Rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, insincerity, envy, and all slander; 2 like newborn infants, long for pure spiritual milk so that through it you may grow into salvation, 3 for you have tasted that the Lord is good. 4 Come to him, a living stone, rejected by human beings but chosen and precious in the sight of God, 5 and, like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For it says in scripture: “Behold, I am laying a stone in Zion, a cornerstone, chosen and precious, and whoever believes in it shall not be put to shame.” 7 Therefore, its value is for you who have faith, but for those without faith: “The stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,” 8 and “A stone that will make people stumble, and a rock that will make them fall.” They stumble by disobeying the word, as is their destiny. 9 But you are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of his own, so that you may announce the praises” of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were “no people” but now you are God’s people; you “had not received mercy” but now you have received mercy.
Peter exhorts the newly converted Christians to discard all vices, everything that hinders their spiritual growth, and to be like newborn infants longing for pure spiritual nourishment that will lead them to salvation (Col. 3:8-9). The pure spiritual nourishment was likely a reference to converts in the early Church, called Catechumens, who when they were about to be baptized, took off their clothes as a symbol of renouncing their former way of life before being immersed in the waters of baptism. They entered into a new life in Christ and craved the foundational teachings of the faith. Once converts have tasted the goodness of the Lord (Ps. 34:9) they are encouraged to continue to follow Christ, a living stone, chosen by God but rejected by man.
Peter draws from both the OT and the NT as he explains that Christ is the cornerstone of the Church (Is. 28:16; Ps. 118:22) a new spiritual house, and if they share in the life of the crucified and risen Lord they will become “living stones” in that spiritual community formed by the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 3:9). They will be a holy priesthood offering their lives as sacrifices to God through Jesus Christ (Eph. 2:19-22; Rom. 12:1). They were chosen by God, redeemed through the risen Lord, and molded into a living temple. Those who do not believe in Christ crucified and obey the word of God (the pagans who persecute Christians) will stumble and fall as they were destined to do (Rom. 9:33; Is. 8:14). The covenant blessings given to ancient Israel (Is. 43:20-21) are now conferred upon the new spiritual community, a chosen people set apart for God (Ex. 19:6; Rev. 1:6) by the blood of Christ (1 Pt. 1:19). God called them from the darkness of paganism into his marvelous light. They were formerly apart from God but through God’s grace, they have received mercy through Christ (Hos. 2:25).
Almighty God, you call us to be members of a holy nation by sharing in the life of the risen Lord. In your mercy give us the spiritual nourishment that will sustain us and lead us to salvation. This we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen!
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References
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
Orchard, Bernard, et al. A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture. Feb. 1953.
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