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.
This, dear friends, is my second letter to you. In both of them I have tried, by appealing to your remembrance, to arouse your better feelings.
2 Remember the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets, and what the Lord and Savior commanded through your apostles.
I want you to recall what was foretold by the holy prophets, as well as the command of our Lord and Saviour given to you through your apostles.
3 Above all you should know that derisive people will come in the last days, full of mockery and following their own evil desires.
First be assured of this, that, as the age draws to an end, scoffers, led by their own passions,
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.”
will come and ask scoffingly – “Where is his promised coming? Ever since our ancestors passed to their rest, everything remains just as it was when the world was first created!”
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.
For they wilfully shut their eyes to the fact that long ago the heavens existed; and the earth, also – formed out of water and by the action of water, by the fiat of God;
6 It was through water that the world that then existed was destroyed—through being flooded by water.
and that by the same means the world which then existed was destroyed in a deluge of water.
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.
But the present heavens and earth, by the same fiat, have been reserved for fire, and are being kept for the day of the judgment and destruction of the godless.
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.
But you, dear friends, must never shut your eyes to the fact that, to the Lord, one day is the same as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
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.
The Lord is not slow to fulfil his promise, as some count slowness; but he is forbearing with you, as it is not his will that any of you should perish, but that all should be brought to repentance.
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.
The day of the Lord will come like a thief; and on that day the heavens will pass away with a crash, the elements will be burnt up and dissolved, and the earth and all that is in it will be disclosed.
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,
Now, since all these things are in the process of dissolution, think what you yourselves ought to be – what holy and pious lives you ought to lead,
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.
while you wait for the coming of the day of God and strive to make it come soon. At its coming the heavens will be dissolved in fire, and the elements melted by heat,
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.
but we look for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness will have its home, in fulfilment of the promise of God.
14 So, my friends, since you're anticipating these things, make sure you'll be found pure and blameless, and at peace with God.
Therefore, dear friends, in expectation of these things, make every effort to be found by him spotless, blameless, and at peace.
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.
Regard our Lord’s forbearance as your one hope of salvation. This is what our dear friend Paul wrote to you, with the wisdom that God gave him.
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.
It is the same in all his letters, when he speaks in them about these subjects. There are some things in them difficult to understand, which untaught and weak people distort, just as they do all other writings, to their own ruin.
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.
You must, therefore, dear friends, now that you know this beforehand, be on your guard against being led away by the errors of reckless people, and so lapsing from your present steadfastness;
The World is Destroyed by Water
