independentparticipialrelativepurposecausecomparativecontentconditionalphrase modifierdashed = verbless / suspended
Flush-left = a main (independent) clause. Each dependent line begins directly beneath the word it attaches to in the line above — the anchor word is dotted-underlined, and lights up when you hover its dependent clause; each tag also names the attachment. A dashed border marks verbless, elliptical, or suspended lines. Where a long sentence's staircase runs wider than the page, the diagram scrolls sideways. (In print, or without JavaScript, lines fall back to stepped indent columns.)
The salutation 1:1–2
1
Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,independent — the sender — a verbless superscription, the apostleship asserted bare
to the elect sojourners of the Dispersion of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,phrase modifier — dative of address — elect yet exiles, swept across five provinces of Asia Minor
2
according to the foreknowledge of God the Father,phrase modifier — frame 1 — the election's source: the Father's foreknowledge
in the sanctification of the Spirit,phrase modifier — frame 2 — its sphere: the Spirit's consecrating work
for obedience and sprinkling with the blood of Jesus Christ:phrase modifier — frame 3 — its goal: covenant obedience and sprinkled blood (Exod 24:7–8)
grace to you and peace be multiplied.independent — the greeting — with the optative πληθυνθείη (cf. Dan 4:1 LXX)
The blessing — begotten anew to a living hope 1:3–12
vv. 3–5 — begotten anew: a living hope, an unfading inheritance, a guarded people
3
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,independent — the berakah — verbless doxology, as Eph 1:3 and 2 Cor 1:3
who according to his great mercy begot us againparticipial — attributive — expands ὁ θεός: the new begetting, out of his great mercy
to a living hopepurpose — goal 1 of the begetting — hope alive because its object is
through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,phrase modifier — the means — the new birth dated to Easter morning
4
to an inheritance imperishable and undefiled and unfading,purpose — goal 2 — the triple alpha-privative: untouched by death, stain, or time
kept in heaven for you,participial — perfect participle — the inheritance already banked and standing kept
5
who by the power of God are being guarded through faithparticipial — the inheritance kept for you, and you garrisoned (φρουρέω) for it
for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.purpose — the guarding's goal — salvation finished, only waiting to be unveiled
vv. 6–9 — the rejoicing: grieved in trials now, aimed at praise and glory
6
In this you rejoice greatly,relative — on ἐν καιρῷ ἐσχάτῳ — the antecedent is disputed (the last time, or all of vv. 3–5); ἀγαλλιᾶσθε read as indicative
though now for a little while, if necessary, grieved by various trials,participial — concessive — with the parenthetic protasis εἰ δέον ἐστίν folded in: grief real, brief, and only if needed
7
so that the proven genuineness of your faith —purpose — the trials' purpose — the subject suspended over its verb (εὑρεθῇ below)
more precious than gold that perishes though tested by fire —phrase modifier — the gold comparison — even fire-proved gold finally perishes; proved faith does not
may be found unto praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ;purpose — the suspended ἵνα clause lands — the verdict pronounced at the ἀποκάλυψις
8
whom, not having seen, you love;relative — on Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ — love without sight (cf. John 20:29)
in whom, though not seeing him now, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and glorified,relative — the pair completed — the ἀγαλλιᾶσθε of v. 6 returns, its joy already touched with glory
9
obtaining the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.participial — present participle — already receiving what the testing aims at
vv. 10–12 — the prophets searched out this salvation; even angels crane to look
10
Concerning this salvation the prophets searched and inquired carefully,relative — connecting relative — the chain keeps climbing: the salvation just named becomes the prophets' quarry
who prophesied of the grace destined for you,participial — attributive — they spoke of a grace addressed to you
11
inquiringparticipial — the search resumed in one word, opening the indirect question
into what time or what kind of time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating,content — indirect question — when, and what sort of when; the Spirit in the prophets is Christ's own
when it testified beforehand of the sufferings destined for Christ and the glories after these;participial — the Spirit's pre-testimony — sufferings, then glories: the letter's whole pattern in one line
12
to whom it was revealedrelative — on προφῆται — their search answered by revelation
that not for themselves but for you they were ministering these things,content — the content — servants of a later generation's good news
things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven —relative — the same things, now preached — and the same Spirit, now sent from heaven
things into which angels long to look.relative — the closing widening — παρακύψαι, to stoop and peer in (cf. John 20:5)
The call to holiness 1:13–21
vv. 13–16 — hope set fully; holy as the Caller is holy
13
Therefore, having girded up the loins of your mind,participial — fronted — leans on ἐλπίσατε below; Διὸ turns the whole berakah into ground, and the Exodus posture (Exod 12:11) tucks the mind's robes for travel
being sober,participial — fronted — leans on ἐλπίσατε below; νήφω, the letter's refrain (4:7; 5:8)
set your hope fully on the grace being brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.independent — the section's first imperative — τελείως read with ἐλπίσατε: hope without remainder
14
as obedient children,comparative — fronted frame — leans on γενήθητε (v. 15) below; ὑπακοή echoes v. 2
not being conformed to the desires of your former ignorance,participial — fronted negative — leans on γενήθητε below; συσχηματιζόμενοι as in Rom 12:2
15
but, after the Holy One who called you,phrase modifier — fronted norm — leans on γενήθητε below; the standard is the Caller himself
you also become holy in all your conduct,independent — the command lands — holiness across the whole ἀναστροφή
16
because it is written:cause — the scriptural ground
“You shall be holy,”content — Lev 19:2 (cf. 11:44–45) — the Holiness Code's refrain
“for I am holy.”cause — the reason inside the quotation — verbless: God's holiness needs no copula
vv. 17–21 — walk in fear: ransomed at the price of Christ's blood
17
And if you call on as Father the one who judges impartially according to each one's work,conditional — protasis, leaning forward — the condition assumed real: the Father you invoke is also the impartial Judge
conduct yourselves in fear throughout the time of your exile,independent — the apodosis — παροικία resumes the exile theme of v. 1
18
knowingparticipial — causal participle — the fear grounded in knowledge, not anxiety
that not with perishable things, with silver or gold, you were redeemed from your futile, inherited way of life,content — the ransom stated negatively first — λυτρόω: slave-market and Exodus language
19
but with precious blood,phrase modifier — the correction — a price beyond bullion
as of a lamb without blemish and without spot — the blood of Christ,comparative — the Passover standard (Exod 12:5), with the genitive Χριστοῦ held back to land last
20
foreknown before the foundation of the world,participial — μέν — the Lamb in God's πρόγνωσις (v. 2) before creation
but manifested in the last of the times for your sake,participial — δέ — hidden from eternity, unveiled now, and δι' ὑμᾶς: for you
21
you who through him are believers in God,phrase modifier — apposition to δι' ὑμᾶς — the 'you' defined: believers in God through Christ
who raised him from the dead and gave him glory,participial — attributive pair — the God you trust is the God of Easter and exaltation
so that your faith and hope are in God.purpose — ὥστε + infinitive result — faith and hope land where the blessing began: on God
Love one another — born of imperishable seed 1:22–25
22
Having purified your souls by obedience to the truth for sincere brotherly love,participial — fronted perfect participle — leans on ἀγαπήσατε below; the purification already aimed at φιλαδελφία
love one another earnestly from a pure heart,independent — the imperative — ἐκτενῶς: love at full stretch
23
having been begotten again,participial — causal perfect — the berakah's verb (v. 3) returns as the ground of love
not of perishable seed but of imperishable,phrase modifier — the seed — the φθαρτός/ἄφθαρτος contrast of vv. 7 and 18 pressed once more
through the living and abiding word of God.phrase modifier — the means — ζῶντος καὶ μένοντος read with λόγου (a living, abiding word), not with θεοῦ
24
because “all flesh is like grass,cause — Isa 40:6 — the ground of the word's power: everything born of flesh's seed is grass
and all its glory like the flower of grass;cause — Isa 40:6 — flesh's best is the meadow's brief flower
the grass withers,cause — Isa 40:7 — gnomic aorist: it always goes this way
and the flower falls off,cause — Isa 40:7 — the flower down after the grass
25
but the word of the Lord abides forever.”cause — Isa 40:8 — the quotation's point: μένει answers μένοντος (v. 23)
And this is the word that was preached to you as good news.independent — the identification — pesher-like: Isaiah's abiding ῥῆμα is the gospel you heard
Analysis. The chapter's engine is the berakah of vv. 3–12, and the layout lets it climb the way Eph 1:3–14 does: after the verbless Εὐλογητός doxology almost nothing returns to the margin — the sentence hands itself forward from ὁ ἀναγεννήσας through the two εἰς-goals (a living hope, an unfading inheritance) down the guarded ὑμᾶς into the last time, where ἐν ᾧ ἀγαλλιᾶσθε turns joy and testing around each other, the suspended ἵνα clause lands on εὑρεθῇ at the revelation of Jesus Christ, the twin ὅν/εἰς ὅν relatives hang love and unspeakable joy on that name, and a connecting Περὶ ἧς σωτηρίας keeps climbing rather than resetting, so the blessing stair-steps to depth 14 at the angels craning to look in. The holiness call (vv. 13–21) inverts the shape: fronted teal participles and dashed frames lean forward, protasis-like and unanchored, on the flush-left imperatives beneath them — girding and sobriety over ἐλπίσατε, the ὡς τέκνα frame with its μή/ἀλλά pair over γενήθητε, the εἰ protasis over ἀναστράφητε — while εἰδότες opens the ransom chain that delays Χριστοῦ to the very end of v. 19 and then hangs the μέν/δέ pair (foreknown, manifested) from that one name. Verses 22–25 repeat the figure in miniature: a fronted perfect participle over ἀγαπήσατε, the ground ἀναγεγεννημένοι with its seed and word, and the Isa 40:6–8 catena set as a single cause-column under λόγου before the flush-left pesher landing, τοῦτο δέ ἐστιν τὸ ῥῆμα. Cruxes the layout takes a side on: the three prepositional frames of v. 2 qualify ἐκλεκτοῖς (the election's source, sphere, and goal), not ἀπόστολος; ἐν ᾧ (v. 6) is anchored on ἐν καιρῷ ἐσχάτῳ, and ἀγαλλιᾶσθε is read as indicative, not imperative; εἰ δέον ἐστίν stays a parenthesis inside the concessive λυπηθέντες line; τελείως is read with ἐλπίσατε (hope fully), not with νήφοντες; Χριστοῦ (v. 19) is the delayed genitive of αἵματι — precious blood, as of a flawless lamb, Christ's; and ζῶντος … καὶ μένοντος (v. 23) is read with λόγου (a living and abiding word) rather than with θεοῦ, the quotation's μένει being the layout's warrant. Each dependent line sits exactly one column deeper than its parent, directly beneath the dotted-underlined word it hangs from.