2 Peter 2-3

New International Version

False Teachers and Their Destruction

2 But there were also false prophets^(A) among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you.^(B) They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord^(C) who bought them^(D)—bringing swift destruction on themselves. ²Many will follow their depraved conduct^(E) and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. ³In their greed^(F) these teachers will exploit you^(G) with fabricated stories. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.

⁴For if God did not spare angels when they sinned,^(H) but sent them to hell,^[a] putting them in chains of darkness^[b] to be held for judgment;^(I) ⁵if he did not spare the ancient world^(J) when he brought the flood on its ungodly people,^(K) but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others;^(L) ⁶if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes,^(M) and made them an example^(N) of what is going to happen to the ungodly;^(O) ⁷and if he rescued Lot,^(P) a righteous man, who was distressed by the depraved conduct of the lawless^(Q) ⁸(for that righteous man,^(R) living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)— ⁹if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials^(S) and to hold the unrighteous for punishment on the day of judgment.^(T) ¹⁰This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire^(U) of the flesh^[c] and despise authority.

Bold and arrogant, they are not afraid to heap abuse on celestial beings;^(V) ¹¹yet even angels, although they are stronger and more powerful, do not heap abuse on such beings when bringing judgment on them from^[d] the Lord.^(W) ¹²But these people blaspheme in matters they do not understand. They are like unreasoning animals, creatures of instinct, born only to be caught and destroyed, and like animals they too will perish.^(X)

¹³They will be paid back with harm for the harm they have done. Their idea of pleasure is to carouse in broad daylight.^(Y) They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their pleasures while they feast with you.^[e]^(Z) ¹⁴With eyes full of adultery, they never stop sinning; they seduce^(AA) the unstable;^(AB) they are experts in greed^(AC)—an accursed brood!^(AD) ¹⁵They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam^(AE) son of Bezer,^[f] who loved the wages of wickedness. ¹⁶But he was rebuked for his wrongdoing by a donkey—an animal without speech—who spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.^(AF)

¹⁷These people are springs without water^(AG) and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them.^(AH) ¹⁸For they mouth empty, boastful words^(AI) and, by appealing to the lustful desires of the flesh, they entice people who are just escaping^(AJ) from those who live in error. ¹⁹They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity—for “people are slaves to whatever has mastered them.”^(AK) ²⁰If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing^(AL) our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ^(AM) and are again entangled in it and are overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning.^(AN) ²¹It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them.^(AO) ²²Of them the proverbs are true: “A dog returns to its vomit,”^[g]^(AP) and, “A sow that is washed returns to her wallowing in the mud.”

The Day of the Lord

3 Dear friends,^(AQ) this is now my second letter to you. I have written both of them as reminders^(AR) to stimulate you to wholesome thinking. ²I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets^(AS) and the command given by our Lord and Savior through your apostles.^(AT)

³Above all, you must understand that in the last days^(AU) scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires.^(AV) ⁴They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised?^(AW) Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.”^(AX) ⁵But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word^(AY) the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water.^(AZ) ⁶By these waters also the world of that time^(BA) was deluged and destroyed.^(BB) ⁷By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire,^(BC) being kept for the day of judgment^(BD) and destruction of the ungodly.

⁸But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.^(BE) ⁹The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise,^(BF) as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient^(BG) with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.^(BH)

¹⁰But the day of the Lord will come like a thief.^(BI) The heavens will disappear with a roar;^(BJ) the elements will be destroyed by fire,^(BK) and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.^[h]^(BL)

¹¹Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives ¹²as you look forward^(BM) to the day of God and speed its coming.^[i]^(BN) That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat.^(BO) ¹³But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth,^(BP) where righteousness dwells.

¹⁴So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless^(BQ) and at peace with him. ¹⁵Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience^(BR) means salvation,^(BS) just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him.^(BT) ¹⁶He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable^(BU) people distort,^(BV) as they do the other Scriptures,^(BW) to their own destruction.

¹⁷Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard^(BX) so that you may not be carried away by the error^(BY) of the lawless^(BZ) and fall from your secure position.^(CA) ¹⁸But grow in the grace^(CB) and knowledge^(CC) of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.^(CD) To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.^(CE)

Footnotes

2 Peter 2:4 Greek Tartarus
2 Peter 2:4 Some manuscripts in gloomy dungeons
2 Peter 2:10 In contexts like this, the Greek word for flesh (sarx) refers to the sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the Spirit; also in verse 18.
2 Peter 2:11 Many manuscripts beings in the presence of
2 Peter 2:13 Some manuscripts in their love feasts
2 Peter 2:15 Greek Bosor
2 Peter 2:22 Prov. 26:11
2 Peter 3:10 Some manuscripts be burned up
2 Peter 3:12 Or as you wait eagerly for the day of God to come

Hosea 5-10

New International Version

Judgment Against Israel

5 “Hear this, you priests!
    Pay attention, you Israelites!
Listen, royal house!
    This judgment^(A) is against you:
You have been a snare^(B) at Mizpah,
    a net^(C) spread out on Tabor.
²The rebels are knee-deep in slaughter.^(D)
    I will discipline all of them.^(E)
³I know all about Ephraim;
    Israel is not hidden^(F) from me.
Ephraim, you have now turned to prostitution;
    Israel is corrupt.^(G)

⁴“Their deeds do not permit them
    to return^(H) to their God.
A spirit of prostitution^(I) is in their heart;
    they do not acknowledge^(J) the Lord.
⁵Israel’s arrogance testifies^(K) against them;
    the Israelites, even Ephraim, stumble^(L) in their sin;
    Judah also stumbles with them.^(M)
⁶When they go with their flocks and herds
    to seek the Lord,^(N)
they will not find him;
    he has withdrawn^(O) himself from them.
⁷They are unfaithful^(P) to the Lord;
    they give birth to illegitimate^(Q) children.
When they celebrate their New Moon feasts,^(R)
    he will devour^[a]^(S) their fields.

⁸“Sound the trumpet^(T) in Gibeah,^(U)
    the horn in Ramah.^(V)
Raise the battle cry in Beth Aven^[b];^(W)
    lead on, Benjamin.
⁹Ephraim will be laid waste^(X)
    on the day of reckoning.^(Y)
Among the tribes of Israel
    I proclaim what is certain.^(Z)
¹⁰Judah’s leaders are like those
    who move boundary stones.^(AA)
I will pour out my wrath^(AB) on them
    like a flood of water.
¹¹Ephraim is oppressed,
    trampled in judgment,
    intent on pursuing idols.^[c]^(AC)
¹²I am like a moth^(AD) to Ephraim,
    like rot^(AE) to the people of Judah.

¹³“When Ephraim^(AF) saw his sickness,
    and Judah his sores,
then Ephraim turned to Assyria,^(AG)
    and sent to the great king for help.^(AH)
But he is not able to cure^(AI) you,
    not able to heal your sores.^(AJ)
¹⁴For I will be like a lion^(AK) to Ephraim,
    like a great lion to Judah.
I will tear them to pieces^(AL) and go away;
    I will carry them off, with no one to rescue them.^(AM)
¹⁵Then I will return to my lair^(AN)
    until they have borne their guilt^(AO)
    and seek my face^(AP)—
in their misery^(AQ)
    they will earnestly seek me.^(AR)”

Israel Unrepentant

6 “Come, let us return^(AS) to the Lord.
He has torn us to pieces^(AT)
    but he will heal us;^(AU)
he has injured us
    but he will bind up our wounds.^(AV)
²After two days he will revive us;^(AW)
    on the third day^(AX) he will restore^(AY) us,
    that we may live in his presence.
³Let us acknowledge the Lord;
    let us press on to acknowledge him.
As surely as the sun rises,
    he will appear;
he will come to us like the winter rains,^(AZ)
    like the spring rains that water the earth.^(BA)”

⁴“What can I do with you, Ephraim?^(BB)
    What can I do with you, Judah?
Your love is like the morning mist,
    like the early dew that disappears.^(BC)
⁵Therefore I cut you in pieces with my prophets,
    I killed you with the words of my mouth^(BD)—
    then my judgments go forth like the sun.^[d]^(BE)
⁶For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,^(BF)
    and acknowledgment^(BG) of God rather than burnt offerings.^(BH)
⁷As at Adam,^[e] they have broken the covenant;^(BI)
    they were unfaithful^(BJ) to me there.
⁸Gilead is a city of evildoers,^(BK)
    stained with footprints of blood.
⁹As marauders lie in ambush for a victim,^(BL)
    so do bands of priests;
they murder^(BM) on the road to Shechem,
    carrying out their wicked schemes.^(BN)
¹⁰I have seen a horrible^(BO) thing in Israel:
    There Ephraim is given to prostitution,
    Israel is defiled.^(BP)

¹¹“Also for you, Judah,
a harvest^(BQ) is appointed.

“Whenever I would restore the fortunes^(BR) of my people,

7 ¹whenever I would heal Israel,
the sins of Ephraim are exposed
    and the crimes of Samaria revealed.^(BS)
They practice deceit,^(BT)
    thieves break into houses,^(BU)
    bandits rob in the streets;^(BV)
²but they do not realize
    that I remember^(BW) all their evil deeds.^(BX)
Their sins engulf them;^(BY)
    they are always before me.

³“They delight the king with their wickedness,
    the princes with their lies.^(BZ)
⁴They are all adulterers,^(CA)
    burning like an oven
whose fire the baker need not stir
    from the kneading of the dough till it rises.
⁵On the day of the festival of our king
    the princes become inflamed with wine,^(CB)
    and he joins hands with the mockers.^(CC)
⁶Their hearts are like an oven;^(CD)
    they approach him with intrigue.
Their passion smolders all night;
    in the morning it blazes like a flaming fire.
⁷All of them are hot as an oven;
    they devour their rulers.
All their kings fall,^(CE)
    and none of them calls^(CF) on me.

⁸“Ephraim mixes^(CG) with the nations;
    Ephraim is a flat loaf not turned over.
⁹Foreigners sap his strength,^(CH)
    but he does not realize it.
His hair is sprinkled with gray,
    but he does not notice.
¹⁰Israel’s arrogance testifies against him,^(CI)
    but despite all this
he does not return^(CJ) to the Lord his God
    or search^(CK) for him.

¹¹“Ephraim is like a dove,^(CL)
    easily deceived and senseless—
now calling to Egypt,^(CM)
    now turning to Assyria.^(CN)
¹²When they go, I will throw my net^(CO) over them;
    I will pull them down like the birds in the sky.
When I hear them flocking together,
    I will catch them.
¹³Woe^(CP) to them,
    because they have strayed^(CQ) from me!
Destruction to them,
    because they have rebelled against me!
I long to redeem them
    but they speak about me^(CR) falsely.^(CS)
¹⁴They do not cry out to me from their hearts^(CT)
    but wail on their beds.
They slash themselves,^[f] appealing to their gods
    for grain and new wine,^(CU)
    but they turn away from me.^(CV)
¹⁵I trained^(CW) them and strengthened their arms,
    but they plot evil^(CX) against me.
¹⁶They do not turn to the Most High;^(CY)
    they are like a faulty bow.^(CZ)
Their leaders will fall by the sword
    because of their insolent^(DA) words.
For this they will be ridiculed^(DB)
    in the land of Egypt.^(DC)

Israel to Reap the Whirlwind

8 “Put the trumpet^(DD) to your lips!
    An eagle^(DE) is over the house of the Lord
because the people have broken my covenant^(DF)
    and rebelled against my law.^(DG)
²Israel cries out to me,
    ‘Our God, we acknowledge you!’
³But Israel has rejected what is good;
    an enemy will pursue him.^(DH)
⁴They set up kings without my consent;
    they choose princes without my approval.^(DI)
With their silver and gold
    they make idols^(DJ) for themselves
    to their own destruction.
⁵Samaria, throw out your calf-idol!^(DK)
    My anger burns against them.
How long will they be incapable of purity?^(DL)
⁶    They are from Israel!
This calf—a metalworker has made it;
    it is not God.^(DM)
It will be broken in pieces,
    that calf^(DN) of Samaria.^(DO)

⁷“They sow the wind
    and reap the whirlwind.^(DP)
The stalk has no head;
    it will produce no flour.^(DQ)
Were it to yield grain,
    foreigners would swallow it up.^(DR)
⁸Israel is swallowed up;^(DS)
    now she is among the nations
    like something no one wants.^(DT)
⁹For they have gone up to Assyria^(DU)
    like a wild donkey^(DV) wandering alone.
    Ephraim has sold herself to lovers.^(DW)
¹⁰Although they have sold themselves among the nations,
    I will now gather them together.^(DX)
They will begin to waste away^(DY)
    under the oppression of the mighty king.

¹¹“Though Ephraim built many altars for sin offerings,
    these have become altars for sinning.^(DZ)
¹²I wrote for them the many things of my law,
    but they regarded them as something foreign.^(EA)
¹³Though they offer sacrifices as gifts to me,
    and though they eat^(EB) the meat,
    the Lord is not pleased with them.^(EC)
Now he will remember^(ED) their wickedness
    and punish their sins:^(EE)
    They will return to Egypt.^(EF)
¹⁴Israel has forgotten^(EG) their Maker^(EH)
    and built palaces;
    Judah has fortified many towns.
But I will send fire on their cities
    that will consume their fortresses.”^(EI)

Punishment for Israel

9 Do not rejoice, Israel;
    do not be jubilant^(EJ) like the other nations.
For you have been unfaithful^(EK) to your God;
    you love the wages of a prostitute^(EL)
    at every threshing floor.
²Threshing floors and winepresses will not feed the people;
    the new wine^(EM) will fail them.
³They will not remain^(EN) in the Lord’s land;
    Ephraim will return to Egypt^(EO)
    and eat unclean food in Assyria.^(EP)
⁴They will not pour out wine offerings^(EQ) to the Lord,
    nor will their sacrifices please^(ER) him.
Such sacrifices will be to them like the bread of mourners;^(ES)
    all who eat them will be unclean.^(ET)
This food will be for themselves;
    it will not come into the temple of the Lord.^(EU)

⁵What will you do^(EV) on the day of your appointed festivals,^(EW)
    on the feast days of the Lord?
⁶Even if they escape from destruction,
    Egypt will gather them,^(EX)
    and Memphis^(EY) will bury them.^(EZ)
Their treasures of silver^(FA) will be taken over by briers,
    and thorns^(FB) will overrun their tents.
⁷The days of punishment^(FC) are coming,
    the days of reckoning^(FD) are at hand.
    Let Israel know this.
Because your sins^(FE) are so many
    and your hostility so great,
the prophet is considered a fool,^(FF)
    the inspired person a maniac.^(FG)
⁸The prophet, along with my God,
    is the watchman over Ephraim,^[g]
yet snares^(FH) await him on all his paths,
    and hostility in the house of his God.^(FI)
⁹They have sunk deep into corruption,^(FJ)
    as in the days of Gibeah.^(FK)
God will remember^(FL) their wickedness
    and punish them for their sins.^(FM)

¹⁰“When I found Israel,
    it was like finding grapes in the desert;
when I saw your ancestors,
    it was like seeing the early fruit^(FN) on the fig^(FO) tree.
But when they came to Baal Peor,^(FP)
    they consecrated themselves to that shameful idol^(FQ)
    and became as vile as the thing they loved.
¹¹Ephraim’s glory^(FR) will fly away like a bird^(FS)—
    no birth, no pregnancy, no conception.^(FT)
¹²Even if they rear children,
    I will bereave^(FU) them of every one.
Woe^(FV) to them
    when I turn away from them!^(FW)
¹³I have seen Ephraim,^(FX) like Tyre,
    planted in a pleasant place.^(FY)
But Ephraim will bring out
    their children to the slayer.”^(FZ)

¹⁴Give them, Lord—
what will you give them?
Give them wombs that miscarry
and breasts that are dry.^(GA)

¹⁵“Because of all their wickedness in Gilgal,^(GB)
    I hated them there.
Because of their sinful deeds,^(GC)
    I will drive them out of my house.
I will no longer love them;^(GD)
    all their leaders are rebellious.^(GE)
¹⁶Ephraim^(GF) is blighted,
    their root is withered,
    they yield no fruit.^(GG)
Even if they bear children,
    I will slay^(GH) their cherished offspring.”

¹⁷My God will reject^(GI) them
because they have not obeyed^(GJ) him;
they will be wanderers among the nations.^(GK)

10 Israel was a spreading vine;^(GL)
    he brought forth fruit for himself.
As his fruit increased,
    he built more altars;^(GM)
as his land prospered,^(GN)
    he adorned his sacred stones.^(GO)
²Their heart is deceitful,^(GP)
    and now they must bear their guilt.^(GQ)
The Lord will demolish their altars^(GR)
    and destroy their sacred stones.^(GS)

³Then they will say, “We have no king
    because we did not revere the Lord.
But even if we had a king,
    what could he do for us?”
⁴They make many promises,
    take false oaths^(GT)
    and make agreements;^(GU)
therefore lawsuits spring up
    like poisonous weeds^(GV) in a plowed field.
⁵The people who live in Samaria fear
    for the calf-idol^(GW) of Beth Aven.^[h]^(GX)
Its people will mourn over it,
    and so will its idolatrous priests,^(GY)
those who had rejoiced over its splendor,
    because it is taken from them into exile.^(GZ)
⁶It will be carried to Assyria^(HA)
    as tribute^(HB) for the great king.^(HC)
Ephraim will be disgraced;^(HD)
    Israel will be ashamed^(HE) of its foreign alliances.
⁷Samaria’s king will be destroyed,^(HF)
    swept away like a twig on the surface of the waters.
⁸The high places^(HG) of wickedness^[i]^(HH) will be destroyed—
    it is the sin of Israel.
Thorns^(HI) and thistles will grow up
    and cover their altars.^(HJ)
Then they will say to the mountains, “Cover us!”^(HK)
    and to the hills, “Fall on us!”^(HL)

⁹“Since the days of Gibeah,^(HM) you have sinned,^(HN) Israel,
    and there you have remained.^[j]
Will not war again overtake
    the evildoers in Gibeah?
¹⁰When I please, I will punish^(HO) them;
    nations will be gathered against them
    to put them in bonds for their double sin.
¹¹Ephraim is a trained heifer
    that loves to thresh;
so I will put a yoke^(HP)
    on her fair neck.
I will drive Ephraim,
    Judah must plow,
    and Jacob must break up the ground.
¹²Sow^(HQ) righteousness^(HR) for yourselves,
    reap the fruit of unfailing love,
and break up your unplowed ground;^(HS)
    for it is time to seek^(HT) the Lord,
until he comes
    and showers his righteousness^(HU) on you.
¹³But you have planted wickedness,
    you have reaped evil,^(HV)
    you have eaten the fruit of deception.^(HW)
Because you have depended on your own strength
    and on your many warriors,^(HX)
¹⁴the roar of battle will rise against your people,
    so that all your fortresses will be devastated^(HY)—
as Shalman^(HZ) devastated Beth Arbel on the day of battle,
    when mothers were dashed to the ground with their children.^(IA)
¹⁵So will it happen to you, Bethel,
    because your wickedness is great.
When that day dawns,
    the king of Israel will be completely destroyed.^(IB)

Footnotes

Hosea 5:7 Or Now their New Moon feasts / will devour them and
Hosea 5:8 Beth Aven means house of wickedness (a derogatory name for Bethel, which means house of God).
Hosea 5:11 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
Hosea 6:5 The meaning of the Hebrew for this line is uncertain.
Hosea 6:7 Or Like Adam; or Like human beings
Hosea 7:14 Some Hebrew manuscripts and Septuagint; most Hebrew manuscripts They gather together
Hosea 9:8 Or The prophet is the watchman over Ephraim, / the people of my God
Hosea 10:5 Beth Aven means house of wickedness (a derogatory name for Bethel, which means house of God).
Hosea 10:8 Hebrew aven, a reference to Beth Aven (a derogatory name for Bethel); see verse 5.
Hosea 10:9 Or there a stand was taken