The church in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you greetings, as does my son Mark.
Parallel translations
- WEB She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, greets you; and so does Mark, my son.
- KJV The church that is at Babylon, elected together with you, saluteth you; and so doth Marcus my son.
- NKJV She who is in Babylon, elect together with you, greets you; and so does Mark my son.
- NASB She who is in Babylon, chosen together with you, sends you greetings, and so does my son, Mark.
- NLT Your sister church here in Babylon sends you greetings, and so does my son Mark.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Greetings are sent from the church in 'Babylon' and from Mark, Peter's spiritual son. It connects the readers to the wider fellowship of believers.
Overview
'She who is in Babylon' refers to the church where Peter wrote, with 'Babylon' widely understood as a figurative name for Rome, a place of exile and worldly power. 'Mark, my son' likely identifies John Mark, the Gospel writer and Peter's close associate. The greeting reminds the scattered readers that they belong to one chosen people of God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Acts 12:12And when he had realized this, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered together and were praying.
- Acts 12:25When Barnabas and Saul had fulfilled their mission to Jerusalem, they returned, bringing with them John, also called Mark.
- Rev 18:2And he cried out in a mighty voice: “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! She has become a lair for demons and a haunt for every unclean spirit, every unclean bird, and every detestable beast.
- Ps 87:4“I will mention Rahab and Babylon among those who know Me—along with Philistia, Tyre, and Cush—when I say, ‘This one was born in Zion.’”
- Rev 17:5And on her forehead a mysterious name was written: BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
- 2 Jn 1:13The children of your elect sister send you greetings.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The lamb without blemish foreknown before the world, who bore our sins in his body on the tree, by whose wounds we are healed — the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls.
How 1 Peter 5:13 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.