2nd peter 2........apostates
The rise of the false teachers
Having highlighted the merit of holy prophets who brought to us the undiluted word of God in chapter 1 v21, he now warns of the reality of false prophets “But there were false prophets among the people even as there shall be false teachers among you....”. The days of prophets will come to a close with the completed scriptures, but there will be many false teachers arise, who will have the same disastrous potential. He will now consider the apostates, that is those who have been enlightened in the truth of God, but who have turned away from it, there never having been any reality of it. We must be careful in our generation to differentiate between the backslider and the apostate and not go round tagging everyone who disagrees with our interpretation of scripture as being apostate. Equally we must be aware of the danger and Peter here gives us pointers to help us.
Verses 1-3 Their danger
Verses 4-9 Their doom
Verses 10-16 Their depravity
Verses 17-22 Their deceptions
Verses 1-3 Danger Paul predicted it in Acts 20 vv29-30; Peter warns of it here as about to come; John and Jude declare it as having already come (1st John 2 v18 and Jude v4), and this was only a few years on from the beginning! What must the situation be some 2000 years on?; we are surrounded with error and apostasy, and it is an ever present danger. The only antidote to error is truth and churches need to be aware and ready for the influx of error by giving attention to the proclamation of the word. We must not allow any space for even the slightest error. Where God is working Satan will be also work and he has many willing hands. The effect can be serious amongst us and we must understand the issues, and they are serious; the salvation of souls hangs in the balance, and also the lives of God’s people. False teaching contains an element of truth for it to be plausible and so we need discernment and swift action whenever it raises it’s head as it will. Paul said “..even Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light”. Peter exposes the danger, the doom, the depravity, and the deceptions of these people.
Four times in these verses he uses the word apoleia which translates as “destructive”, “damnable”, “pernicious”. These heresies, opinions of men, are contrary to the truth of God and have their origin in hell. This exposes the character of the teaching and the end to which it will lead. It is the biblical word for “ultimate destruction”, and leads to separation from God. Sometimes it is used as “waste”, the meaning of “perish” which is the lot of all unregenerate people. In short it is hellish doctrine leading to eternal damnation.
These teachers are anything but open about this, they bring them in “privily”; beware of anything done away from the public gaze. There are plenty of apostate churches today but also they seek to infiltrate the true. They “even deny the Lord that bought them”, that is they have been made aware of the redemption in Christ Jesus, yet they now deny it in reality. (All those susceptible to Calvinism take note, the Lord bought even the apostates in His redemption!) They deny it because, as will be evident later, the claims of redemption on them, (that is they become the possession of the redeemer), is now unacceptable to them. They do not accept the Lordship of Christ, the clue being in the phrase “the Lord that bought them”. The effect of this is devastating because the main issue of stumbling, relative to salvation, is the unwillingness to submit to the Lord; so when someone comes along offering a kind of salvation that makes no demands, many embrace it. They can have the best of both worlds as it were, heaven and earth, forgiveness of sins and the ability to go on sinning, the world and Jesus, godliness and ungodliness. “Many shall follow their pernicious ways...” and so they create another gospel, one appealing to the masses, a popular gospel which only deceives those who follow it. Because of this the “way of truth will be evil spoken of”, they will vilify any who preach another way, using language like “bigoted”, “narrow-minded”, “extremist”, “radical”, “exclusive”. There is only one “way of truth” and it is clearly delineated in scripture. Furthermore their motivation is greed for money(covetousness), for they will “make merchandise of you”. Mass sales of books and booklets and cd’s and films; endless seminars and church meetings and conferences, support for their preachers, appeals for money for good causes, applying tariffs to sins already paid for so they can profit. False religion is the greatest scam ever devised and we should be warned. Judgment for these “lingers not” and damnation “slumbers not”, they will answer to God and they will be damned. Do not follow them, have nothing to do with them. These are very clever speakers “with feigned words...”, they will relieve people of their money and ultimately of their soul! The word “feigned” means moulded, and they have been moulded by devils and not by the heavenly potter.
Verses 4-9 Doom Those who believe and teach that God will not judge them, history is against them and Peter takes up three separate cases from the past. All this has been seen before, and the God whose attitude to sin never changes, has dealt with it and will deal with it in the future. In each case the judgments are permanent, and the warning is clear. The epistle of Jude takes up the same three beacons of warning.
a) The angels that sinned Sin raised it’s head in the most sacred place in the universe, the dwelling place of God. All we are told is of angels who sinned that were incarcerated in a holding place awaiting final judgment. This is called “Tartarus”, the unseen prison for angels who are denied their freedom even now. There are fallen angels free to operate in the air, but these are chained. The details are sparse, enough to know God has punished them, and if He will do that, He will also deal with human rebels.
b) The old world This refers to the flood when God engulfed the world of Noah’s day in a cataclysm that destroyed the entire population including animals, except those in the prepared ark. He has judged before, He will do it again. That world of men were only the tenth generation from Adam and knew the truth of God. Also Noah was a preacher of righteousness so they were well warned. The note of some being saved in that situation is encouraging. God spared not angels (verse 4), but did spare Noah and his family. No salvation for angels who sin, but mercy for human beings who repent.
c) Sodom and Gomorrah Angels in heaven, the entire world of men, and now a city and it’s suburbs, God’s judgment comes closer, and before the chapter will end it comes down to the individual. No matter where from or on whom, the God of inflexible righteousness will judge sin and sinners. The language is graphic and should startle everyone, saint and sinner alike. “He turned the cities to ashes....condemned them with an overthrow, making them an example unto those that after should live ungodly”. This unmistakable warning comes down to us today, that God will judge ungodly men. The residents who perished are today, some 4000 years later, in the language of Jude, “suffering the vengeance of eternal fire”. Here is the answer to the modern cry “will the God of love actually do this?”, yes He will. He is also the God of light and will not tolerate sin. Out of Sodom, who had known the truth of God and who had experienced Divine deliverance from the marauding Syrians, God saved Lot and his two daughters. God will be merciful to those who fear Him and is against those who will live ungodly. In the cauldron of sin which was Sodom and Gomorrah, the righteous Lot “vexed his soul from day to day with their lawless deeds”, just as today Christians are vexed with the sin of the world in which they must live. The telling phrase is “The Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished”.
Verses 10-16 Depravity Peter now focuses on their tell-tale lifestyle “..they walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise government”. Perhaps we cannot discern their doctrine, but there is no mistaking their behaviour. Those who teach the truth should be exemplary in conduct as well as in creed. Like the Lord taught “By their fruits ye shall know them”, so now focus is turned on the lifestyle. Peter uses the same description as Jude in a later epistle. The outstanding three features are: a) They defile the flesh (the body); b) they despise dominion; and c) they speak evil of dignities. This condemnation casts them as the basest of humanity.
a) They walk after the flesh in the lust after uncleanness; they are immoral, being controlled only by selfish desire. This is later expanded and the immorality is taking place in the companies of the saints. “Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings (self-delusions) while they feast with you, having eyes full of adultery and that cannot cease from sin”. They are shameless, they “..count it pleasure to riot in the day” that is in public for all to see.
b) They despise dominion, that is they will not accept any form of discipline as should be part of the ethos of any church. They have no respect for God-given order.
c) Allied to this is the arrogance to speak evil of those above them, and of things they know not. They are presumptuous people, audacious enough to criticise others. They are know-alls, yet in reality vulnerable, as they are beguiling (of others), and unstable souls (in themselves). In contrast to these, angels who are greater in power and might, control their language in the fear of the Lord. “Power and might” is not a repeat of the same thing but means “inherent” power and “executive” power, that is they have power within but also have Divine commission behind them in the execution of duty. These self-willed scammers are self appointed and all they have are empty words.
Their depravity makes them less than human, because whilst exalting themselves above humanity they demean humanity by acting like animals “as irrational beasts”. Not only so they are in it for themselves being full of covetousness “an heart exercised with covetous practices”. Their end is solemn, they are “cursed children”, “they shall perish utterly in their own corruption”. In this they have followed in the error of Balaam who sold his soul for the king of Moab’s gold and silver, when he suggested the corruption of Israel rather than their curse which could not be done. It seems there is nothing new in the spirit world, as trends just keep on repeating. We should be awake to it. “They have forsaken the right way”, this is the hallmark of the apostate, they knew it but forsook it, as Balaam, whose ass knew more than him!
Verses 17-22 Their deceptions
This is in two parts a) Deception of others verses 17-19; b) Self-deception verses 20-22
Verses 17-19 Deception of others.
“Wells without water,” what should be an endless source of refreshment brings nothing from the depths of the earth; “clouds carried in a tempest,” what promises to be a source of blessing from the heavens passes by leaving nothing. Likewise these false teachers promised much but have nothing to offer. They deal in darkness and live in the gloom of darkness which is reserved to them forever. They indulge in flowery speeches, great swelling words with no content or spiritual value only emptiness. They allure people, draw them in. They do so through pandering to the lusts of the flesh, things that make people feel important in themselves. They appeal to those who have abandoned trust in God, they prey on the weak, those who had escaped from the bondage of sin, they draw them back in to a life of sin. They promise liberty, an easy life, freedom from rules and regulations while they are themselves in slavery to corruption. They make slaves of their followers for “of whom a man is overcome of the same also he is in bondage.”
Verses 20-22 Self deception.
They had appeared to escape the pollutions of the world in the knowledge of the Lord whom they professed. This proved only to be a mental and not a moral exercise. If they are again entangled, overpowered by the sin they had escaped, the later end is worse with them than at the first. Better not to have known the way of righteousness than after having known it they turn from the holy commandment delivered to them. Those who are saved seek holiness, life in the spirit, not in the flesh. These are described as “the dog returned to its vomit.” and “the sow to her wallowing in the mire.” They were never saved, they were never anything other than a dog or a sow returned to their own unclean ways.
The rise of the false teachers
Having highlighted the merit of holy prophets who brought to us the undiluted word of God in chapter 1 v21, he now warns of the reality of false prophets “But there were false prophets among the people even as there shall be false teachers among you....”. The days of prophets will come to a close with the completed scriptures, but there will be many false teachers arise, who will have the same disastrous potential. He will now consider the apostates, that is those who have been enlightened in the truth of God, but who have turned away from it, there never having been any reality of it. We must be careful in our generation to differentiate between the backslider and the apostate and not go round tagging everyone who disagrees with our interpretation of scripture as being apostate. Equally we must be aware of the danger and Peter here gives us pointers to help us.
Verses 1-3 Their danger
Verses 4-9 Their doom
Verses 10-16 Their depravity
Verses 17-22 Their deceptions
Verses 1-3 Danger Paul predicted it in Acts 20 vv29-30; Peter warns of it here as about to come; John and Jude declare it as having already come (1st John 2 v18 and Jude v4), and this was only a few years on from the beginning! What must the situation be some 2000 years on?; we are surrounded with error and apostasy, and it is an ever present danger. The only antidote to error is truth and churches need to be aware and ready for the influx of error by giving attention to the proclamation of the word. We must not allow any space for even the slightest error. Where God is working Satan will be also work and he has many willing hands. The effect can be serious amongst us and we must understand the issues, and they are serious; the salvation of souls hangs in the balance, and also the lives of God’s people. False teaching contains an element of truth for it to be plausible and so we need discernment and swift action whenever it raises it’s head as it will. Paul said “..even Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light”. Peter exposes the danger, the doom, the depravity, and the deceptions of these people.
Four times in these verses he uses the word apoleia which translates as “destructive”, “damnable”, “pernicious”. These heresies, opinions of men, are contrary to the truth of God and have their origin in hell. This exposes the character of the teaching and the end to which it will lead. It is the biblical word for “ultimate destruction”, and leads to separation from God. Sometimes it is used as “waste”, the meaning of “perish” which is the lot of all unregenerate people. In short it is hellish doctrine leading to eternal damnation.
These teachers are anything but open about this, they bring them in “privily”; beware of anything done away from the public gaze. There are plenty of apostate churches today but also they seek to infiltrate the true. They “even deny the Lord that bought them”, that is they have been made aware of the redemption in Christ Jesus, yet they now deny it in reality. (All those susceptible to Calvinism take note, the Lord bought even the apostates in His redemption!) They deny it because, as will be evident later, the claims of redemption on them, (that is they become the possession of the redeemer), is now unacceptable to them. They do not accept the Lordship of Christ, the clue being in the phrase “the Lord that bought them”. The effect of this is devastating because the main issue of stumbling, relative to salvation, is the unwillingness to submit to the Lord; so when someone comes along offering a kind of salvation that makes no demands, many embrace it. They can have the best of both worlds as it were, heaven and earth, forgiveness of sins and the ability to go on sinning, the world and Jesus, godliness and ungodliness. “Many shall follow their pernicious ways...” and so they create another gospel, one appealing to the masses, a popular gospel which only deceives those who follow it. Because of this the “way of truth will be evil spoken of”, they will vilify any who preach another way, using language like “bigoted”, “narrow-minded”, “extremist”, “radical”, “exclusive”. There is only one “way of truth” and it is clearly delineated in scripture. Furthermore their motivation is greed for money(covetousness), for they will “make merchandise of you”. Mass sales of books and booklets and cd’s and films; endless seminars and church meetings and conferences, support for their preachers, appeals for money for good causes, applying tariffs to sins already paid for so they can profit. False religion is the greatest scam ever devised and we should be warned. Judgment for these “lingers not” and damnation “slumbers not”, they will answer to God and they will be damned. Do not follow them, have nothing to do with them. These are very clever speakers “with feigned words...”, they will relieve people of their money and ultimately of their soul! The word “feigned” means moulded, and they have been moulded by devils and not by the heavenly potter.
Verses 4-9 Doom Those who believe and teach that God will not judge them, history is against them and Peter takes up three separate cases from the past. All this has been seen before, and the God whose attitude to sin never changes, has dealt with it and will deal with it in the future. In each case the judgments are permanent, and the warning is clear. The epistle of Jude takes up the same three beacons of warning.
a) The angels that sinned Sin raised it’s head in the most sacred place in the universe, the dwelling place of God. All we are told is of angels who sinned that were incarcerated in a holding place awaiting final judgment. This is called “Tartarus”, the unseen prison for angels who are denied their freedom even now. There are fallen angels free to operate in the air, but these are chained. The details are sparse, enough to know God has punished them, and if He will do that, He will also deal with human rebels.
b) The old world This refers to the flood when God engulfed the world of Noah’s day in a cataclysm that destroyed the entire population including animals, except those in the prepared ark. He has judged before, He will do it again. That world of men were only the tenth generation from Adam and knew the truth of God. Also Noah was a preacher of righteousness so they were well warned. The note of some being saved in that situation is encouraging. God spared not angels (verse 4), but did spare Noah and his family. No salvation for angels who sin, but mercy for human beings who repent.
c) Sodom and Gomorrah Angels in heaven, the entire world of men, and now a city and it’s suburbs, God’s judgment comes closer, and before the chapter will end it comes down to the individual. No matter where from or on whom, the God of inflexible righteousness will judge sin and sinners. The language is graphic and should startle everyone, saint and sinner alike. “He turned the cities to ashes....condemned them with an overthrow, making them an example unto those that after should live ungodly”. This unmistakable warning comes down to us today, that God will judge ungodly men. The residents who perished are today, some 4000 years later, in the language of Jude, “suffering the vengeance of eternal fire”. Here is the answer to the modern cry “will the God of love actually do this?”, yes He will. He is also the God of light and will not tolerate sin. Out of Sodom, who had known the truth of God and who had experienced Divine deliverance from the marauding Syrians, God saved Lot and his two daughters. God will be merciful to those who fear Him and is against those who will live ungodly. In the cauldron of sin which was Sodom and Gomorrah, the righteous Lot “vexed his soul from day to day with their lawless deeds”, just as today Christians are vexed with the sin of the world in which they must live. The telling phrase is “The Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished”.
Verses 10-16 Depravity Peter now focuses on their tell-tale lifestyle “..they walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise government”. Perhaps we cannot discern their doctrine, but there is no mistaking their behaviour. Those who teach the truth should be exemplary in conduct as well as in creed. Like the Lord taught “By their fruits ye shall know them”, so now focus is turned on the lifestyle. Peter uses the same description as Jude in a later epistle. The outstanding three features are: a) They defile the flesh (the body); b) they despise dominion; and c) they speak evil of dignities. This condemnation casts them as the basest of humanity.
a) They walk after the flesh in the lust after uncleanness; they are immoral, being controlled only by selfish desire. This is later expanded and the immorality is taking place in the companies of the saints. “Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings (self-delusions) while they feast with you, having eyes full of adultery and that cannot cease from sin”. They are shameless, they “..count it pleasure to riot in the day” that is in public for all to see.
b) They despise dominion, that is they will not accept any form of discipline as should be part of the ethos of any church. They have no respect for God-given order.
c) Allied to this is the arrogance to speak evil of those above them, and of things they know not. They are presumptuous people, audacious enough to criticise others. They are know-alls, yet in reality vulnerable, as they are beguiling (of others), and unstable souls (in themselves). In contrast to these, angels who are greater in power and might, control their language in the fear of the Lord. “Power and might” is not a repeat of the same thing but means “inherent” power and “executive” power, that is they have power within but also have Divine commission behind them in the execution of duty. These self-willed scammers are self appointed and all they have are empty words.
Their depravity makes them less than human, because whilst exalting themselves above humanity they demean humanity by acting like animals “as irrational beasts”. Not only so they are in it for themselves being full of covetousness “an heart exercised with covetous practices”. Their end is solemn, they are “cursed children”, “they shall perish utterly in their own corruption”. In this they have followed in the error of Balaam who sold his soul for the king of Moab’s gold and silver, when he suggested the corruption of Israel rather than their curse which could not be done. It seems there is nothing new in the spirit world, as trends just keep on repeating. We should be awake to it. “They have forsaken the right way”, this is the hallmark of the apostate, they knew it but forsook it, as Balaam, whose ass knew more than him!
Verses 17-22 Their deceptions
This is in two parts a) Deception of others verses 17-19; b) Self-deception verses 20-22
Verses 17-19 Deception of others.
“Wells without water,” what should be an endless source of refreshment brings nothing from the depths of the earth; “clouds carried in a tempest,” what promises to be a source of blessing from the heavens passes by leaving nothing. Likewise these false teachers promised much but have nothing to offer. They deal in darkness and live in the gloom of darkness which is reserved to them forever. They indulge in flowery speeches, great swelling words with no content or spiritual value only emptiness. They allure people, draw them in. They do so through pandering to the lusts of the flesh, things that make people feel important in themselves. They appeal to those who have abandoned trust in God, they prey on the weak, those who had escaped from the bondage of sin, they draw them back in to a life of sin. They promise liberty, an easy life, freedom from rules and regulations while they are themselves in slavery to corruption. They make slaves of their followers for “of whom a man is overcome of the same also he is in bondage.”
Verses 20-22 Self deception.
They had appeared to escape the pollutions of the world in the knowledge of the Lord whom they professed. This proved only to be a mental and not a moral exercise. If they are again entangled, overpowered by the sin they had escaped, the later end is worse with them than at the first. Better not to have known the way of righteousness than after having known it they turn from the holy commandment delivered to them. Those who are saved seek holiness, life in the spirit, not in the flesh. These are described as “the dog returned to its vomit.” and “the sow to her wallowing in the mire.” They were never saved, they were never anything other than a dog or a sow returned to their own unclean ways.
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