2 Peter 2:18-22

Beware of Empty Promises

The false teachers, about whom Peter warned, used big words that sounded good but were empty. They lured those who had just escaped back into the ways of sin. Christians certainly are free from the bondage of sin and death (John 8:32-36; Romans 6:6-7). However, the false teachers told young Christians they were free to do as they pleased. Peter said they preached freedom, but were themselves the slaves of sin (2 Peter 2:18-19; Romans 6:16-18; Romans 8:1-6; Galatians 5:1).

The deceivers had escaped the defilement of the world. This was done through the knowledge of Jesus Christ. Peter, in 2 Peter 2:20, does not use the word for general knowledge, but for precise or full knowledge. Clearly, the false teachers had not always been hypocrites. Note, they had escaped but were now entrapped in the tangled webbing into which they sought to lure others. Because they knew better, it could truly be said they were in a worse condition than they were in before they first learned about Jesus (2 Peter 2:20).

It would have been better for them not to have fully known the Lord's will, than to reach the state of turning back. Better because they brought reproach on the church. Better because they were more receptive to the gospel when they were unconverted sinners than when they were erring Christians. Also, better because greater knowledge brings with it greater responsibility (Luke 12:36-48). Peter used the proverb of the dog returning to its own vomit from Proverbs 26:11. The proverb about the sow is likely from a source other than the Bible, but certainly is true. Note that the dog had vomited up what made him sick and the sow had been washed clean. Both went back to that out of which they had come (2 Peter 2:21-22).