Who do the 'elect' refer to in 1 Peter 1:2?
In 1 Peter 1:2, the elect are the believing end of the Jews, the strangers of the dispersion scattered through Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia. They are elect according to God's foreknowledge, not according to predestination, which distinguishes their calling from a predestined selection.
Les explains that Peter is not writing primarily to Gentiles but to Jews in the dispersion, addressed as strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia. In verse 2, the elect are the believing portion of those Jews. He emphasizes that their election is not according to predestination but according to foreknowledge. This connects to the earlier point that in eternity past the Godhead put the plan together, and foreknowledge made that plan possible, even as the crucifixion came through God's predeterminate counsel.
Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.