2 Peter 1:10

1:10 Therefore, brothers and sisters, ¹  make every effort to be sure of your calling and election. ²  For by doing this ³  you will never ⁴  stumble into sin. ⁵ 

2 Peter 2:14

2:14 Their eyes, ⁶  full of adultery, ⁷  never stop sinning; ⁸  they entice ⁹  unstable people. ¹⁰  They have trained their hearts for greed, these cursed children! ¹¹ 

2 Peter 2:19

2:19 Although these false teachers promise ¹²  such people ¹³  freedom, they themselves are enslaved to ¹⁴  immorality. ¹⁵  For whatever a person succumbs to, to that he is enslaved. ¹⁶ 

2 Peter 3:14

Exhortation to the Faithful

3:14 Therefore, dear friends, since you are waiting for ¹⁷  these things, strive to be found ¹⁸  at peace, without spot or blemish, when you come into his presence. ¹⁹ 

[1:10]  ¹ tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” or “fellow Christians” as here (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1., where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelfoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited).

[1:10]  ² tn Grk “make your calling and election sure.”

[1:10]  ³ tn Grk “these things.”

[1:10]  ⁴ tn In Greek οὐ μή (ou mh) followed by the subjunctive is normally the strongest way to negate an action. Coupled with πότε (pote, “ever”), the statement is even more emphatic. The author is offering sage advice on how to grow in grace.

[1:10]  ⁵ tn The words “into sin” are not in the Greek text, but the Greek word πταίω (ptaiw) is used in soteriological contexts for more than a mere hesitation or stumbling. BDAG 894 s.v. 2 suggests that here it means “be ruined, be lost,” referring to loss of salvation, while also acknowledging that the meaning “to make a mistake, go astray, sin” is plausible in this context. Alternatively, the idea of πταίω here could be that of “suffer misfortune” (so K. L. Schmidt, TDNT 6:884), as a result of sinning.

[2:14]  ⁶ tn Grk “having eyes.” See note on “men” at the beginning of v. 12.

[2:14]  ⁷ tn Grk “full of an adulteress.”

[2:14]  ⁸ 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]  ⁹ tn Grk “enticing.” See note on “men” at the beginning of v. 12.

[2:14]  ¹⁰ tn “People” is literally “souls.” The term ψυχή (yuch) can refer to one’s soul, one’s life, or oneself.

[2:14]  ¹¹ 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.

[2:19]  ¹¹ tn Verse 19 is a subordinate clause in Greek. The masculine nominative participle “promising” (ἐπαγγελλόμενοι, epangellomenoi) refers back to the subject of vv. 17-18. At the same time, it functions subordinately to the following participle, ὑπάρχοντες (Juparconte", “while being”).

[2:19]  ¹² tn Grk “them.”

[2:19]  ¹³ tn Grk “slaves of.” See the note on the word “slave” in 1:1.

[2:19]  ¹⁴ tn Or “corruption,” “depravity.” Verse 19 constitutes a subordinate clause to v. 18 in Greek. The main verbal components of these two verses are: “uttering…they entice…promising…being (enslaved).” The main verb is (they) entice. The three participles are adverbial and seem to indicate an instrumental relation (by uttering), a concessive relation (although promising), and a temporal relation (while being [enslaved]). For the sake of English usage, in the translation of the text this is broken down into two sentences.

[2:19]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “for by what someone is overcome, to this he is enslaved.”

[3:14]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “dear friends, waiting for.” See note in v. 13 on “waiting for.”

[3:14]  ¹⁷ 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]  ¹⁸ 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}.”