2 Peter 2:5

2 Peter 2:5 ‘and did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah,. preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought. flood upon the world of the ungodly;'

‘and did not spare' -The repetition of this phrase (2 Peter 2:4) is an attack upon the false teachers insistence upon ‘grace' as an automatic ticket to heaven. ‘Grace' didn't cover the angels, and grace didn't save Noah's contemporaries. God did not spare! But like then, today we are hearing that ‘God will spare'. God will spare all the people in error, God will spare the denominations, God will spare the Premillennialists and the Calvinists, and God will even spare the good moral person who ever becomes. Christian. What about the seemingly sincere people who refused to believe Noah's preaching?

‘the ancient world' -and not merely the people in Noah's home town or neighborhood. The flood was universal in scope! (2 Peter 3:5). Again, the flood really happened! Genesis is historical truth, it isn't myth. If Genesis is mythical, then the false teachers were right about the Second Coming being. myth. Either both events are true or neither event is true. God links them together (2 Peter 3:1).

‘preserved Noah' -Noah was. real person. His name was ‘Noah'. In the flood, Noah doesn't represent. whole race of people. The flood isn't an allegory. Noah was. real man.

‘a preacher of righteousness' -‘lit.,. herald' (Vincent p. 692). One who proclaimed righteousness, i.e.. man who proclaimed the standards and will of Almighty God. Through Noah, Jesus preached to Noah's generation (1 Peter 3:19).

Points to Note:

‘How could. good man keep quiet when he saw others going to ruin?' (Lucas/Green p. 97) Not only was Noah building an Ark, he was also preaching to his contemporaries. ‘Righteousness'-‘the state of him who is such as he ought to be…the condition acceptable to God..virtue, purity of life, uprightness, correctness in thinking, feeling, and acting.' (Thayer p. 301) (See Ezekiel 2:14; Ezekiel 2:20; Hebrews 11:7).

‘with seven others' -Historical detail (1 Peter 3:20). Only seven people (eight, when we include Noah) were saved! ‘Here, against the background of judgment on. rebellious and wicked world…we find God's salvation depicted. Peter insists that it was available for all, but was effective only for few. The fewness of the saved and the certainty of judgment had immediate relevance for his first readers.' (Green p. 99) ‘false teachers, notwithstanding their multitude of followers, and long success in propagating their errors, have no reason to imagine to themselves an escape from the wrath of God.' (Lucas/Green p. 98) Noah preached the truth, and he only was able to save seven other people! We often hear people saying, ‘Surely God won't allow the vast majority of humankind to end up lost!' But the vast majority of those who lived during the time of Noah did perish! God didn't change His mind. The false teachers might have many followers, but sheer numbers have never meant anything to God (Matthew 7:13).

‘when He brought. flood upon the world of the ungodly' -‘Ungodly'-‘destitute of reverential awe towards God' (Thayer p. 79). Rejecting the Word of God places one into the category of ‘ungodly'. ‘The point of the whole Noah illustration is well brought out…Peter's readers must, he says, “chose between apostolic orthodoxy and contemporary heresy. The consequences of their choice will follow as certainly as those illustrated in the fate of Noah and the ancient world.' (Green p. 100)