3 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 prophetsa spoke in the past. And remember the command that our Lord and Savior gave us. He gave us that command through your apostlesb.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 upc. 11Everything will be destroyed in this way. So what kind of people should you be? Your lives should be holyd 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 Scripturese. 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 gracef and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Gloryg be to him, now and forever! Amenh. aprophet A person who speaks a message from God. Many of the books in the Old Testament are messages spoken or written by “the prophets,” who were some of those God chose to speak for him. God often used dreams or visions to tell or show his prophets what they should say. bapostle A follower of Jesus chosen to represent him in a special way. During his earthly ministry, Jesus named twelve men as apostles. They had the specific responsibility and authority to represent him and proclaim his message throughout the world. Later, he appeared to Paul and gave him a similar commission, especially to non-Jewish people. Barnabas, Paul’s missionary companion, and James, the brother of Jesus, are also called apostles, as well as several others in the New Testament. Some of these occurrences of the word, however, have the more general sense of “messenger” or “representative.” c3:10 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.” dholy When referring to people or things, holy means set apart or chosen for a special use; especially, belonging to God or used only for him. It can also mean pure or perfect, worthy of God and fit for his service. When God is called holy, in addition to the idea of pure and perfect, it often means he is completely separate or different from and above everything else that exists. In the New Testament God’s people are holy because they have been made perfect and pure through Christ and, with the help of the Holy Spirit, keep themselves away from sin and live only for God. eScripture Part of the Scriptures or “Holy Writings” - the Old Testament. fgrace The love and kindness that God shows in his complete willingness to give people favors he does not owe them and blessings they don’t deserve. gglory A word that refers to the special qualities of God. Often it means brightness, referring to the way he appears to people. Sometimes it means majesty or power, referring to a kind of greatness that cannot be compared to anything in human experience. It can also include the ideas of wealth, honor, fame, or respect, especially in expressions of praise. hAmen A Hebrew word meaning “That’s right,” “True,” or “Yes.” It is used to express strong agreement with what has been said. |