1:5
The Berean Standard Bible has translated 1:3b–5 as one sentence. If such long sentences are not natural in your language, it may be better to start a new sentence here. For example, the New Century Version says:
God’s power protects you through your faith until salvation is shown to you at the end of time. (New Century Version)
1:5a
who through faith are shielded by God’s power: This is a passive clause. In some languages it may be more natural to use an active clause. For example:
God’s power shields you through ⌊your⌋ faith
-or-
God works powerfully to protect you as you believe ⌊in Jesus Christ⌋
through faith: The phrase through faith indicates that faith was the means through which God’s power protected Peter’s readers. In this context the faith that Peter referred to was his readers’ faith in God. Here are some other ways to translate through faith :
because you are trusting him (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
through your faith (New Century Version)
-or-
the power of God operating through your faith (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
faith: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as faith refers here to the action of believing and trusting God. In some languages it may be more natural to translate faith as a verb. If that is true in your language, you may also need to say what they believed. They trusted God and believed his promises. Some other ways to translate faith are:
trusted ⌊in God⌋
-or-
believed in ⌊the promises of⌋ God
shielded by God’s power: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as shielded means “guarded” or “protected.” Some other ways to translate this word include:
kept safe (Good News Translation)
-or-
guarded (God’s Word)
-or-
protected (NET Bible)
God’s power: It was God himself who protected the believers. He was able to do that because he was powerful. In many languages it may be necessary to make it clear that God himself is the one who would protect them. For example:
God in his strength
-or-
the powerful God
-or-
Almighty God
1:5b
for: There are two ways to interpret the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as for :
(1) It introduces the time during which God was protecting them. He would continue to protect them until the time when the final salvation is revealed. For example:
until salvation is shown to you at the end of time (New Century Version)
(New International Version, New Jerusalem Bible, New Living Translation (2004), Revised English Bible, New Century Version, Contemporary English Version Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
(2) It introduces the purpose for which God was protecting them. God was protecting them in order to save them. For example:
for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time (Revised Standard Version)
(Berean Standard Bible, God’s Word, King James Version, New American Standard Bible, NET Bible, Good News Translation, Revised Standard Version)
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). The Greek word does not imply that God would stop protecting his people when the salvation came, but they might not need the same type of protection.
the salvation: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible literally translates as the salvation refers to being rescued or saved from something harmful or dangerous. A person may be saved from physical dangers such as death or enemies or from spiritual dangers such as sin and its punishment. In this context salvation refers to being saved in the future in heaven. At that time God will deliver believers from all sin and suffering. Then they will have the joyful, eternal life that includes the blessings of the inheritance (1:4). In some languages, it may be necessary to translate salvation as a verb or phrase. For example:
you are saved
-or-
you are rescued
-or-
God saves/rescues you
-or-
God delivers you ⌊from all evil⌋
1:5c
that is ready to be revealed: This is a passive clause. In some languages it may be more natural to use an active expression. For example:
that ⌊God⌋ has prepared to reveal ⌊to people⌋
-or-
that ⌊God⌋ has made ready to show ⌊you⌋
revealed: In some languages it may not be possible to “reveal” or show something that is not a physical object. If that is true in your language, you may need to use a different expression. For example:
that ⌊God⌋ will cause ⌊everyone⌋ to know about
in the last time: The Greek word which the Berean Standard Bible translates as time refers to a time that has a special purpose. The word does not indicate how long that period of time lasts. In this context in the last time refers to the time at the end of this age/world. At that time God’s salvation will be revealed. Some other ways to translate this are:
at the end of time (God’s Word)
-or-
at the final point of time (New Jerusalem Bible)
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Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0.
All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible.
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