2 Peter 3
1 My friends, this is my second letter to you. In both of them I've tried to stir you up and remind you to think clearly with pure minds.
朋友们，这是我写给你们的第二封信。在这两封信中，我都在试图激发你们，提醒你们用纯净的思想进行清晰的思考。
2 Remember the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets, and what the Lord and Savior commanded through your apostles.
记住以往圣先知们说的话，以及主和救世主通过你们的使徒做出的嘱咐。
3 Above all you should know that derisive people will come in the last days, full of mockery and following their own evil desires.
首先应该要知道：在末世必有讥讽之人，他们充满嘲讽之心，追随自己的邪恶欲望。
4 “So what happened to this coming he promised?” they ask. “Right from the time our ancestors died, everything's continued as it always has, ever since creation began.”
“那么他要降临的承诺哪去了？”他们问。“从我们祖先去世的那一刻，一切都像从创世之日开始往常一样继续。”
5 But they deliberately ignore the fact that by God's command the heavens were created long ago. The earth came into existence from the water, and was surrounded by water.
但是他们故意忽略一个事实：天空是上帝下令在很久以前创造的。大地诞生于水，被水包围。
6 It was through water that the world that then existed was destroyed—through being flooded by water.
水摧毁了当时存在的世界，那个世界被水淹没。
7 But by means of that same divine command the heavens and the earth that now exist are reserved for destruction by fire at the day of judgment when the wicked will be destroyed.
但是通过同样的神圣命令，眼前存在的天地被保留下来，留待审判之日被火毁灭，那时恶人也会被毁灭。
8 However, my friends, don't forget this one thing: that for the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years is like a day.
但我的朋友们，别忘记：对主而言一天就像一千年，一千年就像一天。
9 The Lord is not delaying the fulfillment of his promise, as some define delay, but he is being very patient with you. He doesn't want anyone to be lost, but everyone to come and repent.
主并没有像某些人以为的那样，将其承诺拖后，而是对你们非常耐心。他不希望任何人迷失，而是希望每个人都过来，都悔改。
10 However, the day of the Lord will come, unexpectedly like a thief. The heavens will explode with a thunderous roar, and the elements will be destroyed as they are burned up. The earth and everything in it will vanish.
但主的日子终将到来，就像盗贼一样出乎意料。天堂将在雷鸣般的轰鸣中爆炸，所有元素将被焚烧和毁灭。地球和大地上的一切都将消失。
11 Since everything is going to be destroyed in this way, what kind of people should you be? You should be living lives that are pure, dedicated to God,
既然一切都将如此毁灭，你应该是哪种人？你应该过着纯洁的生活，献身于上帝，
12 waiting expectantly and being eager for the coming of the day of God. That day the heavens will catch fire and be destroyed, and the elements will melt in the heat.
期待并渴望上帝之日的到来。在那一天，天空会燃起大火并被毁灭，所有元素都会在高温中融化。
13 But as for us, we are looking for new heavens and a new earth that God has promised where everything is good and right.
但对我们而言，我们正在寻找上帝所承诺新天和新地，那里的一切都如此良善正直。
14 So, my friends, since you're anticipating these things, make sure you'll be found pure and blameless, and at peace with God.
所以我的朋友们，既然你已经预料到这一切，请确保在看到你时，你是纯洁而无可指责的，与上帝和平相处。
15 Remember that it is our Lord's patience that gives the opportunity for salvation. That's what our dear brother Paul was explaining to you in all his letters with the wisdom given to him by God.
请记住，是我们主的耐心给了我们救赎的机会。我们亲爱的兄弟保罗在他所有的书信中，曾用上帝赐予他的智慧向你解释了这一切。
16 He spoke about these things, though some of what he wrote is certainly hard to understand. Some ignorant and unbalanced people have twisted what he wrote to their own loss—just as they do other scriptures.
他谈到了这些事情，尽管他所写的部分内容肯定很难理解。一些无知和不平衡之人歪曲他所写的内容，这让他们自己蒙受损失，正如他们歪曲其他经文。
17 My friends, since you already know this, make sure that these errors of the wicked don't lead you astray, and you don't fall from your firm position.
我的朋友们，既然你们已经知道了这些，就不要让恶人的错误引你们误入歧途，不要从自己牢固的位置上跌落。
The Great Flood
