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¹Therefore, ⚓laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, ²⚓as newborn babes, desire the pure ⚓milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, ³if indeed you have ⚓tasted that the Lord is gracious.

The Chosen Stone and His Chosen People

⁴Coming to Him as to a living stone, ⚓rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, ⁵you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. ⁶Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture,
⚓“Behold, I lay in Zion
A chief cornerstone, elect, precious,
And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.”
⁷Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient,
⚓“The stone which the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone,”
⁸and
⚓“A stone of stumbling
And a rock of offense.”
⚓They stumble, being disobedient to the word, ⚓to which they also were appointed.
⁹But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of ⚓darkness into His marvelous light; ¹⁰⚓who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.

Living Before the World

¹¹Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts ⚓which war against the soul, ¹²⚓having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, ⚓they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.

Submission to Government

¹³⚓Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, ¹⁴or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. ¹⁵For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men— ¹⁶⚓as free, yet not ⚓using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. ¹⁷Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear ⚓God. Honor the king.

Submission to Masters

¹⁸⚓Servants, be submissive to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh. ¹⁹For this is⚓commendable, if because of conscience toward God one endures grief, suffering wrongfully. ²⁰For ⚓what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. ²¹For ⚓to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, ⚓leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps:
²²“Who ⚓committed no sin,
Nor was deceit found in His mouth”;
²³⚓who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but ⚓committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; ²⁴⚓who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, ⚓that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—⚓by whose stripes you were healed. ²⁵For ⚓you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned ⚓to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

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Lub pob zeb muaj txujsa hab haiv tuabneeg dawb huv

¹Vem le nuav, ca le muab txhua yaam kev phem hab txhua yaam kev daag ntxag, kev zais sab, kev sws khib hab kev xyaav luas moo txhua yaam tso tseg. ²Ib yaam le cov mivnyuas mog kws nyav yug, mej ca le ntshaw cov kua mig dawb huv saab ntsuj plig, sub cov kua mig hov txhad paab mej kheev hlub moog tau txujkev dim, ³tsua qhov mej tub swm tas tug Tswv zoo kawg nkaus.
⁴Ca le lug cuag nwg, yog lub pob zeb kws muaj txujsa kws tuabneeg tsw leeg yuav tassws tub raug Vaajtswv xaiv lawm hab tswm txaj kawg. ⁵Mej zoo yaam le tej pob zeb muaj sa ca le yeem muab ua lub tsev⚓ rua saab ntsuj plig, sub txhad ua tau pov thawj dawb huv xyeem hov txhua chaw saab ntsuj plig kws hum Vaajtswv lub sab huv Yexu Kheto. ⁶Vem muaj lug sau ca rua huv Vaajtswv txujlug has tas,
“Saib maj, kuv teeb ib lub pob zeb rua huv Xi‑oo,
yog ua lub thawj pob zeb kws xaiv ca
hab tswm txaj kawg ntawm kaum tsev.
Tug kws ntseeg nwg
yuav tsw raug txaaj muag.”⚓
⁷Vem le nuav tug Tswv muaj nqes kawg nkaus rua mej cov kws ntseeg, tassws has txug cov kws tsw ntseeg mas
“Lub pob zeb kws cov Kws ua tsev
muab xyeeb tseg lawm
tub rov muab lug teeb ua lub thawj
rua ntawm kaum tsev lawm.”⚓
⁸hab
“ua lub pob zeb kws ua rua tuabneeg dawm,
hab ua txhwb zeb kws ua rua tuabneeg qaug.”⚓
Puab dawm vem puab tsw noog Vaajtswv txujlug lawv le kws tu tseg rua puab.
⁹Tassws mej yog haiv tuabneeg kws xaiv ca lawm, yog Vaajntxwv⚓ cov pov thawj⚓ hab ua tuabneeg dawb huv, yog cov tuabneeg kws ua Vaajtswv tug, sub mej txhad qha nwg teg num tseem ceeb,⚓ yog tug kws hu mej tawm huv qhov tsaus ntuj lug nyob rua huv nwg qhov kaaj kws phemfwj kawg. ¹⁰Yaav taag lug mej tsw yog nwg haiv tuabneeg tassws nwgnuav mej yog Vaajtswv haiv tuabneeg lawm. Yaav taag lug mej tsw tau txais kev khuvleej tassws nwgnuav mej tau txais kev khuvleej lawm.⚓

Vaajtswv cov qhev

¹¹Cov kws kuv hlub, kuv thov kuas mej cov kws zoo le lwm haiv tuabneeg tuaj ua qhua nyob huv lub nplajteb nuav tseg tej kws lub cev nqaj tawv ntshaw kws tawm tsaam mej tug ntsuj plig. ¹²Ca le ua zoo kawg nkaus rua huv lwm haiv tuabneeg sub yog puab has tas mej ua txhum, puab txhad pum tej kws mej ua zoo hab yuav qhuas Vaajtswv rua nub kws nwg lug saib.
¹³Mej yuav tsum nyob huv qaab txhua tug kws muaj fwjchim kev tswjfwm vem saib rua tug Tswv, tsw has tug hov yuav yog fuabtais kws muaj fwjchim ¹⁴lossws cov tswv xeev kws vaajntxwv khaiv moog txav txem rua cov kws ua txhum hab qhuas cov kws ua zoo. ¹⁵Vaajtswv xaav kuas mej xyum zoo sub txhad ua rua cov tuabneeg ruag kws has lug tsw muaj qaabhau tseg tsw has lawm. ¹⁶Mej ca le ua lub neej yaam le kws nyob ywj pheej tassws tsw xob muab qhov kws nyob ywj pheej hov lug moog ua txhum. Tassws mej yuav tsum ua mej lub neej yaam le yog Vaajtswv cov tub qhe. ¹⁷Ca le fwm txhua tug, hlub cov kwvtij, paub ntshai Vaajtswv, hab fwm fuabtais.

Kheto ua yaam ntxwv thev kev txom nyem

¹⁸Mej cov kws yog tub qhe, mej yuav tsum nyob huv qaab mej tug lospaav kev tswjfwm hab paub ntshai puab txhua yaam, tsw yog fwm tug kws sab zoo hab hlub mej xwb tassws fwm tug kws ua nruj ua tswv hab. ¹⁹Vem qhov nuav hum Vaajtswv lub sab, yog thaus ib tug twg xaam pum Vaajtswv nwg txhad thev kev mob rua thaus nwg raug tej kev tswm txom kws tsw raug cai. ²⁰Yog mej ua txhum txhad raug nplawm txawm yog mej ua sab ntev thev los mej yuav tau koob meej le caag? Tassws yog mej ua zoo txhad raug kev tswm txom hab ua sab ntev thev, txhad yog ua hum Vaajtswv lub sab. ²¹Vem Vaajtswv hu mej lug thev kev tswm txom le nuav, tsua qhov Kheto tub raug kev tswm txom thij mej, ua yaam ntxwv tseg rua mej sub mej txhad tau taug lawv nwg tug neev taw. ²²Nwg tsw tau ua txhum daabtsw le hab
“tsw pum muaj lug daag ntxag
nyob huv nwg lub qhov ncauj le.”⚓
²³Thaus puab has lug phem rua nwg, nwg tsw has phem pauj. Thaus nwg raug tswm txom nwg tsw hem puab, tassws nwg muab nwg tug kheej cob rua tug kws txav txem ncaaj nceeg. ²⁴Nwg rws peb lub txem rua huv nwg lub cev sau tug khaublig ntoo sub peb txhad tuag ntawm lub txem hab muaj txujsa nyob rua txujkev ncaaj nceeg. “Yog muaj nwg tej kav txhaab txhad khu tau peb kuas zoo.”⚓ ²⁵Tsua qhov mej yuam kev yaam le tej yaaj, tassws nwgnuav mej tub rov lug cuag tug Tswv yug yaaj hab tug kws tsom kwm mej tug ntsuj plig lawm.