In this insightful episode, we dive into 2 Peter Chapter 2, an epistle that addresses the rise of false prophets among the faithful. Alan J. Huth guides us through the biblical narrative, illustrating how ancient teachings hold relevance for contemporary audiences. By highlighting key verses, he reflects on the perils of deceitful teachings and the steadfastness required to adhere to true faith.
Welcome to Add Bible, an audio daily devotion from the Ezra Project. We join Allen J. Huth as he shares Bible passages and comments from over 30 years of his personal Bible reading journals.
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Today we are in 2 Peter chapter 2. Listen to Faith comes by hearing’s reading of the 22 verses of this chapter.
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2 Peter 2 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth will be blasphemed. and in their greed they will exploit you with false words. Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep. For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment, if he did not spare the ancient world but preserve noah a herald of righteousness with seven others when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly if by turning the cities of sodom and gomorrah to ashes he condemned them to extinction making them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly and if he rescued righteous lot greatly distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked For as that righteous man lived among them day after day, he was tormenting his righteous soul over their lawless deeds that he saw and heard. Then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment. And especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority. bold and willful. They do not tremble as they blaspheme the glorious ones. Whereas angels, though greater in might and power, do not pronounce a blasphemous judgment against them before the Lord. But these, like irrational animals, creatures of instinct, born to be caught and destroyed, blaspheming about matters of which they are ignorant, will also be destroyed in their destruction.” suffering wrong as the wage for their wrongdoing. They count it pleasure to revel in the daytime. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their deceptions while they feast with you. They have eyes full of adultery, insatiable for sin. They entice unsteady souls. They have hearts trained in greed, accursed children. Forsaking the right way, they have gone astray. They have followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved gain from wrongdoing, but was rebuked for his own transgression. A speechless donkey spoke with human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness. These are waterless springs and mists driven by a storm. For them, the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved. For speaking loud boasts of folly, they entice by sensual passions of the flesh, those who are barely escaping from those who live in error. They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved. For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world, through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness, than after knowing it, to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. What the true proverb says has happened to them.
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The dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.
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In 1990, when I read 2 Peter chapter 2, I quoted various verses and concepts within these verses. I started with verses 4 through 9. Sin will be judged and punished. Verse 9, God can keep the godly from temptation. Verse 14, having a heart trained in greed. Verse 19, for by what a man is overcome, by this he is enslaved. And verse 20, for if after they have escaped the defilements of the world, by the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and are overcome, the last state has become worse than the first. I noted aspects of my prayer in my journal that day. I wrote, In the year 2000, when I read 2 Peter 2, I kind of had a question. I quoted verse 9, the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation. But then I quoted the last verse, but a dog returns to his own vomit. Which is it, Lord? I think I will be able to explain the answer to that question as we look into 2 Peter 2. In 2010, I read 2 Peter all in one day, and concerning this chapter, I just wrote one note. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved. And that’s referring to verse 19. 2 Peter chapter 2 is about false prophets and false teachers, according to verse 1. The meat of the chapter tells us that God will not spare such people. He didn’t spare the angels. He didn’t spare the ancient world. He didn’t spare Sodom and Gomorrah. And He will not spare false prophets and false teachers. Verse 9 does say the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials. and to keep the unrighteous under punishment. Peter has some pretty harsh criticism for those false teachers and false prophets. The end of verse 10 says, “‘Bold and willful, they do not tremble as they blaspheme the glorious ones.'” Verse 12 says, “‘But these, like irrational animals, creatures of instinct, born to be caught and destroyed, blaspheming about matters of which they are ignorant, will also be destroyed in their destruction.'” Verse 14 goes on to describe them as having eyes full of adultery, insatiable sin. They entice unsteady souls. They have hearts trained in greed. Forsaking the right way, they have gone astray. Down to verse 17. These are waterless springs and mist driven by a storm. For them, the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved. End verse 19. They promised them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. So 2 Peter chapter 2 is a judgment on false prophets and false teachers. In our day, it’s like Peter’s day. There are many who mount the pulpits of our churches, who would be considered by Peter to be false prophets and false teachers. That’s who he’s talking about when in verse 21 he says, “…for it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them.” What the true proverb says has happened to them. The dog returns to its vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire. So my question back in my journal in 2002 was, the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation, but a dog returns to his own vomit. Which is it, Lord? The answer is both. God will rescue the godly from various trials. but he also will keep the unrighteous under punishment. The warning is in verse 19, For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved. If you remain godly, you will not be overcome and you will not be enslaved. But if we fall to the false prophets and false teachers, we are under the threat of judgment. I want to close 2 Peter chapter 2 by reading my footnote in my English Standard Version Study Bible concerning verses 20 through 22. It says, never to have escaped the world in the first place, than to follow in the path of knowledge of Christ, only to abandon that path and return to a life of sin and darkness. One reason it is better not to have known about the Holy Commandment is that those who turn away after falsely confessing the Christian faith will not be inclined to consider Christ again. Another reason is that their knowledge and experience of the Christian life makes them more accountable before God. some understand these verses to teach that true believers can lose their salvation it is more likely that peter refers to those who appeared to be christians but then showed by their apostasy and their behavior that they never truly belong to christ god promises that those who truly know him will never fall away because he will keep them by his grace those who do turn back show that their true character is that of a dog or a sow. They appear to have been saved, but by returning to the vomit and mire of the world, they demonstrate that they were never truly regenerated. This passage is not about losing your salvation. It’s about false teachers and false prophets who were never true prophets or teachers in the first place. Our practical application from this chapter may be, where do you go to church? Who is teaching you? Are you under the watchful care of a biblical teacher or preacher? Or are you dangerously sitting under a false teacher or a false prophet? Today, consider the voices you listen to. Father, we see in 2 Peter that the early church was subject to false teachers and false prophets. Such people were persuading those Peter was writing to, to walk away from the true gospel of Jesus Christ. Lord, we know we have the same temptations today in our churches. So protect us. Give us eyes to see and ears to hear the truth, the real gospel message of you. Peter is telling his listeners, be bold enough to walk away from false teaching. He may be saying the same to us today. Holy Spirit, give us the boldness to follow you, to stay close to your word, and to walk away from those who are not consistently preaching the true gospel message. Give us ears to hear and eyes to see. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen. All of the Ad Bible radio programs are available to you in writing. We transcribed all of Ad Bible into an 11-book series called Day by Day Through the Bible, and we did it in a unique way by authors of the Bible. You can get the complete set or a book at a time at our website, EzraProject.net. For example, there are the writings of Moses, the writings of Solomon, the writings of the minor prophets, and the writings of the major prophets, the writings of the Old Testament historical books, and the writings of Old Testament leaders. Covering the New Testament, we have the writings of Matthew and Luke, the writings of John, the writings of Paul, and the writings of Mark, Peter, James, Jude, and Hebrews. So this 11-book series covers all 66 books of the Bible, chapter by chapter. So if the radio program was on 1 Samuel, you would find the written version in day by day through the Bible, the writings of Old Testament historical books. If the radio program is covering Daniel or Jonah, you would find all the minor prophets in the writings of the minor prophets. But say you’re studying the gospel of John in your own personal quiet time. You can find our coverage of John’s gospel in the writings of John, which includes not just his gospel, but other writings like 1st, 2nd, and 3rd John and Revelation. Or you are going to be reading one of Paul’s epistles. You could find them all in the writings of Paul. Our Day by Day through the Bible series is a tremendous resource as you read and study any book of the Bible. It will deepen your understanding of God’s Word and enhance your personal quiet time because each book breaks down the passage with comments from my personal Bible reading journals, offers life applications, and prayers related to the passage. If you want more from your time in God’s Word, visit EzraProject.net and try one of our day-by-day through the Bible devotional books. Any of the 11 books are a great place to start, or get the full set to use wherever you are in the Bible today or wherever you are heading in your Bible reading. Thanks for listening to AdBible today. It’s not too late to get your copy of the writings of the Old Testament historical books to follow along with this AdBible program. The book contains our studies on Job, Ruth, 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles. We’ll be in those books for the next several weeks. The book has comments on every chapter, applications for your life, and a place for you to record your thoughts on each chapter of each book for future reference. Visit EzraProject.net and order the writings of the Old Testament historical books today so you can get more out of these radio programs and more out of your Bible. I know you’re going to enjoy it. And want to share it with others.
