1 |
Simon
Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have
obtained
like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our
Saviour
Jesus Christ: 2Grace and peace be multiplied unto you
through the
knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord, 3According as his
divine
power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and
godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory
and
virtue: 4Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and
precious
promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature,
having
escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. 5And
beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to
virtue
knowledge; 6And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance
patience;
and to patience godliness; 7And to godliness brotherly
kindness; and
to brotherly kindness charity. 8For if these things be in
you, and
abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren
nor
unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9But
he that
lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath
forgotten that
he was purged from his old sins. 10Wherefore the rather,
brethren,
give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do
these
things, ye shall never fall: 11For so an entrance shall be
ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord
and
Saviour Jesus Christ.
12Wherefore
I will not be negligent to put you always in
remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be
established in
the present truth. 13Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am
in this
tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance; 14Knowing
that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our
Lord Jesus
Christ hath shewed me. 15Moreover I will endeavour that ye
may be
able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance. 16For
we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto
you the
power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his
majesty. 17For he received from God the Father honour and
glory,
when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is
my
beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. 18And this voice
which came
from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount. 19We
have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye
take heed,
as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and
the day
star arise in your hearts: 20Knowing this first, that no
prophecy of
the scripture is of any private interpretation. 21For the
prophecy
came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as
they
were moved by the Holy Spirit.
2 |
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.
2And
many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of
truth
shall be evil spoken of. 3And through covetousness shall
they with
feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long
time
lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not. 4For if
God
spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to #hell,
and
delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto
judgment; 5And
spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a
preacher
of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly; 6And
turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them
with
an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after
should live
ungodly; 7And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy
conversation
of the wicked: 8For that righteous man dwelling among them,
in seeing
and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their
unlawful deeds; 9The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly
out of
temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be
punished:
10But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of
uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they,
selfwilled,
they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities. 11Whereas
angels,
which are greater in power and might, bring not railing accusation
against them
before the Lord. 12But these, as natural brute beasts, made
to be
taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not;
and
shall utterly perish in their own corruption; 13And shall
receive
the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure
to riot in
the daytime. Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves
with
their own deceivings while they feast with you; 14Having
eyes full
of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls:
an heart
they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children: 15Which
have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of
Balaam the
son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; 16But
was
rebuked for his iniquity: the dumb ass speaking with man’s voice forbad
the madness
of the prophet. 17These are wells without water, clouds
that are
carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for
ever. 18For
when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure
through the
lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were
clean
escaped from them who live in error. 19While they promise
them
liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a
man is
overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage. 20For if
after they
have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the
Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome,
the
latter end is worse with them than the beginning. 21For it
had been
better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after
they
have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto
them. 22But
it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is
turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her
wallowing in
the mire.
3 |
This
second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I
stir up
your pure minds by way of remembrance: 2That ye may be
mindful of
the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the
commandment
of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour: 3Knowing this
first,
that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their
own lusts,
4And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since
the
fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the
beginning
of the creation. 5For this they willingly are ignorant of,
that by
the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of
the
water and in the water: 6Whereby the world that then was,
being
overflowed with water, perished: 7But the heavens and the
earth,
which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire
against
the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. 8But,
beloved, be
not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord
as a
thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9The Lord
is not
slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is
longsuffering
to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should
come to
repentance. 10But the day of the Lord will come as a thief
in the
night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and
the
elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works
that are
therein shall be burned up. 11Seeing then that
all
these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought
ye to be
in all holy conversation and godliness, 12Looking
for and
hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on
fire
shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? 13Nevertheless
we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth,
wherein
dwelleth righteousness. 14Wherefore, beloved, seeing that
ye look
for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace,
without
spot, and blameless. 15And account that the
longsuffering of
our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also
according
to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; 16As
also in all
his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are
some things
hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable
wrest, as they
do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction. 17Ye
therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware
lest ye
also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own
stedfastness.
18But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our
Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. [Amin
AM.C->32].