New Living Translation | International Standard Version |
1This is my second letter to you, dear friends, and in both of them I have tried to stimulate your wholesome thinking and refresh your memory. | 1Dear friends, this is now the second of two letters I am writing to you, in which I have been trying to stimulate your pure minds by reminding you |
2I want you to remember what the holy prophets said long ago and what our Lord and Savior commanded through your apostles. | 2to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the commandment of our Lord and Savior spoken through your apostles. |
3Most importantly, I want to remind you that in the last days scoffers will come, mocking the truth and following their own desires. | 3First of all you must understand this: In the last days mockers will come and, following their own desires, will ridicule us |
4They will say, “What happened to the promise that Jesus is coming again? From before the times of our ancestors, everything has remained the same since the world was first created.” | 4by saying, "What happened to the Messiah's promise to return? Ever since our ancestors died, everything continues as it did from the beginning of creation." |
5They deliberately forget that God made the heavens long ago by the word of his command, and he brought the earth out from the water and surrounded it with water. | 5But they deliberately ignore the fact that long ago the heavens existed and the earth was formed by God's word out of water and with water, |
6Then he used the water to destroy the ancient world with a mighty flood. | 6by which the world at that time was deluged with water and destroyed. |
7And by the same word, the present heavens and earth have been stored up for fire. They are being kept for the day of judgment, when ungodly people will be destroyed. | 7Now by that same word, the present heavens and earth have been reserved for fire and are being kept for the day when ungodly people will be judged and destroyed. |
8But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. | 8Don't forget this fact, dear friends: With the Lord a single day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a single day. |
9The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent. | 9The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some people understand slowness, but is being patient with you. He does not want anyone to perish, but wants everyone to repent. |
10But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and the very elements themselves will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be found to deserve judgment. | 10But the Day of the Lord will come like a thief. On that day the heavens will disappear with a roaring sound, the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done on it will be exposed. |
11Since everything around us is going to be destroyed like this, what holy and godly lives you should live, | 11Since everything will be destroyed in this way, think of the kind of holy and godly people you ought to be |
12looking forward to the day of God and hurrying it along. On that day, he will set the heavens on fire, and the elements will melt away in the flames. | 12as you look forward to and hasten the coming of the day of God, when the heavens will be set ablaze and dissolved and the elements will melt with fire. |
13But we are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth he has promised, a world filled with God’s righteousness. | 13But in keeping with his promise, we are looking forward to new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness is at home. |
14And so, dear friends, while you are waiting for these things to happen, make every effort to be found living peaceful lives that are pure and blameless in his sight. | 14So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to have the Lord find you at peace and without spot or fault. |
15And remember, our Lord’s patience gives people time to be saved. This is what our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him— | 15Think of our Lord's patience as facilitating salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him. |
16speaking of these things in all of his letters. Some of his comments are hard to understand, and those who are ignorant and unstable have twisted his letters to mean something quite different, just as they do with other parts of Scripture. And this will result in their destruction. Peter’s Final Words | 16He speaks about this subject in all his letters. Some things in them are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, leading to their own destruction, as they do the rest of the Scriptures. |
17You already know these things, dear friends. So be on guard; then you will not be carried away by the errors of these wicked people and lose your own secure footing. | 17And so, dear friends, since you already know these things, continuously be on your guard not to be carried away by the deception of lawless people. Otherwise, you may fall from your secure position. |
18Rather, you must grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. All glory to him, both now and forever! Amen. | 18Instead, continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus, the Messiah. Glory belongs to him both now and on that eternal day! Amen. |
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. | The Holy Bible: International Standard Version® Release 2.1 Copyright © 1996-2012 The ISV Foundation ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. |
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