1 Peter 2:17
“Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →Four brief commands: honor everyone, love fellow believers, fear God, honor the king.
What Does 1 Peter 2:17 Mean?
Peter compresses a whole ethic into four short charges. Each names a relationship and the right posture toward it, from all people to the emperor himself.
Notice the distinctions he draws. All people are to be honored; the family of faith is to be loved; God alone is to be feared; the ruler is to be honored, not feared as God is. Reverence is reserved for God, while honor and love are spread widely. In one breath Peter teaches his readers how to hold the whole web of human and divine relationships in right order.
In the Original Language
adelphotes (ἀδελφότης), 'brotherhood' -- the family of believers, the company of those joined as kin in faith.