This section had begun at 1 Peter 2:11 with the word “beloved,” a reference clearly to all Peter’s readers as described in 1 Peter 1:1 (the “elect exiles”). Peter had pivoted in 1 Peter 2:18 to address the slaves among these elect exiles, then in 1 Peter 3:1 to address the wives and in 1 Peter 3:7 the husbands. But now Peter broadens his intended hearers again to include all the “elect exiles.” (In the nature of things, it may be assumed that most of his readers were slaves, wives, or husbands.) That Peter broadens his audience is no surprise given that he is tying his instruction together.