Weymouth New Testament in Modern Speech: 1 Peter | Page 2

spotless lamb. 001:020 He was
pre-destined indeed to this work, even before the creation of the world,
but has been plainly manifested in these last days for the sake of you
who, through Him, 001:021 are faithful to God, who raised Him from
among the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are
resting upon God. 001:022 Now that, through your obedience to the
truth, you have purified your souls for cherishing sincere brotherly love,
you must love another heartily and fervently. 001:023 For you have
been begotten again by God's ever-living and enduring word from a
germ not of perishable, but of imperishable life. 001:024 "All mankind
resemble the herbage, and all their beauty is like its flowers. The
herbage dries up, and its flowers drop off; 001:025 But the word of the
Lord remains for ever." And that means the Message which has been
proclaimed among you in the Good News. 002:001 Rid yourselves
therefore of all ill-will and all deceitfulness, of insincerity and envy,
and of all evil speaking. 002:002 Thirst, like newly-born infants, for
pure milk for the soul, that by it you may grow up to salvation; 002:003

if you have had any experience of the goodness of the Lord. 002:004
Come to Him, the ever-living Stone, rejected indeed by men as
worthless, but in God's esteem chosen and held in honour. 002:005 And
be yourselves also like living stones that are being built up into a
spiritual house, to become a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices
acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 002:006 For it is contained in
Scripture, "See, I am placing on Mount Zion a Cornerstone, chosen,
and held in honour, and he whose faith rests on Him shall never have
reason to feel ashamed." 002:007 To you believers, therefore, that
honour belongs; but for unbelievers--"A Stone which the builders
rejected has been made the Cornerstone," 002:008 and "a Stone for the
foot to strike against, and a Rock to stumble over." Their foot strikes
against it because they are disobedient to God's Message, and to this
they were appointed. 002:009 But you are a chosen race, a priesthood
of kingly lineage, a holy nation, a people belonging specially to God,
that you may make known the perfections of Him who called you out
of darkness into His marvellous light. 002:010 Once you were not a
people, but now you are the people of God. Once you had not found
mercy, but now you have. 002:011 Dear friends, I entreat you as
pilgrims and foreigners not to indulge the cravings of your lower
natures: for all such cravings wage war upon the soul. 002:012 Live
honourable lives among the Gentiles, in order that, although they now
speak against you as evil-doers, they may yet witness your good
conduct, and may glorify God on the day of reward and retribution.
002:013 Submit, for the Lord's sake, to every authority set up by man,
whether it be to the Emperor as supreme ruler, 002:014 or to provincial
Governors as sent by him for the punishment of evil-doers and the
encouragement of those who do what is right. 002:015 For it is God's
will that by doing what is right you should thus silence the ignorant talk
of foolish persons. 002:016 Be free men, and yet do not make your
freedom an excuse for base conduct, but be God's bondservants.
002:017 Honour every one. Love the brotherhood, fear God, honour the
Emperor. 002:018 Household servants, be submissive to your masters,
and show them the utmost respect--not only if they are kind and
thoughtful, but also if they are unreasonable. 002:019 For it is an
acceptable thing with God, if, from a sense of duty to Him, a man
patiently submits to wrong, when treated unjustly. 002:020 If you do

wrong and receive a blow for it, what credit is there in your bearing it
patiently? But if when you do right and suffer for it you bear it
patiently, this is an acceptable thing with God. 002:021 And it is to this
you were called; because Christ also suffered on your behalf, leaving
you an example so that you should follow in His steps. 002:022 He
never sinned, and no deceitful language was ever heard from His mouth.
002:023 When He was reviled, He did not answer with reviling; when
He suffered He uttered no threats, but left His wrongs in the hands of
the righteous Judge. 002:024 The burden of our sins He Himself carried
in His own body to the Cross and bore it there, so that we, having died
so far as our sins are concerned, may live righteous lives. By His
wounds yours have been healed. 002:025 For you were straying like
lost sheep, but now you have