2 Peter 3:17 - meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
2 Peter 3:17
Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.
pertaining to self · adjective — genitive singular masculine
stedfastness
στηριγμόςstērigmós
G4740
stability (figuratively)
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Colossians 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not afte…
Hebrews 3:14 For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end;
2 Corinthians 11:13-15 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
1 Corinthians 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour…
1 Corinthians 10:12 Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.
Ephesians 4:14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning…
Matthew 7:15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
2 Peter 2:18-22 For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were cle…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on 2 Peter 3:11–end
The apostle, having instructed them in the doctrine of Christ's second coming,
I. Takes occasion thence to exhort them to purity and godliness in their whole conversation: all the truths which are revealed in scripture should be improved for our advancement in practical godliness: this is the effect that knowledge must produce, or we are never the better for it. If you know these things, happy are you if you do them. Seeing all these things must be dissolved, how holy should we be, that are assured of it, departing from and dying to sin, that has so corrupted and defiled all the visible creation that there is an absolute need of its dissolution! All that was made for man's use is subject to…
Ye--warned by the case of those "unlearned and unstable" persons (Pe2 3:16).
knowing . . . before--the event.
led away with--the very term, as Peter remembers, used by Paul of Barnabas' being "carried," Greek, "led away with" Peter and the other Jews in their hypocrisy.
wicked--"lawless," as in Pe2 2:7.
fall from--(grace, Gal 5:4 : the true source of) "steadfastness" or stability in contrast with the "unstable" (Pe2 3:16): "established" (Pe2 1:12): all kindred Greek terms. Compare Jde 1:20-21.
Adam Clarke on 2 Peter 3:17
Seeing ye know - before - Seeing that by prophets and apostles you have been thus forewarned, beware, φυλασσεσθε, keep watch, be on your guard; cleave to God and the word of his grace, lest ye be led away from the truth delivered by the prophets and apostles, by the error of the wicked, αθεσμων, of the lawless - those who wrest the Scriptures to make them countenance their lusts, exorbitant exactions, and lawless practices.
Fall from your own steadfastness - From that faith in Christ which has put you in possession of that grace which establishes the heart.
John Gill on 2 Peter 3:17
Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before,.... As that there will be such mockers and scoffers in the last days, and such unlearned and unstable men that will deprave the Scriptures, and wrest them in such a miserable manner:
beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked; from the simplicity of the Gospel, along with such wicked men, that wax worse and worse, deceivers and being deceived, by giving into any of their errors which respect the grace of God, or the person and offices of Christ, or particularly his second coming; be upon the watch and guard against them, having previous notice of them, for they lie in wait to deceive: lest ye
fall from your ow…
The Church Fathers
You therefore, brothers, being forewarned, be on guard, etc. Being forewarned, because foolish ones will introduce various errors, some denying the future judgment, some falsifying divine words, some interpreting wrongly, some loosening the restraints of luxury, others deceiving the hearts of the wretched with other fraudulent deceptions, be on guard, lest by any cunning of deceivers you might fall from the firmness of your faith.
Therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, take care that you are not led astray by the error of the wicked and fall from your own commitment, but grow in grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen. Truly, he calls faith in the Lord its own commitment. And just as he concludes in his other Epistle with prayer, so in this one, he prays for an increase in faith in the Lord for them.
Peter has to warn his people so that they will not be deceived. Our Lord Jesus Christ himself warned us for our safety, that we should "beware of those who come to us in sheep's clothing, but inside they are ravenous wolves." And again: "Take care that you are not deceived. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am the Christ, and they will deceive many." And Paul cries: "Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers claiming to believe in the Lord Jesus." For those who deform the truth by their doctrines of ungodliness and works of evil are like those who killed the prophets and apostles. Indeed, they are worse, because they have killed not only the living but those who have been saved as well.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Alliance And Society With The Enemies Of God · Are ruinous to spiritual interest — Are ruinous to spiritual interest
Apostasy · General references — General references
Apostates · Cautions against becoming — Cautions against becoming
Heedfulness · Necessary: Against false teachers — Necessary: Against false teachers
Perseverance · 1:10,22,23;2:7; — 1:10,22,23;2:7;
Temptation · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Watchfulness · 4:2,17; — 4:2,17;
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
2 Peter 3:14-18
14. Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.
14. Quare, dilecti, quum Haec expectetis, studete incontaminati et irreprehensibiles ab eo inyeniri in pace:
15. And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;
15. Et Domini nostri tolerantiam salutem existimate, quemadmodum et dilectus frater noster Paulus, secundum datam sibi sapientiam scripsit vobis;
16. As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, whic…
Peter restates his purpose: to protect his readers from false teachers so that they can grow in grace. He ends with a doxology to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
