What is Peter thinking of with the phrase “harm you”?

The term translated as “harm” is used elsewhere in the New Testament to describe ill-treatment (Acts 7:6, Acts 7:19; Acts 12:1; Acts 14:2; Acts 18:10). The term, however, need not send our thoughts to full-blown persecution (as the Christians of Rome experienced under Nero). Social marginalization or simply being bypassed for a promotion (or even ignored on the sidewalk) can be subtle forms of “harm” that may follow from the suspicions people in the community have toward their heaven-oriented fellow citizens (recall the “evil” and the “reviling” mentioned in 1 Peter 3:9). From time to time such mistrust can explode into an outright expression of “harm.”