2 Peter 3
3
The Lord's return is certain
1My dear friends, this is the second letter I have written to encourage you to do some honest thinking. I don't want you to forget 2what God's prophets said would happen. You must never forget what the holy prophets taught in the past. And you must remember what the apostles told you our Lord and Saviour has commanded us to do.
3But first you must realize that in the last days some people won't think about anything except their own selfish desires. They will make fun of you#Jd 18. 4and say, “Didn't your Lord promise to come back? Yet the first leaders have already died, and the world hasn't changed a bit.”
5They will say this because they want to forget that long ago the heavens and the earth were made at God's command. The earth came out of water and was made from water.#Gn 1.6-9. 6Later it was destroyed by the waters of a mighty flood.#Gn 7.11. 7But God has commanded the present heavens and earth to remain until the day of judgment. Then they will be set on fire, and ungodly people will be destroyed.
8Dear friends, don't forget that for the Lord one day is the same as a thousand years, and a thousand years is the same as one day.#Ps 90.4. 9The Lord isn't slow about keeping his promises, as some people think he is. In fact, God is patient, because he wants everyone to turn from sin and no one to be lost.
10The day of the Lord's return will surprise us like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a loud noise, and the heat will melt the whole universe.#3.10 the whole universe: Probably the sun, moon, and stars, or the elements that everything in the universe is made of. Then the earth and everything on it will be seen for what they are.#3.10 will be seen for what they are: Some manuscripts have “will go up in flames.”#Mt 24.43; Lk 12.39; 1 Th 5.2; Rev 16.15.
11Everything will be destroyed. So you should serve and honour God by the way you live. 12You should look forward to the day when God judges everyone, and you should try to make it come soon.#3.12 and you should try to make it come soon: Or “and you should eagerly desire for that day to come.” On that day the heavens will be destroyed by fire, and everything else will melt in the heat. 13But God has promised us a new heaven and a new earth, where justice will rule. We are really looking forward to that!#Is 65.17; 66.22; Rev 21.1.
14My friends, while you are waiting, you should make certain that the Lord finds you pure, spotless, and living at peace. 15Don't forget that the Lord is patient because he wants people to be saved. This is also what our dear friend Paul said when he wrote to you with the wisdom that God had given him. 16Paul talks about these same things in all his letters, but part of what he says is hard to understand. Some ignorant and unsteady people even destroy themselves by twisting what he said. They do the same thing with other Scriptures too.
17My dear friends, you have been warned beforehand! So don't let the errors of evil people lead you down the wrong path and make you lose your balance. 18Let the wonderful kindness and the understanding that come from our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ help you to keep on growing. Praise Jesus now and for ever! Amen.#3.18 Amen: Some manuscripts do not have “Amen.”
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© British and Foreign Bible Society 2012
2 Peter 3
3
Jesus Will Come Again
1My friends, this is the second letter I have written to you. I wrote both letters to you to help your honest minds remember something. 2I want you to remember the words that the holy prophets spoke in the past. And remember the command that our Lord and Savior gave us. He gave us that command through your apostles.
3It is important for you to understand what will happen in the last days. People will laugh at you. They will live following the evil they want to do. 4They will say, “Jesus promised to come again. Where is he? Our fathers have died, but the world continues the way it has been since it was made.”
5But these people don’t want to remember what happened long ago. The skies were there, and God made the earth from water and with water. All this happened by God’s word. 6Then the world was flooded and destroyed with water. 7And that same word of God is keeping the skies and the earth that we have now. They are being kept to be destroyed by fire. They are kept for the day of judgment and the destruction of all people who are against God.
8But don’t forget this one thing, dear friends: To the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years is like a day. 9The Lord is not being slow in doing what he promised—the way some people understand slowness. But God is being patient with you. He doesn’t want anyone to be lost. He wants everyone to change their ways and stop sinning.
10But the day when the Lord comes again will surprise everyone like the coming of a thief. The sky will disappear with a loud noise. Everything in the sky will be destroyed with fire. And the earth and everything in it will be burned up.#3:10 will be burned up Among the other readings of this text in early Greek copies, many have “will be found,” and one has “will disappear.” 11Everything will be destroyed in this way. So what kind of people should you be? Your lives should be holy and devoted to God. 12You should be looking forward to the day of God, wanting more than anything else for it to come soon. When it comes, the sky will be destroyed with fire, and everything in the sky will melt with heat. 13But God made a promise to us. And we are waiting for what he promised—a new sky and a new earth. That will be the place where goodness lives.
14Dear friends, we are waiting for this to happen. So try as hard as you can to be without sin and without fault. Try to be at peace with God. 15Remember that we are saved because our Lord is patient. Our dear brother Paul told you that same thing when he wrote to you with the wisdom that God gave him. 16That’s what he says in all his letters when he writes about these things. There are parts of his letters that are hard to understand, and some people give a wrong meaning to them. These people are ignorant and weak in faith. They also give wrong meanings to the other Scriptures. But they are destroying themselves by doing that.
17Dear friends, you already know about this. So be careful. Don’t let these evil people lead you away by the wrong they do. Be careful that you do not fall from your strong faith. 18But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Glory be to him, now and forever! Amen.
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© 1987, 2004 Bible League International