1 Peter 1:18 (DRB)

Passage

Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, as gold or silver, from your vain conversation of the tradition of your fathers:

Nearby Context

1 Peter 1:16 Because it is written: You shall be holy, for I am holy.

1 Peter 1:17 And if you invoke as Father him who, without respect of persons, judgeth according to every one's work: converse in fear during the time of your sojourning here.

1 Peter 1:18 Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, as gold or silver, from your vain conversation of the tradition of your fathers:

1 Peter 1:19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb unspotted and undefiled

1 Peter 1:20 Foreknown indeed before the foundation of the world, but manifested in the last times for you:

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "knowing", "redeemed", "corruptible", "things", "gold", "silver", "vain", and "conversation". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "knowing" and "redeemed", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 17's "And if you invoke as Father him..." into verse 19's "But with the precious blood of Christ...", so "knowing" and "redeemed" belong inside that flow. In 1 Peter context, the local focus is hope in suffering, holy conduct, submission, and grace.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "knowing" and "redeemed" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.