I don’t use the Old King James version of the Bible too much, but it is interesting to compare different versions of the same verses to see how they are worded. Case in point is 1 Peter 2:9. Here’s how it reads in the NIV:

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

The previous verses find Peter expanding on two Old Testament verses, both of which mention “stones.” Peter’s understanding has grown to the point where he knows that Jesus is the cornerstone upon which everything is built – Jesus is what gives everything else shape and meaning and alignment. And when we believe in Jesus, He becomes the cornerstone of our very identities. In light of that, he comes to verse 9 to begin expounding on who we are as the people of God.

And now here’s the same verse in the King James version:

But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light…

There’s a word in that translation that sticks out isn’t there? 

“Peculiar.”

We are a “peculiar” people. To our ears, it sounds, well, strange. It sounds peculiar. And yet it’s true. We are a peculiar people, and here are two reasons why:

1. Because we belong to God.

Apparently, the origin of the word peculiar is the Latin word, peculiaris. That word referred to something that was one’s own. Something personal. In English, during the time when the KJV was first printed, the word meant belonging to one person. It also had the meaning of something unlike others. Something special. Something remarkable.

So when the KJV says that we are a peculiar people, it really means the same thing that the NIV says: we belong to God. We are His chosen, special possession. And that feels good, doesn’t it?

We all need to be wanted. To be valued. To be treasured. It’s built into us, and when we don’t feel as though we are treasured by anyone, we slip into despair. But here, in a single word, we find the wonderful truth that God doesn’t “put up with us;” we find the truth that He actually, truly, deeply, really loves us. He treasures us. We are His; we are His peculiar people.

But there is another reason why we are a peculiar people, this one a bit more ironic…

2. Because we do not belong to the world.

Over the years, the word peculiar started to take on a different meaning. Now, when we say peculiar, we are referring to something that’s strange. Weird. Out of place. Ill-fitting. This, too, is an appropriate way to think of Christians. If just keep reading in 1 Peter 2, he comes to this idea next:

Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us (1 Peter 2:11-12).

Foreigners. Exiles. That’s also who we are. We are God’s special and chosen possession, called out of darkness and into light, and as a result, we are no longer the possession of the world. It is not our home, nor does it have any claim on us. So in light of who we are in Christ, our lives should be so vastly different from those that are around us that they ought to look at us and use the same word:

“Peculiar.”

One word that reminds us of our true identity and that which we’ve left behind. One word that tells us about our true home and the place we currently reside. One word that reminds us where we are treasured and where we are strangers. 

“Peculiar.” What a beautiful word for the Christian.