The following is an excerpt from Dr. Thomas Holland's Crowned With Glory, ©2000, used with permission.
1 Peter 3:1 - "the conversation of the wives"
"Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives;"
This verse, along with a handful of others, is questioned because of the word conversation. The objection is that today conversation means talk, but the verses in question refer to lifestyle or behavior. I recall a friend of mine objecting to this translation. He asked, "You mean to tell me that the unsaved husband can be won by the Christian wife's talking, and not by her godly living?" Of course, it takes both our words and our lifestyle to win the unsaved. We must witness to them in both "word and deed" (Romans 15:17-19). As has been oft said, our walk must match our talk. However, the English word conversation does refer to lifestyle. I asked my friend, "What do we call someone who is born-again and lives the Christian life?" The answer my friend gave was converts. Strange how our own speech will sometimes betrays us.