Book of Common Prayer

He exhorts them to beware of such as say the day of the Lord is slack in coming. He urges them to lead a godly life, and to expect the Lord’s coming, whose long delay is salvation, because he would have none lost, but receive all to repentance.

3 This is the second epistle that I now write to you, beloveds, with which I stir up and warn your pure minds, ² to call to remembrance the words that were spoken before by the holy prophets, and also the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Saviour.

³ This first understand: that there will come in the last days mockers, who will walk after their own lusts ⁴ and say, Where is the promise of his coming? For since the fathers died, all things continue in the same estate that they were in at the beginning. ⁵ This they are ignorant of (and that willingly): that the heavens a great while ago were, and the earth that was in the water appeared up out of the water by the word of God – ⁶ by which things the world that then was perished, overflowing with water. ⁷ But the heavens and earth which are now, are kept by the same word in store, and reserved for fire at the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

⁸ Dearly beloveds, be not ignorant of this one thing: that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. ⁹ The Lord is not slack to fulfil his promise, as some count slackness, but is patient toward us, and would have no one lost, but would receive all to repentance. ¹⁰ Nevertheless, the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which day the heavens shall perish with terrible noise, and the elements shall melt with heat, and the earth with the works that are in it shall burn.

²³ And when he had come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching and said, By what authority are you doing these things? And who gave you this authority?

²⁴ Jesus answered and said to them, I also will ask of you a certain question, which, if you answer me, I likewise will tell you by what authority I do these things. ²⁵ The baptism of John: whence was it? from heaven, or of men?

Then they reasoned among themselves, saying, If we say from heaven, he will say to us, why did you not then believe him? ²⁶ But if we say it was of men, then we fear the people. (For everyone held John to be a prophet.)

²⁷ And they answered Jesus and said, We don’t know.

And he likewise said to them, Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things. ²⁸ What do you say to this: A certain man had two sons, and went to the elder and said, Son, go and work today in my vineyard. ²⁹ He answered and said, I will not, but afterward he repented and went. ³⁰ Then the father went to the second son and said likewise. And he answered and said, I will, Sir. Yet he did not go. ³¹ Which of the two did the will of the father?

And they said to him, The first.

Jesus said to them, Truly I say to you that the publicans and the harlots shall come into the kingdom of God before you. ³² For John came to you in the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him. But the publicans and the harlots believed him. And yet you, though you saw it, were still not moved with repentance, so that you might afterward have believed him.