SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 Peter 2018

SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 Peter 1:8

1:8a

Though you have not seen Him, you love Him: The Christians to whom Peter wrote this letter had not seen Jesus when he was on earth. However, they loved him. It may be helpful to make this a separate sentence. Other ways to translate it are:

You have not seen Christ, but still you love him. (New Century Version)
-or-
You love ⌊Jesus Christ⌋ although you have not seen him.

Him: Him refers to Jesus Christ. In some languages it may be more natural to repeat his name here. For example:

You have not seen ⌊Jesus Christ⌋

In this letter, Peter does not use the name “Jesus” without “Christ.” He also does not use only “Christ” until 1:11, where he refers to Christ before he became a human being. Therefore, if you make his name explicit here, it is best to say “Jesus Christ.”

love: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as love means that a person values and reveres Jesus Christ (and God) with gratitude and affection. He is devoted and loyal to Christ. Use a natural expression or idiom for this word.

1:8b

and though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him: This verse part is similar in meaning to 1:8a. The believers were trusting Jesus Christ without being able to see him. It may be helpful to make this a separate sentence. Other ways to translate it are:

You do not see him now, but still you believe in him.
-or-
You believe in Jesus Christ, even though you do not see him now.

believe in Him: To believe in Jesus means to “entrust oneself” to Jesus, that is, “to place oneself in the complete care” of Jesus. Some other ways to translate this are:

rely/depend on
-or-
trust in
-or-
trust in and commit to
-or-
have confidence in

Your language may use an idiom for this meaning.

General Comment on 1:8a–b

The statements in 1:8a and 1:8b are similar. In some languages it may be helpful to translate each statement in a parallel way. For example:

You have never seen Jesus Christ, yet you love him.

You do not see him now, yet you believe in him.

In some languages it may be more natural to put the two negative and the two positive statements in 1:8a–b together. For example, the Contemporary English Version says:

You have never seen Jesus, and you don’t see him now. But still you love him and have faith in him… (Contemporary English Version)

1:8c

and: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as and introduces what happens as a result of 1:8a–b. The NET Bible says:

and so…

rejoice with an inexpressible and glorious joy: In Greek, this part of the verse is literally, “you rejoice with joy inexpressible and glorious.” This phrase emphasizes the great joy that the believers feel. They are so joyful that they are not able to describe it. Use a natural way to express this emphasis in your language. Here are some ways to say this:

you are wonderfully happy, more than you can express
-or-
no words can tell how glad and happy you are (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
You are extremely happy with joy and praise that can hardly be expressed in words (God’s Word)

inexpressible: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translate as inexpressible occurs only here in the New Testament. Peter meant that the joy was so great and wonderful that no one could describe it adequately in words. Other ways to say this include:

indescribable (NET Bible)
-or-
cannot be described (New Jerusalem Bible)
-or-
which words cannot express (Good News Translation)

glorious: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as glorious is literally “having been glorified/exalted.” This is a passive verbal form. The joy was a special kind of joy that came from their faith in Jesus. If you have an expression that describes joy that comes from something wonderful or magnificent, you may be able to use it here. Other ways to say this are:

full of glory (New Century Version)
-or-
exalted (Revised Standard Version)

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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.
BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.

SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 Peter 2:15

2:15

Peter wanted the Christians to behave so well that their unbelieving neighbors would not be able to criticize them.

In some languages it may be natural to break this verse up into two sentences. For example:

For it is God’s will that you should do good. In this way you will silence the ignorant talk of foolish men.

2:15a

For: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as For here means “because.” It introduces the reason why the believers should submit to their civil rulers.

it is God’s will that: The phrase God’s will here refers to the thing that God wants to happen. In some languages it may be necessary to translate God’s will with a verb phrase. Here is another way to translate this:

for God wants you to… (NET Bible)

2:15b

by doing good: This is the means by which God’s will could be carried out. In some languages it may be natural to say something like:

you should do good and so…

doing good: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as doing good is from the same word that is translated as “those who do right” in 2:14b. The Berean Standard Bible has changed from “right” to good for the sake of variety, in accordance with good English style. In your translation, use the same or a different word according to what is most natural in your language.

2:15c

you should silence the ignorance of foolish men: The Berean Standard Bible translates the Greek phrase literally here by saying silence the ignorance. The Revised Standard Version says similarly “you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish men.” But in many languages, neither “ignorance” nor “ignorant talk” (New International Version, Good News Translation) may be things that can be silenced. It may be more natural to speak of silencing people. For example:

make foolish people stop saying such ignorant things
-or-
silence foolish and ignorant people

you should silence: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as you should silence in this context refers to making it morally impossible rather than physically impossible for people to say bad things. The truth should be so obvious that people would be ashamed to keep talking badly about the believers. Other ways to translate this include:

you should cause those foolish people to fall silent
-or-
you should make it impossible for foolish people to say…

the ignorance: By ignorance, the Berean Standard Bible is actually referring to speech that is not based on knowledge of the facts. The person who is speaking does not know the truth. So in some languages it may be necessary to translate this as:

the talk/words of ignorant people

It is implied that what these people were saying was false and that they were saying bad things about the believers. In some languages it may be necessary to make this explicit:

the ⌊false⌋ things that ignorant people are saying ⌊about you⌋

foolish men: The word foolish means lacking good sense.

men: Here the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as men means people in general and refers to anyone who was speaking evil about believers.

General Comment on 2:15a–c

In some languages it may be natural to reverse the order of verse parts b and c. For example:

15a For it is God’s will that 15c you should cause foolish people to stop saying wrong things about you. 15b You can do this by doing good/right.
-or-
For God wants you to silence the ignorant talk of foolish people by the good things you do. (Good News Translation)
-or-
God wants you to silence stupid and ignorant people by doing right. (Contemporary English Version)

SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 Peter 3:22

3:22a

who has gone into heaven: Jesus Christ went into heaven forty days after he came alive from the dead. This is described in Acts 1:1–10.

heaven: The word heaven here refers to the dwelling place of God, outside our universe. Some other ways to translate this word are:

the place of God
-or-
the place where God lives

and is at the right hand of God: Peter did not say whether Jesus was standing or sitting at God’s right hand. If it is necessary for you to make this explicit, it is recommended that you supply the information that he is seated (see Ephesians 1:20 and Colossians 3:1). For example:

and is ⌊sitting/seated⌋ at God’s right hand

right hand: This was the most important position in Jewish culture, but in other cultures the left side is the more important. If neither side is more important in your culture, you could translate right hand as:

the place of ⌊highest⌋ honor

3:22b

with angels, authorities, and powers subject to Him: In some languages it may be natural to translate this as a separate clause with its own verb:

and angels, authorities and powers submit to him

angels, authorities, and powers: The phrase angels, authorities, and powers includes all supernatural beings, whether good or bad.

angels: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as angels means “messengers.” It refers here to spirit beings who serve God. Sometimes God sends an angel to tell a message to human beings. He also sends angels to serve him in other ways. Some ways to translate this term are:

• Use a descriptive word or phrase. For example:

messengers ⌊from God/heaven⌋
-or-

⌊good/holy⌋ spirit-beings

• Use a local term that fits the biblical meaning.

• In some areas the churches may already be using a borrowed term or a transliterated word for “angel.” Be sure that this term fits the biblical meaning. If some people do not understand the right meaning from this term, you may need to indicate the meaning in some way. For example:

an angelos messenger ⌊from God⌋
-or-
a sacred angelos spirit

Be sure that your term for “angel” is different from your terms for “prophet” and “apostle.”

authorities, and powers: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as authorities, and powers refers to supernatural forces that were believed to affect the lives of people. Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

spirits ⌊in the sky⌋ who have authority and power
-or-
supernatural beings who have authority and power

subject to Him: The phrase subject to him here means “recognizing Christ’s authority”; that is, obeying him. Some other ways to translate this phrase are:

under his control (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
ruling over all angels and heavenly authorities and powers (Good News Translation)

SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 Peter 5:13

Paragraph 5:13–14

5:13a

The church in Babylon: Here the Greek says literally “She in Babylon.” Most commentators think that this is a figure of speech and that Peter was referring to a church. The Berean Standard Bible makes this explicit, as do some other translations. For example:

Your sister church in Babylon (Good News Translation)

Babylon: Babylon is probably a secret name for Rome. So most commentators think that “She in Babylon” refers to the church in Rome, the city from which Peter was writing the letter. This information can be included in a footnote, if you are using footnotes in your translation.

Peter probably used Babylon as a symbolic name for Rome because Rome was then the capital of the pagan world, just as Babylon had been the capital of the ancient pagan world. In Old Testament times Babylon was a godless city that was the center of opposition to God’s people. Babylon was also where the Jews lived when they were exiled from their own land, and Peter had described the people he was writing to as exiles (1:1c ; 2:11a).

chosen together with you: Peter was saying that God had chosen the believers in Babylon/Rome to be his people, just as he had chosen the Christians to whom Peter was writing.

This expression is passive. It may be more natural in your language to make it active and to indicate that God was the one who chose these believers. For example:

God has chosen them (Easy English Bible)

5:13b

my son Mark: Mark is probably the John Mark mentioned in Acts 12:12 who went with Paul on his first missionary journey. When Peter calls Mark my son, that does not mean that Peter was his real father, but that Mark was dear to Peter. If in your language “my son” would mean that Peter had fathered Mark, then you may need to make it clear that this is only a figure of speech. For example, you could say:

who is ⌊like⌋ a son to me
-or-
who is ⌊as dear to me as⌋ a son

SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 Peter 1:19

1:19

In 1:18, Peter told his readers that God had not paid silver or gold to redeem them. Here in this verse, Peter told what price God did pay to redeem them. The payment was the precious blood of Christ.

Since this verse part continues a long sentence, it may be natural to start a new sentence here. For example:

You were set free by Christ’s precious blood, blood like that of a lamb without mark or blemish. (Revised English Bible)

but: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as but marks a strong contrast. The contrast is between perishable things such as silver or gold and “the precious blood of Christ.” Show this contrast in your language in a way that is natural. Some other ways to translate this include:

instead
-or-
rather

with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or spot: There are several ways of understanding what Peter was saying in this verse part:

(1) He was comparing the blood of Christ to the blood of a lamb without blemish or defect. For example:

the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot (Revised Standard Version)

(King James Version, New American Standard Bible, Revised English Bible, Revised Standard Version)

(2) He was comparing Christ to a lamb without blemish or spot. For example:

the precious blood of Christ, who was like a pure and perfect lamb (New Century Version)

(Berean Standard Bible, Contemporary English Version, God’s Word, New International Version, New Living Translation (2004), Good News Translation, New Century Version)

(3) He was both comparing the blood of Christ to the blood of a lamb and identifying the lamb with Christ. For example:

precious blood like that of an unblemished and spotless lamb, namely Christ (NET Bible)

(New Jerusalem Bible, NET Bible)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) and the majority of commentators.

with the precious blood of Christ: Peter was referring here to the blood that Jesus shed while he was dying on the cross. His blood spilled out as he was giving his life as a sacrifice. In some languages it may be necessary to make some of this explicit. For example:

with the precious lifeblood of Christ (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
with the precious blood that Christ ⌊shed on the cross⌋

precious: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as precious means “valuable, of great worth.” Here is another way to translate this word:

costly (Good News Translation)

a lamb without blemish or spot: In the Old Testament, God told the Israelites that the lambs they were to sacrifice must be without…spot (Leviticus 23:12; Numbers 6:14). The lamb used at Passover Festival also had to be without…spot (Exodus 12:5).

without blemish or spot: The sacrificial lamb had to be physically perfect. Jesus Christ was the perfect sacrifice in the sense that he was without sin. So if possible, the words that you use to translate without blemish or spot should apply to both physical and spiritual or moral perfection.

The Greek words that the Berean Standard Bible translates as without blemish or spot are literally “unblemished and spotless.” These two words are very similar in meaning. Using the two together emphasizes the physical perfection of the lamb.

Some other ways that you may be able to translate this phrase include:

pure and perfect (New Century Version)
-or-
with no flaws
-or-
flawless

SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 Peter 3:1

Section 3:1–7

Husbands and wives should honor one another

In this section, Peter gave instructions about family life. The wife should accept her husband’s authority, even if he is not a Christian, and try to influence him to faith in Christ by her good behavior. Husbands also should show honor towards their wives. Peter also said that when both husband and wife are believers, they share equally in the blessings of their new life in Christ.

Some other headings for this section are:

Wives and Husbands (New International Version)
-or-
Instructions for wives and husbands

Paragraph 3:1–6

3:1a

Wives, in the same way, submit yourselves to your husbands: Peter wanted each married woman to accept the authority of her husband. He expected that each wife would have one husband and that each husband would have one wife. In some languages it may be necessary to make this clear by using the singular forms. For example:

Let each wife submit to her husband
-or-
Every married woman should be submissive to her husband

in the same way: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as in the same way here introduces a new subject on the same general theme. Peter gave another example of how Christians should behave respectfully towards those who are in authority over them. Some other ways to translate this are:

in a similar way (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
Likewise (Revised Standard Version)

submit yourselves to your husbands: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as submit yourselves is the same as in 2:18a. Peter wanted women who were believers to choose to respect their husbands, even if their husbands were not believers. Some other ways to translate this phrase include:

accept the authority of your husbands (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
place yourselves under your husbands’ authority (God’s Word)

3:1b

so that: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as so that introduces a purpose or goal. This purpose is stated in 3:1c. Here is another way to translate this:

then (NET Bible)

even if they refuse to believe the word: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as even if they refuse to believe the word assumes that some husbands refused to believe the word. Peter had no doubt that there were many such men. In some languages it may be necessary to make this clear. For example, it may be possible to say:

as many as do not obey the word
-or-
those who do not believe the word

refuse to believe the word: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as refuse to believe the word is literally “disobey the word.” Here it means “disobey the message from God by not believing in Jesus.” Peter was referring to men who were not Christians. The verb refuse to believe is the same as in 2:8c (note on “disobey the word”).

the word: The phrase the word refers to the word of God and means “the word that comes from God.” If people in your area would not understand that, you may want to include the implied words.

Some other ways the word has been translated include:

God’s word (God’s Word)
-or-
God’s teaching (New Century Version)
-or-
the Good News (New Living Translation (2004))

3:1c

they will be won over…by the behavior of their wives: The Greek expression that the Berean Standard Bible translates as they will be won over…by the behavior of their wives is in the passive. In some languages it may be necessary to use an active verb:

the behavior of their wives might win them over
-or-
the way their wives behave will win them

won over: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as won over here is a figure of speech. It means “gained for the Lord,” that is, convinced or persuaded to become a Christian. Some other ways to translate this expression are:

• Keep the figure. For example:

win these men for Christ (God’s Word)
-or-
win them over to believe (Good News Translation)

• Translate the meaning. For example:

persuaded to believe (New Century Version)
-or-
convinced to believe in Christ

of their wives: If you translated 3:1a as a direct command to wives, it may be natural to translate of their wives as:

of you, their wives
-or-
your(fem/plur)

without words: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as without words here means “without the wife talking to her husband about Jesus.” It does not mean that the wife refuses to talk to her husband, or that she never even tells him that she is a Christian. It means that the way she acts should be so attractive to her husband that she will not need to keep on speaking to him about Jesus. Some other ways to translate this phrase include:

without saying anything (God’s Word)
-or-
It will not be necessary for you to say a word (Good News Translation)

SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 Peter 4:11

4:11a

If anyone speaks: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as If, in this context, is better understood as “when.” Many English versions do not translate the conjunction. Some other ways to translate this word are:

When someone speaks…
-or-
anyone who speaks… (New Century Version)

speaks: The word speaks in this context refers to preaching or teaching about God. This is another way to translate this verb:

preach (Good News Translation)

he should speak as one conveying the words of God: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the very words of God is literally “the oracles/utterances of God.” The Berean Standard Bible has supplied the words he speak as one conveying. Peter was saying that anyone who spoke about God should realize his responsibility and speak God’s word truthfully. Other ways to translate this include:

Those who preach must preach God’s messages (Good News Translation)
-or-
Anyone who speaks should speak words from God (New Century Version)
-or-
Whoever speaks must do so as one speaking the very words of God (New Revised Standard Version)

the words of God: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as the words of God in this context means “messages from God.” Here is another way to translate this phrase:

God’s message (Contemporary English Version)

4:11b

If anyone serves: Again, Peter was not questioning whether this would happen. He meant “whenever anyone serves,” so it may be more natural to say:

When someone serves…

serves: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as serves refers to any kind of service to other people. Some examples of this are caring for the sick, helping the orphans and widows, and welcoming strangers. See how you translated this word in 4:10a.

he should serve with the strength God provides: A person who wants to help others should serve with the strength God gives. This implies that he should work hard and enthusiastically. In some languages it may be necessary to translate the abstract noun strength as a verb phrase or an adjective:

he should serve as God makes him strong/able
-or-
he should work ⌊hard⌋ as God strengthens him

General Comment on 4:11a–b

Peter was using the third person to speak about the people he was writing to. In some languages it may be clearer to change the 3rd person “he” to the 2nd person plural “you” as in 4:2:

If you speak, you should give God’s message. If you serve, you should do it with the strength God provides.
-or-
Are you a speaker? Speak as one who utters God’s oracles. Do you give service? Give it in the strength which God supplies. (Revised English Bible)

4:11c

so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ: This is a purpose clause. Believers should speak God’s message and serve in God’s strength in order that God might receive praise.

God may be glorified: In this context, the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as glorified means “honored.” People would thank and honor God for what his people had been doing to help others. This is a passive. If it is more natural to use an active verb you may say:

God may receive praise/glory/ honor
-or-

⌊People⌋ may praise/glorify God

4:11d

to whom be the glory and the power forever and ever: There are two ways of translating this doxology:

(1) It is a statement. For example:

To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. (Revised Standard Version)

(Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, English Standard Version, New Jerusalem Bible, New American Standard Bible, NET Bible, God’s Word, New Living Translation (2004), Revised English Bible, New Century Version, Revised Standard Version)

(2) It is a wish. For example:

…to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. (King James Version)

(Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, King James Version)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1).

to whom: There are two ways of understanding the pronoun whom :

(1) It refers to God. For example:

[so that in everything God may receive the glory, through Jesus Christ,] since to him alone belong all glory and power… (New Jerusalem Bible)

(New Jerusalem Bible; implied by Revised English Bible, NET Bible, New Living Translation (2004), New Century Version, Revised Standard Version, New International Version)

(2) It refers to Christ. For example:

Glory and power belong to Jesus Christ…! (God’s Word)

(Berean Standard Bible, Good News Translation, King James Version, New American Standard Bible, Contemporary English Version, God’s Word)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), since in the previous verse part Peter had been talking about glorifying God.

Amen: The word Amen means “let it be so.” Many languages transliterate this word. Some other ways to translate this word in English are:

Truly!
-or-
Indeed!
-or-
So it shall be.

SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 Peter 2:5

2:5a

you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house: There are several ways of understanding this verse part:

(1) This is a statement about something that was happening as the believers came to Jesus Christ. The believers were being built into a spiritual house. For example:

you yourselves as living stones are built up as a spiritual house (NET Bible)

(Berean Standard Bible, Contemporary English Version, King James Version, New American Standard Bible, New International Version, New Living Translation (2004), God’s Word, NET Bible)

(2) This is a command to the believers to be built into a spiritual house. For example:

like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house (New Revised Standard Version)

(New Century Version, Revised English Bible, New Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation)

(3) This is a purpose clause. Peter wanted his readers to come to Christ so that they might be built into a spiritual house. For example:

so that you…may be built into a spiritual house (New Jerusalem Bible)

(New Jerusalem Bible)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), which has the support of most English versions and commentators.

you…are being built: This is a passive clause. The one who is doing the building is God. In some languages it may be necessary to translate this using an active verb and make the subject explicit:

⌊God⌋ is building you

you: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as you is emphasized and may also be translated as:

you yourselves (NET Bible)

like living stones: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as like introduces the role that the believers fill as God is building them into a spiritual temple, the role of living stones. Some other ways to translate this metaphor include:

• Keep the metaphor. For example:

you are living stones (Contemporary English Version)

• Translate the metaphor as a simile. For example:

You also are like living stones (New Century Version)

living stones: Peter said these Christians were living because God had caused them to be born again through his word (1:23) and given them new life through Jesus Christ rising from death (1:3).

stones: Peter described the believers as stones because in that part of the world, people built houses out of stones. Christians were like stones in the sense that God was using them to build a house for himself.

spiritual: In this context the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as spiritual means “non-material” or “not physical.” It refers to something that cannot be seen by human eyes, something that is in the realm of the divine rather than the human.

house: There are two ways of interpreting the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as house here:

(1) It means house, a building where people live. For example:

And now you are living stones that are being used to build a spiritual house. (Contemporary English Version)

(Berean Standard Bible, Contemporary English Version, God’s Word, King James Version, New American Standard Bible, NET Bible, New International Version, New Jerusalem Bible, Revised Standard Version)

(2) It means temple, a building where people worship God. For example:

And you are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple. (New Living Translation (2004))

(New Century Version, New Living Translation (2004), Revised English Bible, Good News Translation)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1). In this context, house is a metaphor. It illustrates the spiritual truth that God dwells among his people. People who believe in Jesus Christ together form God’s house, the church, and God lives in their midst.

If the metaphor of a house is not understandable to your readers, then you may need to translate it as a simile:

You are like a…house

General Comment on 2:5a

In some languages it may be necessary to make some of the meaning of this metaphor explicit, For example:

⌊Just as a builder makes houses out of stones,⌋ so ⌊God⌋ is building a spiritual house out of you living stones.

2:5b

to be a holy priesthood: Here Peter used another metaphor to describe the Christian church.

to be: The Greek preposition that the Berean Standard Bible translates as to be is literally “unto.” In this context it communicates that:

(a) The spiritual house in 2:5a is what forms the holy priesthood. These are two metaphors describing the Christian church, made up of all believers.

(b) The spiritual house in 2:5a is for the purpose of the holy priesthood offering spiritual sacrifices to God (2:5c).

Some other ways this has been translated include:

and form a holy priesthood (Revised English Bible)
-or-
as a holy priesthood (New Jerusalem Bible)
-or-
for a holy priesthood
-or-
You are also a group of holy priests (Contemporary English Version)

holy priesthood: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as priesthood occurs only twice in the New Testament, both in this chapter (2:5, 2:9). It refers to God’s people as a whole. God made the believers as a group into an order of holy priests. Priests are people who approach God to worship him and offer sacrifices.

In your translation, try to make it clear that Peter was referring to the believers as a group, not as individuals. For example:

a group of holy priests (Contemporary English Version)

holy: In this context, the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as holy refers to someone who is set apart to serve God. God has set the members of this priesthood apart to serve him. He has dedicated them to himself. Some other examples for translating are:

dedicated to God
-or-
fully serving God

2:5c

offering spiritual sacrifices: The priesthood of believers that Peter wrote about is similar to the Hebrew Old Testament priesthood in that both presented offerings to God.

spiritual: As in 2:5a, the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as spiritual means “non-material.” Peter’s readers were not offering animals as sacrifices. They were offering sacrifices that could not be seen.

sacrifices: In this context, the word sacrifices is a metaphor. Peter was not really talking about animal sacrifices such as the Hebrew priests offered to God during the Old Testament period. Instead, he was referring to giving praises to God and help to those in need. See also Romans 12:1 and Hebrews 13:15–16.

General Comment on 2:5b–c

2:5b–c gives the purpose for which God builds the believers into a spiritual house. English translations mark this purpose in three different places:

• Before the mention of the holy priesthood. For example, the Berean Standard Bible says:

to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices (Berean Standard Bible)

• Before the mention of the spiritual sacrifices. For example, the New Jerusalem Bible says:

as a holy priesthood to offer the spiritual sacrifices (New Jerusalem Bible)

• At both places. For example, the Revised Standard Version says:

to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices (Revised Standard Version)

In your translation, mark the purpose at the place where it is most natural in your language.

2:5d

acceptable to God: The phrase acceptable to God means that God was pleased with the spiritual sacrifices that the believers offered to him. Other ways to say this include:

God accepts your sacrifices
-or-
These sacrifices please God

through Jesus Christ: There are two ways of understanding the relationship of the phrase through Jesus Christ to the rest of 2:5c:

(1) Through Jesus Christ, the spiritual offerings were acceptable to God. God was pleased to receive these offerings because of what Jesus Christ had done. For example:

to offer the spiritual sacrifices made acceptable to God through Jesus Christ (New Jerusalem Bible)

(Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, King James Version, New American Standard Bible, Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible, NET Bible, God’s Word, New Living Translation (2004), New Century Version, New Jerusalem Bible)

(2) The believers offered spiritual sacrifices through Jesus Christ. For example:

with the help of Jesus Christ you will offer sacrifices that please God (Contemporary English Version)

(Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1) and the majority of English versions.

General Comment on 2:4–5

In the Berean Standard Bible, as in the Greek, 2:4–5 forms one long sentence. In many languages it may be natural to use several shorter sentences. For example:

You are coming to Jesus Christ, the living stone. He is the one whom people rejected but God considers valuable and chose. You are also living stones, and God is building you into a spiritual house. As a holy priesthood you offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

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Source: SIL Translator’s Notes on 1 Peter 2018