2 Peter 2:1-22

Teacher: Rusty Kennedy
Series: 2 Peter

Rusty' Notes

Judgment

• Deception - This theme runs throughout the entire chapter.
• To begin with, these teachers’ message is false; Peter called what they taught “destructive heresies.”
• The word heresy originally meant simply “to make a choice,” but then it came to mean “a sect, a party.”
• Promoting a party spirit in a church is one of the works of the flesh (Galatians 5:19-21 - Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions, 21 envy, drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar. I am warning you about these things—as I warned you before—that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.[1]).[2]
• When we hear the thought of judgment on false teachers, we have a tendency to start thinking locally and personally.
• We start judging pastors and teachers in our community or who we group up hearing.
• James 3:1 - Not many should become teachers, my brothers, because you know that we will receive a stricter judgment.[3]
• Well… stop! You are not the judge.
• And don’t ask me what I think… I am not the judge.
• Stay focused on the Truth.
• It is good for you to be a critical thinker and judge the message you are hearing.
• Trust what you know and let God be God.
• We are definitely not the judge of people’s eternity.

THE JUDGMENT OF FALSE TEACHERS
2 PETER 2
1 There were indeed false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you.

• Peter is comparing Old Testament false prophets to New Testament false teachers.
• Both are types of teachers that are intentionally leading people astray with false teaching.
• False teaching is always destructive because wrong spiritual beliefs can destroy people.
• These heresies always deny the identity of Jesus.
• Heresy in Scripture is almost always connected to this denial while encouraging sinful living.

They will bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, and will bring swift destruction on themselves. 2 Many will follow their depraved ways, and the way of truth will be maligned because of them.

• The false teachers were likely using the name of Jesus to exploit others to deceive the masses for money.
• In modern times, we see this type of heresy in prosperity theology.
• This theology argues that Christ accomplished health and wealth on the cross for believers.
• Yet this heresy focuses too much on monetary gain and distorts the work of Christ.
• Teachers will use the Word of God to gather their audience/followers.
• They will earn their trust.
• Trust has magnificent value.
• Then, they will enter into their teachings, their own beliefs, values, and agendas.
• Our society today calls this “grooming”.

3 They will exploit you in their greed with made-up stories. Their condemnation, pronounced long ago, is not idle, and their destruction does not sleep. 4 For if God didn’t spare the angels who sinned but cast them into hell and delivered them in chains of utter darkness to be kept for judgment;

• The first example is that of fallen angels.
• This refers either to their fall with Satan in his rebellion against God (Ezek. 28:15) or to the sin of angels in Genesis 6:1–4.
• Since Peter’s other two illustrations in this section are from Genesis (chaps. 7; 19), perhaps this one is too, though it is difficult to be sure.
• If God in His justice punished angels, surely He would not hesitate to punish people.
• He plunged the angels into hell, literally, “tartarus” apparently a prison of custody (gloomy dungeons) between the time of the judgment and their ultimate consignment to the eternal lake of fire.
• There will be no future trial for their doom is already sealed.
• False prophets, Peter argued, will taste the same judgment as the rebellious angels.[4]

5 and if he didn’t spare the ancient world, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others, when he brought the flood on the world of the ungodly;

• The flood was a very real historical event, according to Peter.
• The story of Noah and the flood is used here to illustrate the coming divine judgment upon unbelievers.
• But Noah, who was righteous, was spared.
• This is significant because Peter argues for the Christian’s safety in Christ throughout his letter.
• Christians all possess righteousness through faith in Jesus.
• Therefore, we have no reason to fear judgment.

6 and if he reduced the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes and condemned them to extinction, making them an example of what is coming to the ungodly; 7 and if he rescued righteous Lot, distressed by the depraved behavior of the immoral 8 (for as that righteous man lived among them day by day, his righteous soul was tormented by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)--

• Peter is speaking of spiritual DNA.
• When God saves a person, they are righteous to the core.
• This new righteous nature grates against the ways of the world.

9 then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment,

• Peter is speaking of godliness as a nature, not as a spiritual track record.
• When we believe in Jesus, we are made godly to the core of our beings.

10 especially those who follow the polluting desires of the flesh and despise authority. Bold, arrogant people! They are not afraid to slander the glorious ones; 11 however, angels, who are greater in might and power, do not bring a slanderous charge against them before the Lord. 12 But these people, like irrational animals—creatures of instinct born to be caught and destroyed—slander what they do not understand, and in their destruction they too will be destroyed.

• Peter is speaking of the destruction of these false teachers trying to mislead the church.
• This is a clear presentation of eternal judgement that awaits all who reject the Gospel.
• Peter leaves no room for a theology of universalism in his letter.

13 They will be paid back with harm for the harm they have done. They consider it a pleasure to carouse in broad daylight.

• The false teachers were encouraging a celebration of sin that was unfitting for Christians and incompatible with the righteous nature of the Christian.
• False teaching, as defined by the New Testament, is almost always characterized by licentiousness and immorality.
• Believers cannot continue in sin in this way and, therefore, can never be considered false teachers according to the New Testament definition of the term.
• Those teachers who are compatible with sin, in this context, are considered stains and blemishes.

They are spots and blemishes, delighting in their deceptions while they feast with you. 14 They have eyes full of adultery that never stop looking for sin. They seduce unstable people and have hearts trained in greed. Children under a curse!

• Accursed brood (NIV)
• Dead souls (Message)
• Our souls can be influenced by all types of beliefs even though our spirit is righteous and new.

15 They have gone astray by abandoning the straight path and have followed the path of Balaam, the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of wickedness 16 but received a rebuke for his lawlessness: A speechless donkey spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.

• Peter knew his Old Testament Scriptures.
• He had already used Noah and Lot to illustrate his words, and now, he used the Prophet Balaam.
• The story of Balaam is found in Numbers 22–25.
• Balaam is a mysterious character, a Gentile prophet who tried to curse the Jews.[5]

17 These people are springs without water, mists driven by a storm.

• Peter speaks of the impending judgment and destruction upon all who reject the Gospel.
• In the specific context, the false teachers are in focus but all who reject Jesus will be judged.

The gloom of darkness has been reserved for them.

• False teachers are destined for eternal judgment if they remain unrepentant.
• This is because genuine false teachers are not born again.

18 For by uttering boastful, empty words, they seduce, with fleshly desires and debauchery, people who have barely escaped from those who live in error.

• The false teachers live in error inherently.
• Those young believers whom they mislead are barely escaping the false teaching because they are saved but immature and consequently influenced by the lies being promoted.

19 They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption, since people are enslaved to whatever defeats them.

• Christians are not slaves of sin and corruption.
• Rather, we are slaves of righteousness and of the Holy Spirit.
• Therefore, this is another label for the false teachers.
• These teachers were evidently spreading false beliefs and causing corruption in the community.

20 For if, having escaped the world’s impurity through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in these things and defeated, the last state is worse for them than the first.

• The “they” spoken of here is likely Christians because this particular group is said to have escaped the world.
• However, their Christian maturity is suspect because they are influenced by false teachings, at least to some degree, and need to remember the gospel of grace, which saved them.
• If they continue to be deceived, they will continue to be miserable because their behavior is incompatible with the new heart given to them by God.
• This is why their last state is worse than before, they believed.
• Unbelievers are compatible with sin and can participate in it freely.
• Christians who participate in sin are miserable.

21 For 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 delivered to them.]

• Peter is not speaking of the law of Moses but rather loving one another as Christ has loved us (John 13:34; 1 John 3:23).
• These are the New Covenant laws of God.[6]
• There is no indication that the false teachers had ever experienced the new birth.
• They had knowledge of salvation and could use the language of the church, but they lacked that true saving experience with the Lord.
• At one time they had even received the Word of God (2 Peter 2:21), but then they turned away from it. They never trusted Christ and became His sheep.[7]

22 It has happened to them according to the true proverb: A dog returns to its own vomit, and, “A washed sow returns to wallowing in the mud.”[8]

• Proverbs 26:11
• The Jews called the Gentiles “dogs” because a dog was nothing but a filthy scavenger who lived on garbage!
• It was hardly a title of respect and endearment![9]
• The pig was washed on the outside, but remained a pig; the dog was “cleaned up” on the inside, but remained a dog.
• The pig looked better and the dog felt better, but neither one had been changed.
• They each had the same old nature, not a new one.[10]

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Ga 5:19–21.
[2] Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 447.
[3] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), Jas 3:1.
[4] Kenneth O. Gangel, “2 Peter,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 870.
[5] Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 455.
[6] Farley, Andrew. www.BibleCommentary.com. 2 Peter 1
[7] Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 460.
[8] Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020), 2 Pe 2:1–22.
[9] Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 460.
[10] Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 460.