2 Petrus 2:4

2:4 For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, ¹  but threw them into hell ²  and locked them up ³  in chains ⁴  in utter darkness, ⁵  to be kept until the judgment,

2 Petrus 2:11

2:11 yet even ⁶  angels, who are much more powerful, ⁷  do not bring a slanderous ⁸  judgment against them before the Lord. ⁹ 

2 Petrus 2:14

2:14 Their eyes, ¹⁰  full of adultery, ¹¹  never stop sinning; ¹²  they entice ¹³  unstable people. ¹⁴  They have trained their hearts for greed, these cursed children! ¹⁵ 

2 Petrus 3:1-2

The False Teachers’ Denial of the Lord’s Return

3:1 Dear friends, this is already the second letter I have written ¹⁶  you, in which ¹⁷  I am trying to stir up ¹⁸  your pure mind by way of reminder: 3:2 I want you to recall ¹⁹  both ²⁰  the predictions ²¹  foretold by the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles. ²² 

2 Petrus 3:12

3:12 while waiting for and hastening ²³  the coming of the day of God? ²⁴  Because of this day, ²⁵  the heavens will be burned up and ²⁶  dissolve, and the celestial bodies ²⁷  will melt away in a blaze! ²⁸ 

2 Petrus 3:14

Exhortation to the Faithful

3:14 Therefore, dear friends, since you are waiting for ²⁹  these things, strive to be found ³⁰  at peace, without spot or blemish, when you come into his presence. ³¹ 

[2:4]  ¹ tn The participle ἁμαρτησάντων (Jamarthsantwn) could either be attributive (“who sinned”) or adverbial (“when they sinned”). The relation to the judgment of the false teachers in v. 3 suggests that the objects of God’s judgment are not in question, but the time frame for the execution of justice is. If the participle is taken temporally, the point of comparison is not as acute. The objection that the illustrations following (the flood, Sodom and Gomorrah) are viewed temporally does not mitigate this translation, for in both instances only the time of executing judgment is in view. Further, in both instances the OT notes that God withheld punishment for a long time.

[2:4]  ² tn Grk “casting them into Tartarus” or “holding them captive in Tartarus.” This verb, ταρταρόω (tartarow), occurs only here in the NT, but its meaning is clearly established in both Hellenistic and Jewish literature. “Tartarus [was] thought of by the Greeks as a subterranean place lower than Hades where divine punishment was meted out, and so regarded in Israelite apocalyptic as well” (BDAG 991 s.v.). Grammatically, it has been translated as an indicative because it is an attendant circumstance participle.

[2:4]  ³ tn Grk “handed them over.”

[2:4]  ⁴ tc The reading σειραῖς (seirai", “chains”) is found in Ì⁷² P Ψ 33 1739 Ï vg sy, while σιροῖς (sirois [or σειροῖς, seirois], “pits”) is found in א A B C 81 pc. The evidence is thus fairly evenly divided. Internally, the reading adopted here (σειραῖς) is a rarer term, perhaps prompting some scribes to replace it with the more common word. However, this more common term is not a synonym and hence does not follow the normal pattern of scribes. As well, the use of the genitive ζόφου (zofou) in “chains of darkness” is a bit awkward (a rare genitive of place), perhaps prompting some scribes to change the imagery to “pits of darkness” (in which case ζόφου is an attributive genitive). A further point that complicates the issue is the relationship of 2 Peter to Jude. Jude’s parallel (v. 6) has δεσμοῖς (desmois, “chains”). Apart from the issue of whether 2 Peter used Jude or Jude used 2 Peter, this parallel suggests one of two possibilities: either (1) since these two books obviously have a literary relationship, σειραῖς is original, or (2) early scribes, recognizing that these two books shared their material, changed σειροῖς to σειραῖς to conform the wording, at least conceptually, to Jude 6. On balance, σειραῖς looks to be original because scribes were not prone to harmonize extensively between books other than the Gospels (although 2 Peter and Jude do display some of this harmonizing). Further, such harmonization is often, if not usually, verbally exact, but δεσμοῖς is not a variant here.

[2:4]  ⁵ tn The genitive ζόφου (zofou) is taken as a genitive of place. See previous note for discussion.

[2:11]  ⁶ tn Grk “whereas.”

[2:11]  ⁷ tn Grk “who are greater in strength and power.” What is being compared, however, could either be the false teachers or “the glorious ones,” in which case “angels” would refer to good angels and “the glorious ones” to evil angels.

[2:11]  ⁸ tn Or “insulting.” The word comes from the same root as the term found in v. 10 (“insult”), v. 12 (“insulting”), and v. 2 (“will be slandered”). The author is fond of building his case by the repetition of a word in a slightly different context so that the readers make the necessary connection. English usage cannot always convey this connection because a given word in one language cannot always be translated the same way in another.

[2:11]  ⁹ tc ‡ Some witnesses lack παρὰ κυρίῳ (para kuriw; so A Ψ 33 81 1505 1881 2464 al vg co), while others have the genitive παρὰ κυρίου (para kuriou; so Ì⁷² 1241 al sy^ph,h**). The majority of witnesses (including א B C P 1739 Ï) read the dative παρὰ κυρίῳ. The genitive expression suggests that angels would not pronounce a judgment on “the glorious ones” from the Lord, while the dative indicates that angels would not pronounce a judgment on “the glorious ones” in the presence of the Lord. The parallel in Jude 9 speaks of a reviling judgment against the devil in which the prepositional phrase is entirely absent. At the same time, in that parallel Michael does say, “The Lord rebuke you.” (Hence, he is offering something of a judgment from the Lord.) The best options externally are the dative or the omission of the phrase, but a decision is difficult. Internally, the omission may possibly be a motivated reading in that it finds a parallel in Jude 9 (where no prepositional phrase is used). All things considered, the dative is to be preferred, though with much reservation.

[2:14]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “having eyes.” See note on “men” at the beginning of v. 12.

[2:14]  ¹¹ tn Grk “full of an adulteress.”

[2:14]  ¹² tn Grk “and unceasing from sin.” Some translate this “insatiable for sin,” but such a translation is based on a textual variant with inadequate support.

[2:14]  ¹³ tn Grk “enticing.” See note on “men” at the beginning of v. 12.

[2:14]  ¹⁴ tn “People” is literally “souls.” The term ψυχή (yuch) can refer to one’s soul, one’s life, or oneself.

[2:14]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “having hearts trained in greediness, children of cursing.” The participles continue the general description of the false teachers, without strong grammatical connection. The genitive κατάρας (kataras, “of cursing”) is taken attributively here.

[3:1]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “I am already writing this [as] a second letter.” The object-complement construction is more smoothly rendered in English a bit differently. Further, although the present tense γράφω (grafw) is used here, English convention employs an epistolary past tense. (The Greek epistolary aorist might have been expected here, but it also occurs in situations unlike its English counterparts.)

[3:1]  ¹⁷ tn The relative pronoun is plural, indicating that the following statement is true about both letters.

[3:1]  ¹⁸ tn Or “I have stirred up, aroused.” The translation treats the present tense verb as a conative present.

[3:2]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “to remember.” “I want you” is supplied to smooth out the English. The Greek infinitive is subordinate to the previous clause.

[3:2]  ²⁰ tn “Both” is not in Greek; it is supplied to show more clearly that there are two objects of the infinitive “to remember” – predictions and commandment.

[3:2]  ²¹ tn Grk “words.” In conjunction with πρόειπον (proeipon), however, the meaning of the construction is that the prophets uttered prophecies.

[3:2]  ²² sn Holy prophets…apostles. The first chapter demonstrated that the OT prophets were trustworthy guides (1:19-21) and that the NT apostles were also authoritative (1:16-18). Now, using the same catch phrase found in the Greek text of 1:20 (τοῦτο πρῶτον γινώσκοντες, touto prwton ginwskontes), Peter points to specific prophecies of the prophets as an argument against the false teachers.

[3:12]  ²³ tn Or possibly, “striving for,” but the meaning “hasten” for σπουδάζω (spoudazw) is normative in Jewish apocalyptic literature (in which the coming of the Messiah/the end is anticipated). Such a hastening is not an arm-twisting of the divine volition, but a response by believers that has been decreed by God.

[3:12]  ²⁴ sn The coming of the day of God. Peter elsewhere describes the coming or parousia as the coming of Christ (cf. 2 Pet 1:16; 3:4). The almost casual exchange between “God” and “Christ” in this little book, and elsewhere in the NT, argues strongly for the deity of Christ (see esp. 1:1).

[3:12]  ²⁵ tn Grk “on account of which” (a subordinate relative clause in Greek).

[3:12]  ²⁶ tn Grk “being burned up, will dissolve.”

[3:12]  ²⁷ tn See note in v. 10 on “celestial bodies.”

[3:12]  ²⁸ tn Grk “being burned up” (see v. 10).

[3:14]  ²⁹ tn Grk “dear friends, waiting for.” See note in v. 13 on “waiting for.”

[3:14]  ³⁰ sn The Greek verb used in the phrase strive to be found is the same as is found in v. 10, translated “laid bare.” In typical Petrine fashion, a conceptual link is made by the same linkage of terms. The point of these two verses thus becomes clear: When the heavens disappear and the earth and its inhabitants are stripped bare before the throne of God, they should strive to make sure that their lives are pure and that they have nothing to hide.

[3:14]  ³¹ tn “When you come into” is not in Greek. However, the dative pronoun αὐτῷ (autw) does not indicate agency (“by him”), but presence or sphere. The idea is “strive to found {before him/in his presence}.”