Bible Commentaries
2 Peter 2

Verses 1-11

2Pe 2:1-11

WARNING AGAINST FALSE TEACHERS

2 Peter 2:1-11

1 But there arose false prophets also among the people, as among you also there shall be false teachers,--The word "but" with which this verse begins puts it in contrast with matters dealt with at the close of the preceding chapter. There, the apostle had emphasized the fact that the prophetic word is a product of inspiration; that it was delivered by men who spake from God; and that those who thus spoke were moved to do so by the Holy Spirit. Lest from this his readers should conclude that all who affected to be prophets were thus influenced, he hastened to add that as in times past false prophets had risen to lead the people of Israel astray (Deuteronomy 14:1-5; Isaiah 9:15; Jeremiah 14:14; Ezekiel 13:3; Zechariah 13:4), so false teachers were to be expected among them. Such teachers constituted a constant menace to the early church, and many warnings against them appear in the New Testament. (Matthew 24:5; Matthew 24:24; Acts 20; 29, 30; 1 Timothy 4:1 ff; 2 Timothy 4:1 ff.; 1 John 4:1.)

Who shall privily bring in destructive heresies, denying even the Master that brought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.--"Who" refers to the false teachers mentioned in the second clause of the verse. "Privily" (Pareisago) means to slip in by the side of, and indicates that these teachers had artfully and slyly introduced their false doctrines by the side of the truth in such fashion as to deceive those who had accepted them. Such doctrines are described as "destructive heresies." They were heretical, because they were false; and they were destructive from the fact that they brought ruin upon all who accepted them, as well as upon those who propagated them. The doctrine to which Peter particularly alludes here led people to deny "the Master who bought them." (1 Corinthians 6:20; Hebrews 10:29.) There were many heresies afloat near the close of the first century, all tending to this end. The Lord’s deity was questioned by some (1 John 4:15), his humanity by others (1 John 4:2). Some teachers then, as now, denied the threefold personality of the godhead, maintaining that there is but one person, with three manifestations. Others held to the doctrine that the body of Christ was not real, but only imaginary while still others, by their wicked and corrupt lives, denied their Master by using their bodies as their own and not his. Reference to denying the Lord by Peter is significant, in the light of his own previous conduct. To him this involved the greatest possible apostasy. But when Peter denied his Lord, the price of redemption had not been paid. How much graver the offense of those who today treat with contempt that precious purchase price! (Acts 20:28.)

2. And many shall follow their lascivious doings; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.--The word "lasciviousness" (aselgeia) refers to unbridled lust, abandoned actions of the flesh, extreme wantonness, dissolute habits and all unclean living. These teachers of whom Peter wrote made a religion of lust, and while confounding Christian liberty with license, preached the gospel of libertinism. Errors which allow such liberty have even been attractive to those who live for the world, and many were led to adopt such and to follow willingly and gladly those who propagated them. In consequence, the "way of truth" was evil spoken of, i.e., reviled, blasphemed. Many unbelievers did not run to such excesses, and failing to distinguish between those professors and those who taught the truth, they regarded such conduct as the usual and ordinary fruits of Christianity, and held the institution of Christianity itself in contempt.

3 And in covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you:--Covetousness--unlawful desire for personal gain--was the motive which influenced these false teachers and thus motivated, they used feigned words--words artfully and skillfully forged for the occasion--to deceive those whom they could. These teachers "made merchandise" of their dupes by treating them as merchandise, i.e., as objects by which to enhance their own wealth. Such proselyted only that they might profit, and promised what they could never deliver from motives of greed and avarice. (See 1 Timothy 6:5; Titus 1:11.)

Whose sentence now from of old lingereth not, and their destruction slumbereth not.--Being evildoers, and therefore under the ban of all who disobey God, their destiny was definite and their damnation sure. (Philippians 3:19.) Peter solemnly assured his readers that such would not be delayed nor forgotten. "Lingereth not" is from ouk argei, is not idle; and "slumbereth not" is from ou nustazei, does not nod, thus signifying that these deceivers and all those whom they deceived were hastening toward a judgment and a destiny that did not loiter on the way nor nod off to sleep in forgetfulness!

4 For if God spared not angels when they sinned,--In proof of the proposition that judgment against the wicked is inevitable, Peter cites three well-known instances: (1) angels who sinned ; (2) the destruction of the old world in the flood; and (3) the overthrow of the cities of the plain. Angels are created beings, "sent forth to do service for the sake of them that shall inherit salvation." (Hebrews 1:14.) They are moral creatures and answerable to God for their conduct, though apparently outside the redemptive provisions of grace. (Hebrews 2:16.) Thus, when they sin, they are beyond the possibility of salvation. These, despite their rank, the honorable position they occupied, and the holiness they possessed when created, sinned and were not spared. What the nature of their sin was when they sinned and the number of those sinning is not stated. Much speculation has been indulged in regarding the matter. There is a popular view that Genesis 6:2-4 involves an unholy association between angels and women, and that the sin of the angels was fornication "with the daughters of men." This exposition is based on an erroneous view of Genesis 6:1-4. There is no reference to angels in that passage. The "sons of God" were human beings. Others, with more reason, have concluded that these angels were the same as those alluded to by Jude when he said that "they kept not their own principality, but left their proper habitation," and are kept "in everlasting bonds under darkness unto the judgment of the great day." (Judges 1:6.) Some hold to the view that Satan was a created angel; that he led a revolt in heaven (Revelation 12:7); that the occasion for the revolt was spiritual pride and a desire for higher position (1 Timothy 3:6); and that for such arrogance and presumption he was cast out of heaven. Inasmuch as it is inconceivable that God created these angels wicked, the following conclusions seem certain: (a) they were originally holy; (b) they sinned; (c) the occasion of their sin was in abandoning their "proper habitation"; (d) as a result they were thrust down to a place of bondage. What this place was is designated in the clause which follows.

But cast them down to hell, and committed them to pits of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; --The word translated "hell" here, tartarosas, does not occur elsewhere in the Greek New Testament. The word is used in Greek mythology of the place of restraint and punishment for the souls of wicked men after death. It seems likely that Peter, writing in Greek, and to people who would be disposed to understand the words of the language in their ordinary signification, here used the word in its usual import, and that by it he intended to convey the idea that these wicked angels were thrust down to such an abode to await the judgment of the great day. Inasmuch as the nature of the place is the same as that which characterized the rich man in torment in Hades, separated by a great gulf from the righteous there (Luke 16:23-26), it is reasonable to assume that the places are the same, and that tartars is that compartment in the Hadean realm where wicked spirits are reserved (kept in restraint) until the day of their final condemnation is at hand. The place is described as "pits of darkness," from the fact that darkness is the condition which there prevails. The word "pit," from the Greek seiros, denotes an underground opening or den.

5 And spared not the ancient world, but preserved Noah with seven others, a preacher of righteousness, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; --The argument--an a fortiori one--continues, and the apostle offers the second illustration of the certainty of judgment upon the wicked. The "ancient world" embraced the people who lived before the flood. Though these people had clear and unmistakable warnings of impending doom, and despite the fact that the time provided them was ample to flee from the destruction which threatened them, they spurned Jehovah’s offer of amnesty and died. Only Noah and his family, consisting of his wife, his three sons and their wives, were saved. (Genesis 7:7; 1 Peter 3:20.) The account of the flood is recorded in Genesis 6:13 to Genesis 8:19. Noah is called a preacher of righteousness (Psalms 119:172), from the fact that he both preached and practiced righteousness. "Noah was a righteous man, and perfect in his generations: Noah walked with God." (Genesis 6:9.) He was a "preacher" (literally, a herald) of righteousness; he denounced the unrighteousness and corruption about him, and exhorted the people to repentance. Josephus, the Jewish historian of the first century, bears this remarkable testimony concerning him: "Noah being grieved at the things which were done by them .and being displeased at their counsels, urged them to change for the better their thoughts and actions. But seeing that they did not yield, but were mightily mastered by the pleasure of evil, fearing lest they should kill him, he departed from the land with his wife and his sons and the women whom they had married." (Antiq. I, 3, 1.)

6 And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, having made them an example unto those that should live ungodly; --The historical account of this event is recorded in Genesis 19:23-29. As a third instance of the certainty of God’s judgment, the fearful destruction of the cities of the plain--Sodom and Gomorrah--is offered. The prophets cited the destruction which befell these Old Testament cities (Isaiah 1:9-10; Ezekiel 16:48-56), as also did our Lord (Luke 17:28-32). Jude, with more detail than Peter, describes the event thus: "Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them, having in like manner with these given themselves over to fornication and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the punishment of eternal fire. (Judges 1:7.) The "overthrow" which these cities suffered evidenced God’s extreme displeasure with their conduct and serves as a warning of the destiny which awaits those who live in similar ungodly fashion today.

7 And delivered righteous Lot, sore distressed by the lascivious life of the wicked--See Genesis 19:16. The case of Lot is introduced to show that God distinguishes between the righteous and the wicked, delivering the former and bringing destruction on the latter. Lot is called "righteous" because he kept himself from the combination of the world about him. The words "sore distressed" are translated from the present passive participle of kataponeo, to wear down, to tire out, to harass beyond endurance. The verb thus denotes the distress which Lot felt at the open and shameless ungodliness which was practiced around him. Most of the distress which he felt doubtless came from the ungodly conduct characteristic of his own family. Though he sought to keep them from the corruption of the people of Sodom, "He seemed unto his sons-in-law as one that mocked." (Genesis 19:14.)

8 (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their lawless deeds):--The parentheses in the text explains the nature of the distress which Lot felt in Sodom. He had himself selected the plain of Jordan and the neighborhood of Sodom on the occasion of the dissension between his herdsmen and those of Abraham (Genesis 13:1-13); and when he made the choice it was said that "the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners against Jehovah exceedingly" (Genesis 13:13). When the consequences of his choice became apparent to him, it appears that he often desired to leave but was not able. Forced to live daily in the presence of gross and unrestrained licentiousness, and to see and to hear it constantly, he vexed (imperfect active of basanizo, kept on tormenting) his righteous soul with the lawlessness about him. It should be observed that it was Lot who tormented his own soul at what he witnessed. The words describe the pain that a naturally sensitive and righteous man would experience at the sight of such flagrant lawlessness as that which existed in Sodom. Though in the midst of extreme wickedness, (a) Lot was not corrupted by it ; (b) he did not become indifferent to it; (c) he was daily concerned about it. In this he serves as a pattern for us today.

9 The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment unto the day of judgment;---A conclusion drawn from preceding premises. The Lord can deliver his servants, as illintrated by Noah and Lot; and he does keep the unrighteous under punishment, as evidenced in the cases of the angels who sinned, the wicked, antediluvian world, and the cities of the plain. The word tendered "temptation" in this verse is the same as that translated "trial" in 1 Peter 1:6, where it refers to the manifold difficulties which Peter’s readers then faced. This passage is, therefore, an assurance of deliverance to the righteous whatever the danger which confronts them. The words "under punishment" are from kolazomenous, present participle of kolazo, to punish, and reveals that the punishment of the wicked precedes as well as follows the final judgment, a fact also clearly taught in the narrative of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31), as well as in the reference to the angels who sinned (2 Peter 2:4).

10 But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of defilement, and despise dominion.--"Chiefly" (malista), i.e., especially these above all others God will reserve under punishment. In a parallel passage, Jude said, "Yet in like manner these also in their dreamings defile the flesh and set at nought dominion, and rail at dignities." (Verse 8.) These false teachers of whom Peter writes were not only walking after the flesh they desired the defilement of the flesh which their lusts produced; they greedily reached forth for the unlawful and polluting use of the flesh to which their sin led them. These were evidently guilty of the unspeakable sins and other darker forms of impurity which Paul mentions as prevalent in the Roman empire. (Romans 1:24-28.) Moreover, they despised "dominion," i.e., they regarded all authority with contempt. Any effort to restrain them in their wild rebellion they despised.

Daring, self-willed, they tremble not to rail at dignities:--Despite the fact that they knew the penalty for their conduct, they defied the Lord; and arrogant, audacious, and proud, they blasphemed dignities--all authorities--without fear. These words indicate the extreme coarseness, insolence, and hardness of heart characteristic of these false teachers.

11 Whereas angels, though greater in might and power, bring not a railing judgment against them before the Lord.--Angels, though greater in every way than these false and designing teachers, do not bring railing judgments, but with becoming modesty and restraint leave such matters in the hands of God. Examples of this attitude may be seen in Zechariah 3:2; Judges 1:9.

Verses 12-22

2Pe 2:12-22

CHARACTERISTICS AND FINAL

DESTINY OF FALSE TEACHERS

2 Peter 2:12-22

12 But these, as creatures without reason, born mere animals to be taken and destroyed, railing in matters whereof they are ignorant, shall in their destroying surely be destroyed,--The fallen angels recognized the moral law of God and felt the wrath which came upon them in their disobedience; whereas, these false teachers, though greatly inferior to the angels (verse 11), were like mere animals in disregarding utterly any laws of a higher world. Like wild beasts of prey which exist solely for the gratification of fleshly appetites, and eventually to be taken and destroyed for the harm they do, these false teachers, as similar creatures without reason or rational conduct, deserved no better fate. In their senseless railing against matters about which they knew nothing, they would eventually suffer the destruction which was wrought out for all whom they deceived. In destroying others, they would, themselves, eventually, be destroyed. Wild beasts are made to be taken and destroyed by man; and these, being of the same nature, also deserved and would receive destruction.

13 Suffering wrong as the hire of wrong-doing; --These words are to be construed with the final clause of the verse which precedes, i.e., these false teachers "shall in their destroying surely be destroyed, suffering wrong at the hire of wrong-doing." The King James’ rendering, based on a well-supported variation of the Greek text, has here, "and shall receive the reward of unrighteousness." The "reward of unrighteousness" is ruin. Balaam (Numbers 31:8; Numbers 31:19) and Judas (Acts 1:18) are examples of those who received the reward of unrighteousness in this life, and all the wicked will receive it in the world to come.

Men that count it pleasure to revel in the daytime,--Ordinarily, even the wicked confine their excesses to the night but these, under consideration by Peter, were so abandoned in sin that they extended their revelings into the day, finding pleasure only in ceaseless and unrestrained indulgence. (1 Thessalonians 5:7.)

Spots and blemishes, reveling in their deceiving while they feast with you;--Hitherto the apostle had dealt with the insubordination and disrespect for authority characteristic of these false teachers; with this verse he begins a description of their abandonment in sin. They were full of spots and blemishes, in contrast with the Lord who is "a lamb without blemish and without spot" (1 Peter 1:19); and his body, which he desires to be without "spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing" (Ephesians 5:27). Further, these teachers had injected themselves into the feasts which the Christians commonly held, and there sported themselves in their deceivings, using such occasions as additional opportunities to deceive the people.

14 Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; --"Having eyes full of adultery" is, in the Greek, "having eyes full of an adulteress" (moichalis). It is a vivid term, descriptive of a man who is unable to look at a woman without regarding her as an objective for lasciviousness. It is the disposition of heart which violates the injunction of the Lord when he said, "Ye have heard that it was said, Thou shalt not commit adultery but I say unto you, that every one that looketh on a woman to lust after her bath committed adultery with her already in his heart." (Matthew 5:27-28.) The hearts of these false teachers were filled with lust, and they ever sought opportunity for the gratification thereof. Thus motivated, they did not, and could not, cease from sin.

Enticing unstedfast souls; having a heart exercised in covetousness; children of cursing;--"Enticing" is derived from deleazo, a bait. The word also occurs in verse 18 of this chapter, and is such a term as would be most familiar to Peter, a fisherman. Unsteadfast souls, deceived by their teachers, suffered themselves to be entrapped by the bait which was dangled before them. The hearts of these men were exercised (practiced) in covetousness. The word "exercised" is from a term which indicates training in a gymnasium. These teachers were trained in habits of greed. They are styled "children of cursing," a Hebrew idiom expressing character through sonship. Compare "the son of perdition" (John 17:12); "sons of disobedience" (Ephesians 2:2); "sons of thunder" (Mark 3:17). These were "children of cursing," because they were a curse to all others, and would themselves suffer the curse of destruction in judgment.

15 Forsaking the right way, they went astray,--The "right way" is the "way of truth." (Verse 2.) It is variously designated "the way of the Lord" (Genesis 18:19); "the way of peace" (Romans 3:17); "the way of wisdom" (Proverbs 4:11); "the way of life" (Proverbs 10:17); and "the way of salvation" (Acts 16:17). The false teachers whom Peter describes in this section of his epistle had "forsaken the right way" and had gone "astray" and were thus apostates to the faith. One cannot forsake a way in which he has never been. These had abandoned the doctrine of Christ, and they no longer conformed in life to the principles which he taught. (Cf. Acts 13:4-12.)

Having followed the way of Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the hire of wrong-doing;--"For the story of Balaam and his effort to curse the children of Israel, see Numbers 22:1-41. Balaam desired the reward which the Moabite messengers brought, here called "the hire of wrong-doing," because he hoped to receive the money for the wicked work he sought to do. These teachers to whom Peter alludes were like Balaam in that they prostituted the doctrine of Christ for personal gain, and taught doctrines contrary to the will of the Lord because they loved the wages of unrighteousness. The word "followed" in the text is translated from a Greek verb which means to follow out to the end. It occurs in 2 Peter 1:16; 2 Peter 2:2.

16 But he was rebuked for his own transgression: a dumb ass spake with man’s voice and stayed the madness of the prophet.--Balaam’s transgression was in his readiness to go and curse Israel despite the solemn warning he had received from God. The dumb ass was a beast of burden. Actually, it was the angel who hindered Balaam on his way, but the clearer vision of the beast resulted in the first delay, and the miracle which followed --when the ass spake with the voice of a man--brought to his attention the perverseness of his way. It is significant that Peter accepted and adopted the narrative in Numbers 22, regarding Balaam and the ass, as authentic. It was, to him, no imaginary incident, no fictitious account. Modernistic scholars in seeking to eliminate the supernatural from the sacred writings entirely, allege that Balaam merely heard the promptings of an uneasy conscience on this occasion and that the beast did not really speak. Such a view not only impeaches Moses as a historian; it also convicts Peter, an apostle of the Lord, as an unreliable writer. The beast spake; he spake with the voice of a man; he spake audibly, and his words have been recorded and preserved. (Numbers 22:28.) There is no miracle in the Old Testament better authenticated than this.

17 These are springs without water, and mists driven by a storm; for whom the blackness of darkness hath been reserved.--The apostle, in the verses which precede this, has described the sins of the false teachers about whom he writes; here, he directs attention to the emptiness and worthlessness of that which they taught. Though they paraded under the guise of teachers of truth, they were as springs without water, toward which tired and thirsty travelers hasten, only to meet with bitter disappointment when they arrive and find there is no water there. Though such teachers make great promises, the promises they make do not materialize. They are like mists driven by a storm containing the promise of rain, but blown quickly by the wind over the land and away. The harassed farmer looks longingly at the skies and hopes that the cloud which he sees will bring moisture to his parched fields, only to observe it fleeing before the tempest. Such was characteristic of these men who, though they offered a blessing, deceived and disappointed those whom they duped. For all such the blackness of darkness has been reserved and awaits. (Judges 1:13.) The way of the wicked is often described in the scriptures as a "way of darkness." (Prow. 4:19; Jeremiah 23:9-12.)

18 For, uttering great swelling words of vanity, they entice in the lusts of the flesh, by lasciviousness, those who are just escaping from them that live in error;--In the verse which precedes, Peter describes the false teachers of whom he writes in figures; here, we are informed why they are waterless springs and rainless mists: all that they say is vanity. (Ephesians 4:17.) "Vanity" (mataiotes), as here used, signifies that which is empty, useless, vain; and the "great swelling wcrds" (huperogka) these teachers were accustomed to use, though pompous and high sounding, were nothing more than hollow, vain phrases, sound without substance, mere bombast. Their purpose was to "entice" in the lusts of the flesh by (dative of the instrument) lasciviousness. The word "lasciviousness" is, in the Greek, plural (aselgeia); there was no temptation of that nature which these teachers did not offer. Hence, (a) their motive was to allure and lead astray; (b) their method of enticement was by high sounding words (c) the sphere in which the enticement was accomplished was in the list of the flesh; and (d) the bait (deleazo) which was dangled before them (verse 14) was gross fleshly indulgence. The victims of these false teachers were those who were just escaping from the dark night of heathenism through obedience to the gospel, only to be thrust back into the shadows of their former manner of life by these deceivers. Those "that live in error" were the heathen who knew not God. These unfortunate victims of deceit who were just escaping from the influence of those who lived in error--through their obedience to the gospel--were seized by these false teachers and thrust back into the benighted state formerly characterizing them.

19 Promising them liberty, while they themselves are bondservants of corruption; for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he also brought into bondage.--The "great swelling words" which these teachers were accustomed to speak included the offer of liberty, a characteristic feature of their teaching. The freedom which the Christian enjoys from the bondage of the law they interpreted to include the privilege of unrestrained indulgence. Disregarding Paul’s warning, "For ye, brethren, were called for freedom; only use not your freedom for an occasion to the flesh, but through love be servants one of another" (Galatians 5:13), their "liberty" became libertinism, and they practiced the grossest corruption. While offering liberty to others, they were themselves in the most advanced slavery, the bondage of sin. Overcome by their vices, they were in bondage to them and were the most enslaved of all creatures. They had become the servants of a master who was using them to enslave others, and who would eventually destroy them. (Verse 12.)

20 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 therein and overcome, the last state is become worse with them than the first.--The antecedent of the pronoun "they" is the false teachers of the preceding verse. These men had obeyed the gospel and had thereby "escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ,"only to return to their former state of defilement by a lapse into their earlier manner of living. "Knowledge," here, is not from the ordinary gnosis, but the compound epignosis, used so often by Paul (Ephesians 4:13; Colossians 2:2; Colossians 3:10; 1 Timothy 2:4) and Peter (2 Peter 1:2-3; 2 Peter 1:8) of the highest form of knowledge. These men had thus not always been hypocrites; they had known Christ in the fullest possible sense as their Saviour, only to apostatize from the faith. The "defilements" into which they had fallen were the corruptions of the heathen world from which they had earlier escaped. (2 Peter 1:4.) To these corruptions they had returned, and in them they were again entangled. The word "entangled" (emplakentes) suggests the figure of fishes entrapped in a net. Though these men boasted of their freedom, they were, in reality, like fish entangled in a net, the helpless captives of their own enticements, entrapped by the very bait which they dangled before others. (Verses 14, 18.)

The words "the last state is become worse with them than the first" appear to be suggested by a comment of the Lord in the parable of the unclean spirit who was cast out only to return with seven other spirits more wicked than itself. (Matthew 12:45.) Such is the condition characteristic of those who have been delivered from the corruption of the world only to return to its defilements. The last state for all such is worse than the first: (a) apostates are usually more abandoned in sin than those who have never walked in righteousness; (b) such a state involves more guilt because of the greater knowledge such a one possesses; (c) such individuals are far more difficult to influence for good than those who have never known the way of righteousness.

21 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 unto them.--The verb "known" is, like the noun "knowledge" in the preceding verse, from the compound epignosis, the fullest possible form of knowledge, and emphasizes the fact that these teachers had enjoyed a clear perception of the principles of Christ which they had now repudiated. Christianity is styled a "way" because it is a course to be followed, and it is a "way of righteousness" because righteousness characterizes those who walk in it. (Isaiah 35:8.) These deceptive teachers had not only "known" this way; they had walked in it and enjoyed its benefits and privileges. Despite this, through yielding to their sensuous desires, they had turned back to the world and had fallen into a state worse than that in which Christianity found them. It would have been better for them never to have known Christ and his teaching than, after having known it, to turn back from "the holy commandment" delivered unto them. The "holy commandment" was the moral law which Jesus taught, and which these teachers disregarded. It would have been better for them never to have known the right way in view of their subsequent apostasy, for (a) in this event they would not have brought reproach on the cause of Christ; (b) they would not have fallen to such a level of depravity as that which now characterized them; and (c) they would not suffer as great punishment in the last day, since with increased knowledge comes an increase of responsibility and consequently greater condemnation for those who do not avail themselves of the advantages afforded them. (Luke 12:47-48.)

22 It happened unto 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.--Cited in this proverb are two beasts held in greatest contempt in all Oriental lands. The dog is a scavenger, and the swine is regarded as an abomination. Jesus associated these two beasts in an illustration of what is most profane and degrading. (Matthew 7:6.) Reference to the dog is a variation of a statement made by Solomon in Proverbs 26:11; that of a sow does not occur in the scriptures, though the truth of that which is affirmed is a matter which has come under the observation of all even casually acquainted with the habits of either of these animals. The proverb was one of general currency when Peter wrote. It should be observed that in both instances the animal was changed. That each returned to its former offensive habits does not alter the fact that a change had occurred. Advocates of the doctrine of the impossibility of apostasy, in an effort to avoid the obvious force of this passage, insist that the dog remained a dog, the sow a sow. Such is not the point of the proverb. The dog had ejected that which was foul; the sow had been washed. That each returned to its former manner of life reveals that the old nature returned. Peter cites the proverb as an illustration of that which had occurred in the lives of these men who, though they had escaped the corruptions of the world through the knowledge of Christ, had become entangled again therein, and overcome, and their last state was thus worse than the first. (Verse 20.)

REVIEW QUESTIONS FOR THE CHAPTER

1) What are the main points of this chapter?

- The destructiveness of false teachers (2 Peter 2:1-3)

- The doom of false teachers (2 Peter 2:4-9)

- The depravity of false teachers (2 Peter 2:10-17)

- The deceptions of false teachers (2 Peter 2:18-22)

2) What does Peter warn that false teachers will do? (2 Peter 2:1)

- Secretly bring in destructive heresies

- Even denying the Lord who bought them

3) What impact will such false teachers have? (2 Peter 2:2)

- Many will follow their destructive ways

- The way of truth will be blasphemed

4) How will such teachers exploit people? (2 Peter 2:3)

- By covetousness, with deceptive words

5) What three examples does Peter use to illustrate the doom of false

teachers? (2 Peter 2:4-6)

- The angels who sinned and were cast down to hell

- The ancient world destroyed by the flood

- The cities of Sodom and Gomorrah turned into ashes

6) How was Lot oppressed by living in Sodom? (2 Peter 2:7-8)

- Every day seeing and hearing the filthy conduct of wicked

7) What two things does the Lord know to do? (2 Peter 2:9)

- How to deliver the godly out of temptations

- How to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment

8) Who in particular will receive such punishment? (2 Peter 2:10)

- Those who walk in uncleanness and despise authority

- Those who are presumptuous and self-willed; not afraid to speak

evil of dignitaries

9) What are angels unwilling to do? (2 Peter 2:11)

- Bring reviling accusations against dignitaries before the Lord

10) How does Peter further describe the false teachers? (2 Peter 2:12-14)

- They speak evil of things they do not understand

- They count it pleasure to carouse in the daytime

- They have eyes full of adultery, beguiling unstable souls

- They have hearts trained in covetousness, and are accursed children

11) In whose way have such false teachers followed? (2 Peter 2:15-16)

- Balaam, who loved the wages of unrighteousness and was rebuked by a

donkey

12) How else does Peter describe these false teachers? (2 Peter 2:17)

- As wells without water, clouds carried by a tempest

- For whom the gloom of darkness is reserved

13) How are the false teachers able to allure others? (2 Peter 2:18)

- By speaking great swelling words of emptiness

- Through the lusts of the flesh and licentiousness

14) Who will they seek to allure? (2 Peter 2:18)

- The ones who have escaped from those living in error

15) In promising others liberty, what are they themselves? Why? (2 Peter 2:19)

- Slaves of corruption

- For by whom a person is overcome, by him also he is brought into

bondage

16) What had these false teachers once escaped? How? (2 Peter 2:20)

- The pollutions of the world

- Through the knowledge of Jesus Christ

17) What had then happened to them? (2 Peter 2:20)

- They were again entangled in the pollutions of the world and

overcome

18) How had their latter end become worse for them than the beginning?

(2 Peter 2:20-21)

- It would have better for them not to have known the way of

righteousness

- Than knowing it, to then turn from the holy commandment

19) What twofold proverb does Peter use to describe their sorry

condition? (2 Peter 2:22)

- A dog returns to his own vomit

- A sow, having washed, to her wallowing in the mire

20) What in this chapter reveals that these false teachers had once

been saved? (2 Peter 2:1 2 Peter 2:15 2 Peter 2:20-22)

- The Lord had bought them

- They have forsaken the right way

- They had escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge

of Jesus

- They had known the way of righteousness

- Like a sow, they had been washed

Questions by E.M. Zerr On 2nd Peter 2

1. Were all prophets of the true kind?

2. Did their kind die with thcm?

3. What will they bring in?

4. In what manner will they do this?

5. To what length will they go in their teaching?

6. What will this bring upon themselves?

7. Will they have any following?

8. What evil speaking will result?

9. State the motive of this movement.

10. What is meaning of "feigned words"?

11. Tell what is about to coone upon them.

12. Can angels sin?

13. What did God do with certain angels?

14. To what are they reserved f

15. Is there any plan for their redemptIOn?

16. What was the "old world" in verse five?

17. Noah and how many others were saved?

18. What was the matter with Sodom and Gomorra,

19. State what was made of them.

20. What kind of man was Lot?

21. Does this apply after moving to Sodom?

22. Did he prevent the wickedness of Sodom?

23. How could he be considered just?

24. To what extent did he fret over the evil?

25. What deliverance will God give the righteous?

26. Does this mean he will prevent temptations?

27. When will the unjust be punished?

28. Will any "get their hell in this life"?

29. How do the unrighteous walk?

30. State their attitude towards being ruled.

31. How do they dare to speak?

32. Whose will do these wish to follow,

33. To what characters is reference made here?

34. How should their example shame others?

35. Of what thinga do these evil ones speak?

36. To what transient creatures are they compared?

37. What is to be their miserable end?

38. Whose reward will they receive?

39. Describe their character among others.

40. State the character of their eyes.

41. From what cannot they cease?

42. How do they affect unstable ones?

43. Tell what exercise they practice.

44. What kind of a generation are they?

45. Whose way do they follow?

46. Tell the motive of such ways.

47. How was Balaam rebuked?

48. What sort of humiliation does this imply?

49. How useful is a well without water?

50. What is the comparison here?

51. Tell what is reserved for all such.

52. By what means do they do their alluring 1

53. Through what nature do they succeed?

54. What class can they allure?

55. Tell what they promise as an inducement.

56. Show their inconsistency at the same time.

57. What will make things worse than in the beginning?

58. State what would have been better.

59. Then should men hesitate from becoming saved?

60. What comparison is made in last verse?