2 PETER 2
Survey of the chapter
Having affirmed the genuineness of the word that the apostles believed and taught, the apostle now warns against those who were teaching, and would teach in the future, false doctrine.
Structure of the chapter
| (a) | Verses 1-3 | The conduct of the heretics |
| (b) | Verses 4-9 | The condemnation of the heretics |
| (c) | Verses 10-22 | The character of the heretics |
(a) Verses 1-3
The conduct of the heretics
2:1
But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you- having spoken at the end of chapter 1 of the holy men of God of Old Testament times, the apostle reminds us that there were “also” false prophets, and they were among the people, brazenly and openly spreading their false doctrines. The word “but” indicates that there is a change from holy men to evil men. Note also the change from the mention of prophets to the reference to teachers, for after the apostles had passed on there would be no more true prophets, only true teachers. Anyone claiming to be a prophet of God today is clearly not sent of God, and so must be false in some way.
Who privily shall bring in damnable heresies- the Lord Jesus testified before Caiaphas “I spake openly to the world; I ever taught in the synagogue, and in the temple whither the Jews always resort; and in secret have I said nothing”, John 18:20. And the apostle Paul was able to declare before Festus, “this thing was not done in a corner”, Acts 26:26. It is important that meetings of believers should be open and transparent. Christianity is not a secret society. No underhand methods should be used to promote it.
The heretics, however, because they were not honest men, did not employ honest methods, but sought to infiltrate themselves among the believers and so do their evil work. Those in positions of responsibility amongst the saints should be alert to the danger these heretics pose, for they are wolves, not sparing the flock. The apostle Paul warned the elders of Ephesus that “after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears”, Acts 20:29-31.
The assembly shepherds need to deal with troublemakers firmly and decisively. The false teaching these men brought are labelled by the apostle in a forthright manner as “damnable”, destructive in themselves to the spiritual wellbeing of the saints, but which bring sure destruction on those who teach them, as the apostle will later show.
Even denying the Lord that bought them- we should distinguish between being bought and being redeemed. The word for “bought” means “to do business in the marketplace”. When slaves were to be sold in Roman times, they had a placard placed around their necks declaring their personal details such as age, weight, whether they had tried to run away, or commit suicide, and whether they were strong and healthy or not. If, after he had purchased a slave on the basis of what the placard said, the owner found that the description was wrong, then Roman law allowed the man to return the slave and receive a refund of the money he had paid. So if in the spiritual realm a man professes to be a believer, and is “bought” by Christ, but is found to have not believed in Him after all, then the transaction is null and void, and by their false profession they have denied Christ His rights.
And bring upon themselves swift destruction- they spread destructive heresies, so shall themselves be destroyed. The destruction is swift in the sense that when it comes it will be decisive and without opportunity for defence.
2:2
And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.
And many shall follow their pernicious ways- sadly, error is more attractive to the unbeliever than truth. This is because the scripture describes him as “having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart”, Ephesians 4:18. There is always a close connection between wrong doctrine and wrong practice, and so it is not just the teachings, but the ways that are followed.
By reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of- there is a direct and stark contrast here between pernicious ways and the way of truth that believers follow. Those who claim to be believers yet live as unbelievers do, bring discredit on the truth, and give reason for unbelievers to speak evil of it.
2:3
And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.
And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you- there is laid bare here one of the motivations of false teachers. Not having experience of the free grace of God, and the way in which the Lord Jesus became poor so that we might become rich, they have no desire to be selfless and giving. Rather, they see an opportunity to prey upon the weak, and extract money from them. Having rejected the business transaction of Christ in the marketplace of sin, they set up their own market, and the goods they trade in are the vulnerable souls who are prepared to listen to them and buy their wares. Feigned words are “well-turned” words, fashioned and adapted to deceive, (the word used gives us “plastic”, something easily moulded).
Whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not- this might seem a contradiction, for if something lingers does it not mean it is doing so for a long time? The point is that for a long time God fully intended to judge false teachers, but He did not wait because He was hesitant or uncertain, but because even false teachers are the objects of His longsuffering, and He gives even these opportunity to repent of their evil.
And their damnation slumbereth not- as well as the previous phrase, this is also true, that eventually they will endure damnation, if they do not repent. God lingering does not mean God is sleeping, for He is alert to the situation and waits His good time to act; but act He will.
(b) Verses 4-9
The condemnation of the heretics
2:4
For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;
For if God spared not the angels that sinned- it seems that the angels who rebelled with Lucifer at the beginning are not bound, but are free to do the Devil’s work. These Peter mentions here, however, are in prison. It is likely that they are those he refers to in his first epistle, 1 Peter 3:12,13, for they are in prison, and are particularly associated with the days before the Flood, as Genesis 6 informs us.
But cast them down to hell- the particular word for hell here is Tartarus, the place that the ancients said was reserved for the worst of criminals.
And delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment- we learnt from 1 Peter 3:12 that the spirits who were disobedient before the Flood are imprisoned, and here we are told they are in darkness. As Jude tells us, “And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day”, Jude 6. The fact that they are in everlasting chains indicates that despite the fact that their final judgment has not yet been pronounced, there is no possibility of them being set free.
2:5
And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;
And spared not the old world- the second example of God’s judgement is the Flood of Noah. The Scriptures are very clear that this was a world-wide phenomenon, for the Lord Jesus said, “the flood came and took them all away”, Matthew 24:39. And the apostle will tell us in the next chapter that “the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished”, 2 Peter 3:6. There are scores of other passages that bear testimony to this fact. As our verse will go on to say, it was the world of the ungodly that perished.
But saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness- we are here introduced to a further thought, for not only is the judgement of false teachers certain, but the salvation of true teachers, and those who listen to them, is certain also. Noah was preaching as well as building an ark, and in the midst of the corruption of the pre-flood world he was faithful to God in upholding His righteousness, whether by his personal life or his preaching. Why is he called the eighth person? It was his ancestor Enoch who was the seventh from Adam, Jude 14, so Noah on that reckoning was the tenth. We know that eight persons were saved in the ark, and it seems from this phrase that Noah was the last to enter, perhaps preaching to the end as he walked up the gangplank. He thus symbolised the longsuffering of God even in his last act. The Lord Jesus spoke of the men before the flood, and how indifferent they were to what was coming, and they showed this indifference “until the day that Noah entered into the ark”, Matthew 24:38, so they had opportunity to respond up until the last day.
Bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly- we know from Jude’s quotation of Enoch’s prophecy that the world of Noah’s day was ungodly, for Enoch warned, “Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, to execute judgement upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him”, Jude 14,15. So whilst Enoch was prophesying, and Noah was preaching righteousness, ungodly men were making hard speeches against God. They were the equivalent of the false teachers Peter is warning us about.
Why did he preach righteousness when the world was ungodly? It is because unrighteousness is the root cause of ungodliness, which may be defined as lack of reverence for God. This lack of reverence stems from igonorance of God’s nature. It is only as men are converted, and “put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness”, that they become godly, Ephesians 4:23.
2:6
And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly;
And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow- we are told that even in Abraham’s day “the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners before the Lord exceedingly”, Genesis 13:13. A sign of how wicked they were is seen in that they were judged in Abraham’s time, not in Joshua’s. God said to Abraham that “the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full”, Genesis 15:16, and over four hundred years would elapse before Joshua would begin to conquor Canaan. But the overthrow of Sodom was earlier, showing that “the judgement of God lingereth not”, verse 3. Perhaps the early destruction of Sodom was because of the exceptionally wicked sin of which they were guilty, and which takes its name from the city of Sodom. We should not undestimate the abhorrence of that sin to God, and His anger at it. The word overthrow gives us the English word “catastrophe”, showing how devastating was the judgement on Sodom.
Making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly- by reducing them to ashes God saw to it that the cities of the plain were a visible exhibition of what happens when His principles are flouted. So memorable was the destruction that Isaiah uses it to describe the overthrow of the city of Babylon which is yet in the future, Isaiah 13:19.
2:7
And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked:
And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked- just as the deliverance of Noah’s family is implied in that he was the eighth, so Lot is delivered from Sodom. Significantly, there is no mention of that part of Lot’s family that escaped from Sodom, no doubt because of their subsequent behaviour. Could it be that they were not true believers, but had merely followed their father to avoid the downfall of the city? Significantly, when the angels took hold of the hand of Lot, his wife, and two of his daughters, it is said, “the Lord being merciful unto him”, Genesis 19:16. The Lord was merciful to Lot by not leaving him to live without help after leaving the city.
It has to be said that if we only had the Old Testament record, we might wonder whether Lot was a believer at all. But Peter’s inspired description of him is that he was a just man, and also that the behaviour of the men around him vexed or tormented him, a sure sign that he had a relationship with God.
2:8
(For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)
(For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing- could it be that when Peter describes him as “just Lot”, he is giving him his title as a magistrate in the gate of Sodom, (see Genesis 19:1 and 9), so that if he lived in our day we would address him as “Mr Justice Lot”? And the “seeing and hearing” would refer to him seeing evidence and hearing cases in the law-court. We might doubt the wisdom of taking up such an occupation, but perhaps Lot had good intentions, thinking he could improve the city of Sodom by his work. Alas! he was mistaken. The only one who could do any good as regards Sodom was Abraham, as he stood outside the city and interceded for it. It is the same today, for the only thing that God has for this Sodom-like world is the gospel and the intercessory prayers of God’s people.
Vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;) As cases came before him day after day, and the criminal acts of the accused were rehearsed before him, Lot’s righteous soul was vexed, showing he was not in sympathy with what he was hearing by way of testimony.
2:9
The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished:
The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations- the apostle draws two conclusions from the foregoing. First, that the Lord knows how to deliver His faithful people, whether it be Noah and his family, or Lot.
And to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished- God also knows how to reserve the unjust to the day of judgement, whether it be by imprisoning angels, or consigning the unsaved to hell to await the judgement of the great day. That God knows how to do both is another way of saying that it will be certain to happen.
(c) Verses 10-22
The character of the heretics
2:10
But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities.
But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government- the apostle is chiefly concerned with those unjust persons who are teachers of heresy. They are guilty of teaching error, which always leads to moral decline, and they have no time for authority, setting themselves up as independent authorities. The Lord Jesus warned His followers about false prophets, declaring, “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them”, Matthew 7:15-20.
Presumptuous are they, selfwilled- we should remember that the apostle Paul describes those who depart from the faith as “giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils”, 1 Timothy 41. This explains the apostle Peter’s severe words here for false teachers, for they take character from the devils that motivate them. Like the fallen angels, they are daring and self-willed. Remember the words of Lucifer when he rebelled, “I will…I will…I will…I will…I will”, Isaiah 14:13,14. False teachers have learnt from him.
They are not afraid to speak evil of dignities- no matter how glorious, (the word for dignities is literally “glories”), and honourable the teachers are who oppose them and their errors, they are not afraid to speak evil of them. They think that character assassination furthers their cause, whereas it only serves to show the barrenness of their teachings.
2:11
Whereas angels, which are greater in power and might, bring not railing accusation against them before the Lord.
Whereas angels, which are greater in power and might- so these false teachers are willing, in their arrogance, to do what holy angels refuse to do. They are greater in power and might, so they have the inbuilt power, and the stored up energy to do mighty things.
Bring not railing accusation against them before the Lord- the fact that the angels are greater would show that the dignities are men. Even if the true teachers were slightly astray, the holy angels would not step in, even though they have access to the Lord’s presence, (see Job 1:6; 2:1), for the Holy Spirit will ensure that adjustment is made.
2:12
But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption;
But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed- such is their lack of moral sense, that the apostle compares them to mere animals. He will call them dogs and swine in the last verse of the chapter. He reminds the false teachers that, like the beasts, they are destined for destruction. The beasts are destroyed when they are killed; the false teachers will be destroyed when judgement day comes, and they will go to perdition.
Speak evil of the things that they understand not- they promote false teaching out of ignorance of true teaching. It is not that they have closely scrutinised the truth of Scripture and come to a rational but opposite opinion. The reason they do not understand is because they have not the Spirit of truth dwelling within them, for He it is who guides into truth.
And shall utterly perish in their own corruption- just as men generally shall die in their sins if the reject the truth of the Deity of Christ, John 7:24, so these men in particular shall perish as those personally identified with their own false teachings, and the moral destruction that it inevitably brings.
2:13
And shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time. Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you;
And shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, as they that count it pleasure to riot in the day time- to engage in debauchery and outrageous behaviour shows a very low level of awareness of what is proper, and this illustrates the depths to which false teachers will lead those who believe their teachings. Unrighteousness is at the root of their error, for it is a departure from what is right, as represented by God and His truth, and He will see to it that it is recompensed accordingly.
Spots they are and blemishes, sporting themselves with their own deceivings while they feast with you- such is their lack of conscience, that they think nothing of mingling with the saints in their social gatherings. They are not able to distinguish the difference between truth and error, not being embarrassed by the company of those who hold to the truth. They make no positive contribution to such events, but rather spoil the occasion with their presence and character, as they seek to deceive others, even whilst accepting the hospitality. Believers should be very wary of social events, for they are a fertile breeding ground for error, dissent and gossip.
2:14
Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children:
Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin- as already noticed, evil doctrine always leads to evil practice, for the whole point of a doctrine is that it is a principle upon which a practice is based. In the Old Testament, idolatry was looked on as mental adultery, unfaithfulness to the one true God of Israel. Often, also, physical adultery was associated with it. This was the case in the heathen temples of the apostle’s day, where the priestesses of the temple were no more than harlots, and consorting with them was part of the worship. To have eyes full of adultery is to be looking out for nothing else than an opportunity to sin, and that in the name of false doctrine. The reason why this is the case is the lack of the indwelling Spirit of God. One of His ministries in the hearts of believers is to restrain them from doing things that the flesh would otherwise do, Galatians 5:17. But these have no inner restraint, showing they have not the Spirit within.
Beguiling unstable souls- the apostle Paul encouraged believers to be “rooted and grounded”, Ephesians 3:15, and “rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught”, Colossians 2:7. The secret is in the last phrase, for the doctrines of the faith, taught by those qualified to do so, are the means whereby stability in Divine things is achieved. Unstable souls are liable to be led astray.
An heart they have exercised with covetous practices- they are practiced in the art of purveying their errors, and receiving support for doing so. This has its counterpart today with some so-called evangelists blackmailing their audiences. This is scandalous behaviour, and ought to alert every sensible person, believer or unbeliever, that this is the work of a charlatan, using religion to extract money from people for himself. The apostle Peter had himself come across one of this sort in the person of Simon Magus, Acts 8:18-23. He had no time for him, and condemned him with the words, “Thy money perish with thee”.
Cursed children- this is a reference to what will be said about Baalam in the next two verses. They so act that those who follow their evil teachings are in the end cursed and not blessed. And like Balaam, they themselves will know the judgement of God. There may also be a reference to the thorns and thistles the Lord spoke of in the verses from Matthew quoted above; they were the fruits of the curse that came upon man because Adam and his wife rejected the truth of God, as the false teachers do.
2:15
Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness;
Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray- there must have been some contact with apostolic doctrine for there to be a forsaking of it. Because to follow the truth involves being led aright, to follow error means to be led astray. One of the words for forsake in the Old Testament means to apostasise.
Following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor- coming from Mesopotamia as he did, Balaam would have had access to the history of the children of Israel, Numbers 23:7. He refers to a star arising out of Jacob, an allusion to the fact that the ancient astonomers divided up the night sky into sections, and hence Balaam means that a prominent figure would arise in the part of the sky allotted to Israel, Numbers 24:17. The wise men would have reasoned this out when they saw a star in the sky. It must have first of all been in the Israel-section, for they made their way to Israel’s capital city, Jerusalem, and then were redirected by the star to go to where the young child was, Matthew 2:1,2,9,10. The star did not direct them the way home, lest Herod could also be guided by the star, and follow after them in a rage.
Who loved the wages of unrighteousness- this was Balaam’s downfall, and so it is of many a false teacher, who love not only the praise of men but their financial support. Only the twelve apostles, Barnabas and Paul had the right to expect to be supported by the Lord’s people. All others must work for a living. The apostle is clear, “Or I only, and Barnabas, have we not power to forbear working?” 1 Corinthians 9:6.
2:16
But was rebuked for his iniquity: the dumb ass speaking with man’s voice forbad the madness of the prophet.
But was rebuked for his iniquity- what humiliation for a man supposed to be wise enough to put enchantments on Israel, to be rebuked by an animal, and that animal an ass! See Numbers 22:22-35.
The dumb ass speaking with man’s voice forbad the madness of the prophet- that this was a work of God is seen in the fact that a female ass, (“her” in Numbers 22:23), speaks with a man’s voice. There is no doubt which is the real ass in the story. The apostle has already described false teachers as natural brute beasts, verse 12.
2:17
These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever.
These are wells without water- how disappointing for the weary traveller to find that the well he was hoping to satisfy his thirst at is dry! Such are false teachers, for those who are seeking spiritual help and refreshment will find they disappoint.
Clouds that are carried with a tempest- the clouds that seemed to hold such promise of much-needed rain are swept across the sky before they can drop their life-giving water.
To whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever- in the dark themselves, they have no help to give to the traveller lost in the mists, but find that they are recompensed by God to wander in the mist and darkness for ever.
2:18
For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error.
For when they speak great swelling words of vanity- like the wells and the clouds, they seem to hold out hope of blessing, but the words by which they claim to bring enlightenment are vain and empty of profit for their hearers.
They allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error- should those who were their followers see the error of what they teach, and escape from them, they seek to lure them back with carnal hopes.
2:19
While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.
While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption- they suggest that to escape from their teachings and embrace the truth is to be in bondage. This is often the tactic of false teachers, who represent the doctrines of the Christian faith as being legal and oppressive. Nothing could be further from the truth. Rather, it is those who are in error that are in bondage, as the remainder of the verse shows.
For of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage- the “of whom” indicates that what is bringing into bondage here is a person; in other words, a false teacher who has brought another into man into bondage so that he, in turn, becomes a false teacher. The leading reason why a man is in bondage is because another has some sort of superior power over him. This could only come about because the truth has not been believed, for it is the truth that makes free, John 8:32.
2:20
For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning.
For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ- it is possible to be presented with the truth as to the person of Christ, and to believe it as a system of religion like the Pharisees’ religion, which consisted only of separation from outward pollution. Inward cleansing was not known by these people. They had admired the pure life of Christ and sought to imitate it in their own strength.
They are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning- to be drawn into former things and overcome by them, because of the absence of the indwelling Spirit, is to be in a worst state than originally, because the thought will be that “Christianity does not work”. It will be harder to convince these people after they have had this experience than if they had had no contact with Christian things before.
2:21
For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them.
For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness- this is not a general statement that it is better not to know the truth of God than to know it. The word is about those who were told of the Christian pathway, that it was a righteous pathway, yet they had followed the pathway because they were attracted to it, and not the Saviour. The way appealed to their particular Pharisee-like way of thinking. They were like the elder brother in the story of the prodigal son, have never transgressed his father’s commandment, yet knew nothing of repentance as his younger brother did.
Than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them- the holy commandment would be the command to be holy, as set out in 1 Peter 1:16. Because these particular people were only Christians by profession, they did not have within them the Holy Spirit, who empowers the people of God to live holy lives. Holiness is the outworking of a righteous nature, as the apostle Paul indicated when he wrote, “for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members to righteousness unto holiness…but now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life”, Romans 6:19,20,22. This shows the importance of giving people a clear presentation of the gospel from the outset, emphasising the need of repentance, as well as faith in Christ. Then converts will not be embracing a respectable way of life, but the doctrines of the gospel of Christ.
2:22
But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.
But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb- the word used for proverb means something put alongside a similar thing. A parallel rather than a parable.
The dog is turned to his own vomit again- the apostle does not hesitate to quote this saying, even though it is about a revolting subject, for it comes from the Holy-Spirit-inspired Book of Proverbs, in 26:11. No doubt he is impressing upon his readers the revolting character of evil teaching. He is continuing to refer to those who seemed to have turned to Christ, but now have been lured back into error. When they made a profession of faith, they rejected as distasteful the errors of unbelief. But now they have returned to the very things they claimed to have rejected.
And the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire- the “pollutions of the world”, verse 20, were apparently cleaned off these false professors, but their nature is unchanged, and they return to what polluted them before. The apostle will turn next, with relief, to those readers who are genuine believers, and have “pure minds”, 3:1.