Destructive Doctrines

But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be (A)false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction [a]does not slumber.

Doom of False Teachers

For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to [b]hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment; and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly; and turning the cities of (B)Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly; and (C)delivered righteous Lot, who was oppressed by the filthy conduct of the wicked (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, (D)tormented his righteous soul from day to day by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds)— then (E)the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment, 10 and especially (F)those who walk according to the flesh in the lust of uncleanness and despise authority. (G)They are presumptuous, self-willed. They are not afraid to speak evil of [c]dignitaries, 11 whereas (H)angels, who are greater in power and might, do not bring a reviling accusation against them before the Lord.

Depravity of False Teachers

12 But these, (I)like natural brute beasts made to be caught and destroyed, speak evil of the things they do not understand, and will utterly perish in their own corruption, 13 (J)and will receive the wages of unrighteousness, as those who count it pleasure (K)to [d]carouse in the daytime. (L)They are spots and blemishes, [e]carousing in their own deceptions while (M)they feast with you, 14 having eyes full of [f]adultery and that cannot cease from sin, enticing unstable souls. (N)They have a heart trained in covetous practices, and are accursed children. 15 They have forsaken the right way and gone astray, following the way of (O)Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; 16 but he was rebuked for his iniquity: a dumb donkey speaking with a man’s voice restrained the madness of the prophet.

17 (P)These are wells without water, [g]clouds carried by a tempest, for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness [h]forever.

Deceptions of False Teachers

18 For when they speak great swelling words of emptiness, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through lewdness, the ones who [i]have actually escaped from those who live in error. 19 While they promise them liberty, they themselves are slaves of [j]corruption; (Q)for by whom a person is overcome, by him also he is brought into [k]bondage. 20 For if, after they (R)have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are (S)again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning. 21 For (T)it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered to them. 22 But it has happened to them according to the true proverb: (U)“A dog returns to his own vomit,” and, “a sow, having washed, to her wallowing in the mire.”

Footnotes

  1. 2 Peter 2:3 M will not
  2. 2 Peter 2:4 Lit. Tartarus
  3. 2 Peter 2:10 glorious ones, lit. glories
  4. 2 Peter 2:13 revel
  5. 2 Peter 2:13 reveling
  6. 2 Peter 2:14 Lit. an adulteress
  7. 2 Peter 2:17 NU and mists
  8. 2 Peter 2:17 NU omits forever
  9. 2 Peter 2:18 NU are barely escaping
  10. 2 Peter 2:19 depravity
  11. 2 Peter 2:19 slavery

But de there were ginomai also kai false prophets pseudoprophētēs among en the ho people laos, just as hōs · kai there will be eimi false teachers pseudodidaskalos among en you hymeis, who hostis will bring in pareisagō destructive apōleia heresies hairesis, even kai denying arneomai the ho Master despotēs who bought agorazō them autos, bringing on epagō themselves heautou swift tachinos destruction apōleia. · kai Many polys will follow exakoloutheō their autos · ho immoral lifestyle aselgeia, and because of dia them hos the ho way hodos of ho truth alētheia will be maligned blasphēmeō. And kai in en their greed pleonexia they will exploit emporeuomai you hymeis with their fabricated plastos stories logos. Their hos · ho condemnation krima has not ou from ancient times ekpalai been idle argeō, · kai nor ou · ho has their autos destruction apōleia been sleeping nystazō.

For gar if ei · ho God theos did pheidomai not ou spare pheidomai the angels angelos when they sinned hamartanō but alla cast tartaroō them into hell tartaroō, committing paradidōmi them to chains seira of utter darkness zophos, there to be kept tēreō until eis the judgment krisis; and kai if he did pheidomai not ou spare pheidomai the ancient archaios world kosmos ( but alla preserved phylassō Noah Nōe, the eighth ogdoos, a herald kēryx of righteousness dikaiosynē) when he brought epagō the deluge kataklysmos on an ungodly asebēs world kosmos; · kai if by reducing the cities polis of Sodom Sodoma and kai Gomorrah Gomorra to ashes tephroō he condemned katakrinō them to extinction katastrophē, making tithēmi them an example hypodeigma of what is going to happen mellō to the ungodly asebēs, and kai rescued rhyomai the righteous dikaios man Lot Lōt, who was distressed kataponeō by hypo the ho immoral aselgeia lifestyle anastrophē of ho lawless men athesmos ( for gar while that ho righteous dikaios man was living enkatoikeō among en them autos day hēmera after ek day hēmera, he was tormented basanizō in his righteous dikaios soul psychē by the lawless anomos deeds ergon that he saw blemma and kai heard akoē); then the Lord kyrios knows oida how to rescue rhyomai the godly eusebēs from ek trial peirasmos, but de to keep tēreō the unrighteous adikos under guard tēreō awaiting punishment kolazō on eis the day hēmera of judgment krisis, 10 especially malista · de those ho who in en polluting miasmos lust epithumia indulge poreuō the flesh sarx and kai despise kataphroneō authority kyriotēs. These bold tolmētēs and insolent authadēs people are not ou afraid tremō to slander blasphēmeō the glorious ones doxa, 11 whereas hopou angels angelos, although eimi greater megas in strength ischus and kai power dynamis, do not ou bring pherō a slanderous blasphēmos judgment krisis against kata them autos before para the Lord kyrios. 12 But de these houtos people , like hōs irrational alogos animals zōon, born gennaō creatures of instinct physikos to be eis captured halōsis and kai destroyed phthora, are ignorant agnoeō of en those hos whom they slander blasphēmeō, and in en · ho their autos destruction phthora will themselves also kai be destroyed phtheirō, 13 suffering harm adikeō as the reward misthos for the harm adikia they have done. They consider hēgeomai indulgence hēdonē · ho in en the daytime hēmera a pleasure tryphē. They are spots spilos and kai blemishes mōmos, reveling entryphaō in en · ho their autos deceitful pleasures apatē while they feast with syneuōcheomai you hymeis. 14 They have echō eyes ophthalmos full mestos of adultery moichalis · kai that do not stop akatapaustos sinning hamartia. They seduce deleazō unstable astēriktos souls psychē and have echō hearts kardia well trained gymnazō in greed pleonexia. Accursed katara brood teknon! 15 Forsaking kataleipō the right way hodos, they have gone astray planaō, following exakoloutheō the ho way hodos of ho Balaam Balaam, the son of ho Beor Bosor, who hos loved agapaō the reward misthos of wrongdoing adikia. 16 But de he was echō rebuked elenxis for his own idios transgression paranomia—a dumb aphōnos donkey hypozygion, speaking phthengomai with en the voice phōnē of a man anthrōpos, restrained kōlyō the ho madness paraphronia of the ho prophet prophētēs. 17 These people houtos are eimi wells pēgē without water anydros, · kai mists homichlē driven elaunō by hypo a squall lailaps. For them hos the ho gloom zophos of ho darkness skotos has been reserved tēreō. 18 For gar by speaking phthengomai pompous hyperonkos words phthengomai of vanity mataiotēs, they entice deleazō, by en lusts epithumia of the flesh sarx and debauchery aselgeia, those ho who are just oligōs escaping apopheugō from those ho who are living anastrephō in en error planē. 19 They promise epangellomai them autos freedom eleutheria, but they themselves autos are hyparchō slaves of ho corruption phthora; for gar by hos whatever a man tis is overcome hēttaomai, to this houtos he is enslaved douloō. 20 For gar if ei after they have escaped apopheugō the ho defilements miasma of the ho world kosmos through en the knowledge epignōsis of ho our hēmeis Lord kyrios and kai Savior sōtēr Jesus Iēsous Christ Christos, they are again palin entangled emplekō in them houtos · de and overcome hēttaomai, the ho last eschatos state has become ginomai for them autos worse cheirōn than the ho first prōtos. 21 For gar it would have been eimi better kreittōn for them autos never to have come to know epiginōskō the ho way hodos of ho righteousness dikaiosynē than ē, having come to know epiginōskō it, to turn back hypostrephō from ek the ho holy hagios commandment entolē that was delivered paradidōmi to them autos. 22 What has happened symbainō to them autos illustrates the ho · ho true alēthēs proverb paroimia: “A dog kyōn returns epistrephō to epi · ho its own idios vomit exerama, and kai a sow hys, after washing herself louō, returns to eis wallow kylismos in the mire borboros.”