1 Peter 3
1 Also wymmen be thei suget to her hosebondis; that if ony man bileue not to the word, bi the conuersacioun of wymmen thei be wonnun with out word.
You women [believers], just like [slaves should submit themselves to their masters], submit yourselves to your husbands. Do that in order that if any of them do not believe the message [about Christ], they may become believers without [it being necessary for] you to say anything to them [about their relationship to God].
2 And biholde ye in drede youre hooli conuersacioun.
[They will believe in Christ] when they see that you respect them and that your way of life is pure.
3 Of whiche `ther be not with outforth curious ournyng of heer, ether doyng aboute of gold, ethir ournyng of clothing;
Do not be [trying to make] yourselves beautiful by decorating the outside [of your bodies], such as (by the way you comb your hair/by your hair [style]) or by wearing gold jewelry and fine clothes.
4 but thilke that is the hid man of herte, in vncorrupcioun, and of mylde spirit, which is riche in the siyt of God.
Instead, make your (inner beings/hearts) [beautiful] with qualities/attitudes that will not fade away. Specifically, have a humble and quiet/calm attitude, which is something that God considers to be very valuable.
5 For so sumtyme hooli wymmen hopinge in God ourneden hem silf, and weren suget to her owne hosebondis.
(The devout women/The women who habitually worshipped God) who lived long ago and who trusted in God made themselves beautiful [by having attitudes] like that, and by being submissive to their husbands.
6 As Sara obeied to Abraham, and clepide hym lord; of whom ye ben douytris wel doynge, and not dredynge ony perturbacioun.
Sarah, for example, obeyed [her husband] Abraham and called him ‘my master’. You will be [as though you are] [MET] her daughters if you do what is right and are not afraid [of what your husbands or anyone else may do to you because you are believers].
7 Also men dwelle togidre, and bi kunnyng yyue ye onoure to the wommanus freeltee, as to the more feble, and as to euen eiris of grace and of lijf, that youre preieris be not lettid.
You men [who are believers], just like your wives should respect you, you should conduct your lives in an appropriate way with them. Treat them respectfully, realizing that they are [usually] weaker than you are, and realizing that (they share with you/both of you have) the gift [that God has kindly given to you, which is eternal] life. Do this so that nothing will hinder you from praying (OR, hinder [God] ([from answering/from doing what you ask for]) when you pray).
8 And in feith alle of oon wille in preier be ye eche suffringe with othere, loueris of britherhod, merciful, mylde, meke;
To end [this part of my letter], [I say to] all of you, agree with each other [in what you think]. Be sympathetic [toward each other]. Love [each other as] members of the same family [should]. Act compassionately [toward each other]. Be humble.
9 not yeldinge yuel for yuel, nether cursing for cursing, but ayenward blessinge; for in this thing ye ben clepid, that ye welde blessinge bi eritage.
[When people do] evil things to you or insult you, do not (retaliate/repay them by) doing evil things to them or insulting them. Instead, [ask God to] bless them, because that is what you have been chosen [by God] {what [God] called you} to do, in order that you may receive a blessing [from him].
10 For he that wole loue lijf, and se goode daies, constreyne his tunge from yuel, and hise lippis, that thei speke not gile.
[Consider what the Psalmist wrote about the proper way of conducting our lives], As for those who want (to enjoy life/to live happily) and experience good [things happening to them every] day, they must not say [MTY] something that is evil or say [MTY] something that deceives others.
11 And bowe he from yuel, and do good; seke he pees, and perfitli sue it.
They must continually turn away from [doing] anything that is evil, and must do things that are good [instead]. They must deeply desire to enable [people to act] peacefully toward each other; they must zealously [urge people to act in a] peaceful way,
12 For the iyen of the Lord ben on iust men, and hise eris on the preieris of hem; but the cheer of the Lord is on men that don yuels.
because the Lord sees [MTY] what righteous people do [and he appreciates/likes what they do]. He listens to righteous people when they pray, [and he answers them]. But he is [MTY] opposed to those who do evil things.
13 And who is it that schal anoye you, if ye ben sueris and louyeris of goodnesse?
If you (are eager/try very hard) to do good things, [most people] will not harm you. [RHQ]
14 But also if ye suffren ony thing for riytwisnesse, ye ben blessid; but drede ye not the drede of hem, that ye be not disturblid.
But even if you suffer because of [doing] what is right, [God] will bless you. [Do as Isaiah wrote]: “Do not be afraid of people who (threaten you/say things to cause you to be afraid of what they might do to you), and do not worry about [DOU] what they [might do to you].”
15 But halewe ye the Lord Crist in youre hertis, and euermore be ye redi to satisfaccioun to ech man axynge you resoun of that feith and hope that is in you,
Instead, acknowledge that Christ is the one who is in complete control [of your lives]. Always be ready to answer everyone who demands that you tell them about what you confidently expect [God to do for you].
16 but with myldenesse and drede, hauynge good conscience; that in that thing that thei bacbiten of you, thei ben confoundid, whiche chalengen falsly youre good conuersacioun in Crist.
But answer them humbly and respectfully, and make sure that you (do/have done) nothing wrong, in order that those who say evil things about you may be ashamed when they see the good way in which you are conducting yourselves because of your relationship with Christ.
17 For it is betere that ye do wel, and suffre, if the wille of God wole, than doynge yuele.
[It may be that God wants you] to suffer. But it is better to do good things, [even if you suffer for doing them], than to do evil things and suffer [for doing that].
18 For also Crist onys diede for oure synnes, he iust for vniust, that he schulde offre to God vs, maad deed in fleisch, but maad quik in spirit.
[I say that] because Christ died once for the sake of people who have sinned. He was a righteous person who died for unrighteous people. He died in order that (he might bring us to/we might begin an intimate relationship with) God. [During the time that he had] an ordinary body, he was killed {people killed him}, but [God’s] Spirit caused him to become alive again.
19 For which thing he cam in spirit, and also to hem that weren closid togidre in prisoun prechide;
The Spirit also helped him as he went to proclaim [God’s victory to the evil] spirits whom God had imprisoned [in the heavens] (OR, to the spirits of those who [had died, and who] were in the place where the spirits of dead people are).
20 whiche weren sum tyme vnbileueful, whanne thei abididen the pacience of God in the daies of Noe, whanne the schip was maad, in which a few, that is to seie, eiyte soulis weren maad saaf bi water.
Long ago, during the time that Noah was building a big boat, [those evil spirits] disobeyed God when he waited patiently [PRS] [to see if people would turn from their evil behavior]. Only a few people were saved {[God] saved only a few people} [in that boat]. Specifically, [God] brought only eight persons safely through the waters [of the flood], [while all the others drowned in it].
21 And so baptym of lijk forme makith vs saaf; not the puttyng awei of the filthis of fleisch, but the axyng of a good conscience in God, bi the ayenrysyng of oure Lord Jhesu Crist, that is in the riyt half of God,
That water, [by means of which eight people were saved when God punished the other people] [MET], represents [the water in which we are] baptized [to show that God has] saved us [from being punished]. The water in which we are baptized does not remove dirt from our bodies. Instead, [it shows that] we are requesting [God to assure us] that he has removed our guilt [for having sinned]. And because Jesus Christ became alive again after he died, [we know that God accepted his sacrifice for us and because of that he was able to remove our guilt].
22 and swolewith deth, that we schulden be made eiris of euerlastinge lijf. He yede in to heuene, and aungelis, and powers, and vertues, ben maad sugetis to hym.
Christ has gone into heaven and is ruling [MTY] in the place of highest honor (next to God/at God’s side), after [God] caused all the evil and powerful spirit beings [DOU] to be made subject to him.
