2 Peter 2:12

2:12 But ¹  these men, ²  like irrational animals – creatures of instinct, born to be caught and destroyed ³  – do not understand whom ⁴  they are insulting, and consequently ⁵  in their destruction they will be destroyed, ⁶ 

Acts 14:2

14:2 But the Jews who refused to believe ⁷  stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds ⁸  against the brothers.

Acts 14:1

Paul and Barnabas at Iconium

14:1 The same thing happened in Iconium ⁹  when Paul and Barnabas ¹⁰  went into the Jewish synagogue ¹¹  and spoke in such a way that a large group ¹²  of both Jews and Greeks believed.

Acts 2:12

2:12 All were astounded and greatly confused, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”

Jude 1:10

1:10 But these men do not understand the things they slander, and they are being destroyed by the very things that, like irrational animals, they instinctively comprehend. ¹³ 

Jude 1:15

1:15 to execute judgment on ¹⁴  all, and to convict every person ¹⁵  of all their thoroughly ungodly deeds ¹⁶  that they have committed, ¹⁷  and of all the harsh words that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” ¹⁸ 

[2:12]  ¹ tn 2 Pet 2:12 through 16 constitute one cumbersome sentence in Greek. It is difficult to tell whether a hard break belongs in the middle of v. 13, as the translation has it, or whether the compounding of participles is meant in a loosely descriptive sort of way, without strong grammatical connection. Either way, the sentence rambles in a way that often betrays a great “vehemence of spirit” (A. T. Robertson, Grammar, 435). The author is obviously agitated at these false teachers who are to come.

[2:12]  ² tn The false teachers could conceivably be men or women, but in v. 14 they are said to have eyes “full of an adulteress.” This can only refer to men. Hence, both here and in v. 17 the false teachers are described as “men.”

[2:12]  ³ tn Grk “born for capture and destruction.”

[2:12]  ⁴ tn Grk “with [reference to] whom.”

[2:12]  ⁵ tn There is no conjunction joining this last clause of v. 12 to the preceding (i.e., no “and consequently”). The argument builds asyndetically (a powerful rhetorical device in Greek), but cannot be naturally expressed in English as such.

[2:12]  ⁶ tn This cryptic expression has been variously interpreted. (1) It could involve a simple cognate dative in which case the idea is “they will be utterly destroyed.” But the presence of αὐτῶν (autwn; their, of them) is problematic for this view. Other, more plausible views are: (2) the false teachers will be destroyed at the same time as the irrational beasts, or (3) in the same manner as these creatures (i.e., by being caught); or (4) the false teachers will be destroyed together with the evil angels whom they insult. Because of the difficulties of the text, it was thought best to leave it ambiguous, as the Greek has it.

[14:2]  ⁷ tn Or “who would not believe.”

[14:2]  ⁸ tn Or “embittered their minds” (Grk “their souls”). BDAG 502 s.v. κακόω 2 has “make angry, embitter τὰς ψυχάς τινων κατά τινος poison the minds of some persons against another Ac 14:2.”

[14:1]  ⁹ sn Iconium. See the note in 13:51.

[14:1]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “they”; the referents (Paul and Barnabas) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

[14:1]  ¹¹ sn See the note on synagogue in 6:9.

[14:1]  ¹² tn Or “that a large crowd.”

[1:10]  ¹³ tn Or “they should naturally comprehend.” The present tense in this context may have a conative force.

[1:15]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “against” (κατά [kata] + genitive). English usage is satisfied with “on” at this point, but the parallel is lost in the translation to some degree, for the end of v. 15 says that this judgment is meted out on these sinners because they spoke against him (κατά + genitive).

[1:15]  ¹⁵ tn Or “soul.”

[1:15]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “of all their works of ungodliness.” The adverb “thoroughly” is part of the following verb “have committed.” See note on verb “committed” later in this verse.

[1:15]  ¹⁷ tn The verb in Greek does not simply mean “have committed,” but “have committed in an ungodly way.” The verb ἀσεβέω (asebew) is cognate to the noun ἀσέβεια (asebeia, “ungodliness”). There is no easy way to express this in English, since English does not have a single word that means the same thing. Nevertheless, the tenor of v. 15 is plainly seen, regardless of the translation.

[1:15]  ¹⁸ sn An apparent quotation from 1 En. 1:9. There is some doubt as to whether Jude is actually quoting from the text of 1 Enoch; the text here in Jude differs in some respects from the extant text of this pseudepigraphic book. It is sometimes suggested that Jude may instead have been quoting from oral tradition which had roots older than the written text.