punishment, keep on in well-doing and put their souls into the safe hands of their Maker.

Keep watch over the flock of God which is in your care, using your authority, not as forced to do so, but gladly; and not for unclean profit but with a ready mind;

Not as lords over God's heritage, but making yourselves examples to the flock.

And in the same way, let the younger men be ruled by the older ones. Let all of you put away pride and make yourselves ready to be servants: for God is a hater of pride, but he gives grace to those who make themselves low.

For this cause make yourselves low under the strong hand of God, so that when the time comes you may be lifted up;

And after you have undergone pain for a little time, the God of all grace who has given you a part in his eternal glory through Christ Jesus, will himself give you strength and support, and make you complete in every good thing;

I have sent you this short letter by Silvanus, a true brother, in my opinion; comforting you and witnessing that this is the true grace of God; keep to it.

She who is in Babylon, who has a part with you in the purpose of God, sends you her love; and so does my son Mark.

Simon Peter, a servant and Apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who with us have a part in the same holy faith in the righteousness of our God and Saviour Jesus Christ:

May grace and peace ever be increasing in you, in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord;

And through this he has given us the hope of great rewards highly to be valued; so that by them we might have our part in God's being, and be made free from the destruction which is in the world through the desires of the flesh.

And self-control to knowledge, and a quiet mind to self-control, and fear of God to a quiet mind,

And love of the brothers to fear of God, and to love of the brothers, love itself.

For if you have these things in good measure, they will make you fertile and full of fruit in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

For God the Father gave him honour and glory, when such a voice came to him out of the great glory, saying, This is my dearly loved Son, with whom I am well pleased.

For these words did not ever come through the impulse of men: but the prophets had them from God, being moved by the Holy Spirit.

For if God did not have pity for the angels who did evil, but sent them down into hell, to be kept in chains of eternal night till they were judged;

For with high-sounding false words, making use of the attraction of unclean desires of the flesh, they get into their power those newly made free from those who are living in error;

For if, after they have got free from the unclean things of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again taken in the net and overcome, their last condition is worse than their first.

But in taking this view they put out of their minds the memory that in the old days there was a heaven, and an earth lifted out of the water and circled by water, by the word of God;

Looking for and truly desiring the coming of the day of God, when the heavens will come to an end through fire, and the substance of the earth will be changed by the great heat?

This is the word which came to us from him and which we give to you, that God is light and in him there is nothing dark.

But in every man who keeps his word, the love of God is made complete. By this we may be certain that we are in him:

I have sent a letter to you, fathers, because you have knowledge of him who was from the first. I have sent a letter to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God is in you, and because you have overcome the Evil One.

And the world and its desires is coming to an end: but he who does God's pleasure is living for ever.

See what great love the Father has given us in naming us the children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not see who we are, because it did not see who he was.

My loved ones, now we are children of God, and at present it is not clear what we are to be. We are certain that at his revelation we will be like him; for we will see him as he is.

The sinner is a child of the Evil One; for the Evil One has been a sinner from the first. And the Son of God was seen on earth so that he might put an end to the works of the Evil One.

Anyone who is a child of God does no sin, because he still has God's seed in him; he is not able to be a sinner, because God is his Father.

In this way it is clear who are the children of God and who are the children of the Evil One; anyone who does not do righteousness or who has no love for his brother, is not a child of God.

Not being of the Evil One like Cain, who put his brother to death. And why did he put him to death? Because his works were evil and his brother's works were good.

But if a man has this world's goods, and sees that his brother is in need, and keeps his heart shut against his brother, how is it possible for the love of God to be in him?

My little children, do not let our love be in word and in tongue, but let it be in act and in good faith.

When our heart says that we have done wrong; because God is greater than our heart, and has knowledge of all things.

He who keeps his laws is in God and God is in him. And the Spirit which he gave us is our witness that he is in us.

My loved ones, do not put your faith in every spirit, but put them to the test, to see if they are from God: because a great number of false prophets have gone out into the world.

By this you may have knowledge of the Spirit of God: every spirit which says that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God:

And every spirit which does not say this is not from God: this is the spirit of Antichrist, of which you have had word; and it is in the world even now.

You are of God, my little children, and you have overcome them because he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

We are of God: he who has the knowledge of God gives ear to us; he who is not of God does not give ear to us. By this we may see which is the true spirit, and which is the spirit of error.

My loved ones, let us have love for one another: because love is of God, and everyone who has love is a child of God and has knowledge of God.

He who has no love has no knowledge of God, because God is love.

And the love of God was made clear to us when he sent his only Son into the world so that we might have life through him.

And this is love, not that we had love for God, but that he had love for us, and sent his Son to be an offering for our sins.

My loved ones, if God had such love for us, it is right for us to have love for one another.

No man has ever seen God: if we have love for one another, God is in us and his love is made complete in us:

Everyone who says openly that Jesus is the Son of God, has God in him and is in God.

And we have seen and had faith in the love which God has for us. God is love, and everyone who has love is in God, and God is in him.

If a man says, I have love for God, and has hate for his brother, his words are false: for how is the man who has no love for his brother whom he has seen, able to have love for God whom he has not seen?

And this is the word which we have from him, that he who has love for God is to have the same love for his brother.

Everyone who has faith that Jesus is the Christ is a child of God: and everyone who has love for the Father has love for his child.

In this way, we are certain that we have love for the children of God, when we have love for God and keep his laws.

For loving God is keeping his laws: and his laws are not hard.

Anything which comes from God is able to overcome the world: and the power by which we have overcome the world is our faith.

Who is able to overcome the world but the man who has faith that Jesus is the Son of God?

If we take the witness of men to be true, the witness of God is greater: because this is the witness which God has given about his Son.

He who has faith in the Son of God has the witness in himself: he who has not faith in God makes him false, because he has not faith in the witness which God has given about his Son.

And his witness is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.

He who has the Son has the life; he who has not the Son of God has not the life.

I have put these things in writing for you who have faith in the name of the Son of God, so that you may be certain that you have eternal life.

And if we are certain that he gives ear to all our requests, we are equally certain that we will get our requests.

If a man sees his brother doing a sin which is not bad enough for death, let him make a prayer to God, and God will give life to him whose sin was not bad enough for death. There is a sin whose punishment is death: I do not say that he may make such a request then.

We are certain that one who is a child of God will do no sin, but the Son of God keeps him so that he is not touched by the Evil One.

We are certain that we are of God, but all the world is in the power of the Evil One.

And we are certain that the Son of God has come, and has given us a clear vision, so that we may see him who is true, and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.