ABSTRACT: This article investigates the notion of mission as blessing in 1 Peter 3.8–17. Drawing on insights from both Social Identity Theory (SIT) and Narrative Transportation Theory (NTT), I consider how the use of Old Testament quotations and allusions are deployed in such a way as to subvert normal social identity processes by exhorting the recipients of 1 Peter to pursue a life oriented towards blessing one’s opponents through (1) the refusal to retaliate; (2) the pursuit of holistic well-being; and (3) the willingness to defend the hope of one’s faith.

KEY WORDS: 1 Peter 3; blessing; doing good; social identity; narrative; mission

BIB: Shaw, David M. ‘Called to Bless: Considering an Under-Appreciated Aspect of “Doing Good” in 1 Peter 3:8–17’. Biblical Theology Bulletin 50, no. 3 (2020): 161–73.