Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
1 Peter 5:13 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 13. 13The church that is at Babylon, elected together with you, saluteth you; and so doth Marcus my son.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
This verse sends greetings from the co-chosen one in Babylon and from Mark, described as the writer's son.
Silvanus carries a brief witness: this is the true grace; stand in it
This verse is one part of that explanation in 1 Peter 5:12–14. The complete section carries the connected meaning and how it should shape life.
Read It With
- 1 Peter 5:12–14
Read 1 Peter 5:13 with 5:12–14. This verse sends greetings from the co-chosen one in Babylon and from Mark, described as the writer's son. The complete unit establishes this movement: Through Silvanus the writer briefly exhorts and testifies that this is God's true grace in which the readers should stand; a co-chosen community in Babylon and Mark greet them, love is embodied in greeting, and peace closes the letter.
Why This Verse Appears Here
The close summarizes the entire writing as grace to stand in and places pressured communities in reciprocal relationship rather than isolation. Within that movement, this verse sends greetings from the co-chosen one in Babylon and from Mark, described as the writer's son.
Follow the Context
- The writer says he has written briefly through Silvanus, regarded as a faithful brother.
- The purpose is exhortation and testimony to God's true grace.
- Readers are commanded to stand in that grace.
- The co-chosen one in Babylon sends greetings, as does Mark the writer's son.
- Readers greet one another with a kiss of love.
- Peace is pronounced to all in Christ.
Phrase-by-Phrase Explanation
“the church that is at Babylon”
In plain language: Church is supplied by the KJV; the Greek says the co-chosen one in Babylon.
Sends greetings from the co-chosen one in Babylon and from Mark, described as the writer's son. Pressured communities belong to a wider network of shared election and care.
Why it matters: The wording carries interpretive or ethical risk that requires the full unit and its stated limits.
How certain? probableWhat This Verse Is Not Saying
Babylon does not authorize identifying every disliked city, government, or nation as a prophetic enemy or promoting hatred toward modern peoples.
What Remains True
Pressured communities belong to a wider network of shared election and care.
How It Can Shape Life
- Maintain transparent, supportive connections without turning place names into secret enemy codes.
Teach It Back
Explain 1 Peter 5:13's contribution to 1 Peter 5:12–14: Sends greetings from the co-chosen one in Babylon and from Mark, described as the writer's son. Include what the surrounding verses add, the stated uncertainty, and what this verse does not authorize.
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Continue in Context
Read the complete section for the connected explanation and how it should shape life. This verse is a doorway into that passage, not a saying that stands alone.
Read 1 Peter 5:12–14 — Silvanus Carries a Brief Witness to True Grace and PeaceSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? probable
Where care is needed
Babylon is most often read as Rome, but literal Babylon and other proposals remain; the co-chosen one may be a church or woman.
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact reader-facing Scripture wording, paragraph markers, supplied-word markup, and complete verse coverage.
Exact location: 1 Peter 5:12–14, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus
Open source ↗Greek textual evidence
The Greek New Testament: SBL Edition
Michael W. Holmes, editor; Society of Biblical Literature and Logos
Society of Biblical Literature and Logos Bible Software, 2010
Supports: Greek wording, clause relationships, repeated terms, and original-language discussion.
Exact location: SBLGNT official text file 1Pet.txt, 5:12–14
Open the 1 Peter Greek text file ↗Translation and textual notes
NET Bible — 1 Peter with translators' and textual notes
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2005–2026 online edition
Supports: Verse-level Greek, syntax, older-English wording, textual variants, and interpretive alternatives.
Exact location: NET Bible 1 Peter PDF, 5:12–14 translation with attached translator, study, and textual notes
Open the official NET 1 Peter PDF ↗