1 Petrus 3:15-16

3:15 But set Christ ¹  apart ²  as Lord in your hearts and always be ready to give an answer to anyone who asks about the hope you possess. ³  3:16 Yet do it with courtesy and respect, ⁴  keeping a good conscience, so that those who slander your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame when they accuse you. ⁵ 

1 Petrus 4:6

4:6 Now it was for this very purpose ⁶  that the gospel was preached to those who are now dead, ⁷  so that though ⁸  they were judged in the flesh ⁹  by human standards ¹⁰  they may live spiritually ¹¹  by God’s standards. ¹² 

1 Petrus 4:14

4:14 If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory, ¹³  who is the Spirit of God, ¹⁴  rests ¹⁵  on you.

1 Petrus 5:2

5:2 Give a shepherd’s care to ¹⁶  God’s flock among you, exercising oversight ¹⁷  not merely as a duty ¹⁸  but willingly under God’s direction, ¹⁹  not for shameful profit but eagerly.

[3:15]  ¹ tc Most later mss (P Ï) have θεόν (qeon, “God”) instead of Χριστόν (Criston; “Christ”) here. But Χριστόν is widely supported by excellent and early witnesses (Ì⁷² א A B C Ψ 33 1739 al latt sy co), and as a less common idiom better explains the rise of the other reading.

[3:15]  ² tn Or “sanctify Christ as Lord.”

[3:15]  ³ tn Grk “the hope in you.”

[3:16]  ⁴ tn Grk “but with courtesy and respect,” continuing the command of v. 15. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[3:16]  ⁵ tn Grk “when you are spoken against.”

[4:6]  ⁶ tn Grk “since for this purpose the gospel was preached even to the dead,” referring to the purpose described in the clause to follow in v. 6b.

[4:6]  ⁷ sn In context the phrase those who are dead refers to those now dead who had accepted the gospel while they were still living and had suffered persecution for their faith. Though they “suffered judgment” in this earthly life (i.e., they died, in the midst of physical abuse from the ungodly), they will enjoy life from God in the spiritual, heavenly realm because of the gospel (v. 6b). It clearly does not assume a second chance for conversion offered to unbelievers who had died; why would Peter urge people to suffer in this life for the sake of the gospel if he believed that mercy would be extended to all the dead in the hereafter (cf. 2:7-8; 4:1-5, 12-19)?

[4:6]  ⁸ tn Grk “so that they may be judged…but may live.” Greek emphasizes the contrast between these two clauses more than can be easily expressed in English.

[4:6]  ⁹ tn Or “in their earthly lives,” since “flesh” here denotes the physical, earthly life. The phrase “in the flesh” is retained to preserve the links with 3:18 and 4:1 which use the same wording.

[4:6]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “according to men.”

[4:6]  ¹¹ tn Grk “in spirit,” referring to the heavenly, eternal realm of existence (cf. 3:18).

[4:6]  ¹² tn Grk “according to God.”

[4:14]  ¹³ tc Many mss, some of them important and early ([א] A P 33 81 323 945 1241 1739 pm bo), add καὶ δυνάμεως (kai dunamew"; “and of power”) here. The shorter reading is supported by Ì⁷² B K L Ψ 049 pm). Although the evidence is evenly divided, the longer reading looks to be an explanatory or liturgical expansion on the text and for this reason should be considered secondary.

[4:14]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “the Spirit of glory and of God.”

[4:14]  ¹⁵ sn A quotation taken from Isa 11:2.

[5:2]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “shepherd,” “tend,” “pastor.”

[5:2]  ¹⁷ tc A few important mss (א* B sa) lack ἐπισκοποῦντες (episkopounte", “exercising oversight”), but the participle enjoys otherwise good ms support (Ì⁷² א² A P Ψ 33 1739 Ï lat). A decision is difficult because normally the shorter reading is preferred, especially when found in excellent witnesses. However, in this instance the omission may be due to a hesitation among some scribes to associate oversight with elders, since the later church viewed overseer/bishop as a separate office from elder.

[5:2]  ¹⁸ tn Or “not under compulsion/coercion.”

[5:2]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “according to God.”