2 Peter 2:1 - 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.
He says, but there were false prophets also among the people, meaning there were the prophets from God at the end of Chapter 1, and there were also false prophets among the people. Even as there shall be false teachers among you. Notice the change, false prophets from old, but now it's not false prophecy because all prophecy has been given. Now it's false teachers.
A teacher is someone who takes all the prophecy, all of the messages that have been God breathed, inspired through His servants, and they teach, but do they correctly represent the inspiration that is given through the original writers?
So, he gives them the caution. It's factual. There will be false teachers among you. And then we see their conduct, and some of this gets pretty intense, so try to hang in there with me.
Who in their conduct, there are three things:
Number 1, they who privily, or secretly shall bring in damnable, or destructive heresies,
Secondly: Even denying the Lord that bought them,
Thirdly: And bring upon themselves swift destruction.
2 Peter 2:10 - 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.
But chiefly them that walk after the flesh, and that's what they are. They are very fleshy people.
And there are two things from this:
They walk in the lust of uncleanness, and they despise government (authorities). Secondly, they are presumptuous, meaning they have an arrogant attitude. They are selfwilled, and they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities. The word dignities (DOXAS) is the word glories, a word used for spirit beings, mostly angels.
2 Peter 2:2 - And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.
And many shall follow their pernicious, or destructive ways; Notice this: Many will follow. It won't be a few. There will be a lot! That's why Jesus said there are few who are saved. Many shall follow their destructive ways. And secondly, by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. That's the word blasphemed. The way of the truth will be blasphemed.
2 Peter 2:4 - 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;
So, if God did this, then He's not slumbering, and He's not delaying about His judgment. And this is interesting because it shows a Past Tense. God did not spare angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell. The word for hell is TARTARUS. And it is the Greek version of the term for HADES, where the unseen spirits go, in a compartment waiting for judgment. It's the only place where it's found in the bible.
And so, he says that God in past, He cast these angels who sinned into TARTARUS, and delivered them into chains of darkness. Now it's the darkness that is the chains. How do you take spirits and put chains on them? It's a phrase that associates locking someone up so that they cannot escape.
And to be reserved for judgment. So, if God did not spare the angels that sinned, how's He going to spare these that sinned? You can find out more about these angels in Jude Verse 6. It's a one-chapter book. Both Jude and Peter run along the same lines and minister the same thing.
Yes, Paul does mention these things also. You can sort of sense Paul's compassion in Acts 20:31. I notice in this section of scripture that you mention ( Acts 20:29-31) that they (wolves in sheep clothing) will be coming from both directions, both inside the church, and outside the church. And this is the theme of Peter's letters, warning believers of both of these threats.
So, they privately, or secretly shall bring in. In the Greek text, it literally means to bring in alongside of something else. There's no word secret or private. It just means to bring in the destructive teachings alongside of some true teachings.
A lot of the cults today do teach some correct things from the bible. And they will agree on many things that believers know the bible teaches. But it can be as little as one percent of false teaching that can lead someone astray and in the wrong direction.
It was not too long ago, and even though Brigham Young University taught it in their classes, many Christians didn't know the full context of the teaching of the Mormon view of God the Father.
They believe there's god the mother because you can't have a son unless you have a father and a mother, so there's got to be a mother. So, they worship god the mother too, and they have some stories about her. But that didn't come out until recently. Yes, they believe in God the Father, and they talk to Christians about God the Father, but they're not going to tell you about god the mother that they believe in. You find all this other stuff out later, after they entice you, and bait you into joining their group.
So, the false teachers will bring in false teaching alongside of other things that are true, and catch people off guard, and bring the false teachings in. They bring in damnable heresies. The word damnable (APOLEIA) means destructive. There's no spiritual growth in it at all. It just destroys. And the word heresies comes from the Greek word HAIRESIS. And the root word literally means to choose, or to have an opinion.
The body of Christ gets divided over heresy, personal opinion, personal belief, and what people choose to believe from the bible. But they might not be able to find it in the scriptures, they just believe it's there, and it's called heresy, destructive heresies.
2 Peter 2:1 - 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.
He says, but there were false prophets also among the people, meaning there were the prophets from God at the end of Chapter 1, and there were also false prophets among the people. Even as there shall be false teachers among you. Notice the change, false prophets from old, but now it's not false prophecy because all prophecy has been given. Now it's false teachers.
A teacher is someone who takes all the prophecy, all of the messages that have been God breathed, inspired through His servants, and they teach, but do they correctly represent the inspiration that is given through the original writers?
So, he gives them the caution. It's factual. There will be false teachers among you. And then we see their conduct, and some of this gets pretty intense, so try to hang in there with me.
Who in their conduct, there are three things:
Number 1, they who privily, or secretly shall bring in damnable, or destructive heresies,
Secondly: Even denying the Lord that bought them,
Thirdly: And bring upon themselves swift destruction.
2 Peter 2:10 - 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.
But chiefly them that walk after the flesh, and that's what they are. They are very fleshy people.
And there are two things from this:
They walk in the lust of uncleanness, and they despise government (authorities). Secondly, they are presumptuous, meaning they have an arrogant attitude. They are selfwilled, and they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities. The word dignities (DOXAS) is the word glories, a word used for spirit beings, mostly angels.
2 Peter 2:2 - And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.
And many shall follow their pernicious, or destructive ways; Notice this: Many will follow. It won't be a few. There will be a lot! That's why Jesus said there are few who are saved. Many shall follow their destructive ways. And secondly, by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. That's the word blasphemed. The way of the truth will be blasphemed.
2 Peter 2:4 - 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;
So, if God did this, then He's not slumbering, and He's not delaying about His judgment. And this is interesting because it shows a Past Tense. God did not spare angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell. The word for hell is TARTARUS. And it is the Greek version of the term for HADES, where the unseen spirits go, in a compartment waiting for judgment. It's the only place where it's found in the bible.
And so, he says that God in past, He cast these angels who sinned into TARTARUS, and delivered them into chains of darkness. Now it's the darkness that is the chains. How do you take spirits and put chains on them? It's a phrase that associates locking someone up so that they cannot escape.
And to be reserved for judgment. So, if God did not spare the angels that sinned, how's He going to spare these that sinned? You can find out more about these angels in Jude Verse 6. It's a one-chapter book. Both Jude and Peter run along the same lines and minister the same thing.
It seems Paul and Peter warned of these false teachers and destructive heresies woulld be creeping in right after the Apostles departure!
You see Paul mentions something similar in Acts 20:29-31
"For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.
Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.
Thank again and God bless.
Yes, Paul does mention these things also. You can sort of sense Paul's compassion in Acts 20:31. I notice in this section of scripture that you mention ( Acts 20:29-31) that they (wolves in sheep clothing) will be coming from both directions, both inside the church, and outside the church. And this is the theme of Peter's letters, warning believers of both of these threats.
Blessings to you also in Christ!
2 Peter 2:1 Continued
So, they privately, or secretly shall bring in. In the Greek text, it literally means to bring in alongside of something else. There's no word secret or private. It just means to bring in the destructive teachings alongside of some true teachings.
A lot of the cults today do teach some correct things from the bible. And they will agree on many things that believers know the bible teaches. But it can be as little as one percent of false teaching that can lead someone astray and in the wrong direction.
It was not too long ago, and even though Brigham Young University taught it in their classes, many Christians didn't know the full context of the teaching of the Mormon view of God the Father.
They believe there's god the mother because you can't have a son unless you have a father and a mother, so there's got to be a mother. So, they worship god the mother too, and they have some stories about her. But that didn't come out until recently. Yes, they believe in God the Father, and they talk to Christians about God the Father, but they're not going to tell you about god the mother that they believe in. You find all this other stuff out later, after they entice you, and bait you into joining their group.
So, the false teachers will bring in false teaching alongside of other things that are true, and catch people off guard, and bring the false teachings in. They bring in damnable heresies. The word damnable (APOLEIA) means destructive. There's no spiritual growth in it at all. It just destroys. And the word heresies comes from the Greek word HAIRESIS. And the root word literally means to choose, or to have an opinion.
The body of Christ gets divided over heresy, personal opinion, personal belief, and what people choose to believe from the bible. But they might not be able to find it in the scriptures, they just believe it's there, and it's called heresy, destructive heresies.
This comment thread is locked. Please enter a new comment below to start a new comment thread.
Note: Comment threads older than 2 months are automatically locked.
Do you have a Bible comment or question?
Posting comments is currently unavailable due to high demand on the server.
Please check back in an hour or more. Thank you for your patience!
Report Comment
Which best represents the problem with the comment?