King James Version
2 Peter 1
21 verses with commentary
Greeting
Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ: Simon: or, Symeon God: Gr. of our God and Saviour
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.</strong> Peter identifies himself with dual authority: <em>doulos</em> (δοῦλος, "servant" or "slave") emphasizing complete submission, and <em>apostolos</em> (ἀπόστολος, "apostle") denoting commissioned authority. This ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(1) **Simon Peter**.—The marginal reading “Symeon” is to be preferred. “Simon” has probably been substituted as being more usual. The Geneva Bible, which our translators unfortunately sometimes follow when it is *misleading, *has “Simeon.” “Symeon,” of St. Peter, occurs elsewhere only Acts 15:14, in a speech of the strongly Jewish St. James. As being the more Jewish form of the name, it points to ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
CHAPTER 13 He 13:1-25. Exhortation to Various Graces, Especially Constancy in Faith, Following Jesus amidst Reproaches. Conclusion, with Pieces of Intelligence and Salutations.
**1. brotherly love--**a distinct special manifestation of "charity" or "love" (2Pe 1:7). The Church of Jerusalem, to which in part this Epistle was addressed, was distinguished by this grace, we know from Acts (compare He...
Read full commentary →Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,
View commentary (2 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord.</strong> Peter's greeting employs the standard Christian adaptation of Jewish and Greek salutations, but with crucial theological content. "Grace" (<em>charis</em>, χάρις) denotes God's unmerited favor, while "peace" (<em>eirēnē</em>, εἰρήνη) represents the Hebrew <em>shalom</em>—comprehensive well-...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(2) **Grace and peace be multiplied unto you.**—Identical with the last clause of 1Peter 1:2, and with no other greeting in any Epistle. What follows here is peculiar to this Epistle, which begins and ends with grace and knowledge. (Comp. 2Peter 3:18.)
**Through the knowledge.**—Better, as before, *in.* The preposition indicates the sphere or element in which the action takes place, or the aspect ...
Read full commentary →Confirming Your Calling
According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: to: or, by
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue.</strong> Peter declares that God's "divine power" (<em>theia dynamis</em>, θεία δύναμις) has already "given" (<em>dedōrēmenēs</em>, δεδωρημένης, perfect tense indicating completed action with ongoing results) believers every...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(3-11) Exhortation to progress in spiritual graces in order to win eternal life at Christ’s coming. God has given us all we need for salvation; let us profit by it, and show ourselves worthy of it.
(3) **According as.**—Better, *seeing that* This must not be made to depend on 2Peter 1:2. In the canonical Epistles the address does not go beyond the blessing. Galatians is the only exception; there a...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**3. Remember--**in prayers and acts of kindness.
**bound with them--**by virtue of the unity of the members in the body under one Head, Christ (1Co 12:26).
**suffer adversity--**Greek, "are in evil state."
**being yourselves also in the body--**and so liable to the adversities incident to the natural body, which ought to dispose you the more to sympathize with them, not knowing how soon you...
Read full commentary →Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.</strong> Through knowing God, believers receive "exceeding great and precious promises" (<em>megista kai timia epangelmat</em>, μέγιστα καὶ τίμια ἐπαγγέλματα)—superlative language emphasizing the incompar...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(4) **Whereby.**—By God’s “glory and virtue;” not by “all things that pertain unto life and godliness,” although the latter is possible, and is preferred by some.
**Are given unto us.**—Better, *He hath given unto us, *viz., He who called us, God. Wiclif, “He gaf;” Rheims, “He hath given.”
**Promises.**—The Greek word occurs here and in 2Peter 3:13 only. Its termination indicates the things promis...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**4. is, &c.--**Translate, "Let marriage be treated as honorable": as He 13:5 also is an exhortation.
**in all--**"in the case of all men": "among all." "To avoid fornication let EVERY MAN have his own wife" (1Co 7:2). Judaism and Gnosticism combined were soon about to throw discredit on marriage. The venerable Paphnutius, in the Council of Nice, quoted this verse for the justification of th...
Read full commentary →And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge.</strong> The phrase "beside this" (<em>kai auto touto de</em>, καὶ αὐτὸ τοῦτο δὲ) means "for this very reason"—precisely because God has provided everything necessary (vv. 3-4), believers must exercise "all diligence" (<em>spoudēn pasan</em>, σπουδὴν πᾶσαν), meaning earnest effort and eager commitment...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(5) **And beside this.**—Rather, *and for this very reason.* The Authorised version is quite indefensible, and is the more to be regretted because it obscures a parallel between this and 1 Peter. There also we are exhorted to regulate our conduct by God’s (1Peter 1:15; 1Peter 2:1; 1Peter 2:5). [In the Notes on 2Peter 1:5-8 use has been made of addresses *On some Traits in the Christian Character.*...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**5. conversation--**"manner of life." The love of filthy lust and the love of filthy lucre follow one another as closely akin, both alienating the heart from the Creator to the creature.
**such things as ye have--**literally, "present things" (Php 4:11).
**I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee--**A promise tantamount to this was given to Jacob (Ge 28:15), to Israel (De 31:6, 8), to Joshua...
Read full commentary →And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness.</strong> Peter continues the virtue chain with "temperance" (<em>egkrateia</em>, ἐγκράτεια), meaning self-control or self-mastery. This is a fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:23) and essential athletic/military discipline. Knowledge without self-control produces arrogant intellectualism; self-control without knowl...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(6) **And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness.**—*And in your knowledge* [*supply*]* self control, and in your self-control, patience, and in your patience, godliness.* In other words, your discerning between good and evil must lead to avoiding the evil and choosing the good—*i.e., *to the control of your own lawless propensities; and in restraining these...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**6. may--**rather as Greek, expressing confidence actually realized, "So that we boldly (confidently) say" (Psa 56:4, 11; 118:6). Punctuate as both the Hebrew and the Greek require, "And (so) I will not fear: what (then) shall man do unto me?" **7. Remember--**so as to imitate: not to invoke in prayer, as Rome teaches.
**have the rule--**rather, "who have had the rule over you": your spiritual ...
Read full commentary →And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.</strong> Peter concludes the virtue list with two relational qualities. "Brotherly kindness" (<em>philadelphia</em>, φιλαδελφία) denotes the warm affection and loyalty characteristic of family bonds, applied to fellow believers. The early church's radical unity across ethnic, economic, and social barriers astonished th...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(7) **And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.**—*And in your godliness* [*supply*]* love of the brethren, and in your love of the brethren, charity.* In other words, your godliness must not be selfish and solitary, but social and Christian; for he who loveth God must love his brother also (1John 4:20-21). And though “charity begins at home” with “them who are of the...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
7. Two manifestations of "brotherly love," hospitality and care for those in bonds.
**Be not forgetful--**implying it was a duty which they all recognized, but which they might forget to act on (He 13:3, 7, 16). The enemies of Christianity themselves have noticed the practice of this virtue among Christians [Julian, Epistles, 49].
**entertained angels unawares--**Abraham and Lot did so (Ge 18:...
Read full commentary →For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. barren: Gr. idle
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.</strong> Peter shifts from listing virtues to explaining their effects. "If these things be in you" (<em>tauta hyparchonta hymin</em>, ταῦτα ὑπάρχοντα ὑμῖν) assumes the virtues' presence; "and abound" (<em>kai pleonazonta</em>, καὶ πλεονάζοντα, ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(8) **For if these things be in you.**—First reason for the preceding exhortation—the benefit of having these graces. The original of “be in you” is a strong expression, implying permanent and not mere momentary existence.
**And abound.**—Strictly, *and multiply* or *increase.* (Comp. Romans 5:20, and Note there; Romans 6:1; 2Thessalonians 1:3, where the same inadequate translation occurs in the A...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
8. This verse is not, as some read it, in apposition with "the end of their conversation" (He 13:7), but forms the transition. "Jesus Christ, yesterday and to-day (is) the same, and (shall be the same) unto the ages (that is, unto all ages)." The Jesus Christ (the full name being given, to mark with affectionate solemnity both His person and His office) who supported your spiritual rulers through ...
Read full commentary →But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.</strong> Peter now describes the tragic opposite—someone lacking the virtues (vv. 5-7). Such a person is "blind" (<em>typhlos</em>, τυφλός), completely sightless spiritually, and "cannot see afar off" (<em>myōpazōn</em>, μυωπάζων), a rare word meaning "nearsighted" o...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(9) **But he that lacketh.**—Rather, *for he that lacketh.* Geneva and Rheims have “for.” The “for” introduces the second reason for the exhortation to furnish forth all these graces—viz., the evil of not having them. The Greek implies absence of possession in any degree, not merely absence of permanent possession. (See first Note on 2Peter 1:8.)
**Is blind.**—We might have expected “will be idle ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**9. about--**rather, as oldest manuscripts read, "carried aside"; namely, compare Ep 4:14.
**divers--**differing from the one faith in the one and the same Jesus Christ, as taught by them who had the rule over you (He 13:7).
**strange--**foreign to the truth.
**doctrines--**"teachings."
**established with grace; not with meats--**not with observances of Jewish distinctions between clean a...
Read full commentary →Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall :
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall.</strong> "Wherefore" connects this exhortation to the previous warning (v. 9). Because barrenness indicates blindness and forgetfulness, "the rather" (<em>mallon</em>, μᾶλλον, "all the more") believers must "give diligence" (<em>spoudasate</em>, σπουδάσατε,...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(10) **Wherefore the rather.**—Exhortation resumed, with still more earnestness, for the reasons just stated in 2Peter 1:8-9. The direct address, “brethren,” is a mark of this increased earnestness, and also assures those addressed that they are not included among the mere nominal Christians described in the preceding verse.
**Give diligence.**—Recalling “bringing all diligence” in 2Peter 1:5.
**C...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
10. Christianity and Judaism are so totally distinct, that "they who serve the (Jewish) tabernacle," have no right to eat our spiritual Gospel meat, namely, the Jewish priests, and those who follow their guidance in serving the ceremonial ordinance. He says, "serve the tabernacle," not "serve IN the tabernacle." Contrast with this servile worship ours.
**an altar--**the cross of Christ, whereon ...
Read full commentary →For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.</strong> This verse provides incentive for diligent godliness (v. 10): "an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly" (<em>plousios epichorēgēthēsetai hymin hē eisodos</em>, πλουσίως ἐπιχορηγηθήσεται ὑμῖν ἡ εἴσοδος). The verb <em>epichorēgēthēsetai</em> (same...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(11) **An entrance shall be ministered unto you**.—“Ministered” is the passive of the same verb that is translated “add” in 2Peter 1:5, and is probably chosen to answer to 2Peter 1:5. “Supply these graces, and an entrance into the kingdom shall be abundantly supplied to you”—“abundantly,” *i.e., *with a warm welcome, as to a son coming home in triumph; not a bare grudging admission, as to a strang...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
11-12. For just as "the bodies of those beasts whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by ... are burned without the camp," so "Jesus also that ... suffered without the gate" of ceremonial Judaism, of which His crucifixion outside the gate of Jerusalem is a type.
**for--**reason why they who serve the tabernacle, are excluded from share in Christ; because His sacrifice is not like one of those...
Read full commentary →Peter's Approaching Death
Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth.</strong> Peter transitions to explaining his purpose in writing. "Wherefore" (<em>dio</em>, διό) connects to the previous verses—because abundant entrance comes through godliness (v. 11), Peter commits to constant reminder. "I will not be neglige...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(12-15) Transition from the exhortation just concluded to the argument that follows, closely and naturally connected with both.
(12) **I will not be negligent.**—According to the right reading, *I shall be sure to*; because on your doing these things depends your entrance into Christ’s kingdom.
**Though ye know them.**—We find the same affectionate delicacy in Romans 15:14-15 (see Notes there); 1J...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
11-12. For just as "the bodies of those beasts whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by ... are burned without the camp," so "Jesus also that ... suffered without the gate" of ceremonial Judaism, of which His crucifixion outside the gate of Jerusalem is a type.
**for--**reason why they who serve the tabernacle, are excluded from share in Christ; because His sacrifice is not like one of those...
Read full commentary →Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance;
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Chapter 1, verse 13 - Comprehensive theological analysis.</strong> Peter continues his urgent apostolic warning about the dangers facing the church. This verse contributes crucial insights to understanding false teachers' characteristics, God's judgment patterns, and believers' proper response. The Greek terminology reveals theological precision in Peter's argument, emphasizing both divine...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(13) **Yea, I think it meet.**—Better, *But I think it right.* So Rheims; Tyndale and Cranmer have “notwithstanding.” The meaning is, “but (so far from my writing being unnecessary) I think it right,” &c.
**In this tabernacle.**—The comparison of the human body to a dwelling is common in all literatures, and the temporary nature of a tent makes it specially appropriate. (Comp. 2Corinthians 5:1.)
*...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**13. therefore--**This "therefore" breathes the deliberate fortitude of believers [Bengel].
**without the camp--**"outside the legal polity" [Theodoret] of Judaism (compare He 13:11) "Faith considers Jerusalem itself as a camp, not a city" [Bengel]. He contrasts with the Jews, who serve an earthly sanctuary, the Christians to whom the altar in heaven stands open, while it is closed against the ...
Read full commentary →Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Chapter 1, verse 14 - Comprehensive theological analysis.</strong> Peter continues his urgent apostolic warning about the dangers facing the church. This verse contributes crucial insights to understanding false teachers' characteristics, God's judgment patterns, and believers' proper response. The Greek terminology reveals theological precision in Peter's argument, emphasizing both divine...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(14) **Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle**.—This is rather wide of the mark. Among English versions Wiclif alone is right. The meaning is, *Knowing as I do that the putting off of my tabernacle will be done swiftly* (comp. 2Peter 2:1)—*i.e.*, will soon be over when it once begins. The point is not that the writer believes himself to be near his end, but that his end would be s...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**14. here--**on earth. Those Hebrews who clung to the earthly sanctuary are representatives of all who cling to this earth. The earthly Jerusalem proved to be no "abiding city," having been destroyed shortly after this Epistle was written, and with it fell the Jewish civil and religious polity; a type of the whole of our present earthly order of things soon to perish.
**one to come--**(He 2:5; ...
Read full commentary →Moreover I will endeavour that ye may be able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Moreover I will endeavour that ye may be able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance.</strong> Peter commits to ensure (<em>spoudasō</em>, σπουδάσω, "I will be diligent") that "after my decease" (<em>meta tēn emēn exodon</em>, μετὰ τὴν ἐμὴν ἔξοδον), literally "after my exodus" or "departure," believers can "always" (<em>hekastote</em>, ἑκάστοτε, "at any time") remember...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(15) **Moreover I will endeavour.**—The verse requires re-arranging. “Always” (or better, *at all times*) belongs to “may be able,” not to “have in remembrance;” and perhaps “moreover” is not quite right. Better, *But I will endeavour that ye* *may at all times also* (as well as now) *have it in your power after my decease to remember these things.* To what does this declaration point? The simples...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
15. As the "altar" was mentioned in He 13:10, so the "sacrifices" here (compare 1Pe 2:5, namely, praise and doing good, He 13:16). Compare Psa 119:108; Ro 12:1.
**By him--**as the Mediator of our prayers and praises (Joh 14:13, 14); not by Jewish observances (Psa 50:14, 23; 69:30, 31; 107:22; 116:17). It was an old saying of the rabbis, "At a future time all sacrifices shall cease, but praises s...
Read full commentary →Eyewitnesses of Christ's Glory
For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty.</strong> Peter now defends apostolic testimony's reliability against false teachers who dismissed it as myth. "We have not followed" (<em>ou exakolouthēsantes</em>, οὐ ἐξακολουθήσαντες) means "we did not pursue" or "invent." "Cu...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(16-21) The certainty of Christ’s coming again is the basis of these exhortations; and that certainty is proved (1) by the Transfiguration, which was an anticipation of His coming again in glory; (2) by the utterances of the prophets who predicted it.
(16) **For we have not followed.**—More literally, *For we did not follow, *or, *It was not by following out, &c., that. “*For” introduces the reaso...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**16. But--**But the sacrifice of praise with the lips (He 13:15) is not enough; there must be also doing good (beneficence) and communicating (that is, imparting a share of your means, Ga 6:6) to the needy.
**with such--**and not mere ritualistic sacrifices.
For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Chapter 1, verse 17 - Comprehensive theological analysis.</strong> Peter continues his urgent apostolic warning about the dangers facing the church. This verse contributes crucial insights to understanding false teachers' characteristics, God's judgment patterns, and believers' proper response. The Greek terminology reveals theological precision in Peter's argument, emphasizing both divine...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(17) **For he received.**—Literally, *For having received.* The sentence is unfinished, owing to the long dependent clause, “when there came . . . well pleased.” The natural ending would be, “He had us as His attendants to hear it,” or something of that kind.
**Honour and glory.**—Both refer to the voice from heaven. To make “honour” refer to the voice, and “glory” to the light shining from Christ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**17. Obey them that have the rule over you--**(Compare He 13:7, 24). This threefold mention of the rulers is peculiar to this Epistle. In other Epistles Paul includes the rulers in his exhortations. But here the address is limited to the general body of the Church, in contrast to the rulers to whom they are charged to yield reverent submission. Now this is just what might be expected when the apo...
Read full commentary →And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Chapter 1, verse 18 - Comprehensive theological analysis.</strong> Peter continues his urgent apostolic warning about the dangers facing the church. This verse contributes crucial insights to understanding false teachers' characteristics, God's judgment patterns, and believers' proper response. The Greek terminology reveals theological precision in Peter's argument, emphasizing both divine...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(18) **And this voice which came from heaven we heard.**—Rather, *And this voice we heard borne from heaven:* We were ear-witnesses of the voice coming from heaven, as we were eye-witnesses of His majesty. It was no vision, it was no hallucination. We all heard, and we all saw; so that I have the highest authority for what I would now impress upon you. A voice which I myself heard borne from heave...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**18. Pray for us--**Paul usually requests the Church's intercessions for him in closing his Epistles, just as he begins with assuring them of his having them at heart in his prayers (but in this Epistle not till He 13:20, 21), Ro 15:30. "Us," includes both himself and his companions; he passes to himself alone, He 13:19.
**we trust we have a good conscience--**in spite of your former jealousies...
Read full commentary →We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts.</strong> After citing eyewitness experience (vv. 16-18), Peter surprisingly declares "we have also a more sure word of prophecy" (<em>kai echomen bebaioteron ton prophētikon logon</em>, καὶ ἔχομεν βεβαιότ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(19) **We have also a more sure word of prophecy.**—Rather, *And we have the prophetic word more sure* (so Rheims alone); or, *And we have, as something more sure, the prophetic word, *as a second proof of the truth of my teaching respecting Christ’s coming. The expression, “the prophetic word,” occurs nowhere else in the New Testament. “The Scripture” given below (Note on 2Peter 3:4), as quoted b...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**19. the rather--**Greek, "I the more abundantly beseech you."
**to do this--**to pray for me.
**that I may be restored to you--**(Phm 22). It is here first in the letter he mentions himself, in a way so unobtrusive, as not to prejudice his Hebrew readers against him, which would have been the result had he commenced this as his other Epistles, with authoritatively announcing his name and apo...
Read full commentary →Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Chapter 1, verse 20 - Comprehensive theological analysis.</strong> Peter continues his urgent apostolic warning about the dangers facing the church. This verse contributes crucial insights to understanding false teachers' characteristics, God's judgment patterns, and believers' proper response. The Greek terminology reveals theological precision in Peter's argument, emphasizing both divine...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(20) **Knowing this first.**—The participle belongs to “take heed” in 2Peter 1:19. “First” means “first of all” (1Timothy 2:1), not “before I tell you.” In studying prophecy this is the first thing to be borne in mind.
**Is of any private interpretation.**—Better, *comes to be, *or *becomes of private interpretation.* The word rendered “interpretation” occurs nowhere else in the New Testament; but...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
20. Concluding prayer.
**God of peace--**So Paul, Ro 15:33; 16:20; 2Co 13:11; Php 4:9; 1Th 5:23; 2Th 3:16. The Judaizing of the Hebrews was calculated to sow seeds of discord among them, of disobedience to their pastors (He 13:17), and of alienation towards Paul. The God of peace by giving unity of true doctrine, will unite them in mutual love.
**brought again from the dead--**Greek, "brought ...
Read full commentary →For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. in old time: or, at any time
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Chapter 1, verse 21 - Comprehensive theological analysis.</strong> Peter continues his urgent apostolic warning about the dangers facing the church. This verse contributes crucial insights to understanding false teachers' characteristics, God's judgment patterns, and believers' proper response. The Greek terminology reveals theological precision in Peter's argument, emphasizing both divine...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(21) **For the prophecy came not in old time.**—Rather, *For prophecy was never sent, *or *brought.* Wiclif and Rheims alone have “brought”; all the rest “came.” The verb is the same as that used of the voice from heaven (2Peter 1:17-18), and also in this verse for “moved,” so that there is a telling antithesis, difficult to preserve in English. Prophecy was not brought in by men; but men were bro...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**21. Make you perfect--**properly said of healing a rent; join you together in perfect harmony [Bengel].
**to do his will, working in you--**(He 10:36); rather as Greek, "doing in you." Whatever good we do, God does in us.
**well-pleasing in his sight--**(Is 53:10; Ep 5:10).
**through Jesus Christ--**"God doing (working) in you that ... through Jesus Christ" (Php 1:11).
**to whom--**to Ch...
Read full commentary →