“But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.
And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.
For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;
And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;
And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly;
And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked:
(For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)
The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:
But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities.
Whereas angels, which are greater in power and might, bring not railing accusation against them before the Lord.
But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption;
And shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time. Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you;
Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children:
Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness;
But was rebuked for his iniquity: the dumb ass speaking with man’s voice forbad the madness of the prophet.
These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever.
For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error.
While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.
For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning.
For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.
But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.” – 2 Peter 2 (KJV)
Powerful and scary is that quote of the day. Amen to that.
There were false prophets also among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their depraved ways, and because of them the way of the truth will be blasphemed. In their greed they will exploit you with fabricated messages. Their condemnation announced long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.
For if God did not spare angels when they sinned but handed them over to chains[a] of darkness by casting them into hell, to be kept under guard for judgment; and if God did not spare the ancient world but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, along with seven others when he brought a flood on the world of ungodly people; and if God condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction,[b] by turning them into ashes when he made them an example of things to come for the ungodly;[c] and if he rescued righteous Lot, who was very distressed by the unrestrained immorality of the wicked people (while that righteous man was living among them, he was tormented in his righteous soul day after day by the lawless deeds he saw and heard); then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation and to keep the unrighteous under guard until the day of judgment, in order to punish them.
This is especially true of those who follow the defiling lust of the flesh and who despise authority. Daring and arrogant, they do not tremble when they blaspheme glorious beings, whereas angels, even though they are greater in strength and power, do not bring a slanderous judgment against them before the Lord. But these people blaspheme in matters about which they are ignorant, just like unreasoning creatures that live by instinct and are born to be captured and destroyed. So they too will be destroyed as a consequence of their destructive activity. They will be paid back[d] for the harm they cause.
They consider it a pleasure to carouse in the daytime. They are spots and blemishes, who take delight in their deceitful pleasures[e] while they feast with you. They have eyes full of longing for adulterous women and sins that never stop. They seduce unstable souls. They have trained their hearts for greed. They are children who are cursed.
They left the right way and went astray, following the path of Balaam, son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness. (He was rebuked for his disobedience. A donkey, which does not talk, spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.) These men are wells without water, clouds driven away by a windstorm, for whom the gloom of darkness has been reserved.[f] For by uttering arrogant, empty words, they use the depraved lusts of the flesh to seduce those who are barely[g] escaping from those who live in error. While they promise these people freedom, they themselves are slaves to corruption, for a person is a slave to what has control of him.
Indeed, if, after escaping the defiling things of the world through the knowledge of our[h] Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and controlled by them again, they are worse off than they were at first. In fact, it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness than, after knowing it, to turn back from the holy command passed on to them. They demonstrate the truth of the proverb: “A dog returns to its own vomit,”[i] and a washed sow returns to wallowing in the mud.
– 2 Peter 2 (EHV)
Footnotes:
[a] 2 Peter 2:4 Some witnesses to the text read dungeons.
[b] 2 Peter 2:6 A few witnesses omit to destruction.
[c] 2 Peter 2:6 Some witnesses to the text read an example of the people who are going to be ungodly.
[d] 2 Peter 2:13 A few witnesses to the text read They will suffer harm as the wages.
[e] 2 Peter 2:13 A few witnesses to the text read their love feasts.
[f] 2 Peter 2:17 Some witnesses to the text add forever.
[g] 2 Peter 2:18 Some witnesses to the text read actually.
[h] 2 Peter 2:20 Some witnesses to the text omit our. It would be replaced by the.
[i] 2 Peter 2:22 Proverbs 26:11
Thank you for this selection. Timely and relevant for me.
Thank you for the opportunity to open up my bible once again. Blessings to you and your family.