2 Peter 2:8

2:8 (for while he lived among them day after day, that righteous man was tormented in his righteous soul ¹  by the lawless deeds he saw and heard ² )

2 Peter 2:7

2:7 and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man in anguish over the debauched lifestyle of lawless ³  men, ⁴ 

2 Peter 1:21

1:21 for no prophecy was ever borne of human impulse; rather, men ⁵  carried along by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.

2 Peter 2:19

2:19 Although these false teachers promise ⁶  such people ⁷  freedom, they themselves are enslaved to ⁸  immorality. ⁹  For whatever a person succumbs to, to that he is enslaved. ¹⁰ 

2 Peter 2:16

2:16 yet was rebuked ¹¹  for his own transgression (a dumb donkey, ¹²  speaking with a human voice, ¹³  restrained the prophet’s madness). ¹⁴ 

2 Peter 1:20

1:20 Above all, you do well if you recognize ¹⁵  this: ¹⁶  No prophecy of scripture ever comes about by the prophet’s own imagination, ¹⁷ 

2 Peter 1:9

1:9 But ¹⁸  concerning the one who lacks such things ¹⁹  – he is blind. That is to say, he is ²⁰  nearsighted, since he has forgotten about the cleansing of his past sins.

[2:8]  ¹ tn Grk “that righteous man tormented his righteous soul.”

[2:8]  ² tn Grk “by lawless deeds, in seeing and hearing [them].”

[2:7]  ³ tn Or “unprincipled.”

[2:7]  ⁴ tn This verse more literally reads “And [if] he rescued righteous Lot, who was deeply distressed by the lifestyle of the lawless in [their] debauchery.”

[1:21]  ⁵ tn If, as seems probable, the “prophecy” mentioned here is to be identified with the “prophecy of scripture” mentioned in the previous verse, then the Greek term ἄνθρωποι (anqrwpoi, “men”) would refer specifically to the human authors of scripture, who (as far as we know) were all men. Thus “men” has been used here in the translation. If, on the other hand, the “prophecy” mentioned in the present verse is not limited to scripture but refers to oral prophecy as well, then women would be included, since Joel 2:20 specifically mentions “sons and daughters” as having the ability to prophesy, and the NT clearly mentions prophetesses (Luke 2:36; Acts 21:9).

[2:19]  ⁷ 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]  ⁸ tn Grk “them.”

[2:19]  ⁹ tn Grk “slaves of.” See the note on the word “slave” in 1:1.

[2:19]  ¹⁰ 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]  ¹¹ tn Grk “for by what someone is overcome, to this he is enslaved.”

[2:16]  ⁹ tn Grk “but he had a rebuke.”

[2:16]  ¹⁰ tn The Greek word ἄφωνος (afwno") means “mute, silent” or “incapable of speech.” For reasons of English style the word “dumb” was used in the translation. Despite the potential for misunderstanding (since “dumb” can refer to a lack of intellectual capability) more dynamic glosses were judged to be inelegant.

[2:16]  ¹¹ tn Grk “a voice of a (man/person).”

[2:16]  ¹² sn Balaam’s activities are detailed in Num 22—24 (see also Num 31:8, 16).

[1:20]  ¹¹ tn Grk “knowing this [to be] foremost.” Τοῦτο πρῶτον (touto prwton) constitute the object and complement of γινώσκοντες (ginwskonte"). The participle is dependent on the main verb in v. 19 (“you do well [if you pay attention]”), probably in a conditional usage. An alternative is to take it imperativally: “Above all, know this.” In this rendering, πρῶτον is functioning adverbially. Only here and 2 Pet 3:3 is τοῦτο πρῶτον found in the NT, making a decision more difficult.

[1:20]  ¹² tn The ὅτι (Joti) clause is appositional (“know this, that”). English usage can use the colon with the same force.

[1:20]  ¹³ tn Verse 20 is variously interpreted. There are three key terms here that help decide both the interpretation and the translation. As well, the relation to v. 21 informs the meaning of this verse. (1) The term “comes about” (γίνεται [ginetai]) is often translated “is a matter” as in “is a matter of one’s own interpretation.” But the progressive force for this verb is far more common. (2) The adjective ἰδίας (idias) has been understood to mean (a) one’s own (i.e., the reader’s own), (b) its own (i.e., the particular prophecy’s own), or (c) the prophet’s own. Catholic scholarship has tended to see the reference to the reader (in the sense that no individual reader can understand scripture, but needs the interpretations handed down by the Church), while older Protestant scholarship has tended to see the reference to the individual passage being prophesied (and hence the Reformation doctrine of analogia fidei [analogy of faith], or scripture interpreting scripture). But neither of these views satisfactorily addresses the relationship of v. 20 to v. 21, nor do they do full justice to the meaning of γίνεται. (3) The meaning of ἐπίλυσις (epilusi") is difficult to determine, since it is a biblical hapax legomenon. Though it is sometimes used in the sense of interpretation in extra-biblical Greek, this is by no means a necessary sense. The basic idea of the word is unfolding, which can either indicate an explanation or a creation. It sometimes has the force of solution or even spell, both of which meanings could easily accommodate a prophetic utterance of some sort. Further, even the meaning explanation or interpretation easily fits a prophetic utterance, for prophets often, if not usually, explained visions and dreams. There is no instance of this word referring to the interpretation of scripture, however, suggesting that if interpretation is the meaning, it is the prophet’s interpretation of his own vision. (4) The γάρ (gar) at the beginning of v. 21 gives the basis for the truth of the proposition in v. 20. The connection that makes the most satisfactory sense is that prophets did not invent their own prophecies (v. 20), for their impulse for prophesying came from God (v. 21).

[1:9]  ¹³ tn Grk “for.” The connection, though causal, is also adversative.

[1:9]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “to the one for whom these things are not present.”

[1:9]  ¹⁵ tn The words “that is to say, he is” are not in Greek. The word order is unusual. One might expect the author to have said “he is nearsighted and blind” (as the NIV has so construed it), but this is not the word order in Greek. Perhaps the author begins with a strong statement followed by a clarification, i.e., that being nearsighted in regard to these virtues is as good as being blind.