2 Peter 1:14

1:14 since I know that my tabernacle will soon be removed, ¹  because ²  our Lord Jesus Christ revealed this to me. ³ 

2 Peter 1:16

1:16 For we did not follow cleverly concocted fables when we made known to you the power and return ⁴  of our Lord Jesus Christ; ⁵  no, ⁶  we were ⁷  eyewitnesses of his ⁸  grandeur. ⁹ 

2 Peter 2:15

2:15 By forsaking the right path they have gone astray, because they followed the way of Balaam son of Bosor, ¹⁰  who loved the wages of unrighteousness, ¹¹ 

2 Peter 2:21-22

2:21 For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than, having known it, to turn back from the holy commandment that had been delivered to them. 2:22 They are illustrations of this true proverb: ¹²  “A dog returns to its own vomit,” ¹³  and “A sow, after washing herself, ¹⁴  wallows in the mire.” ¹⁵ 

2 Peter 3:4

3:4 and saying, ¹⁶  “Where is his promised return? ¹⁷  For ever since ¹⁸  our ancestors ¹⁹  died, ²⁰  all things have continued as they were ²¹  from the beginning of creation.”

2 Peter 3:12

3:12 while waiting for and hastening ²²  the coming of the day of God? ²³  Because of this day, ²⁴  the heavens will be burned up and ²⁵  dissolve, and the celestial bodies ²⁶  will melt away in a blaze! ²⁷ 

2 Peter 3:17

3:17 Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, ²⁸  be on your guard that you do not get led astray by the error of these unprincipled men ²⁹  and fall from your firm grasp on the truth. ³⁰ 

[1:14]  ¹ tn Grk “since I know that the removal of my tabernacle is [coming] soon.”

[1:14]  ² tn Grk “just as.”

[1:14]  ³ sn When the author says our Lord Jesus Christ revealed this to me, he is no doubt referring to the prophecy that is partially recorded in John 21:18-19.

[1:16]  ⁴ tn Grk “coming.”

[1:16]  ⁵ tn Grk “for we did not make known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ by following cleverly concocted fables.”

[1:16]  ⁶ tn Grk “but, instead.”

[1:16]  ⁷ tn Grk “became.”

[1:16]  ⁸ tn Grk “that one’s.” That is, “eyewitnesses of the grandeur of that one.” The remote demonstrative pronoun is used perhaps to indicate esteem for Jesus. Along these lines it is interesting to note that “the Pythagoreans called their master after his death simply ἐκεῖνος” as a term of reverence and endearment (BDAG 302 s.v. ἐκεῖνος a.γ).

[1:16]  ⁹ sn The term grandeur was used most frequently of God’s majesty. In the 1st century, it was occasionally used of the divine majesty of the emperor. 2 Pet 1:1 and 1:11 already include hints of a polemic against emperor-worship (in that “God and Savior” and “Lord and Savior” were used of the emperor).

[2:15]  ⁷ tn Although many modern translations (e.g., NASB, TEV, NIV, CEV, NLT) read “Beor” here, this is due to harmonization with the OT rather than following a variant textual reading. The Greek text of NA²⁷ reads “Bosor,” an otherwise unattested form of the name of Balaam’s father.

[2:15]  ⁸ tn “Wages of unrighteousness” in Greek is the same expression found in v. 13, “wages for harmful ways.” The repetition makes the link between the false teachers and Balaam more concrete.

[2:22]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “the [statement] of the true proverb has happened to them.” The idiom in Greek cannot be translated easily in English.

[2:22]  ¹¹ tn The quotation is a loose rendering of Prov 26:11. This proverb involves a participle that is translated like a finite verb (“returns”). In the LXX this line constitutes a subordinate and dependent clause. But since the line has been lifted from its original context, it has been translated as an independent statement.

[2:22]  ¹² tn Or “after being washed.” The middle verb may be direct (“wash oneself”) or permissive (“allow oneself to be washed”).

[2:22]  ¹³ tn The source of this quotation is uncertain. Heraclitus has often been mentioned as a possible source, but this is doubtful. Other options on the translation of the second line include a sow, having (once) bathed herself (in mud), (returns) to wallowing in the mire, or a sow that washes herself by wallowing in the mire (BDAG 181 s.v. βόρβορος). The advantage of this last translation is that no verbs need to be supplied for it to make sense. The disadvantage is that in this context it does not make any contribution to the argument. Since the source of the quotation is not known, there is some guesswork involved in the reconstruction. Most commentators prefer a translation similar to the one in the text above.

[3:4]  ¹³ tn The present participle λέγοντες (legontes, “saying”) most likely indicates result. Thus, their denial of the Lord’s return is the result of their lifestyle. The connection to the false teachers of chapter 2 is thus made clear.

[3:4]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “Where is the promise of his coming?” The genitive παρουσίας (parousia", “coming, advent, return”) is best taken as an attributed genitive (in which the head noun, promise, functions semantically as an adjective; see ExSyn 89-91).

[3:4]  ¹⁵ tn The prepositional phrase with the relative pronoun, ἀφ᾿ ἧς (af’ |h"), is used adverbially or conjunctively without antecedent (see BDAG 727 s.v. ὅς 1.k.).

[3:4]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “fathers.” The reference could be either to the OT patriarchs or first generation Christians. This latter meaning, however, is unattested in any other early Christian literature.

[3:4]  ¹⁷ tn The verb κοιμάω (koimaw) literally means “sleep,” but it is often used in the Bible as a euphemism for the death of a believer.

[3:4]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “thus,” “in the same manner.”

[3:12]  ¹⁶ 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]  ¹⁷ 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]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “on account of which” (a subordinate relative clause in Greek).

[3:12]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “being burned up, will dissolve.”

[3:12]  ²⁰ tn See note in v. 10 on “celestial bodies.”

[3:12]  ²¹ tn Grk “being burned up” (see v. 10).

[3:17]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “knowing beforehand.”

[3:17]  ²⁰ tn Or “lawless ones.”

[3:17]  ²¹ tn Grk “fall from your firmness.”