This section focuses on the key instruction to submit to all human authority. Peter applies this instruction to several relationships:
Christians should accept the authority of those in government (2:13–17).
Christian slaves should accept the authority of their masters (2:18–25).
Christian wives should accept the authority of their husbands (3:1–6).
Peter appears to follow an early Christian use of the traditional household code. This code gave a series of instructions for different members of a household. Similar examples appear in Ephesians 5:21–6:9, Colossians 3:18–4:1, 1 Timothy 5:1–6:2, and Titus 2:1–10.