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False Prophets and Their Punishment

But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their licentiousness, and because of them the way of truth will be reviled. And in their greed they will exploit you with false words; from of old their condemnation has not been idle, and their destruction has not been asleep.

For if God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell[a] and committed them to pits of nether gloom to be kept until the judgment; if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven other persons, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; if by turning the cities of Sodom and Gomor′rah to ashes he condemned them to extinction and made them an example to those who were to be ungodly; and if he rescued righteous Lot, greatly distressed by the licentiousness of the wicked (for by what that righteous man saw and heard as he lived among them, he was vexed in his righteous soul day after day with their lawless deeds), then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trial, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, 10 and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority.

Bold and wilful, they are not afraid to revile the glorious ones, 11 whereas angels, though greater in might and power, do not pronounce a reviling judgment upon them before the Lord. 12 But these, like irrational animals, creatures of instinct, born to be caught and killed, reviling in matters of which they are ignorant, will be destroyed in the same destruction with them, 13 suffering wrong for their wrongdoing. They count it pleasure to revel in the daytime. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their dissipation,[b] carousing with you. 14 They have eyes full of adultery, insatiable for sin. They entice unsteady souls. They have hearts trained in greed. Accursed children! 15 Forsaking the right way they have gone astray; they have followed the way of Balaam, the son of Be′or, who loved gain from wrongdoing, 16 but was rebuked for his own transgression; a dumb ass spoke with human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.

17 These are waterless springs and mists driven by a storm; for them the nether gloom of darkness has been reserved. 18 For, uttering loud boasts of folly, they entice with licentious passions of the flesh men who have barely escaped from those who live in error. 19 They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption; for whatever overcomes a man, to that he is enslaved. 20 For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overpowered, the last state has become worse for them than the first. 21 For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. 22 It has happened to them according to the true proverb, The dog turns back to his own vomit, and the sow is washed only to wallow in the mire.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Peter 2:4 Greek Tartarus
  2. 2 Peter 2:13 Other ancient authorities read love feasts

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.”