2 Peter Chapter 2
20241211
Solitary Man
solitaryman.substack.com/
Since we are now about to enter the world of false prophets and false teaching, I thought I would take some time and try to deal with some preliminary issues that come to mind.
What did the bible teach concerning false prophets?
Deu 18:20 But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die.
Deu 18:21 And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the LORD hath not spoken?
Deu 18:22 When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him.
The first thing we must grasp is the seriousness of false prophets. Depending on how you interpret the above passage, either all false prophets, or at the very least a subset of them, should be put to death.
The traditional way various rabbis and commentators have looked at this, is that if the prophet tries to give a word that draws you away from Yahweh unto other gods, that is a death sentence. Otherwise, if they prophesy something that is not true, but does not cause one to fall away from the true faith, then at the very least you should not take his words seriously. In other words, don’t be scared by anything that he says.
If we examine the ministry of the prophet in the Old Testament, we see that false prophets carpet the landscape. I cannot recall any specific instance where a genuine false prophet was killed, according to the instructions above. I can recall more than one instance where a genuine prophet was put to death on the orders of a wicked ruler, as typified by the following passage:
Jer 26:20 And there was also a man that prophesied in the name of the LORD, Urijah the son of Shemaiah of Kirjathjearim, who prophesied against this city and against this land according to all the words of Jeremiah:
Jer 26:21 And when Jehoiakim the king, with all his mighty men, and all the princes, heard his words, the king sought to put him to death: but when Urijah heard it, he was afraid, and fled, and went into Egypt;
Jer 26:22 And Jehoiakim the king sent men into Egypt, namely, Elnathan the son of Achbor, and certain men with him into Egypt.
Jer 26:23 And they fetched forth Urijah out of Egypt, and brought him unto Jehoiakim the king; who slew him with the sword, and cast his dead body into the graves of the common people.
Another example of the people of God doing the exact opposite of what the word of God says.
Here is where the cessationists make hay. They claim that since Torah apparently teaches that if a prophet’s words ever not come to pass, then that is the absolute sign of a false prophet. No argument. Case closed.
But is it?
With the coming of the day of Pentecost and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon all believers, one must agree that things radically changed, as far as how God communicates with mankind. We all know that the Old Testament contains several examples of the Spirit of God not only coming upon, but actually filling certain people at certain times. The experience was by no means universal. One of the greatest blessings of the new birth is the opportunity to subsequently experience the infilling of the Holy Ghost. Yes the Spirit of Christ comes into a believer’s heart at the moment of new birth. How else would our spirits, dead in sin, be regenerated unto newness of life?
But here is where one of the great divides in Christendom has occurred. Is there a second experience, what is commonly known as the baptism of the Holy Ghost? I say yes. This baptism is the doorway to the 9 gifts of the Spirit being made available to the believer, as taught in 1 Cor chapters 12 and 14. I will not take the time here to prove this doctrine, as that is outside the scope of this commentary. I say all this to bring up the fact that one of the gifts of the Spirit is the gift of prophecy. This is not the same as the office of prophet, which Paul affirms is an office given to the church by Christ in the passage in Ephesians.
Eph 4:11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
Eph 4:12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
Eph 4:13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
Eph 4:14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;
Eph 4:15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:
So let me see if I have this straight. The cessationists claim that the first 2 of the 5 offices Jesus gave to his church disappeared after that first generation passed. If that is so, then I guess their purpose has been completely fulfilled, has it not? Verse 13 clearly states that these offices shall continue ‘until’. Certain purposes are fulfilled. And what were those purposes? Several things, according to verse 13.
The five fold ministry is given by Jesus to the church to perfect us, so that the ministry does its ordained work, that the body is edified, and is to continue until we all come together in perfect unity in the faith, achieving a full knowledge of Jesus, having all been made perfect, so that we measure up to Christ’s full stature. Jesus wants this in all our lives so that we stop acting like children. And how do children act? They fight and argue and separate themselves over every wind of doctrine, by men who have not the spirit, but use deceptive arguments, who lie in wait to trip up the true saints of God.
The antidote to these divisive souls, who think they know it all, is truth. And here Paul urges us to speak the truth in love. Love is good. Love never fails. But let us also not forget that not only the Old Testament prophets, but Jesus and the apostles on several occasions spoke the truth in whatever way the Spirit prompted them to speak, love or no love, such as here:
Act 13:9 Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him,
Act 13:10 And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?
Act 13:11 And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand.
Act 13:12 Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord.
God makes a special point of letting us know that Paul spoke this while being filled with the Holy Ghost! If that speech is speaking the truth in love, then count me in! I like speaking like that.
To understand how we should treat prophetic utterances today, let us remember this principle that Jesus taught us:
Luk_12:48 But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.
And also this teaching from James:
Jas 3:1 My brethren, be not many masters (teachers, instructors), knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation (damnation, judgment).
The office of a prophet carries graver responsibilities than the common saint exercising the gift of simple prophecy. Paul describes this gift:
1Co 14:3 But he that prophesieth speaketh unto men to edification, and exhortation, and comfort.
So it very clear that the simple gift of prophecy is not at all the same as the prophetic office and its associated ministry. Just take a look at the words of Jeremiah and Ezekiel, and you won’t find an abundance of edification, nor comfort. Exhortation, yes, but mostly correction, dire warning, and prediction, all intended to produce genuine conviction of sin. Words of judgment, as revealed by the Lord of Hosts.
It is in context of the exercise of the prophetic office that the stricture found in Deuteronomy most applies to. A saint that is timidly giving a word of comfort to another, who maybe speaks out of his own heart rather than from the mind of God, should not be taken out and burned at the stake if the recipient does not have a witness that the word rang true! The way some mean spirited cessationists talk, that is exactly what they think should happen. Having no understanding of the workings of the Holy Spirit, and having excised chapters such as 1 Cor chapters 12 and 14 out of their bibles, they speak of things that they understand not. Should you encounter such a one, just nod and smile and go your way. Let the blind lead the blind.
However, for those of us who embrace all the word of God and are not terrified of the supernatural (as we serve a supernatural God), let us learn to police ourselves in the Lord.
When we hear a prophecy, is it the simple common gift of prophecy, or a prophetic word from the ministry of the prophetic office? I find that the genuine souls who operate in the ministry of the prophetic hesitate to label themselves as a prophet. That is a good attitude to have. Let the Lord confirm you and raise you up. Stop promoting yourself. Those who promote themselves are not to be trusted.
If it’s a simple prophecy, let us have grace one with another. All of us have the potential to hear a word from the Lord. Some will be gifted to share things in public more than others. If someone who is known as a prophet speaks, that word should carry more weight, and should be taken more seriously. Paul seems to mix the 2 ministries together, in his instruction to the Corinthians:
1Co 14:26 How is it then, brethren? when ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying.
1Co 14:27 If any man speak in an unknown tongue, let it be by two, or at the most by three, and that by course; and let one interpret.
1Co 14:28 But if there be no interpreter, let him keep silence in the church; and let him speak to himself, and to God.
1Co 14:29 Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the other judge.
1Co 14:30 If any thing be revealed to another that sitteth by, let the first hold his peace.
1Co 14:31 For ye may all prophesy one by one, that all may learn, and all may be comforted.
1Co 14:32 And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets.
1Co 14:33 For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.
We see him giving our guidelines for the public speaking of tongues, for prophecy, and for the ministry of the prophet. All is to be done in order, and we certainly are supposed to judge what is said.
The problem comes when someone predicts something, and it does not come to pass. Does that automatically mean that we should call them a false prophet? Remember that this is a very serious charge. It carried the death penalty in the Old Testament. You are saying that they are not a believer, that they are not saved, that they actually are a disciple of satan, and that they are destined for hell.
Still willing to casually throw out that accusation over every one whose prediction fails to come to pass?
Are prophets allowed to miss it? The bible does not record any mistakes by any genuine prophet. Does that mean that every thing Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and others said was always the perfect word of the Lord, or did God only record the words when the prophets heard the word of God perfectly? I personally do not think so, I think that would open a can of worms that no one would want to grapple with. My personal opinion is that the giving of the Holy Spirit has changed things radically in the house of God. Because the Spirit proliferates in ministry and effect, the opportunity to miss the voice of God is multiplied, as opposed to olden time when so very few would ever claim to be hearing something from Yahweh.
I look at prophetic words as this. First, never get too caught up in them. We have the bible. That is truly all we need to live a successful Christian life. If we should run across a prophecy, always take it to the Lord in prayer and see what is revealed to your spirit. See if Jesus shows you scripture that aligns with it, or perhaps contradicts it. If someone has spoken imperfectly once or twice, but is of sound doctrine and does not try to justify mistakes, then one may continue listening. Unfortunately, I don’t know of a single so called prophet who has genuinely missed it, and has publicly apologized and admitted it, so there’s that. However, I have seen countless cases where the YouTube heresy hunter pounces on some prophecy and immediately screams false prophet, simply because it was not fulfilled in the way that they thought it should be fulfilled. We all know that God sometimes has a very strange way of fulfilling his word. We need look no further than the book of Matthew:
Mat_2:15 And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.
No one would have ever thought that that prophecy would be considered fulfilled in the way that God said it was fulfilled.
Next, what causes false teaching? What is the source of this dilemma?
Let’s approach this question from a different angle. I would like to propose that the one doing the false teaching is not the issue, rather, it is the one who hears it. Think about it. What damage could a false prophet cause if no one paid any attention to them? So the problem in the church is not so much the false prophets, but the millions of souls who have something wrong within themselves that makes them want to listen to these charlatans.
Isa_30:10 Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits:
Jer_5:31 The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?
2Ti_3:6 For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts,
2Ti_4:3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
This is but a sample of the condemnations spoken over the people of God. What is it in our hearts that is so drawn to the false prophet? What evil lurks in our souls that make us so susceptible?
This is why Peter went to great pains in the first chapter to remind his listeners that we are to be first of all going about the business of building godly character as our chief occupation. Not chasing after signs and wonders, not running after the latest apostle or prophet, but crucifying the flesh and putting to death the deeds of the flesh. That is the only sure antidote to the allure of the seductive whisperings of the false ones in our midst.
With all that said, let us now examine the text of chapter two.
2Pe 2:1 But there were false prophets (psyoo-dop-rof-ay’-tace – religious imposter) also among the people (lah-os), even as there shall be false teachers (psyoo-dod-id-as’-kal-os – propagators of erroneous doctrines) among you, who privily shall bring in (par-ice-ag’-o – surreptitiously, covertly, secretly, stealthily) damnable (ap-o-li-a – ruin, loss, perdition, destruction, waste, damnation) heresies (hah’ee-res-is – a choice of disunion, from a root that means to take for oneself), even denying (contradict, disavow, reject) the Lord (des-pot’-ace – absolute ruler, despot) that bought (ag-or-ad’-zo – to go to market, purchase, redeem) them, and bring upon (to inflict an evil upon) themselves swift (curt, impending) destruction (ap-o-li-a).
Okay, I am going to put this theory to bed once and for all. I believe Peter must have had another amanuensis, or scribe, that wrote this letter, and most likely a different one than the first letter, since he was now in a Roman prison, and his first scribe was most likely not available. There are another 2 words found here and nowhere else in the scripture – psyoo-dod-id-as’-kal-os and par-ice-ag’-o. While not impossible, it is most unlikely that Peter would be using a depth of vocabulary that would belong to the highly educated. God gives us all varying gifts, to reach different people groups. Peter undoubtedly figured that if he wrote his own letters, his limited vocabulary may have limited the scope and impact of his message. He was not ashamed to ask for help in areas that he needed it, and neither should we!
A typical conclusion by various commentators states the following:
Some have argued that Peter, being an “uneducated” fisherman (Acts 4:13), could not have written in sophisticated Greek, especially in light of the less classical style of Greek (employed in the writing of 2 Peter).
If 2 Peter is employing the ‘less classical’ style of Greek, then what a treat would it be to unpack 1 Peter, as 2 Peter is providing us with so many unique Greek words. Anyone who uses several unique words, found nowhere else, usually indicates one with a highly developed vocabulary. In any event, I am convinced that 2 Peter is written in a very educated style, and contains so many nuggets, just waiting to be unpacked. I am coming to the realization that I will not be able to help myself, in the area of expanding the meaning of the various Greek words! There is just too much meat within this text, so you are being forewarned!
It will be a challenge not to become lost examining the various nuances of each tree (word) in the forest (verse). Let us now step back and try to see where Peter wants to take us.
Chapter 2 begins the heart of the epistle. We have been strongly urged to make the development of godly character our primary concern. Now, we are going to be warned, in the most direct and comprehensive manner possible, about the greatest pitfall that we will all face.
At the end of the previous chapter, Peter was speaking about the superiority of the word of God over personal experience, even his own. The word he speaks of is the Old Testament, as that was their scripture. Peter now tells us the fact that as there were false prophets among those Old Testament people of God, so it is an absolute certainty that there will also be false teachers among us. Not maybe. Not perhaps. But of a certainty. Therefore false teachers should never catch us off guard.
Note that he says there were false prophets, now there will be false teachers. This does not say that there are no more prophets, only that prophets were almost the only spokesmen for God in those days, whereas now the church has been gifted with the five fold ministry, and teachers of the word will be more prevalent then prophets. The false prophets were known as imposters, indicating the person himself, whereas the false teachers are known as propagators of false doctrine, where what they teach is at the forefront. Prophets were often larger than life, whereas teachers were known more for their doctrine rather than their personality.
What is the first characteristic of these teachers? They are stealthy, and they are sneaky. They don’t blow a trumpet and announce that now I am bringing a new teaching, so pay attention. No, they par-ice-ag’-o – surreptitiously, covertly, secretly, stealthily, introduce damnable (ap-o-li-a – ruin, loss, perdition, destruction, waste) heresies (hah’ee-res-is – a choice of disunion, from a root that means to take for oneself). These doctrines are not something minor such as an alternate viewpoint on the timing of the rapture, or the identity of the anitchrist, things that are neither here nor there. No, what they teach are damnable heresies. That is, things that, if embraced, will send both the teacher and the listener to hell! So right from the first verse, we see that this is about as serious a topic as one can find.
Heresies has the notion of taking something to oneself. That is what a heresy is. It is your own idea, and not God’s. How many come up with some twisted meaning of scripture, in order to make it say what they want it to say? This is why we must first strip ourselves of all self will before we can trust ourselves with interpreting the word of God correctly.
On the one hand, internet keyboard warriors, those virtual heresy hunters, spawn youtube video after video, exposing one supposed heretic after another. No one is safe from their prying eyes. Everyone in the church is a potential heretic, unless they agree precisely with every bit of doctrine that these hunters believe! Like anything, anyone can go much too far in any one topic and fall into ruin themselves. These types are the most insecure in their own beliefs, and cannot abide the fact that someone else may see some things differently.
On the other hand, the far greater error is our lack of spine in confronting those who are leading the flock astray. Our pulpits are full of beta males, who are absolutely terrified of confrontation. If they stand up to anyone, they will bring down the wrath of the feminists, who exert undue control in the church, and the board, who control the purse strings. Much easier to let sleeping dogs (and heretics) lie. Peter says that these fellows will sneak into your camp, as enemy soldiers, and drag your sheep straight into hell if not identified, exposed, confronted, and dealt with.
So what are some of the characteristics of these false teachers? The first one listed is that they are denying the Lord (literally, despot), that bought them. Right from the first verse, Peter is striking a death blow to that most heretical doctrine of eternal security! Again and again we will find verse after verse that denies this most insidious of deceptions. It says here that these teachers were already bought by Christ. They were once saved. Now they have chosen to deny him. In the following verses, we shall learn how to spot the irrefutable evidence of one who once walked with Jesus, but now by certain actions and words have proven themselves to be genuine apostates.
What a strange, unique designation of des-pot’-ace, or despot, as it is applied to the Lord Jesus Christ! One would think that this designation would be unique to this text, but the word is actually found in 10 different places. Six times it refers to God, either the Father or the Son, and 4 times to earthly masters. We think of despot in a purely negative term, as a tyrannical ruler, but here it simply means master, or absolute ruler of all. From 2020 onwards, many of us in the west have suddenly found ourselves under the thumb of tyrannical despots. Let us rejoice that our citizenship truly belongs to the one who is the despot of all, not tyrannical, but perfectly just.
This denying their own Lord leads to swift destruction. This word means damnation, or perdition. Sometimes their physical destruction is delayed. The Lord has his reason for allowing the wicked to linger. I think one of the main reasons is to use these as a test of his flock. Do we have a heart that is not wholly his? False teachers will draw that corruption to the surface. Ones who are led astray by these seducers are simply exhibiting the fact that something inside of themselves longs for the forbidden fruit that their heresies offer.
2Pe 2:2 And many shall follow (imitate) their pernicious ways (ap-o-li-a); by reason of whom the way (hod-os – road, route, journey, route) of truth (al-ay’-thi-a – verity) shall be evil spoken of (blas-fay-meh’-o – blasphemed, defamed, reviled, vilify, to rail).
The bible contains many terrifying verses. In the last 40 years, how many millions have been led astray by the ‘damnable heresy’ of the prosperity gospel and all the various offshoots in the western Laodicean church?
Do you honestly think that anyone who embraced the tenets of that faith is in heaven today? You may say, but isn’t our ticket to heaven solely based on our acceptance of Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Savior? So even though they were of the ‘name it and claim it’ crowd that put the pursuit of personal blessings above everything else, they would only lose rewards, not their salvation, correct?
You may currently believe that this is so. How about we go through this entire letter, being as humble and as honest as we can be as we study it, and let’s see if you will continue to believe such a thing after we are done, shall we?
If you are afraid that I will talk you out of your belief and do not want to see what this letter actually teaches, then please stop here and go no further!
Peter says many (not a few) shall follow their ruinous ways. And ruinous it is. If your faith will be ruined by following them, then that does not sound like one who still has a saving faith. Not if it’s been ruined.
Right off the bat, Peter declares that Christianity itself will become defiled in the eyes of the world, because of the examples of these false teachers. And hasn’t that come to pass in our lifetime? What does the average sinner in America know of the church? They know that the word televangelist conjures up the image of charlatan, and crook. When they think of television ministries, they think of Jim and Tammy Baker, or Jimmy Swaggart, and the falls that they experienced. They may remember Robert Tilton and his heresies. Even Oral Roberts, not for all the good he has done, but that he infamously told his audience that God would kill him if they did not give him something like 10 million dollars so that he could continue his ministry! Think of the hundreds of millions of dollars that were given to build his hospital healing centre, only to be closed within, I think, less than 20 years from when it opened. Think about the awful heresies of Kenneth Copeland, and all those like him. Their insanely opulent lifestyles. Think about the in-your-face arrogance of someone like Joyce Meyer, one who is about as opposite in character to the godly example of Sarah, whom Peter exhorts the women of his day to imitate:
1Pe 3:1 Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives;
1Pe 3:2 While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear.
1Pe 3:3 Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel;
1Pe 3:4 But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.
1Pe 3:5 For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands:
1Pe 3:6 Even as Sara obeyed Abraham, calling him lord: whose daughters ye are, as long as ye do well, and are not afraid with any amazement.
I am so sick of men in the pulpit who are absolutely terrified to speak up against the rebellion of the women in the churches. God created them male and female. He created each of the sexes with different gifts and strengths. Few things are more offensive than when a woman tries to act like a man (well, perhaps men acting like women is even more offensive!). Hollywood has filled our culture with women taking on man’s roles, pretending they have the same strengths and skills as men. Tough as nails, they beat up men twice their size with ease. Their mouths are full of brazen self will, rebelling against proper authority. Yet when the chips are really down, who will they run to to save them? All those beta males that they have browbeaten and feminized?
Do we honestly think that we have a chance to defend ourselves anymore if we are physically attacked by our enemies? China or Islam will take one look at what is left of our male population, and will burst out laughing! We’ve let feminists usurp the roles of men for the last 50 years, and now we will pay the price. Peter will have much to say in this chapter of rebelling against God given authorities.
The wicked out there don’t need all the additional ammunition to blaspheme the church than we have been giving them, by our tolerance, nay embracing, of these wicked tares in our midst. We have fallen very far from the standard that God expects of all of us, that would cause the lost to come to us for answers, as Peter pointed out in his first epistle:
1Pe_3:15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
Why would anyone want to inquire about Jesus, if all they see are the Copelands and the Meyers and the Daystars, that purport to represent to the world what Christianity is all about?
2Pe 2:3 And through covetousness (pleh-on-ex-ee’-ah – fraud, extortion, greed) shall they with feigned (plas-tos’ – moulded, artificial, fictitious, false) words (log-os) make merchandise (em-por-yoo’-om-ahee – to travel and buy and sell) of you: whose judgment (kree’-mah – condemnation, damnation) now of a long time (long ago, for a long while already) lingereth (arg-eh’-o – idle, delay (only time in NT)) not, and their damnation (ap-o-li-a) slumbereth (delays, sleeps) not.
From now on, when I encounter a word that is unique in the entire New Testament, I will designate it with the ‘only time in NT’ designation as in the above verse.
This is a perfect description of all prosperity preachers, who use the sheep as a merchant would, saying whatever he needs to say to make the sale. I like the fact that the Greek implies a travelling merchant. You will often find these wicked ones move about from place to place. Once they are exposed in one place, they usually run and pop up somewhere else, and pick up where they left off.
What is the number one characteristic of a false teacher? One who is obsessed with money. They are first and foremost, covetous. They are the textbook example of the breaking of the 10th commandment:
Exo 20:17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s.
Along with that, they are also proficient defilers of commands 7, 8 and 9:
Exo 20:14 Thou shalt not commit adultery.
Exo 20:15 Thou shalt not steal.
Exo 20:16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
Pleh-on-ex-ee’-ah (fraud, extortion, greed) – this is the hallmark of a false prophet/teacher. They defraud by presenting a false gospel. They extort by using the scripture to beat people over the head until they cough up all their money to them. Their emphasis in their teachings not only reflect their greedy heart, stealing as much as they can, but they do it by appealing to the greed in the congregation’s hearts.
This is the truth around which the false prophet is able to operate. If the people of God were truly living a genuine Christian life, marked by self denial, the daily taking up of one’s cross, the living for others, then there would be no hidden lusts and longings in people’s hearts for the false prophet’s words to latch onto. But because our pastors have not taught us correctly, because we refuse to obey God’s word, the devil can send his ministers among us, and they find a willing audience, ready to receive all that they offer.
What do they use? They use feigned, or plastic words. I love the Greek! Does that not describe false teaching perfectly? It is like something that is made in China – plastic, cheap, and of no value. In fact, it’s probably dangerous, as so many feigned (fake) goods from China are. Instead of dining on the meat, or even the milk of the word, we are swallowing plastic. No wonder our spirits are sick!
God says that these people’s judgments have been preordained, or set in stone, long ago. Their eternal damnation is assured. You do not have to wonder if these will make heaven, there is absolutely no chance of that. Now when it says their judgment is preordained, this is not some Calvinistic nonsense that the individual soul was preordained to go to hell before they were even born. That is simply an incorrect interpretation of the text. Rather, the judgment for this kind of sin has been preordained in the mind of God long before any of these hucksters arrived on the scene. In other words, this kind of sin is a guaranteed one way ticket to the hot place! You also do not need to be concerned that God has somehow fallen asleep and not taken notice of these evil ones. Their damnation slumbereth not. Only let us remember God’s concept of quick and ours are two different things!
2Pe 2:4 For if God (theos) spared not the angels (ang-el-os) that sinned (ham-ar-tan’-o – miss the mark, trespass), but cast them down to hell (tar-tar-o’-o – the deepest abyss of Hades, Tartarus, only time in NT), and delivered (cast, put in prison) them into chains ( si-rah’ – only time in NT) of darkness (dzof’-os – gloom, blackness), to be reserved (tay-reh-o- to guard, to keep the eye on, to hold fast, to detain in custody) unto judgment (kree’-sis – tribunal, condemnation, damnation);
I love this part. Now we get into one of the deeper mysteries of the bible. This verse is the first of the 3 most famous examples of earth-shattering judgments that the planet has ever experienced. The 2nd was the world wide flood. The 3rd was Sodom and Gomorrah. Oddly, this first one has been all but forgotten by mankind.
This is because of a couple things. One, there were only 4 verses that directly referenced it in the Old Testament:
Gen 6:1 And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them,
Gen 6:2 That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.
Gen 6:3 And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.
Gen 6:4 There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown.
Jude also has a passage that references this event:
Jud 1:6 And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day.
The Jews of Jesus and Peter’s day would know exactly what Peter is referring to here. This was known as the second great fall. The church has faithfully taught the fall of Adam and Eve in Genesis 3, but has remained strangely silent about the events in Genesis 6. This was the second great rebellion in heaven, the fall of the 200 watchers, who were tempted by the beauty of women, and chose to leave their heavenly abode and take on flesh, in order to mate with them. For those who fully embrace the implications of this second great apostasy, they would claim that this event helps to explain the unfathomable utter depravity of mankind. The fall in and of itself has been stated as the sole reason as to why man’s soul is so corrupt. And that is a perfectly reasonable stance to take. However, I merely suggest that some have offered this second fall as an additional contributing factor to explain why evil is well, so evil! It is because of the forbidden knowledge that these watchers from heaven brought to mankind, things that God did not want us to know, such as the art of war, and the art of seduction, and the creation of potions and the like.
The first few centuries of the church certainly taught this doctrine. However, under the influence of Augustine, the most prominent theologian of the church in his time (354-430 AD), he denied the supernatural aspect of Genesis 6, and instead promulgated the untenable doctrine of the Sethites corrupting themselves with the lineage of Cain. In addition, the book of Enoch, which Jude explicitly quotes from, was rejected as a canonical work by all but the Ethiopian church. Here is the passage in Jude:
Jud 1:14 And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,
Jud 1:15 To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.
The relevant passage in the book of Enoch comes from chapter 1, verse 9:
9. And behold! He cometh with ten thousands of ⌈His⌉ holy ones To execute judgement upon all, And to destroy ⌈all⌉ the ungodly: And to convict all flesh Of all the works ⌈of their ungodliness⌉ which they have ungodly committed, And of all the hard things which ungodly sinners ⌈have spoken⌉ against Him.
I will now share the relevant passages in Enoch that elaborate upon the story of Gen 6:1-4.
I wish to make abundantly clear that the book of Enoch is NOT the word of God. It is not scripture. However, that does not mean that it does not contain items of interest. Some people are really crazy when it comes to non-canonical works. They think that if they even peek inside one for one second, that they will become demon possessed, or something! What is wrong with people? With that kind of attitude, one should never look at any other book ever again, except the bible, because it might contain something that is not true!
We have the bible. It is the infallible word of God. Everything else that we see in life is supposed to be subject to the truths, as best we understand them, that we find in the word of God. That is why any secular history book should be compared to scripture, and anything that contradicts the word, should be thrown out. Things like evolutionary texts, which teach millions and billions of years as the age of the earth and the universe. No, the bible says all of creation is only 6000 years old. That is the absolute truth. Anyone who tries to tell you otherwise is believing a lie. If they mock you, and say you are a neanderthal and don’t believe in ‘science’, then just think about what Fauci said about the genocidal death jab, when he said that he was science, as he urged the entire planet to poison themselves with the safe and effective bioweapon. Regarding the age of the earth, there are numerous wonderful ministries of creation science, such as ICR, that will give you all the facts that you need to see that everything Darwin (and others) taught is an absolute lie.
Having said all that, there are a lot of verifiable facts in certain history books. For example, older methods of dating Egyptian dynasties had their timeline off by several hundred years compared to the biblical one. This was used to try and discredit the bible. In recent years several historians have (grudgingly) admitted that new evidence points to the absolute accuracy of the dating of the Pharaohs mentioned in the bible. Given enough honest scholarship, the bible will prove itself to be true every time.
The book of Enoch, I believe, contains some fantastic insights that do not contradict the scripture. While scripture is silent on some of these things, and therefore we can never be absolutely certain that what Enoch teaches is absolutely true, the fact that Peter and Jude were confident enough to relate Enochian principles and passages should cause us to at least be curious as to what Enoch had to say about this event. What follows is a recounting of Gen 6:1-4, with much more added detail.
CHAPTER VI.
1. And it came to pass when the children of men had multiplied that in those days were born unto them beautiful and comely daughters.
2. And the angels, the children of the heaven, saw and lusted after them, and said to one another: ‘Come, let us choose us wives from among the children of men and beget us children.’
3. And Semjâzâ, who was their leader, said unto them: ‘I fear ye will not indeed agree to do this deed, and I alone shall have to pay the penalty of a great sin.’
4. And they all answered him and said: ‘Let us all swear an oath, and all bind ourselves by mutual imprecations not to abandon this plan but to do this thing.’
5. Then sware they all together and bound themselves by mutual imprecations upon it.
6. And they were in all two hundred; who descended #in the days# of Jared on the summit of Mount Hermon, and they called it Mount Hermon, because they had sworn and bound themselves by mutual imprecations upon it.
Chapter 7 and 8 explain the damage that they wrought in the earth, by spawning the giants, also known as Nephilim, and by bringing forbidden knowledge:
CHAPTER VII.
1. And all the others together with them took unto themselves wives, and each chose for himself one, and they began to go in unto them and to defile themselves with them, and they taught them charms and enchantments, and the cutting of roots, and made them acquainted with plants.
2. And they became pregnant, and they bare great giants, whose height was three thousand ells:
3. Who consumed all the acquisitions of men. And when men could no longer sustain them,
4. the giants turned against them and devoured mankind.
5. And they began to sin against birds, and beasts, and reptiles, and fish, and to devour one another’s flesh, and drink the blood.
6. Then the earth laid accusation against the lawless ones.
CHAPTER VIII.
1. And Azâzêl taught men to make swords, and knives, and shields, and breastplates, and made known to them the metals #of the earth# and the art of working them, and bracelets, and ornaments, and the use of antimony, and the beautifying of the eyelids, and all kinds of costly stones, and all colouring tinctures.
2. And there arose much godlessness, and they committed fornication, and they were led astray, and became corrupt in all their ways. Semjâzâ taught enchantments, and root-cuttings, Armârôs the resolving of enchantments, Barâqîjâl, [paragraph continues] (taught) astrology, Kôkabêl the constellations, Ezêqêêl the knowledge of the clouds, #Araqiêl the signs of the earth, Shamsiêl the signs of the sun#, and Sariêl the course of the moon. And as men perished, they cried, and their cry went up to heaven
Chapter 10 then goes on to describe their punishment, which is what Peter and Jude are alluding to:
CHAPTER X.
1. Then said the Most High, the Holy and Great One spake, and sent Uriel to the son of Lamech, and said to him:
2. ‘#Go to Noah# and tell him in my name “Hide thyself!” and reveal to him the end that is approaching: that the whole earth will be destroyed, and a deluge is about to come upon the whole earth, and will destroy all that is on it.
3. And now instruct him that he may escape and his seed may be preserved for all the generations of the world.’
4. And again the Lord said to Raphael: ‘Bind Azâzêl hand and foot, and cast him into the darkness: and make an opening in the desert, which is in Dûdâêl, and cast him therein.
5. And place upon him rough and jagged rocks, and cover him with darkness, and let him abide there for ever, and cover his face that he may not see light.
6. And on the day of the great judgement he shall be cast into the fire. And heal the earth which the angels have corrupted, and proclaim the healing of the earth, that they may heal the plague, and that all the children of men may not perish through all the secret things that the Watchers have disclosed and have taught their sons.
8. And the whole earth has been corrupted through the works that were taught by Azâzêl: to him ascribe all sin.’
9. And to Gabriel said the Lord: ‘Proceed against the bastards and the reprobates, and against the children of fornication: and destroy [the children of fornication and] the children of the Watchers from amongst men [and cause them to go forth]: send them one against the other that they may destroy each other in battle: for length of days shall they not have.
10. And no request that they (i.e. their fathers) make of thee shall be granted unto their fathers on their behalf; for they hope to live an eternal life, and that each one of them will live five hundred years.’
11. And the Lord said unto Michael: ‘Go, bind Semjâzâ and his associates who have united themselves with women so as to have defiled themselves with them in all their uncleanness.
12. And when their sons have slain one another, and they have seen the destruction of their beloved ones, bind them fast for seventy generations in the valleys of the earth, till the day of their judgement and of their consummation, till the judgement that is for ever and ever is consummated.
13. In those days they shall be led off to the abyss of fire: #and# to the torment and the prison in which they shall be confined for ever. And whosoever shall be condemned and destroyed will from thenceforth be bound together with them to the end of all generations.
15. And destroy all the spirits of the reprobate and the children of the Watchers, because they have wronged mankind. Destroy all wrong from the face of the earth and let every evil work come to an end: and let the plant of righteousness and truth appear: #and it shall prove a blessing; the works of righteousness and truth# shall be planted in truth and joy for evermore.
The above text helps to provide a possible explanation as to why the very brief mention of the sin of the watchers of Gen 6:1-4 was inserted just before the flood narrative. Indeed, it helps to make sense of verse 5, which abruptly speaks of man’s total corruption and depravity:
Gen 6:5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
Gen 6:6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.
Gen 6:7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.
Gen 6:8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.
Could it be that what was written in Enoch helps to enhance and complete the story of man’s total corruption and utter depravity? Could it be that the fall itself was just the first of 2 major events in the downfall of mankind? Only when the sin of the watchers, and their unleashing of forbidden knowledge to mankind occurred, did man become hopelessly unredeemable.
Think about what we have discovered since the great covid scam of 2020. We have heard rumblings of the so called cabal and the new world order for many years now. But something happened in 2020 that caused the lid to come off all these secret plans. The wicked are now openly proclaiming their intentions to confiscate all resources and enslave all of humanity by 2030. The bio weapons unleashed are of such a mysterious nature that no one is fully able to explain their contents even 4 years later. No one knows for sure what these mRNA shots are doing to the human genome. Perhaps a permanent change in mankind’s genetic makeup has already occurred, perhaps not. With the advances in quantum computing, AI, and the open discussions of so called UFO’s, we are seeing the unleashing of more ‘forbidden’ knowledge in the last 5 years than at any point in history. Did not Jesus say that the last days would be as the days of Noah? Since the bible has so very few verses that describe what the world was like during the days of Noah, I thought it would be interesting and beneficial to include these several passages from the book of Enoch, which is almost the only other source available that speaks of this time.
One last very interesting passage is in chapter 15 and 16, where it is said that all evil spirits are the spirits of these Nephilim, or giants, that should have never been born:
CHAPTER XV.
1. And He answered and said to me, and I heard His voice: ‘Fear not, Enoch, thou righteous man and scribe of righteousness: approach hither and hear my voice.
2. And go, say to ##the Watchers of heaven##, who have sent thee to intercede ##for them: “You should intercede”## for men, and not men for you:
3. Wherefore have ye left the high, holy, and eternal heaven, and lain with women, and defiled yourselves with the daughters of men and taken to yourselves wives, and done like the children of earth, and begotten giants (as your) sons?
4. And though ye were holy, spiritual, living the eternal life, you have defiled yourselves with the blood of women, and have begotten (children) with the blood of flesh, and, as the children of men, have lusted after flesh and blood as those #also# do who die and perish.
5. Therefore have I given them wives also that they might impregnate them, and beget children by them, that thus nothing might be wanting to them on earth.
6. But you were #formerly# spiritual, living the eternal life, and immortal for all generations of the world.
7. And therefore I have not appointed wives for you; for as for the spiritual ones of the heaven, in heaven is their dwelling.
8. And now, the giants, who are produced from the spirits and flesh, shall be called evil spirits upon the earth, and on the earth shall be their dwelling.
9. Evil spirits have proceeded from their bodies; because they are born from men, ##and## from the holy Watchers is their beginning and primal origin; #they shall be evil spirits on earth, and# evil spirits shall they be called.
[10. As for the spirits of heaven, in heaven shall be their dwelling, but as for the spirits of the earth which were born upon the earth, on the earth shall be their dwelling.]
11. And the spirits of the giants afflict, oppress, destroy, attack, do battle, and work destruction on the earth, and cause trouble: they take no food, #but nevertheless hunger# and thirst, and cause offences. And these spirits shall rise up against the children of men and against the women, because they have proceeded #from them#.
CHAPTER XVI.
1. From the days of the slaughter and destruction and death #of the giants#, from the souls of whose flesh the spirits, having gone forth, shall destroy without incurring judgement–thus shall they destroy until the day of the consummation, the great #judgement# in which the age shall be consummated, over the Watchers and the godless, yea, shall be wholly consummated.”
2. And now as to the Watchers who have sent thee to intercede for them, who had been ##aforetime## in heaven, (say to them): “You have been in heaven, but #all# the mysteries had not yet been revealed to you, and you knew worthless ones, and these in the hardness of your hearts you have made known to the women, and through these mysteries women and men work much evil on earth.”
4. Say to them therefore: “You have no peace.”‘
So ‘the angels that sinned’, are apparently these 200 watchers that ascended to mount Hermon in the area of the tribe of Dan in the north of Israel’s territory. The flood was supposed to wipe them out, but somehow, at least some of their Nephilim offspring survived for sure, as there are many mentions of giants that the Israelites had to clear out of the land of Canaan. Indeed, Goliath in the time of David would of been the most famous. Perhaps the wife of Ham had corrupted DNA that continued this hybrid bloodline. The story of Canaan, Ham’s son, has a dark twist to it when he violated Noah in his drunkenness, receiving an eternal curse for his troubles.
If the demons of today are actually the offspring of these watchers and human women, then they contain the evil tendencies of their fathers, and would have preserved this forbidden hidden knowledge, to corrupt mankind with, even if all the original watchers are in Tartarus today.
I really shouldn’t wander down this rabbit trail any further, but there is also a hint that not all the watchers were rounded up and cast to Tartarus, a special region of Hades, or hell. This region was said to be the lowest, darkest, worst place that hell had to offer. They are there until the final judgment, when they will be cast into the eternal lake of fire. Here is the curious passage in Deuteronomy, from what is known as the song of Moses:
Deu 32:8 When the most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel.
Deu 32:9 For the LORD’S portion is his people; Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.
The Septuagint (LXX – the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament) renders ‘the children of Israel’ in verse 8 as ‘angels of God’. Remember that Jesus and the New Testament authors primarily read and quoted the Old Testament from the LXX. That is why certain quotations of the Old Testament may read quite differently when you look up the quote in your version of the Old Testament, which for the King James comes from the Masoretic text, based on the Hebrew by Latin or English translators.
Let us assume that the LXX translation is the correct one. What would it mean? The tower of Babel speaks of this event, where God divided mankind into 70 nations. This verse would then say that since mankind had once again rejected the rule of Yahweh by building this tower of rebellion, then God was going to turn these nations over to the rule of these 70 watchers that had survived the flood, and had not yet been incarcerated in Tartarus. However, according to verse 9, God decided to reserve one tribe, Israel, for himself. Under this scenario, this provides another reason for the unique hatred that the Jews have attracted universally. No, it’s not because they are all greedy bankers. No, it’s not because they are all cabal, or some sort of fake Jews, like the Ashkenazi nonsense that’s floating around the internet. No, it’s not because they drink the blood of Christian children at Passover. And no, it’s not because their noses are too big! It’s because God has reserved them as the only tribe that was not placed under the domain of one of these superior fallen angels, who rule all the nations of the earth. Remember Daniel speaks of watchers and holy ones in his book, and also speaks of The prince of Persia and the prince of Grecia that Michael, Israel’s special archangel, had to fight against. So these ideas in Enoch may have a confirmation in Deuteronomy and in Daniel.
We know that there are territorial spirits. I think most have assumed that these are other fallen angels, that rebelled with satan. That could very well be. Or they might be the remnant of these watchers, of whom most (or all) are chained in Tartarus. Because the specific account of the chaining of these watchers is from an extra biblical source, we cannot be absolutely sure exactly how perfectly accurate all the details are, as God has not chosen it to be a part of his infallible book. Still, several interesting details are given to give us food for thought.
Now I fully understand if one does not choose to accept the alternate rendering of the LXX. The main argument against it is that it seems to fly in the face of God preserving his word. Remember the King James is derived from the manuscript known as the Masoretic text. Conservative scholars are in agreement that this is the most perfectly preserved of all manuscripts. However, the church fathers may have intentionally changed this little phrase from, angels of God, to, children of Israel, in order to counter the supernatural explanation of Genesis 6, to hide the fallen angels doctrine. However this is speculation. This argument in no way impugns the original Hebrew documents, as the oldest Masoretic text that we still have was written several centuries after the New Testament period, meaning the original Hebrew text that it was based on does not exist today. Whether or not one chooses to accept this alternate rendering in no way takes away from the fact that Peter here is definitely alluding to the fact that there was an imprisoning of certain angels that committed a most unique and heinous transgression.
Some scholars say mount Hermon was where the mount of Transfiguration occurred, rather than mount Tabor. If that is the case, it adds a fascinating aspect to the story, as the words of Jesus become a challenge to these watchers.
Mat 16:13 When Jesus came into the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I the Son of man am?
Mat 16:14 And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.
Mat 16:15 He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?
Mat 16:16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
Mat 16:17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
Mat 16:18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Mat 16:19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Note that this location was at the base of Mount Hermon, not on the coast of the Mediterranean, so ‘coasts’ should probably be rendered ‘place’ to avoid confusion. Mat 17:1 says that 6 days later was when the transfiguration of Jesus occurred. So if he lingered here, Jesus was laying down the gauntlet to these 70 surviving watchers, who were ruling the nations. As they had come to earth from heaven by descending onto mount Hermon, so Jesus declared that he had come to destroy the gates of hell located there. Thus instead of fighting over whether Peter was the rock, or that revelation knowledge was the rock, why not consider that the rock that they were standing on (mount Hermon), was the rock that Jesus was referring to? The place where the watchers came, and fully corrupted mankind and all of creation, was where Jesus declared that he was coming to take it all back!
We could go on and on, but look at what has happened already! Page 17, and we are still in verse 4!
So now that we understand what the heck Peter was referring to, let’s get back to the verse itself. It is the beginning of one sentence that goes all the way to the end of verse 9! This is the first of 3 examples of total judgment. Peter’s audience would’ve been just as familiar with this story as with the next 2. Unfortunately, 2000 years later, we have lost this story to myth and legend. The Greeks knew all about this, as their myths and legends of the gods and titans, and half gods were not made up out of thin air. They were based on the stories of the original watchers and their offspring. Of course, pagan religions always spin these tales to make these evil beings the good guys. The bible is the one source that sets the record straight as to which side these beings are really on.
So Peter begins to say that if God did not spare these exalted angels, but cast them straight into hell, we will see at the end of this passage that neither will he spare these false teachers. Indeed, there is additional material in the book of Enoch where the leader of these imprisoned angels asks Enoch to go and intercede for their release. Enoch does so, but God refuses to alter the eternal sentence. The readers of this letter would almost certainly be familiar with the tale.
One final aspect to consider is that this is the only place in the bible where the word Tartarus is used. The Greeks were familiar with this place, an especially horrid place in Hades. Peter here affirms the truth of this belief of Greek culture, as God made it part of holy writ, even as he made part of the book of Enoch holy writ in Jude. Who knows in eternity what will become part of holy writ? For now, we have 66 books. I would like to think that these occasional references to other works, where some truth may be found, is to help us not to be so open minded that we swallow anything, but to be not so closed minded that we become impossible to have a conversation with. Are there any adults in the room that are able to discuss these intelligently, secure in what they believe, without being afraid? Or are we so insecure in what we embrace that we must shut down any and every adult conversation, being afraid that somehow even listening to something new is somehow imperilling our souls?
God is no respecter of persons. We see countless examples where the wicked get preferential treatment in the courts of men, buying their way out of punishment. Not so, never so, with Yehovah. We all will stand before the judgment seat of God, and there is no partiality with him.
2Pe 2:5 And spared not the old (original, primeval, of old time) world (kos-mos), but saved ( foo-las’-so – isolated, preserved) Noah the eighth (og-do-os – from a root word meaning eight) person, a preacher (kay’-roox – a herald of divine truth) of righteousness, bringing in (superinduce) the flood ( kat-ak-looce-mos’ – inundation, where we get the word cataclysm) upon the world of the ungodly (as-eb-ace’ – wicked);
The word used for saved (foo-las-so) is used 30 times in the NT, almost always as kept or observed. God did indeed preserve Noah through the tribulation, he did not take him out of it. If we want to use Noah as a pattern of the rapture, I would contend that it fits more of a pattern of being preserved through the tribulation, rather than taken out of it. Enoch would’ve been more of a proper pattern of being removed. Trouble is, Enoch (or Elijah) was not removed during a time of tribulation, or total judgment, like the time of Noah was. Look at these other verses that I believe also speak of God preserving, or hiding his own, during tribulation, not snatching them away from it:
Zep 2:3 Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD’S anger.
Luk 21:36 Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.
Rev 3:10 Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.
To be fair, the last 2 verses could also be interpreted as being snatched away. Who knows – I personally do not believe in the pre-trib rapture, but this is one instance where I fervently hope that I am wrong!
According to a common Greek idiom, og-do-os means one and seven others, or Noah and 7 others. God takes pains to tell us something here that is not readily apparent in the account of the flood itself. That is, that Noah was a preacher of God’s righteousness. You could try and say that just by building the boat, he was preaching with his actions. But I am confident that many people would’ve asked him what the heck he was doing! So he would have had ample opportunity to explain to them exactly why he was doing what he did, something unprecedented in all of human history.
Peter had already alluded to this famous story in his previous epistle:
1Pe 3:18 For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
1Pe 3:19 By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison;
1Pe 3:20 Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water.
Note how the term ‘spirits in prison’ may take on a richer meaning, now that we are familiar with the story of the watchers and their imprisonment. Could those be the spirits that Jesus visited, letting them know that their rule, and the rule of their unimprisoned cohorts, had now formally come to an end? That it was only a matter of time when Jesus would come and officially take over all the kingdoms that the watchers had lost, due to their evil corruptions that they practiced amongst men?
There are different arguments to be made as to exactly how long it took for Noah to build the ark. Gen 6:3 seems to imply there was given to Noah a countdown of 120 years before the flood would come. When Noah began to build the ark is not clearly stated. Some think the bible says that his sons would have all been born and married before he began to build, which makes the building of it less than 100 years. Whatever the truth of the matter, Noah would’ve had many years to share God’s word of total judgment on a lost and dying world. But since it had never even rained upon the earth up until then, it would’ve been an uphill battle to get anyone to believe his tale!
Even so, the point of this verse is that God was willing to wipe out all life, save 8 people and 2 (or 7) of each species of animal. Don’t think that he will hesitate to judge those that lead his flock astray.
I hope that I have made a compelling case to show how, in the mind of Peter, the watcher narrative and the flood story were intimately connected. I believe that it was not only the sin of mankind that precipitated the worldwide flood, but that the watchers had revealed so many secrets of darkness into planet earth, that God had no choice but to declare the whole planet haram, or devoted to destruction.
Remember Enoch spoke not only of the watchers mixing human seed with angelic, but of hybridizing animals and plants. In effect, they had corrupted the DNA of all of God’s creation. Kind of sounds familiar, does it not? Who does not know of the dangers of genetically modified plants (GMO), or that not only domestic, but wild animals are being injected with mRNA technology, in order to ‘save’ them? We are corrupting all of God’s creation, and are rapidly reaching the point of no return. As in the days of Noah, we too are almost at the point of haram, where the entire planet will be placed under the ban, to be utterly destroyed. There is a reason why God included these quirky commands in the Torah, such as this one:
Deu 22:9 Thou shalt not sow thy vineyard with divers seeds: lest the fruit of thy seed which thou hast sown, and the fruit of thy vineyard, be defiled.
Deu 22:10 Thou shalt not plow with an ox and an ass together.
Deu 22:11 Thou shalt not wear a garment of divers sorts, as of woollen and linen together.
All of these commands were to serve as a reminder to never listen to the dark angels, who had so intermixed the species, which were always meant to only reproduce after their own kind. Everything that God does, every command that he gives, has meaning and purpose, whether we understand it or not. It is the height of hubris, ignorance, and folly, to mock any command of God, such as the ones above, thinking that man wrote it out of some local superstition and custom. In fact, the obscure commands above were to constantly remind the people of God the reason why God judged the entire planet in old time. Given enough time, we have completely forgotten, so now we have come to that same spiritual point in history once again.
2Pe 2:6 And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned ( kat-ak-ree’-no – sentenced, damned) them with an overthrow (kat-as-trof-ay’ – catastrophe, demolition, figuratively apostasy), making (ordaining) them an ensample ( hoop-od’-igue-mah – exhibit, warning, pattern) unto those that after should live ungodly (as-eb-eh’-o – to live impiously ro wickedly);
Peter has tied the unique sin of the watchers with the worldwide flood. He is trying to get across the idea that one of the main sins that brought the flood was this going after strange flesh, that the watchers indulged in.
Jud_1:7 Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange (het-er-os – other or different) flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.
Both Peter and Jude now speak of the infamous sin of Sodom and Gomorrah. Indeed, the term Sodomite comes from the homosexual behavior of this town, as spoken of in Genesis:
Gen 19:5 And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them.
Jude says they gave themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh. This flesh was other, or different, ie, not human. They must have recognized that angels were in their midst, and they wanted to have sex with them, in imitation of the sin of the watchers.
One must remember that in pagan religions, often the story of the watchers would be found in a corrupted version. In Mesopotamian culture, the story of the apkallu paints these watchers as the good guys, in direct opposition to the biblical account. They are painted as heroes for bringing all these hidden crafts and technologies to mankind. Remember how the Greek religion speaks of Prometheus, and how he gifted mankind with the making of fire, and how he was then supposedly punished by the other gods for doing such a good thing? Spun like a typical CNN segment, isn’t it?
God was not about to let mankind revive this abominable practice so soon. God knew that one day, indeed in our very own generation, these things would happen once again. But in Sodom’s time, God nipped this desire and practices in the bud, so to speak, and gave mankind a very (in)famous example of what occurs to those who indulge the flesh in unbridled passion.
We shall see that the chief characteristic of these false teachers, besides their covetousness, is their immorality. Idolatry (worship of money) and immorality. Always, those are the 2 chief transgressions that kindle God’s wrath. And the false teachers simply ooze with these sins. Poke them, and greed and immorality pour out. Watch them for any length of time, and you will be able to easily detect these 2 sins.
Their love of money is obvious by their overt fixation on finances, whether obsessively preaching on giving and tithing, or by their outward displays of wealth. They simply cannot hide the fact that they love this present world, and will not give it up for any thing. Their lust is sometimes harder to spot. Many go several years without being caught. However, you can be sure that every false teacher has an unbridled appetite for sex hidden there somewhere. For those who have not yet been exposed in sex scandals, rumors abound as to their pedophilic practices, amongst other things. Just look at the mass exposure that child sex trafficking is now receiving. From Epstein island, to Diddy’s parties, to the government and the NGO’s trafficking a half million children in the last 4 years, all of this extreme wickedness is being brought to the light. We have heard of many, many sexual failures of prominent ministers. If there is yet any false teacher who has not been exposed, they are running on borrowed time. Suffice it to say that this chapter will unequivocally expose what is truly in their hearts. If a minister is displaying his greed via his ostentatious wealth, you can almost be certain that his covetousness does not stop at material wealth. Out of control appetites always have a sexual component to them. Even as the watchers, and even as Sodom and Gomorrah, sexual appetites that break the boundaries that God has set up will face eternal judgment.
Passages such as these put the lie to the Laodicean teaching that all sin is the same. I have heard so many pastors who say that all sexual sin is the same. They say this because they are terrified of the homosexuals, and the alphabet people. They know that they are violent and dangerous, so they try to obey God by quickly stating that any fornication is the same level of sin as homosexuality, or any other sort of foul aberration, showing that they are not picking on the poor sodomite. Well, God picks on them. He singles them out as eternal examples of what ticks him off the most. God hates homosexuality. Does he love the homosexual? Sure. I have searched the bible, and there is not one single scripture that I can find where it is said that God specifically hates mankind, or a specific person, save in the matter of Esau (Mal 1:3). There are many that speak of several behaviors that God hates. The closest I find is where David speaks of hating those that hate God:
Psa 139:21 Do not I hate them, O LORD, that hate thee? and am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee?
Psa 139:22 I hate them with perfect hatred: I count them mine enemies.
Psa 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
Psa 139:24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
David is not afraid to ask God to search his heart. He is confident that his attitude will pass muster with Jehovah.
While one can make the argument that Christ has shown us a better way, one cannot ignore verses such as these. I believe the bible teaches us that mankind can be separated into 3 classes – the saved, the sinner, and the wicked. The wicked is a special, small subset of the lost. These are souls, such as Gates and Schwab and Soros and Fauci, that have made a final choice to serve the devil, and are not interested in salvation. They know that there is a God in heaven, and they have chosen to fight him to their very last breath. We need not bother praying for such as these. God has given us countless examples in the word where certain people were devoted to destruction, and no amount of prayer was going to save them. The city of Sodom and Gomorrah was one such example. Abraham pleaded with God to spare the city if 10 righteous were found within. Some say Abraham could have whittled God down to one. I, for one, do not believe that. God allowed Abraham to ‘bargain’ with him, to show the power we potentially have in intercessory prayer. However, you cannot change what has been written. For example, you cannot pray away the tribulation, or the mark of the beast, or the antichrist. These things must come to pass, in the sovereign plan and will of God. We must always pray according to his will, or we will simply be wasting our time.
1Jn 5:14 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:
1Jn 5:15 And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.
1Jn 5:16 If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it.
The verse we are examining here in 2 Peter says that God performed this one time special punishment as a pattern, an example for mankind. This is the fate of the sexually immoral. Fire and brimstone for all eternity. Just as God left us unmistakable evidence of the global flood, so he has left us the ruins of Sodom and Gomorrah, even unto this day. Anyone who looks at the Grand Canyon and does not see global catastrophe is simply lying to themself. Similarly, anyone who reads the bible and somehow tries to come up with the conclusion that God is okay with any sexual activity outside of the marriage of one man and one woman, is also lying to themself. Homosexuality is an abomination. Always has been, always will be. The illicit mixture of different species is also a great abomination. Always has been, always will be.
Mankind is so full of hubris and arrogance, do they honestly think that the incomprehensible complexity of life can be tinkered with and improved upon? I recently heard that the 2 most complex systems in the universe are our neurological system and our immune system. The two things the death jabs specifically targets. Do we actually think that even the greatest minds understand a fraction of a fraction of one percent of how these systems really work? That is why God is exposing the whole lie of the vaccine. Not just covid, but all vaccines. We have been hoodwinked and lied to. Even as in Galileo’s time, it took great courage for someone to stand up and say that the sun does not revolve around the earth, so it it taking great courage for the first pioneers in our day to expose the madness of injecting our children with toxins and poisons at birth, when our immune systems are just beginning to develop, and think that not only will we not do any harm, but that we are actually helping our immune systems! What deadly, deadly nonsense! What a fight we have on our hands as we try to bring our own modern day Behemoth, Big Pharma, down.
2Pe 2:7 And delivered (rhoo’-om-ahee – rescue, to draw out of the water) just ( dik’-ah-yos – innocent, righteous, holy) Lot, vexed (kat-ap-on-eh’-o – oppressed, labored down upon) with the filthy conversation (en as-elg’-i-a oan-as-trof-ay’ – by the instrumentality of the licentious, wanton behavior) of the wicked (ath’-es-mos – lawless, criminal):
Peter must have had access to some revelation, or some other records at the very least regarding certain characteristics of these famous personages of old. First we learn that Noah was a preacher of righteousness. Genesis gives us no such detail. Now we are going to be given a picture of Lot as an amazingly saintly, righteous man. To be honest, the Genesis account in no way paints him in this light. In fact, one could easily come to an opposite conclusion regarding his character.
First, he had a choice of which direction to go when he separated from Abraham. He chose Sodom. Second, he chose to live right inside Sodom, even though he would’ve quickly realized what that city was all about. Third, he wasn’t a strong leader of his family, as he couldn’t convince his wife and daughters that they needed to leave the city after the angels visited. Fourth, he was ready to toss his daughters to the howling sex crazed mob of Sodom, in order to preserve his honor of protecting the guests that had come into his home. His middle eastern warped idea of honor trumped the fact that he was willing to let his daughters be raped all night long, and most likely killed. His ‘honor’ was more important! Next, he allowed his daughters to get him so blind drunk that they could screw him and next day he did not even remember. And not for one night, but for 2 nights in a row! I am sure that this was not the first time that he had let himself go that far, otherwise after the first night he would’ve been so violently ill that he would not have engaged in that behavior for quite some time. Believe me, I know from my wilder pre-salvation days of my youth!
And here Peter is calling Lot righteous! Lot may be a lot of things, but righteous is not the first word that comes to mind.
The verse itself builds on an idea that was first touched upon in verse 5, and one that I haven’t mentioned. God may engage in total judgment, but he does preserve and protect his own. Even though God destroyed the entire world with a flood, Noah and his house was preserved, while still having to endure the hardship of literally riding out the tribulation. So now God rescues Lot and his house, as he wipes out Sodom and Gomorrah. And once again, God did not rapture Lot away to heaven, but he sent him to escape to a little town. His daughters probably convinced him to run further to some remote cave, thinking that God was only just warming up (as if you can run far enough to escape the judgment of God). Yet Lot had to endure the effects of the judgment and subsequent tribulation, as he tried to rebuild his life, with 2 pregnant daughters by his own hand nonetheless! Therefore I see preservation, not total escape, as the pattern that God lays out for his church for the judgment to come.
Maybe the book of Jubilees or some such other document has more detail about the life of Lot while in Sodom. I am not going to try and research that, or I may never finish this commentary! Suffice it to say that there must be truth in what Peter is saying here, or God would not have chosen to include it in this letter, which he has chosen to become part of our bible. Let us now simply take this at face value.
Can we not at least envision how this could be true? Are not many of us forced to live or work in a very wicked place? Where we engage in little compromises in order to keep our jobs, or escape needless persecution? Perhaps it is merely that we are silent at work when we would like to speak up. It is easy to say that we should always be bold, but I do know the pressures of trying to provide for your own house, and the many split second decisions one needs to make as to when and where to finally draw the line at the behavior of the wicked all around us.
How about family gatherings? What if your family is totally pagan? If someone cracks a dirty joke, do you pipe up and tell them you are offended? Or, to keep the peace, do you stay silent? You remember the last time you tried to say something, how it ended up in a battle royale and a total disaster. So you bite your tongue and tell yourself that it is only for a few hours, then you get to go home. Meanwhile, your soul is truly vexed over the ignorance, disrespect and outright blasphemy that comes from your relative’s lips. I am sure that Lot remembered the faith that his uncle Abraham taught him, and had rubbed off on him. And when he saw these totally depraved citizens of Sodom, I am sure that it tore at his soul. Maybe he had even tried to say something once or twice, and was probably put in his place. Remember what the men of Sodom told him, when he tried to gently dissuade them from raping his guests, by even offering his daughters instead:
Gen 19:7 And said, I pray you, brethren, do not so wickedly.
Gen 19:8 Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof.
Gen 19:9 And they said, Stand back. And they said again, This one fellow came in to sojourn, and he will needs be a judge: now will we deal worse with thee, than with them. And they pressed sore upon the man, even Lot, and came near to break the door.
Gen 19:10 But the men put forth their hand, and pulled Lot into the house to them, and shut to the door.
Lot may have had a reputation for reproving others, and these reprobates were having none of it.
2Pe 2:8 (For that righteous (dik’-ah-yos – just, holy, even innocent) man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed ( bas-an-id’-zo – tortured, tormented) his righteous ( dik’-ah-yos) soul ( psoo-khay’ – breath, spirit) from day to day with their unlawful ( an’-om-os – lawless, wicked) deeds;)
Peter really lays it on thick. In Peter’s mind, Lot is a good guy, and that’s that. Isn’t it wonderful that when we are in fellowship with the Lord that Yahweh sees us this way? Viewed through the prism of the blood of the Lamb, we are looked upon as righteous, holy and blameless, because of the blood. Let us always strive to live up to this great salvation that has been bought for us with such a great price.
Lot was vexed by what he heard and saw. Are we not vexed by what we hear and see? With each passing day, I am finding it harder and harder to watch and listen to any more lies from those of this world. All mainstream media is now committed to lying about everything, 24/7. Even the weather channel intentionally lies to us, making any temperature change that is a few degrees outside what is normal another sign of climate change! You cannot get any facts about anything anymore. Just try to get a true story about the war in Israel. Forget about mainstream news, they are all pro muslim and filled with Jew hatred. But go to alternative media, and 9 out of 10 are equally hostile. Do you know that I have only been able to find one news source out of hundreds that will give you the facts on the ground, with commentary that reflects the truth of scripture regarding Israel and its people? One, out of hundreds! And God help you in trying to find out the truth in Ukraine!
The answer is not in forever ignoring any and all news. I don’t believe God wants us to be ignorant. But we all have to be brutally honest with ourselves, and be realistic as to how much of Babylon that we should expose ourselves to. The days of naivete are over. The innocent lamb in the pew will be devoured quite quickly these days. I find that once I have a good handle on some evil topic, I do not keep researching it over and over again, else I will just end up unnecessarily vexing my own soul.
Even in these uniquely detestable days of darkness, we must find a way to walk in love, and peace, and maintain some measure of the joy of the Lord.
2Pe 2:9 The Lord knoweth (i-do – understands) how to deliver (rhoo’-om-ahee) the godly ( yoo-seb-ace’ – reverent, pious, devout) out of temptations (pi-ras-mos’ – a putting to proof, trial, adversity), and to reserve (tay-reh’-o – guard, keep an eye on, prevent escaping) the unjust (ad’-ee-kos – wicked, treacherous) unto the day of judgment ( kree’-sis – tribunal, condemnation, damnation) to be punished (kol-ad’-zo – chastised, reserved for affliction):
The conclusion of the matter, after giving 3 examples, is that God knows how to do 2 things. He knows how to deliver the devout out of severe adversity, and he knows how to ensure that the truly wicked will stay wicked until it is too late for them to escape eternal judgment. This is a concept that is not taught. We love to teach as to how it is never to late to come to Jesus. We relate stories of people who repented on their deathbed, or their very last day that they were alive. And those are wonderful stories, as far as they go. But there is also another side. One that speaks of the far more common and likely scenario. That if you do not repent at a young age, your chances grow slimmer and slimmer as you age. This is backed up by statistics. For every late conversion, there are millions who do not repent.
Man is so gullible. So many who have heard the truth, and the need for salvation, reason within themselves that they will have plenty of time to pay attention to religion once they are old. But almost all never do. The reason is that one’s ethics, attitudes, and foundational beliefs harden over time. You become set in your ways. Most old people become much more narrow minded. All of us know how hard it is to get an elderly relative to listen to what we have to say. They see us as young idiots, as what do we know compared to them?
No, age does not always bring wisdom. As the arteries harden, so do most people’s attitudes and beliefs. Never delay to repent. A day is coming when God will turn you over to your beliefs, and then your last chance will be gone. You never know which day will be the very last time that you will have an opportunity to respond to the gospel. And I also think that this applies to any truth that God is speaking to you about. Perhaps you are considering some doctrine that you can see may be false. But then you go back to your church and your old circle of acquaintances, and they quickly suck you back into your old way of thinking, because it’s comfortable and easy.
I remember a small house prayer meeting I used to attend. There was one woman who was caught up in some of the sillier beliefs of the hyper charismatic crowd, simply because those were the kind of people she had hung around with for many years. These people (of which 90% were women, the rest beta males), would be into loud, emotional, displays that would always draw attention to self and not to Jesus. They would prophesy words of phrases that were mostly meaningless, but made them feel spiritual. They would sing the same phrase 50 times or more in a row, putting themselves in semi trances. They would engage in numerology, claiming divine significance in some number, such as 5, that they would say they came across several times in one day, such as seeing the time being 5 minutes to 5, or the 5th verse of the 5th chapter of such and such a book of the bible, etc. Weird stuff that was neither here nor there, but that they would so desperately try to derive some sort of spiritual significance from.
A few times I had the chance to share some sound doctrine from the word of God, and you could see that the light was beginning to dawn in her soul. She was being set free from some sort of wrong thinking. But then another one of these silly women would speak next, and destroy everything that either the teaching or clear prophecy spoken was saying, by immediately reverting back to some false doctrine of ‘declaring’ this or ‘claiming’ that. Immediately the woman would fall back into her old routine. Eventually, that group broke up. I suspect that I may have had a lot to do with it, as the presence of myself and my wife had altered the dynamics of that group and their formerly nonsensical behavior. Rather than either examining their behavior in all honesty to see if they needed to change, or kicking us out altogether, it was easier for them to just disband the group. Sad, but that is the way it usually goes, does it not? God offers us a chance to change, but few take him up on the offer.
Peter has introduced the idea of false teachers. They bring lies into the church, lies that lead people into hell. Many will listen to them and follow them. This will bring the church into great disrepute in the world’s eyes. These teachers are greedy. They appeal to the greed in people’s hearts, snaring them.
God then launches into a lecture about their fate. Just as the fallen watcher angels, the entire planet, and Sodom and Gomorrah were totally destroyed, so too is these false teachers’ judgment sure. However, even in the midst of total apostasy, God does remind us that he knows how to preserve his own. This is a great comfort for those of us who find ourselves caught in the middle of a generation that will be known for its great apostasy, much more than anything else.
2Pe 2:10 But chiefly (particularly, most of all) them that walk (live) after the flesh (sarx – body) in the lust (ep-ee-thoo-mee’-ah – forbidden longing) of uncleanness (mee-as-mos’ – moral contamination, only time in NT), and despise (kat-af-ron-eh’-o – disesteem, to think against, from roots that mean to intensely oppose in their mind) government (koo-ree-ot’-ace – rulers, dominions, supreme authority). Presumptuous (tol-may-tace’ – audacious, only time in NT) are they, selfwilled (self pleasing, arrogant), they are not afraid ( trem’-o – terrifeid, to tremble) to speak evil ( blas-fay-meh’-o – blaspheme) of dignities (dox’-ah – glorious or honorable ones).
Now Peter opens up the throttle and steps on the gas like never before. He will now launch into a vivid description of the sorts of people that we are dealing with. Which people is God most likely to be the most angry with? What are the main characteristics of those who risk suffering the same total judgment as those whom he has just spoken about? Who risks the same level of anger as what caused God to flood the planet, and burn cities to ash?
They are known for 2 chief characteristics. They are slaves to their sexual appetite, and they have no regard for authority of any kind.
They live to indulge forbidden longings of moral contamination. If we want to have a peek at what they fantasize and dream about continually, then take a look at any gay pride parade. Our culture has embraced the culture of Canaan, of Sodom and Gomorrah. Sexual perversion of every sort is celebrated, and something to take extreme pride in. What we are doing is taking extreme pride in blasphemy and total rebellion against Yehovah, and Yehovah alone. False teachers have succumbed to the demons of sexual depravity. What they actually indulge in is what they can feel they get away with. Someone who is full of such thoughts, exactly what sort of doctrine do you think they will proclaim? Do you think there will be much repentance talk amongst them?
One thing that I remember from the 5 or so years in which I was a part of the word of faith movement, is that I hardly remember a single sermon ever about repentance. Whether it was a live church service, or a sermon on tape, about the only incident that I remember was one service where I think our church was behind on our mortgage payments and the pastor wanted some conviction in the place, so he started to preach on something about sin. I prophesied something about repentance even back then (one of the very few times I gave a public prophecy), and the pastor affirmed it, as he wanted us more committed to the church and the building project at the time. That was the only time something like that occurred, and it was for the wrong reason. I remember that I listened to every tape that Kenneth Hagin had at that time, well over 300 tapes, and I think there was literally one message where he spoke of someone repenting at the end of his life and escaping hell. The other 300 plus sermons were almost all about faith and healing. How can any Christian grow by eating that kind of junk food?
Whether you are a preacher or a layperson, if your sexual appetite is not under control, you have a big problem. Not only will you live under condemnation and spiritual defeat, but you are a prime candidate to be seduced by false teaching. Like attracts like. Those sick men in the pulpit, slaves to their own lusts, will connect with their audience who are also bound by lust. How many times will ministers end up in bed with secretaries, members in the congregation, fellow ministry staff, etc. If you are fantasizing about having sex with someone who is not your spouse, then you need to do whatever it takes to take care of that right away.
The second characteristic is they cannot submit to anyone or anything, especially God. Now this has nothing to do with all the wussy pastors who bent the knee to evil government mandates during covid. Those who locked the doors, took the government hush money, and encouraged everyone to poison themselves. That was not submission to authority, that was cowardice and fear.
What we are talking about is a spirit that listens to no one. Those who say that they have a private revelation from the Lord and anyone who opposes them is opposing God. Yet their whole lifestyle is one that rebels against all legitimate authority. Their ultimate authority is not Yahweh, their god is their lustful appetite, and that is the master that they slavishly obey. All they preach and teach is calculated to steal as much money as possible from their congregations, and look for any and every opportunity to have sex with whoever is able to be tempted to do so.
These people are said to be presumptuous, or audacious. Audacious people are reckless people. They operate without restrictions. The word of the Lord should always restrict our behaviors. These preachers of perfidy play by no one’s rules, especially God’s. They are self willed, or selfish. You need look no further today than the wicked woman clinging to the Daystar empire. She is playing by no rules, but is saying anything she has to in order to try and hang on to her billion dollar enterprise.
When the word says they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities, we start to get into an area that, once more, is quite obscure and unknown in our modern church age. Commentators are divided as to whether or not Peter is speaking of the angelic realm, the human realm, or both. From the context of the next verse, I believe we are speaking solely of the angelic realm. Let us examine this idea more closely in the next verse.
2Pe 2:11 Whereas angels (ang-el-os), which are greater (in power and in age) in power (is-khoos’ – ability, strength) and might (doo’-nam-is – miraculous power, wonderful work), bring not railing (blas’-fay-mos – calumnious, impious) accusation (kree’-sis) against (intensely) them before the Lord.
Jude helps us to understand that the angelic realms are intended here:
Jud 1:8 Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities.
Jud 1:9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.
Jude has drawn upon some extra biblical source once again to give us a glimpse of yet another strange event in the ancient past. Remember that God buried Moses.
Deu 34:4 And the LORD said unto him, This is the land which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, saying, I will give it unto thy seed: I have caused thee to see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt not go over thither.
Deu 34:5 So Moses the servant of the LORD died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the LORD.
Deu 34:6 And he buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, over against Bethpeor: but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day.
The Lord had buried Moses, and didn’t tell anyone where the body was. Perhaps this verse in Jude is a hint that the devil has a hunch that God may raise Moses up at the tribulation to be one of the 2 witnesses, since the works of the 2 witnesses most closely resemble the ministries of Moses and Elijah. The devil may have felt that he had a right to preempt that future event, since by his thinking (Lk 4:5-6), everything on the earth belonged to him, even the dead bodies of men.
The point is that, even the most powerful holy angels do not presume to take it upon themselves to pronounce eternal judgment on any of the principalities and powers that God had established, not even those who had rebelled so spectacularly and permanently, such as satan himself. Instead, Michael is recorded here as saying that Yehovah will rebuke you satan, not I.
However, these false teachers sounded like they were not afraid to say whatever they wanted to say about any of these heavenly powers, though these powers were far greater in power and might. And you know, this certainly sounds like the word of faith preachers that I listened to! One of their specialties was to make extreme fun of the devil, as if he had absolutely no power to touch them anymore, since Jesus defeated him at the cross. Their theology made jokes about him, as someone who was an idiot and a fool, and you could simply laugh at him, and call him whatever names you wanted to. All the while the devil was laughing at them, as he had them trapped in their own self delusions, as they thought they were saved and going to heaven, when the truth was that they actually belonged to him, and were leading their congregations straight into his arms!
This idea that since the devil was defeated at the cross, so now we don’t have to worry about him, is retarded. Do we have any idea exactly how powerful he is? Though he is defeated positionally and theoretically, in actuality he is as free and loose as he ever was, and is probably more dangerous in this last generation when he is given unprecedented authority and power to deceive the entire planet, than he has ever been. We all heard sermons about the power we have in the name of Jesus. If this power is so sure and absolute, then why do so few of us walk free from sin? If satan has no more power over us, why do most people’s lives scream the opposite?
No, the reality is that we are total idiots. We have absolutely no idea what we are up against. Our security in the arms of Christ gives us a fighting chance, no more or less. Satan cannot force us to do anything, yet he has millennia upon millennia of experience in deceiving and seducing mankind in every which way imaginable. That is why we are continually exhorted to be on guard against the wiles of the devil.
1Co_7:5 Defraud ye not one the other, except it be with consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again, that Satan tempt you not for your incontinency.
2Co_2:11 Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.
2Co_11:14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
2Co_12:7 And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.
1Th_2:18 Wherefore we would have come unto you, even I Paul, once and again; but Satan hindered us.
1Ti_5:15 For some are already turned aside after Satan.
1Pe_5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
Paul was certainly not dismissive of the devil’s power. Neither was Peter, and neither should we. The first rule of warfare is to never underestimate your enemy. I think we all know that the vast majority of souls ever born are in hell today. How could a weak and powerless entity ever succeed in dragging the vast majority of souls away from God and eternal life?
No, let us not be stupid, but let us give ourselves a reality check. Satan is real, and one to be respected as a formidable opponent. If Michael the archangel does not dare to insult him, then who are you to presume to do so? I guess if you are a false teacher, then that is no problem. Satan allows them to get away with that because of the sterling work they are doing in deceiving the children of God and causing them to lose their way.
2Pe 2:12 But these, as natural (physical, not spiritual, operating by instinct alone) brute (irrational, unreasonable) beasts (animals), made (created) to be taken (hal’-o-sis – captured, only time in NT) and destroyed (fthor-ah’ – decay, ruin , perish), speak evil (blas-fay-meh’-o) of the things that they understand not (ag-no-eh’-o – not to know, agnostic); and shall utterly perish (kat-af-thi’-ro – become utterly depraved, spoiled entirely) in their own corruption(fthor-ah’);
These false teachers are said to be irrational, unreasonable creatures that are totally governed by their base, fleshly instincts, without a hint of anything truly spiritual within them. It is said that God created them for the purpose of capture and destruction. This reminds us of the great passage in Romans, where the sovereignty of God is extolled:
Rom 9:9 For this is the word of promise, At this time will I come, and Sara shall have a son.
Rom 9:10 And not only this; but when Rebecca also had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac;
Rom 9:11 (For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)
Rom 9:12 It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger.
Rom 9:13 As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.
Rom 9:14 What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid.
Rom 9:15 For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
Rom 9:16 So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
Rom 9:17 For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.
Rom 9:18 Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.
Rom 9:19 Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will?
Rom 9:20 Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?
Rom 9:21 Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?
Rom 9:22 What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction:
Rom 9:23 And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,
Rom 9:24 Even us, whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?
Rom 9:25 As he saith also in Osee, I will call them my people, which were not my people; and her beloved, which was not beloved.
Rom 9:26 And it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people; there shall they be called the children of the living God.
Sovereignty teaches that God is in control. It does not teach absolute predestination. There is always a reason for God doing what he does. However, he does not always share those reasons, nor is he under any obligation to do so. What if God has created certain souls, and by his foreknowledge knew that they would be eternally corrupted due to their desire to fulfil the lusts of the flesh, and therefore allowed them to be used by satan to sift God’s flock? God is not interested in keeping souls that do not really want to serve him. False teachers will quickly expose those who are not really the Lord’s.
The word agnostic comes from the Greek word ag-no-eh’-o, to know not, found in this verse. How awful it is to know not! Those who think they are being wise by saying that they are neither believer nor an atheist, but agnostic, as if somehow they are showing off their level head, but in reality they are showing off their stupidity. You would think something like the reality of God, eternal life, and your eternal destination would be something that you would not be proud to say that ‘I know not’, ie, agnostic. Their fate is certain. They are destined to utterly perish forever.
2Pe 2:13 And shall receive the reward (mis-thos’ – pay for service, whether good or bad) of unrighteousness (ad-ee-kee’-ah – moral wrongfulness, iniquity), as they that count (deem) it pleasure (sensual delight, lust) to riot (troo-fay’ – enfeeble the mind and body by indulgence, effeminacy, debauchery) in the day time (can also mean always, forever). Spots (stains) they are and blemishes (mo’-mos – disgraceful people, only time in NT), sporting themselves (en-troo-fah’-o – revelling in, only time in NT) with their own deceivings (delusions) while they feast (entertain sumptuously) with you;
Other passages speak of a similar situation encountered in the early church:
1Co 11:20 When ye come together therefore into one place, this is not to eat the Lord’s supper.
1Co 11:21 For in eating every one taketh before other his own supper: and one is hungry, and another is drunken.
1Co 11:22 What? have ye not houses to eat and to drink in? or despise ye the church of God, and shame them that have not? What shall I say to you? shall I praise you in this? I praise you not.
Jud 1:12 These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots;
Sounds like lusty, fleshly, out of control revelling was a common problem in the early church! Three different authors, three similar scenarios. What was going on?
Sometimes we look upon the past and reminisce about ‘the good old days’. How everything in the past was always so much better than the present. We are all like Solomon, who can’t find anything good in his old age:
Ecc 12:1 Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them;
In times of spiritual drought and church deadness, we may long to have been part of the first generation church. As we read passages such as these, are we sure that is what we really want? Sounds like they had their own major issues to deal with. It seems that getting the pagan out of newly converted pagans was not as easy as saying the sinner’s prayer. False teachers knew the backgrounds of these Gentile converts. They knew they often came from religions that encouraged orgies and all sorts of hedonistic excess. Those who had not practised Peter’s ladder of character development as outlined in chapter one would be vulnerable to revert back to old behavior.
The word riot carries the notion of effeminacy. If this meant that the preachers were effeminate, or they encouraged effeminate practices, we also see a dire lack of manliness in the church today. Overindulgence enfeebles oneself. You not only become spiritually weak, but mentally as well. You lose the ability to make wise decisions. You are more susceptible to make decisions based on what’s best and easiest for you right at the moment, rather than for tomorrow. As a result, you jump from preacher to preacher, looking for the next one that can entertain you to your ever more demanding standards. These heretics love to entertain sumptuously with you. You will find that word of faith churches are filled with the upper middle class. Having so much money that tithing is never a burden, they have found a church that not only is silent on their self indulgent lifestyle, wallowing in excess wealth, but actually praises and encourages you as being of a higher spiritual calibre if you have more than your neighbor. That must be a sure sign that God has blessed you more than them! In fact, having your pastor living a lifestyle of greater material comfort than you gives you an even greater assurance that how you are living is perfectly acceptable with God. If God is okay with your pastor being richer than you, then surely he has no problem with your relatively inferior accumulation of wealth!
It is amazing the logic we use to justify our sin. And we think the devil is some sort of irrelevant being, stripped of all power at the cross, unable to do us any harm anymore! And all the while he looks upon the evil doctrines that we have embraced, which even the world knows is wrong, and laughs as we convince ourselves that we are God’s children. All the while hell is being enlarged beneath us, to accommodate those foolish Christians who thought they could have the kingdoms of this world, and heaven too.
These heretics revel in delusions. And that is what it is. Delusions. You cannot serve God and mammon. You cannot practice immorality, and enter the kingdom of God.
1Co 6:9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,
1Co 6:10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
1Co_15:33 Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.
Gal_6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
2Ti_3:13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.
Tit_3:3 For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another.
Let us not forget that one of the most powerful weapons of hell is deception. How do we nullify it? By the truth. Thy word is truth. If you don’t study the word, you cannot know the truth.
2Pe 2:14 Having eyes full of adultery (moy-khal-is’ – feminine form, adulteress), and that cannot cease (ak-at-ap’-ow-stos – unrefraining, from a root meaning to colonize, only time in NT) from sin (ham-ar-tee’-ah – offences); beguiling ( del-eh-ad’-zo – delusion, entrap, entice) unstable ( as-tay’-rik-tos – unfixed, vacillating, from a root for one who does not turn in a specific direction) souls: an heart they have exercised (goom-nad’-zo – practised naked, as training for the games, trained) with covetous practices (pleh-on-ex-ee’-ah – avarice, fraud, extortion, greed); cursed (kat-ar’-ah – to imprecate, to execrate) children (tek-non):
Peter cannot seem to find enough adjectives to adequately communicate the true rotten character of these souls. They are the accursed ones, perhaps reminding us of the imagery of Cain. That is not too far off the mark, as the next verse Peter begins to list one of the most infamous characters from the biblical hall of shame.
These accursed ones see illicit sex wherever their eyes wander. Perhaps it also carries the connotation of not just sexual adultery, but adultery of all kinds, that is, unfaithfulness to God himself. They are so far gone that they cannot cease from sinning. Kind of reminds us of Esau, who at one time sought for repentance, but could never find it.
Heb 12:16 Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.
Heb 12:17 For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.
There are several examples of people who simply have gone too far down the road of wickedness to ever be able to turn back. Paul here is also warning the church to never get to that point in your life. Who knows exactly where the cut off point of God’s grace is in your life? If you persist and persist in your disobedience, there could come a day where you too, may find yourself intellectually wanting to repent, but finding that your heart has been forever shut off from the life and grace of God.
Let us never presume on the grace of our God.
Sin has colonized in this man’s heart, like a plague of parasites. This sort of person cannot leave the innocent, it burns them to see a righteous, innocent soul. Automatically they want to defile it. They are constantly on the lookout for unstable souls. They are like this because they have trained their inner man to go after every covetous thought and desire that they have ever had. Indeed, they have been as faithful to pursue greed as an Olympic athlete is in pursuing his training regimen.
As a result of the choices that these wicked souls have made, they are called cursed children. They may have all the material wealth in the world, but they are truly cursed. And the greatest curse that they carry is not poverty, not sickness of any sort. No, the most terrible curse of all is theirs, that of permanent spiritual blindness. God has cursed them with blindness. They cannot and will never be allowed to see the hellish condition that their souls are in. Do you actually think that someone like Copeland will ever be able to see his true spiritual state, after how many years of wilful blindness, and unrestrained greed controlling every aspect of his life?
2Pe 2:15 Which have forsaken (abandoned) the right (straight, level) way (hod-os – road, journey, path), and are gone astray (wander out of the way), following (imitating) the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved (ag-ap-ah’-o) the wages (reward) of unrighteousness (ad-ee-kee’-ah – injustice, moral wrongfulness);
Peter contains himself to one example, Jude is more liberal:
Jud 1:11 Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core.
Jude speaks of the unholy triumvirate, Peter is content to speak of just one bad apple.
Balaam was especially despicable. Not only did he practice divination, but he took any and every opportunity to collect his divination fee, regardless of how wicked the advice he had to give. True, during his one and only moment of fame that the bible records, God overrode the prophet’s natural tendencies, in order to deliver his message. This goes to show what extremes God will go to to deliver his word. If all that he has to work with is a false prophet and an ass, then that is what he will use!
What was Balaam’s greatest sin? His advice to Balak, king of Moab, as to how to defeat Israel. Since God would not allow Balaam to curse them, Balaam knew that the only way that he could give Balak what he wanted (and collect his fat fee), was to get God to drop his hedge of protection around his people. And how could that occur? Why, by getting Israel to sin. So he told Balak exactly what to do in order to get God to allow Israel’s enemy to be able to possibly defeat them.
Num 25:1 And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab.
Num 25:2 And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods: and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods.
Num 25:3 And Israel joined himself unto Baalpeor: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel.
Num_31:8 And they slew the kings of Midian, beside the rest of them that were slain; namely, Evi, and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba, five kings of Midian: Balaam also the son of Beor they slew with the sword.
Num_31:16 Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against the LORD in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the LORD.
Rev_2:14 But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.
Anyone who teaches a child of God to sin against the Lord is guilty of a most heinous crime. Peter says these false teachers are travelling the same hod-os, or deh-rek in the Hebrew, that Balaam trod. Because money was his god, there was no limit as to what he was willing to do, even in the name of God. Kind of sounds familiar does it not? In Canada, there are 100,000 doctors. No more than 10 or so were willing to speak out and risk losing their practice over the genocidal jabs, and the murderous hospital protocols. 10 out of 100,000! In the churches, the percentage was not much better. In my previous city of residence, I counted 2 out of 128 known churches that dared to stay open during lockdown. Less than 2%. i believe that percentage was high, compared to most of the rest of the country. I don’t know what the percentage was in America, but probably not much better.
Did you notice that the text said that Balaam agape’d the wages of unrighteousness? We have made an idol out of the word agape. Teachers who never took the time to thoroughly study God’s word, they pick and choose the safest, nicest, seeker friendly topics and go with those alone. They try to sell agape as the love of God. God’s love. A supernatural love that only God is capable of showing, or bestowing on the true believer. Yet here Balaam is agape’ing away! That clearly tells us that we have been fed nonsense once again.
Yes, Peter teaches us that the spiritual ladder that we climb in chapter one ends in agape. But you see the devil’s children are also climbing their own ladder. It also ends in agape. The point is in what is the object of your agape? Is it God, or self? Is it Jesus, or money? Is it a love of doing the will of God, or the love of the wages of unrighteousness? Are you willing to do whatever it takes to do the will of God, even as Balaam was willing to do whatever it took, to collect his fee for divination?
If only God’s children were said to agape God as much as the devil’s children were said to agape sin!
2Pe 2:16 But was rebuked (el’-eng-xis – reproved, only time in NT) for his iniquity (par-an-om-ee’-ah – transgression, only time in NT): the dumb (mute) ass (donkey) speaking with man’s voice forbad ( ko-loo’-o – prevented, would not suffer) the madness (par-af-ron-ee’-ah – insanity, only time in NT) of the prophet (prof-ay’-tace – foreteller, inspired speaker).
This sin was so outrageous that for the only time in history, God opened the mouth of an animal. What was even stranger is that Balaam did not have a heart attack, but calmly answered him, as if he spoke to asses every day! I cannot explain that. Perhaps by his occult arts, demons were known to speak through animals, though that explanation is a bit of a stretch. Suffice it to say, the Old Testament certainly contains some singularly mysterious events!
Balaam’s actions were said to be insane. And how else would one describe what he did? Three times Balaam offered sacrifices and waited on God. Three times God blessed Israel. Balaam even added another prophecy in his fourth utterance. Nothing but blessing for Israel. So after all this, no one was confused as to exactly how God felt about Israel.
Yet this did not deter Balaam. He thought that he was so special, evidently having a real prophetic gift, that he thought that he was untouchable. So he counsels his client as to how he can defeat the nation that God has just tremendously blessed. Is Balaam crazy? Did Balaam not think that if God so favored Israel, that somehow he would escape judgment for telling Balak what sort of sins he should get Israel to commit, in order to get God to lower his hedge of protection?
This raises an important point. Balaam was a true prophet. He could not see into the future on his own. God had gifted him. But he used his free will to use the gift for his own selfish purposes. All he was interested in was not doing the will of God, but maximizing his profit. And if God did not show up with a word, he would turn to the occult and use divination to aid him in his soothsaying. In other words, he didn’t care if the word came from God, or somewhere else, as long as it paid!
How many false prophets actually have a gift? Greed, pride, the lust for fortune and fame, turned their heart and they became servants of the devil. Perhaps God eventually abandoned them, and an evil spirit took the Holy Spirit’s place, even as what happened to king Saul. They probably did not even notice. As long as their ministry kept raking in the bucks, who cares where the power came from? We are going to see that Peter clearly teaches that both the false teacher, and those that follow him, were once genuine believers. The fact that he uses Balaam as an example makes one think that Balaam also had a genuine gift from Yehovah, but chose to use it for his own wicked purposes, and not for the glory of God.
2Pe 2:17 These are wells without water, clouds that are carried (driven) with a tempest (whirlwind, storm); to whom the mist (gloom, blackness) of darkness (shadiness, obscurity) is reserved (tay-reh’-o – guarded, kept an eye on, detained in custody, held fast) for ever.
Jude uses similar language:
Jud 1:13 Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever.
Here we find additional characteristics. A well is a welcome sight to a thirsty traveller. One would have an expectation of quenching one’s thirst. However, if the well is dry, then what a disappointment that would be! On the outside, it looks life giving. Examine the contents within, and there is no life at all. The cloud image is of one where they promise refreshing moisture, yet a storm suddenly carries them away before they can do any good. Again, what looked good turns out to be an empty promise. So are the doctrines that these false ones teach. They look promising, but in truth they are utterly empty of truth and therefore, will do the listener no good, only filling them with false hope. These clouds are like the mist – only providing a tiny taste of true moisture, but nothing that one can be sustained with.
For these charlatans, God has a special seat reserved for them. No, not front row seats in heaven, but a special place of darkness that has been eternally set aside, once they are done ruining the lives of others in this life.
2Pe 2:18 For when they speak great swelling (insolent) words of vanity (mat-ah-yot’-ace – emptiness, profitless, transient, morally depraved), they allure (del-eh-ad’-zo – entrap, delude, beguile, entice) through the lusts (forbidden longings) of the flesh, through much wantonness (as-elg’-i-a – licentiousness, filth), those that were clean escaped (ap-of-yoo’-go on’-toce – of a complete certainty had once escaped) from them who live (abide) in error (plan-ay – fraud, deceit, delusion).
Now we come to one of the most clear, yet chilling, portions of the text. Peter will now clearly state the fact that these false teachers were once saved, but chose to return to their former lives of sin. This is the subject of the rest of the chapter.
In verse 18, ‘they’ refers to the false teacher who speaks, then entraps those who were once saved. Verse 19 then speaks of the false promises of the heretic. Verse 20 through 22 may be applied both to the heretical teacher and their receptive audience, though I believe it more strongly applies to the teacher.
There is always a characteristic hallmark of arrogance that emanates from the mouth of the false prophet. Secondly, the content of what they say is empty. I have heard many a false prophet speak of some weird experience that no one else but him seems to have ever experienced. After you think about it for a bit, the experience served no practical heavenly purpose, other than to draw attention to the false prophet. Weird visions, weird words, that produce no repentance, no change in anyone’s life. No one gets saved, no one learns anything of value, they are indeed swelling words of vanity that serve to tickle the ears of the listener. If you have something from the Holy Spirit, it better have some useful meaning! I have seen people relate their dreams, and try and torture some deep meaning out of it. They so desperately want to be able to prove that God is indeed speaking to them. Just because you want something does not mean that you will automatically get it!
Next, their teaching allures the unsuspecting. It says here they tempt through the lusts of the flesh, through filthy enticements. We automatically think sex. But does this mean that they are preaching some sort of free love message? This is highly unlikely, as even the most gullible church of born again believers would not readily accept someone who starts telling them that God told them it’s okay to have all the sex you want, any way you want! The church is not that carnal, is it?
Fleshly lusts control us whenever we still have a selfishness problem. Any teaching that puts the focus on self, and not on Jesus, is not a good doctrine. Preachers who promise physical healing for all, financial miracles, healing of all broken relationships, or whatever your lustful heart desires, is a recipe for error. Sure, the bible has promises in it that speak of God meeting your needs. But how have we turned the majority of our sermons into sessions of how to acquire stuff for ourselves from God? Do you think that is the main point of the bible? Is not the bible a book that reveals God’s will for mankind? And is not the priority to repent, turn around, and stop living for self, and choose to live for God, and God alone? False teachers preach the opposite. They keep the focus on you and your needs. They appeal to the lusts (strong desires) in your heart. Few truly lust after God. Almost all lust after having their own needs met. False prophets are there to feed that need.
These apostates like to pounce on the newly converted. Here Peter clearly states that their audience are those who have completely escaped from those who lived in error. This means people who have abandoned the lifestyle of the sinner, regardless of what type of sinner they were. Maybe they were pure pagan. Maybe they were a religious Pharisee. Maybe they were a moralist, or an atheist. It does not matter. They had made a clean break.
So what do those new converts need? Do they need to be reminded of those fleshly desires that had bound them so? What do sinners seek? Self fulfillment of one type or another. Perhaps they seek more money. Or perfect health. Or the mate of their dreams. Or a better job. False teachers prey on these wants, and make it sound like God and the bible are there for the sole purpose of getting you what you desire.
Now you may say what is wrong with wanting to be healed? Isn’t that a good thing? Yes, as far as it goes. Who wants to be sick? But if that is all you care about, you are not following Jesus.
I have noticed lately that more and more Christians in alternate media are overemphasizing the importance of pursuing any and every avenue of homeopathic medicine. While they have done us all a vital service in exposing the fraud and danger of traditional allopathic medicine, the purpose of the Christian life is not to pursue better physical health as our top priority. Few of these bloggers and video makers are speaking of the fact that we are called to first and foremost follow Jesus. All these material things will be added to us, as the Lord wills, according to our need, as determined by him, and not by us. God does not want us to prioritize our physical health, to the detriment of our spiritual. They pay lip service to exhorting us to give it all up for Christ. Rather, the focus is on buying one supplement after another, as if better physical health should be our all consuming priority. Let Paul speak to us instead:
1Ti_4:8 For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.
Peter has told us essentially the same thing in the first chapter.
2Pe 2:19 While they promise them liberty (freedom), they themselves are the servants (doo-los) of corruption (fthor-ah): for of whom a man is overcome (vanquished, made worse), of the same is he brought in bondage (doo-lo-o – enslaved).
Like politicians, the false teachers are not shy in promising all sorts of outrageous things. They promise us freedom. Freedom from sickness. From poverty. From a bad marriage. From a bad job. They promise that we will rule and reign in this life. That we will be the head, and not the tail. That we will always overcome. That we will always have victory. And so on and so forth.
Who wouldn’t want a life like that? Absolute power over your circumstances. This is a lie. The bible never teaches that the Christian will have total control over his circumstances. Circumstances are God’s domain, not ours. Sure, we can increase or decrease the odds of certain things happening by our obedience or disobedience, but never are we guaranteed a trouble free life. On the contrary, we are guaranteed the opposite:
Joh_16:33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.
That’s why Libertarians embrace only one side of the coin, as far as a sound political philosophy. Freedom without accountability is deadly. Mankind cannot be trusted to govern ourself. We all need to come under the yoke of Jesus and his word in order to be truly free.
Peter says that these teachers cannot promise any sort of freedom, as they are slaves to their own appetites. This is why one must not be too quick to desire a higher office in the church. If you are struggling with some sort of habitual sin, you are not qualified to teach anyone else. You may know the right words to say, but that spirit that binds you will be transmitted one way or another to your audience.
Have you noticed that almost no minister steps down from the pulpit unless they are caught in some overt sin? Most of the time the problem has been going on for years. They never have the humility to admit their fault, and step aside. Pride and the paycheque keep them in place as long as they can. If we could just have a peek at when we stand before Jesus in judgment, we all would make very radically different decisions in this life, would we not? But no, we think we can get away with something so we continue in our hidden sin as long as we can.
2Pe 2:20 For if after they have escaped the pollutions (miasma – moral foulness) of the world through the knowledge (ip-ig-no-sis) of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled (entwined) therein, and overcome (hayt-tah’-o – made worse, vanquished), the latter (final) end is worse (more evil, completely worthless) with them than the beginning.
One of the most awful and sobering truths is that God gives us one chance, and one chance only, to really follow him. What do I mean? I do not mean that if we are struggling with a certain sin, that God won’t forgive us, even 70 X 7 times (or as many times as it takes), if we sincerely are trying to live for Him. No, what I mean is one who is truly born again, who has walked with Jesus for some time, has obtained a certain degree of maturity, and then for whatever reason uses his free will, under no compulsion or coercion, and decides to consciously walk away and reject the Christian life, they are in mortal danger of falling into this horrible category that Peter speaks of here. And not only Peter, but Jesus and Paul touches on this as well:
Luk 9:62 And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.
Heb 6:4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
Heb 6:5 And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,
Heb 6:6 If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.
It seems that the subject in verse 20 is primarily the false teachers themselves, if we read this verse in context with the previous verse. However, this principle applies equally to the audience of these teachers. In short, anyone who has escaped the moral rot of this fallen world by being cleansed by the blood of the lamb, and then to fall back into the same sinful lifestyle, they are now worse off.
Calvinists will state that these people simply had an intellectual acknowledgement of their sinful condition, but weren’t really saved. Well then, how can one truthfully say that they had escaped their slavery to sin? You cannot.
A second theory is that one could say, okay, they were genuinely saved. Now they have backslid. They are in really bad shape. But it does not say they are going to hell.
Yes it does. How can one honestly say that a backslid Christian is worse off than when they were still a sinner? When they were a sinner, they were going to hell. Now that they are saved, they are going to heaven. How is that in any way worse? Some may then try to say that Peter is only speaking about their current day to day life. As sinners, they weren’t aware that they were in bondage. They were not under conviction, and had little guilt. Now they are well aware that they are sinning, and cannot stop. Therefore, their torment is worse.
That is a very hard argument to sell. Especially when we consider the next verse, where Peter states that they would have been better off never being saved at all. That negates that silly theory, doesn’t it?
No, the cold, hard fact is that a soul is worse off in every respect, but especially spiritually, if they were once saved, then turned back and apostasized. Some of the most vile critics of the church were those who were once saved. I suppose the most famous of these was a preacher named Charles Templeton from the 1950’s. He had a large evangelistic ministry. He began to listen to liberal theology, and eventually lost his faith. He could not find it, even at the end of this life.
The passage in Hebrews that I quoted adds another, even more terrifying element to this story. That is, if God deems that you have met the criteria of the passage, you are not a candidate to come back to repentance and salvation.
For most backsliders, it usually happens fairly early in their walk with the Lord. Before being fully grounded in the word, some allure of their past life may draw them away for a season. Or, someone who grew up in a strict Christian home may want to rebel and experience all that they have been missing as a youth under their parents’ rule. For the vast majority of cases such as these, repentance is always available.
Let us now consider the believers of Hebrews chapter 6. they have the following characteristics:
For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened,
and have tasted of the heavenly gift,
and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
And have tasted the good word of God,
and the powers of the world to come,
If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.
God is saying these souls, if they fall away, cannot be saved a second time. They are damned forever.
This is at least the second category of people who, according to the bible, are the real walking dead. That is, souls that have been damned forever while they yet live, with no hope of repentance. The other clear cut category are the wicked of Romans chapter one, the sexually depraved whom God has given over to their wickedness, so that they will never experience the convicting power of the Holy Spirit ever again.
Getting back to these souls in Hebrews, they must check off 5 boxes before they are eligible to fall into this most unfortunate and terrifying category. First, they were enlightened. That means they came to understand that they were sinners. They came under conviction. They truly realized their spiritual condition. They knew they were lost. Second, they tasted of the heavenly gift. Jesus is the gift that came down from heaven, to die for us to that we may live. Third. They were partakers of the Holy Ghost. That is, they were baptized in the Holy Spirit, and were filled thereof. Fourth, they tasted the good word of God. These were not believers that knew John 3:16 and not much more. These were seasoned, mature believers that had a good working grasp of the bible. And fifth, they partook of the powers of the world to come. They walked in the supernatural power of God. They most likely walked in the gifts of the Holy Spirit. So unless you meet all of these criteria, if you backslide, there is still hope for you. However, I do not recommend trying it to see if you qualify! Strangely enough, here is one place where the cessationists may have a little more safety than the charismatic, as they have never walked in the gifts of the spirit, so they do not qualify!
We are speaking of a mature believer. If that person decides to walk away from Christianity of their own free will, then the bible says it is impossible to renew them once again to repentance. I don’t believe this means one who was tortured into renouncing their faith, though the church in the first few centuries did mostly hold to that view. One of the greatest controversies facing the church during the times of intense Roman persecution was whether or not to readmit believers back into the church after they had renounced their faith due to Roman government pressure. Those that had suffered greatly by holding out were not so easy to convince that these apostates should be let back. To deny Christ was the most serious sin one could commit. A passage such as this shows that it was not even possible for certain souls anyway. However, only God knows if he will grant true repentance unto them, as even repentance is ultimately a gift from God. He can choose to withhold it, even as he did for Esau, as we saw in Heb 12:16-17 already.
We are speaking of heavy things. But we cannot be afraid to face these issues square in the face. The fact is that Peter states that if a believer backslides all the way back into his former sinful life, his spiritual state is worse than ever.
2Pe 2:21 For it had been better for them not to have known (ep-ig-in-oce’-ko – to become fully acquainted with) the way (hod-os) of righteousness (,dik-ah-yos-oo’-nay) than, after they have known it(ep-ig-in-oce’-ko), to turn (ep-ee-stref’-o – turn about, reverse course) from the holy (hag-ee-os) commandment (en-tol-ay’ – injunction, authoritative prescription, precept) delivered (entrusted, committed) unto them.
In the strongest terms, Peter begins to reiterate the awful truth of this apostate’s damnable condition. He says that it would have been better not to have even heard the gospel, than to hear and embrace it, only to eventually turn away. Jesus said that those who put their hands to the plow, and then turn back, are not fit for the kingdom of God. Peter is saying the same thing. And this coming from the man who is the most famous temporary apostate in history.
Peter did find forgiveness for his denial of Christ. The reason was that he did not fulfill all the conditions of Hebrew 6:4-6. Youth and ignorance are more readily forgiven than a mature old soul who for some reason decides to turn away.
And for what possible reason would someone do this? Peter is telling us that this is all laid at the feet of the false prophet/teacher. Someone comes along with some novel doctrine. It sounds exciting. It sounds like it’s full of life, compared with the same old, same old, of our local congregation. We had become bored. We had let our prayer life and bible study slip. Nothing much has happened in our church or prayer group for a long time. Suddenly someone shows us a video of a new preacher, who exudes charismatic zeal. We start to listen. Some of what he says, we have a check in our spirit, but we choose to ignore it and continue to hear more. Soon we are entranced. Then mesmerized. Then captivated. Then captured.
When someone tries to point out some troubling aspects of the man’s teachings and/or lifestyle, we immediately become offended and accuse them of quenching the spirit, or some such thing. We get sucked in further and further. Soon we are embracing blatantly contradictory doctrines. We start giving to them. Then giving more. Soon we’re totally invested in this devil. It now becomes a question of whether or not we will ever escape.
2Pe 2:22 But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb (par-oy-mee’-ah – proverb, adage), The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing (koo’-lis-mah – rolling in filth, only time in NT) in the mire (bor’-bor-os – mud, only time in NT).
The starkness of the imagery brings to mind another verse that we came across in the previous bible study that we undertook in the book of Malachi:
Mal 2:3 Behold, I will corrupt your seed, and spread dung upon your faces, even the dung of your solemn feasts; and one shall take you away with it.
God is not squeamish. In order to communicate the seriousness of the topic in question, God will use whatever words he deems necessary to try and make us understand the true gravity of the situation.
Dogs eating their own vomit. Hogs rolling around in the slop. That is what God sees when he sees one of his own children fully turn away from him, and fully turn back to their old sinful lifestyle, a lifestyle that the precious blood of Jesus had to be shed for, in order to release them from it once. Do you think that it is a light thing what Jesus did on the cross? If we need more evidence of the extreme danger that this backslidden soul has put himself into, then let us read this:
Heb 10:26 For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
Heb 10:27 But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.
Heb 10:28 He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:
Heb 10:29 Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?
Heb 10:30 For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.
Heb 10:31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
These souls will receive ‘sorer punishment’. Whatever that means, I never want to find out!
We are now at the end of what has turned out to be the longest exegesis that I have ever written on any one particular chapter. I had no idea that this chapter would cover so many things, but it seemed that each verse kept triggering one topic after another.
I do pray that we have all received a deep revelation of the seriousness of false teaching and the danger of listening to false teachers. These are literally heaven and hell matters, it is not simply a matter of losing a heavenly reward or two, as the eternal security heretics teach. No, any honest soul who is not afraid to take the text for what it actually says, has to be convinced that what is written there is of far more serious consequence than a loss of reward.
For those with ears to hear, hear what the Spirit of the Lord is saying to this Laodicean generation.
Heretics abound. Yet grace much more abounds. Let us lay hold on that grace, by taking heed to the warnings of 2 Peter, and obeying the commands therein.
Solitary Man
