CHAPTER 2. THE FALSE PROPHETS WHO ARE IN SUCH CONTRAST TO WHAT HAS BEEN JUST DESCRIBED. In chapter 1 Peter has outlined what Christians are to be as they respond to God's word and to the teaching of the prophets. In this chapter he will describe what they ought not to be, and will draw attention to... [ Continue Reading ]
‘But there arose false prophets also among the people, as among you also there will be false teachers, who will surreptitiously bring in destructive heresies, denying even the Master who bought them, bringing on themselves swift destruction.' Just as false prophets had always arisen in Israel, to op... [ Continue Reading ]
THE FALSE TEACHERS, THEIR MESSAGE AND ITS CONSEQUENCES (2 PETER 2:1). The future tense here is probably intended simply to be a general future. The point is that the false teachers are at present among them and will continue on into the future. There will always be false teachers as Jesus had const... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And many will follow their lascivious doings, by reason of whom the way of the truth will be evil spoken of.' A prominent aspect of their teaching would seem to have been a claim that the way to acceptability with the divine was by lascivious behaviour, probably including illicit sex and drunkenne... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And in covetousness will they with feigned words make merchandise of you, whose sentence now from of old does not linger, and their destruction does not sleep.' The true motive of these teachers is now revealed. They are lovers of wealth. They use believers as though they were so much merchandise,... [ Continue Reading ]
‘For if God did not spare not angels when they sinned, but cast them down to Tartarus, and committed them to pits of darkness, to be reserved for judgment; The first example is the angels who sinned before the Flood (Genesis 6:1). They had followed ‘lascivious ways'. They ‘saw that the daughters of... [ Continue Reading ]
EXAMPLES OF GOD'S JUDGMENT ON LICENTIOUS BEHAVIOUR AND HIS DELIVERY OF THE RIGHTEOUS (2 PETER 2:4). Peter now calls on a number of examples from the Old Testament which demonstrate the truth of what he is saying.... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah with seven others, a preacher of righteousness, when he brought a flood on the world of the ungodly,' These next two examples were regularly used by Jesus (Luke 17:26; Luke 17:32; compare Matthew 24:37). Here Peter is saying that God also did... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, having made them an example to those that who live in and ungodly way,' A third example of God's judgment were Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19; Jude 1:7; compare Luke 17:28; Luke 17:32). They were turned into... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And delivered righteous Lot, sore distressed by the lascivious life of the wicked, (for that righteous man living among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their lawless deeds),' But one man, Lot, again a ‘righteous man', was distressed by their lasciviousnes... [ Continue Reading ]
‘The Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment (or ‘while continuing their punishment') in readiness for the day of judgment,' Thus these examples demonstrate that God knows how to deliver the godly out of testing and temptation, while at th... [ Continue Reading ]
PETER'S INDICTMENT OF THE FALSE PREACHERS (2 PETER 2:10). Peter accuses the false teachers, who are in total contrast to Noah and Lot, both of whom had had connections with angelic beings in one way or another, but had not become obsessed with such things, of a number of things: · Firstly that they... [ Continue Reading ]
‘But chiefly those who walk after the flesh in the lust of defilement, and despise dominion. Daring, self-willed, they tremble not to rail at dignities (literally ‘glories'), whereas angels, though greater in might and power, bring not a railing judgment against them before the Lord.' Two of the gr... [ Continue Reading ]
‘But these, as creatures without reason, born mere animals to be taken (captured) and destroyed, railing in matters of which they are ignorant, will in their destroying surely be destroyed.' In their pride they do not recognise the truth about themselves. They are behaving irrationally. They are for... [ Continue Reading ]
‘Themselves suffering wrong as the reward of wrongdoing, counting it pleasure to indulge themselves in the daytime (literally ‘in a day'), spots and blemishes, revelling in their deceivings while they feast with you; having eyes full of adultery, and who cannot cease from sin; enticing unsteadfast s... [ Continue Reading ]
‘Forsaking the right way, they went astray, having followed the way of Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the hire of wrongdoing; Indeed these teachers can be compared to Balaam (Numbers 22-24). Forsaking the straight path, the right way, they too have gone astray, like Balaam did. He also was one w... [ Continue Reading ]
‘But he was rebuked for his own transgression. A dumb ass spoke with man's voice and stayed the madness of the prophet.' But let them remember that Balaam was rebuked because of his transgression, and that by a dumb ass. Even a dumb ass was wiser than he was. And the result was that he stopped in h... [ Continue Reading ]
‘These are springs without water, and mists driven by a storm; for whom the blackness of darkness has been reserved.' What his readers must recognise is what that these men are. They are springs without water. They may seem to have much to offer, but really they are empty and dried up. The truth is... [ Continue Reading ]
‘For, uttering great swelling words of vanity, they entice in the lusts of the flesh, by lasciviousness, those who are just escaping from those who live in error, promising them liberty, while they themselves are bondservants of corruption.' Peter then expands on what he means. Their teaching is ma... [ Continue Reading ]
‘For of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he also brought into bondage.' Even while they speak of freedom they are themselves bondslaves. For the truth is that whoever or whatever overcomes a man, brings him into bondage. And they, being overcome by such things, are themselves slaves to sex, a... [ Continue Reading ]
‘For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state is become worse with them than the first.' By hearing of Christ and coming to a knowledge of Him and His holy requi... [ Continue Reading ]
ALL NEED TO CONSIDER WHAT FOLLOWING THIS TEACHING INVOLVES (2 PETER 2:20). It is often debated as to whether these following verses are spoken about the false teachers, or about both them and their followers. Certainly Revelation 2:22 would suggest the latter. And this would seem to be confirmed by... [ Continue Reading ]
‘For it were better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after knowing it, to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them.' And the sad thing for many of these people was that just as they were learning about the way of righteousness, and about Christ's holy teaching... [ Continue Reading ]
‘It has happened to them according to the true proverb, The dog turning to his own vomit again, and the sow that had washed to wallowing in the mire.' What has simply happened is what the old proverb said, they have reverted to nature. They have turned back to all that was most degrading about their... [ Continue Reading ]