What does this Bible passage say?

The main idea of the previous lesson (1 Peter 2:11-12) can be summarized with the instruction, “Keep away from worldly desires by keeping your conduct honorable among non-believers.” 

In this week’s lesson we start a series of specific ways we can do that.

Read the study text slowly, thoughtfully, and prayerfully from your own Bible and the Study Text provided on this web page.

► What are your initial thoughts and how does this passage make you feel when you read it?

You may also find reading from other translations helpful, such as these on the Blue Letter Bible website:

• Legacy Standard Bible (LSB)
• New Living Translation (NLT)

► Which line or lines in the translation on this web page express the main idea of this paragraph?

Bible Study Passage

¹³

Live Humbly Towards Authorities ^(2:13-3:12)

Willingly subject yourselves to every human authority because of the Lord.

Everyone Toward Government Authorities ^(2:13b-17)

 Whether to the king, who is the highest authority, 

¹⁴ or the officials he has appointed

to punish those who do evil

and to praise those who do good, 

^15-16 because such is God’s will, that by doing good as free people you silence the ignorance of foolish men,

not using freedom to cover up evil,

but as bondservants of God.

¹⁷ Respect everyone;

love the family of believers;

reverence God;

honor the king. 

What did this Bible passage mean
to the people of its day?

What is the message
of this Bible passage
for people today?

(Learn about them, then)

► If you have a study Bible, what do the notes on these five verses teach you?

Go to: https://www.bibleref.com/1-Peter/2/1-Peter-2-13.html

On the left side of the web page, under the word “Verse”, click on each of the verse numbers in this lesson (13-17).

For each verse, read the article “What does [this verse] mean?” on the right side of the web page. (Click on the button “Expand” to see the whole article.)

► What did you learn from the articles on these verses?

► What did God want or not want people to know, feel, think, say or do back when Peter wrote this letter?

► Read Isaiah 53:7–9, which is a prophecy about Jesus. What can we learn from the example of Jesus described in this passage ?

(Learn for us, now)

(Demonstrates our hope – 1 Peter 3:13–17)

► What do believers in Jesus today have in common with the believers in Jesus Peter wrote to back then?

► Why is this passage important for us to learn?

► What does God want or not want you to know, feel, think, say or do?

► How should you respond to this study passage? (Click HERE for ways that can help you respond to God’s word.)

► How will you make this happen this week?

► Isn’t it interesting that the instructions Peter gave to his original readers of this letter are as appropriate for us today as it was to them back then.  What does that tell you about the Bible?