2 Peter 2:1 - Printer Friendly

ESV: 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.

NIV: But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them--bringing swift destruction on themselves.

NASB: But false prophets also appeared among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves.

CSB: There were indeed false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, and will bring swift destruction on themselves.

NLT: But there were also false prophets in Israel, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will cleverly teach destructive heresies and even deny the Master who bought them. In this way, they will bring sudden destruction on themselves.

KJV: But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.

NKJV: But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction.

Peter ended the previous chapter by affirming the validity of the Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah. In no small part, Peter's confidence was based on his own personal experiences with Jesus. Peter now begins to warn his readers about false teachers.

He acknowledges that false prophets have always plagued Israel, even in the days of the genuine prophets of God. Men would attempt to make a name for themselves, and mislead God's people by claiming that God had given them a message for Israel when He had not. Often, in fact, their false prophecies would directly contradict the messages of God's actual prophets.

Peter reveals that a similar problem was going to happen now for Christians. Rather than false prophets, it will be false teachers who will rise up amid the ranks of Christianity to mislead believers. What will they teach? Biblically, "heresy" is any teaching which contradicts or twists the truth. These doctrines are destructive to Christianity, attempting to internally change it to something false. They are also harmful to individual Christians, by leading them away from God's Word.

Peter warns that this won't be an obvious attack on the truth. These false teachers will try to introduce their deception secretly. Their goal, ultimately, is to convince Christians to join them in denying Jesus, the "Master" or "sovereign Lord." The following verses will reveal why anyone would do this. Regardless of motivation, the result will always be the same for those who attempt to mislead Christians into denying Jesus' place as Lord and Master: swift destruction.

In a modern application, we see groups even today which claim the title "Christian," but which deny the Lordship or deity of Jesus. They teach ideas contrary to the Scriptures, but claim them to be true. Some even deny that Peter's words and warnings in this book are the actual Word of God.

2 Peter 2:1–9 describes false teachers who greedily spread lies about Christ’s authority. They encourage Christians to indulge in sexual sin. They pursue erotic desires in the open, are experts in greed, despise authority, live in bold arrogance, and blaspheme things they don’t understand. Peter assures that these deceivers will be punished for the harm they’ve caused. This includes leading people away from Christ and back into the sinful practices from which they had begun to escape. God did not spare sinful angels, or the wicked of Noah’s day, or the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, and will not spare these false teachers, either.

False teachers had entered the early community of Christians. These deceivers lied to the believers, challenging the authority of Jesus. They also invited others to indulge in their sexual sin. Sadly, there are still versions of these false teachers plaguing the modern Christian community. Peter harshly describes the sins of these ''cursed children,'' the eternal judgment waiting for them, and the tragic impact their deception is having on those enticed by them.

In chapter 1, Peter urged his Christian readers not to be unproductive in their knowledge of Jesus. Peter now describes the false teachers in the church who were leading people away from a true understanding of Christ. These deceivers were lying to the believers and encouraging them to indulge in sexual sin. Peter promises that God’s judgment is coming on these ''cursed children'' and details the tragic impact their lies have on anyone who believes them.

Apparently written shortly before his death in the AD 60s, 2 Peter may have been written to the same audience as 1 Peter, which was Christians scattered by persecution. Peter writes this letter to encourage Christians to live out the purpose of their lives in Christ. He warns readers to beware of teachers who claim to be believers, but present a false version of Christianity. And, Peter calls on all Christians to eagerly watch and wait for the return of the Lord.