1 Peter 5:4 (DRB)

Passage

And when the prince of pastors shall appear, you shall receive a never fading crown of glory.

Nearby Context

1 Peter 5:2 Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking care of it, not by constraint but willingly, according to God: not for filthy lucre's sake but voluntarily:

1 Peter 5:3 Neither as lording it over the clergy but being made a pattern of the flock from the heart.

1 Peter 5:4 And when the prince of pastors shall appear, you shall receive a never fading crown of glory.

1 Peter 5:5 In like manner, ye young men, be subject to the ancients. And do you all insinuate humility one to another: for God resisteth the proud, but to the humble he giveth grace.

1 Peter 5:6 Be you humbled therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in the time of visitation:

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "prince", "pastors", "shall", "appear", "receive", "never", and "fading". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "prince" and "pastors", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "Neither as lording it over the clergy..." into verse 5's "In like manner ye young men be...", so "prince" and "pastors" 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 "prince" and "pastors" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.