New American Bible
2002 11 11
IntraText - Text |
Previous - Next
Click here to hide the links to concordance
Chapter 3
1
1 Likewise, you wives should be subordinate to
your husbands so that, even if some disobey the word, they may be won over
without a word by their wives' conduct
2
when they observe your reverent and chaste
behavior.
3
Your adornment should not be an external one:
braiding the hair, wearing gold jewelry, or dressing in fine clothes,
4
but rather the hidden character of the heart, expressed
in the imperishable beauty of a gentle and calm disposition, which is precious
in the sight of God.
5
For this is also how the holy women who hoped
in God once used to adorn themselves and were subordinate to their husbands;
6
thus Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him
"lord." You are her children when you do what is good and fear no
intimidation.
7
Likewise, you husbands should live with your
wives in understanding, showing honor to the weaker female sex, since we are
joint heirs of the gift of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered. 2
8
3 Finally, all of you, be of one mind,
sympathetic, loving toward one another, compassionate, humble.
9
Do not return evil for evil, or insult for
insult; but, on the contrary, a blessing, because to this you were called, that
you might inherit a blessing.
10
For: "Whoever would love life and see good
days must keep the tongue from evil and the lips from speaking deceit,
11
must turn from evil and do good, seek peace and
follow after it.
12
For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous
and his ears turned to their prayer, but the face of the Lord is against
evildoers."
13
4 Now who is going to harm you if you are
enthusiastic for what is good?
14
But even if you should suffer because of
righteousness, blessed are you. Do not be afraid or terrified with fear of
them,
15
but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts.
Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for
your hope,
16
but do it with gentleness and reverence,
keeping your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who defame
your good conduct in Christ may themselves be put to shame.
17
For it is better to suffer for doing good, if
that be the will of God, than for doing evil.
18
For Christ also suffered 5
for sins once, the righteous for the sake of the unrighteous, that he might
lead you to God. Put to death in the flesh, he was brought to life in the
spirit.
19
In it he also went to preach to the spirits in
prison, 6
20
who had once been disobedient while God
patiently waited in the days of Noah during the building of the ark, in which a
few persons, eight in all, were saved through water.
21
This prefigured baptism, which saves you now.
It is not a removal of dirt from the body but an appeal to God 7
for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
22
who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand
of God, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to him.
1 [1-6] The typical marital virtues
of women of the ancient world, obedience, reverence, and chastity
(⇒ 1 Peter 3:1-2), are outlined here by the author,
who gives them an entirely new motivation: Christian wives are to be virtuous
so that they may be instrumental in the conversion of their husbands. In
imitation of holy women in the past (⇒ 1 Peter 3:5)
they are to cultivate the interior life (⇒ 1 Peter
3:4) instead of excessive concern with their appearance
(⇒ 1 Peter 3:3).
2 [7] Husbands who do not respect
their wives will have as little success in prayer as those who, according to
Paul, have no love: their prayers will be "a resounding gong or a clashing
cymbal" (⇒ 1 Cor 13:1). Consideration for
others is shown as a prerequisite for effective prayer also in
⇒ Matthew 5:23-24; ⇒ 1 Cor 11:20-22;
⇒ James 4:3. After all, whatever the social position
of women in the world and in the family, they are equal recipients of the gift
of God's salvation. Paul is very clear on this point, too (see
⇒ 1 Cor 11:11-12; ⇒ Gal
3:28).
3 [8-12] For the proper ordering of
Christian life in its various aspects as described in ⇒ 1
Peter 2:11-⇒ 3:9, there is promised the blessing
expressed in ⇒ Psalm 34:13-17. In the Old Testament
this refers to longevity and prosperity; here, it also refers to eternal life.
4 [13-22] This exposition, centering
on ⇒ 1 Peter 3:17, runs as follows: by his
suffering and death Christ the righteous one saved the unrighteous
(⇒ 1 Peter 3:18); by his resurrection he received
new life in the spirit, which he communicates to believers through the
baptismal bath that cleanses their consciences from sin. As Noah's family was
saved through water, so Christians are saved through the waters of baptism
(⇒ 1 Peter 3:19-22). Hence they need not share the
fear of sinners; they should rather rejoice in suffering because of their hope
in Christ. Thus their innocence disappoints their accusers
(⇒ 1 Peter 3:13-16; cf ⇒ Matthew
10:28; ⇒ Romans 8:35-39).
5 [18] Suffered: very many ancient
manuscripts and versions read "died." Put to death in the flesh:
affirms that Jesus truly died as a human being. Brought to life in the spirit:
that is, in the new and transformed existence freed from the limitations and weaknesses
of natural human life (cf ⇒ 1 Cor 15:45).
6 [19] The spirits in prison: it is
not clear just who these spirits are. They may be the spirits of the sinners
who died in the flood, or angelic powers, hostile to God, who have been
overcome by Christ (cf ⇒ 1 Peter 3:22;
⇒ Genesis 6:4; Enoch 6-36, especially
⇒ 1 Peter 3:21:6; 2 Enoch 7:1-5).
7 [21] Appeal to God: this could also
be translated "pledge," that is, a promise on the part of Christians
to live with a good conscience before God, or a pledge from God of forgiveness
and therefore a good conscience for us.
Previous - Next
Copyright © Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Help