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Tag: 2 Peter

Wells without water

Written by LWOM Amsterdam on . Posted in 2 Peter, What’s new?.

Why are false teachers compared to wells without water (2 Peter 2:17)?

False teachers have insinuated themselves into the Christian church since its inception. They are dangerously deceptive operators with smooth speech and seductive ways. New believers are particularly susceptible to their methods. Ever the passionately protective shepherd, the apostle Peter dedicates an entire chapter to exposing these religious pretenders. In 2 Peter 2:17, he compares them to “wells without water, clouds carried by a tempest, for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever” (NKJV).

Peter wants his flock to understand how false teachers operate, learn to spot them, and avoid falling victim to their heresies. His metaphors likening them to “wells without water” and “clouds carried by a tempest” are similar to a portion of Jude’s description of false teachers: “They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots; raging waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever” (Jude 1:12–13, NKJV).

The word Peter uses for “well” actually means “a flowing spring” in the original Greek. When Jesus ministers to the Samaritan woman (John 4:1–26), He uses the same term to describe the soul-satisfying, living water He can supply. A thirsty first-century traveler would immediately understand the disappointment of coming upon a well that promises water but does not deliver. Instead of fresh, thirst-quenching, life-giving fountains, wells without water are hollow and useless, producing nothing but dust, mud, and unquenchable thirst. Like a dried-up spring, false teachers promise much but have zero to offer. They do not teach the gospel truth that Jesus calls “a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (John 4:14). They preach freedom but supply bondage, they guarantee pleasure but furnish anguish, and they promise life but deliver death.

False teachers deny the gospel or distort it through human error (2 Peter 2:3; Colossians 2:8; 1 Timothy 6:20–21) or demonic inspiration (1 Timothy 4:1–2; 2 Corinthians 11:3–4; 1 John 4:1–3). Like Peter, the apostle Paul devotes much energy to exposing false teachers. Skipping the metaphor of “wells without water,” Paul states plainly, “Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient” (Ephesians 5:6).

Paul teaches Timothy that false teachers depart from the truth and turn to “meaningless talk. They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm” (1 Timothy 1:6–7; see also Titus 1:10–11). He advises the Colossians, “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ” (Colossians 2:8).

Peter explains that false teachers “secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves” (2 Peter 2:1). False teachers “come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves,” warns Jesus (Matthew 7:15, NLT). Paul affirms, “I know that false teachers, like vicious wolves, will come in among you after I leave, not sparing the flock. Even some men from your own group will rise up and distort the truth in order to draw a following” (Acts 20:29–30, NLT).

Comparing false teachers to wells without water is Peter’s figurative way of saying the message of false teachers is valueless, meaningless, and useless. Like the rebellious people of Jeremiah’s day, false teachers in the early church had forsaken God, “the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water” (Jeremiah 2:13). Because they reject “the teaching of the wise,” which is “a fountain of life,” they fall into “the snares of death” (Proverbs 13:14; see also Proverbs 14:27).

False teachers hold out a promise of satisfaction for thirsty souls but ultimately leave people parched and in need. Theirs is an empty hope. Their teachings are hollow and void of truth. Like wells without water, they appear to offer life, but they deliver only bondage, destruction, and death.

Not willing for any to perish

Written by LWOM Amsterdam on . Posted in 2 Peter, What’s new?.

What does it mean that God is not willing for any to perish, but that all should come to repentance?

It is always important to study Bible verses in context, and it is especially true with 2 Peter 3:9, which reads, “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (KJV). The second half of the verse, “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance,” is frequently used to argue against the doctrine of election.

The context of 2 Peter 3:9 is a description of scoffers who doubt that Jesus is going to return to judge the world with fire (2 Peter 3:3–7). The scoffers mock, “Where is this coming?” (verse 4). In verses 5–6, Peter reminds his readers that God previously destroyed the world with the flood in Noah’s time. In verse 7, Peter informs his readers that the present heavens and earth will be destroyed with fire. Peter then responds to a question he knew was on his readers’ minds, namely, “what is taking God so long?” In verse 8, Peter tells his readers that God is above and beyond the concept of time. It may seem like we have been waiting a long time, but, to God, it has been a blink of an eye. Then, in verse 9, Peter explains why God has waited so long (in our view of time). It is God’s mercy that delays His judgment. God is waiting to give more people the opportunity to repent. Then, in the verses following verse 9, Peter encourages his readers to live holy lives in anticipation of the fact that Jesus will one day return.

In context, 2 Peter 3:9 says that God is delaying His coming in judgment in order to give people further opportunities to repent. Some of the confusion regarding the meaning of 2 Peter 3:9 is the wording of the KJV translation: “not willing that any should perish.” Not willing makes it sound as if God does not allow any to perish. However, in 17th-century English, willing carried more of an idea of desire than of volition. The modern English translations of 2 Peter 3:9 render the same phrase “not wanting” (NIV and CSB), “not wishing” (ESV and NASB), and “does not want” (NLT).

In no sense does 2 Peter 3:9 contradict the idea that God elects certain people to salvation. First, in context, election is not at all what the verse is talking about. Second, to interpret “not willing that any should perish” as “does not allow any to perish” results in the false doctrine of universalism. But God can “not desire” anyone to perish and still only elect some to salvation. There is nothing incongruous about that. God did not desire for sin to enter the world through the fall of Adam and Eve, yet He allowed it. In fact, it was part of His sovereign plan. God did not desire His only begotten Son to be betrayed, brutally tortured, and murdered, yet He allowed it. This, too, was part of God’s sovereign plan.

In the same way, God does not desire anyone to perish. He desires all to come to repentance. At the same time, God recognizes that not everyone will come to repentance. It is undeniable that many will perish (Matthew 7:13–14). Rather than being a contradiction to 2 Peter 3:9, God’s electing and drawing of some to salvation is evidence that He truly does not desire people to perish. Were it not for election and the effectual calling of God, everyone would perish (John 6:44; Romans 8:29–30).

Escape the pollutions of the world

Written by LWOM Amsterdam on . Posted in 2 Peter, What’s new?.

What does it mean to escape the pollutions of the world (2 Peter 2:20)?

Second Peter 2:20 reads, “If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and are overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning.” The verse is situated within a broader context discussing false teachers and their harmful influence on the entire church. Verse 20, in particular, focuses on victims of false teaching, especially those who have reverted to a sinful lifestyle after having distanced themselves from the “pollutions of the world,” as the KJV puts it.

To “escape the pollutions of the world” entails turning away from a sinful lifestyle and seeking to know Christ. Typically, those who achieve this are believers, but exceptions exist. Seekers or nominal Christians may find themselves drawn to a community of Christians and begin to get acquainted with Jesus. As they gain more knowledge about the person and work of Christ, they gradually disentangle from their past lives. The term escape implies that the group Peter refers to comprises recent converts or those who are interested but uncommitted and need to establish a firm foundation. However, every Christian can be said to have escaped the world’s corruption, and we should take care not to regress into those pollutions (1 Corinthians 6:9–10; 1 Thessalonians 4:7–8).

The worldly lifestyle revolves around the pursuit of all our desires, effectively rejecting God and elevating ourselves to the status of gods. The corrupt worldly lifestyle is driven solely by the satisfaction of personal desires instead of pleasing God. Author Natasha Crain succinctly captures the worldly creed: “Feelings are the ultimate guide, happiness is the ultimate goal, judging is the ultimate sin, God is the ultimate guess” (Faithfully Different, Harvest House Publishers, 2022, p. 239). Knowing Jesus involves recognizing that He’s our only hope and living to please the Father just as He did, effectively escaping the ideology of self-deification.

Second Peter 2:20 is often cited as proof text by those who believe salvation can be lost. However, a comprehensive reading of the whole chapter and a comparison with the rest of Scripture suggest otherwise. The focus here is primarily on the negative impact false teachers have on the body of Christ. Even genuine Christians can stumble into sin, especially when they are recent converts (Galatians 6:1–2). Additionally, Jesus’ parable on the four soils illustrates the difference between mere intellectual assent and wholehearted commitment. Merely rejoicing at the message is insufficient if no fruit is ever produced (Matthew 13:1–23).

We can understand Peter’s anger toward the false teachers. False teachers who deny Christ lead a polluted life and deceive others. The church’s responsibility is to nurture individuals in the truth, such that the unconverted become believers, baby Christians grow, and growing Christians maintain devotion. False teachers undermine this mission with their falsehoods and ungodly conduct. Peter does not provide specific examples of the destructive heresies propagated by these false teachers, but we can glean hints from his contemporaries like Paul, Jude, and John. False teachings in the first century included the following:

  • Legalism, as exemplified by Jews who insisted that salvation required adherence to certain Jewish customs like circumcision (Acts 15:1–29; Galatians 5:2–4).
  • Gnosticism, which emphasized secret knowledge, practiced asceticism, and denied Jesus’ incarnation (Colossians 2:8–10; 1 Timothy 4:1–5; 1 John 4:1–3).
  • Licentiousness and immoral living (Jude 1:3–16).

Analyzing false teachings from the first century serves as an aid for evaluating contemporary teachings, with the aim of safeguarding ourselves and those around us from reverting to the pollution of the world. Anyone who denies or distorts the person and work of Jesus, His teachings (and, by extension, those of the apostles), and His lifestyle can rightfully be labeled a false teacher. The most distressing aspect of false teachers is how they lead unsuspecting individuals who are drawing near to Christ back into an ungodly lifestyle. Peter describes those who return to the pollutions of the world as being “worse off,” akin to a clean person returning to the mud.

Dog returns to its own vomit

Written by LWOM Amsterdam on . Posted in 2 Peter, What’s new?.

What does it mean that a dog returns to its own vomit (2 Peter 2:22)?

In 2 Peter 2, the apostle Peter deals with the problem of false prophets and teachers in the church. He draws a detailed picture of how these pretend believers operate so true Christians can discern their methods and messages and avoid falling victim to their destructive heresies. Peter emphasizes the severity of the situation: “For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them. But it has happened to them according to the true proverb: ‘A dog returns to his own vomit’” (2 Peter 2:21–22, NKJV).

These false teachers were acquainted with Jesus Christ’s work in the church enough to understand the basic principles of discipleship, but they had resisted coming to true faith and repentance (2 Peter 2:17–20). Like many religious people, they had intellectual knowledge about Jesus but not heart-level, experiential knowledge that would cause them to fully surrender their lives in obedience to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior (see Romans 10:1–4). They refused to obey Christ’s command: “If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me” (Luke 9:23, CSB). Instead, they had gone back to their old sinful ways. To illustrate, Peter cites Proverbs 26:11: “As a dog returns to his own vomit, so a fool repeats his folly” (NKJV).

Peter explains that these false prophets had turned their backs on “the holy commandment delivered to them” (2 Peter 2:21, ESV), which, in New Testament times, was shorthand for the entire message of Scripture. They had rejected the whole truth in God’s Word from Old Testament to New, including the gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ. They had resumed their sin-filled way of life, returning to what was disgusting like a dog revisiting its vomit.

In today’s culture, dogs are beloved pets to most, but they were despised in the ancient world. Dogs roamed in packs, foraged food from rotting flesh and garbage, and were not regarded as pets. In the Old Testament, dogs were considered unclean, revolting, evil-doing scavengers (Exodus 22:31; 1 Kings 14:11; 21:19, 23; Jeremiah 15:3; Psalm 22:16). Jesus used dogs and pigs as metaphors for unholy people who would mock, reject, and blaspheme the gospel when presented to them (Matthew 7:6; 15:26–27). Paul also compared false prophets who had infiltrated the church to dogs, warning Christians to “watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh” (Philippians 3:2).

Peter seemed certain that any attempt at reforming these false teachers would be a waste of time. He used disturbingly graphic language to portray the absolute depravity of those who reject Jesus Christ and then spend their lives trying to lead the faithful astray. These men were like filthy pigs wallowing in the mud or repulsive dogs eating their own vomit—returning to what is disgusting and vile (2 Peter 2:22). This final comparison is an appropriate elaboration of Peter’s earlier reference to false teachers as “brute beasts made to be caught and destroyed” who “speak evil of the things they do not understand” (2 Peter 2:12, NKJV). The apostle’s final verdict was that they would “utterly perish in their own corruption” (2 Peter 2:12, NKJV). These heretics were doomed for destruction.

In 2 Peter 1:5–11, the apostle teaches that perseverance is essential to the Christian life and a mark of genuine faith. There will always be false prophets and false teachers infiltrating Christ’s true body, attempting to trip up and deceive as many as possible (Matthew 24:11, 24; Acts 20:29– 30; Galatians 1:6– 9; 1 Timothy 1:3–7; 1 John 2:18–19). There will be individuals who appear to be true believers but are not (Matthew 7:21–23; Jude 1:3–4). As a dog returns to his own vomit, there will be people in the church who “get tangled up and enslaved by sin again” (2 Peter 2:22, NLT). But born-again believers will not return to the vomit of the past. They will, by the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, pursue a life of godliness and are guaranteed the reward of eternal life (Matthew 10:22; 24:12–13; John 15:4–10; Hebrews 3:14; 10:36–38; 2 Peter 3:11–18; 2 Timothy 4:7–8; James 1:12).

Scoffers in the last days

Written by LWOM Amsterdam on . Posted in 2 Peter, Jude, What’s new?.

What does it mean that there will be scoffers in the last days?

Two passages in the Bible say that “in the last days, scoffers will come.” Second Peter 3:3 and Jude 1:18 both explain what that means. A “scoffer” in this context is one who mocks Christ, ridicules the things of God, and opposes the gospel. Both Peter and Jude were writing warnings against false teachers who were intent on leading others astray. The word scoffer refers to one who denies the truths of Scripture and entices others to go along with his error.

Scoffers have been present since the Garden of Eden. Satan’s first temptation of man was in the form of scoffing at God’s command: “Did God really say—?” (Genesis 3:1). Scoffers dominated Noah’s day (Genesis 6:5–8; Hebrews 11:7), leaving God with little choice but to destroy them all and start over with Noah, the only righteous man on earth. Scoffers refuse to believe the word of the Lord and set themselves up as their own gods (2 Chronicles 36:16). The psalmist warns against the digression that leads from casual association with wicked people to sitting “in the seat of scoffers” (Psalm 1:1, ESV), embracing their worldview—and sharing their fate.

Although scoffers have always been a part of this fallen world, Scripture seems to indicate that, as the Day of the Lord draws nearer, the scoffing will increase. Peter describes these scoffers as “following their own evil desires” (2 Peter 3:3) and questioning the second coming of the Lord Jesus (verse 4). Thousands of years have passed since Jesus ascended into heaven, promising to return for His faithful ones (John 14:1–4; Revelation 22:12). Scoffers point out the lapse of time and mock those who still wait and yearn for His appearing (2 Timothy 4:8; 2 Thessalonians 1:7).

Jude describes the scoffers of the last days as people who follow ungodly desires and create division in the church (Jude 1:18). They may even present themselves as church leaders, but they “do not have the Spirit” (verse 19). Paul goes into more detail about the condition of the world before Jesus returns: “But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people” (2 Timothy 3:1–5). Scoffers will fit right in with such a crowd.

We already see an increase of scoffers in our world today, and several factors may be contributing to that rise. Constant access to media, the internet, and other forms of technology provide an open platform for anyone with an opinion, and scoffing at everything once thought honorable is a favorite pastime. Scoffers are emboldened on social media by others who can instantly approve of their mockery. Many people are educated beyond their intelligence, and this new world without moral boundaries is producing scoffers instead of thinkers. Many try to use scientific training to say that, since the reality of the Creator God cannot be proved by man’s understanding, God must not exist. In rejecting Scripture, mankind has lost its moral compass, leaving us with no way to determine right or wrong, good or bad, truth or lie. In this climate, anyone who claims to know the truth is a prime target for scoffers.

Arrogance leads to scoffing, much as it did before the Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1–4). When people become puffed up with their own importance, they begin to challenge anything that threatens their high opinion of themselves. Once we have removed the idea of God from consideration, then anything goes. Scoffers have tried to redefine marriage, obliterate gender binarism, and create a fantasy world in which reality becomes whatever we feel it is. Not long ago, such a mindset was the definition of insanity. Now we are told it is the ultimate wisdom. Romans 1:21–22 has never been more relevant: “Although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools.”

The proliferation of scoffers is a sign of the last days. They profess themselves to be wise, but they are really fools (Psalm 14:1). Regardless of the eschatological timeline one prefers, we can all agree that the number of scoffers and deceivers is increasing rapidly, just as Scripture warned us it would (2 John 1:7). It is critically important that every Christian take seriously the commands to study and meditate on God’s Word (2 Timothy 2:15; Joshua 1:8) so that we won’t be led astray by the lofty-sounding ideas presented to us by scoffers (2 Corinthians 10:5).