320 But they shall be chiefly punished, who are unclean, &c. SECT. iv. 2 Peter II. 10. SECT. IV. The Apostle describes in very emphatical terms, the infamous charac ter of some ungodly and seducing teachers, who were crept into the Christian church; and warns the Christian converts of the danger of their being perverted by them, and them of the dreadful destruction to which they exposed themselves. 2 Pet. II. 10—22. 2 PETER II. 10. 1 PETER II. 10. that walk after the tuous are they, self I HAVE been just mentioning the Divine ven- BUT chiefly them geance which will be poured out on audaci- flesh in the lust of unous and impenitent sinners; but I would especi- cleanness, and despise ally be understood to intend those who go after government. Presumpstrange flesh, in the lust of uncleanness; for they willed, they are not are particularly detestable in the eye of God, afraid to speak evil of and the crimes they commit so much resemble dignities: that of Sodom, that it is the less to be wondered if they share in its punishment and with them I also comprehend those who despise dominion, of which there are many among the licentious wretches before described, daring and self-willed, uncontroulable in their own ways, and ready to face and withstand any opposition in the prosecution of them; they fear not to speak evil of 11 those who possess the highest dignities; Where 11 Whereas angels as the angels, even those who are greater in which are greater in power and might, strength and power than the rest of those glori- bring not railing acous beings, bear not a reviling testimony against cusation against them them before the Lord; but abhorring all scurri- before the Lord. lity and violence of language, they with all calmness and decency declare matters as they are, as revering the presence of God, how much soever they may abhor the characters of ungod12ly men. (Jude 9.) But these men behave as if they were irrational animals, made by nature be taken, and destroyed, and consumed: the fiercest savage beasts, whom men for their own security and preservation, hunt down and destroy, can hardly be more violent, and outrageous than they; blaspheming things which they do not understand; and the consequence will be 12 But these as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not, and shall a Irrational animals.] Dr. Whitby immediately afterwards spoken of, could would render this, But these are as natural be the resemblance of a brute. It may brute beasts: referring it to their promiscu- refer to their running headlong into exous exercise of lust. And indeed it is evi- treme danger; which this licentious mant, it must be explained as a general ner of speech, especially when attacking tion, relating to some violence of the characters of governors, might very nar; as no sin of the tongue, which is turally expose them to. b De Who account it a pleasure to riot in the day : 321 shall utterly perish in be, that they shall be utterly destroyed in their SECT. their own corruption; corruption; and many of them by their own blemishes, sporting iv. intemperance, rashness, and folly, will hasten 2 Peter 13 And shall receive upon themselves that irretrievable ruin; Receiv- II. 13. teousness, as they that ing indeed the just reward of their unrighteouscount it pleasure to ness, and irregularities; while they account it a riot in the day-time. pleasure to riot in the day: they are spots and reSpots they are and proaches to the society to which they belong, themselves with their living luxuriously in other places, by means of own deceivings, while those deceits, which they conceal under the they feast with you; mask of Christianity, banqueting with you at the 14 Having eyes full holy table. Many of them are as lewd as they 14 of adultery, and that are gluttonous, having eyes full of adultery, and cannot cease from sin? beguiling that cannot cease from sin, even when the powunstable souls. An heart they ers of animal nature are exhausted; but by their have exercised with words and gestures they endeavour to fan the practices; flame; ensnaring unstable souls by their artful addresses, and having their heart continually exercised in avaricious schemes; on all which accounts they are the children of a curse, and they shall find that in the end it will indeed fall heavy upon them. Covetous 15 Which have for and are gone astray, For, deserting the straight and upright way 15 saken the right way, of truth and integrity, they have wandered in following the way of dangerous and destructive paths; following in Balaam the son of Bo- the way of that infamous person Balaam, the sor, who loved the son] of Bosor, who so loved the wages of unwages of unrighteous- righteousness, that he was willing to sacrifice 16 But was rebuked every other interest to obtain them. But he 16 for his iniquity: the received, in a very extraordinary manner the reproof ness: dumb c Living luxuriously, &c.] This is so good and proper a sense, that one is not tempted to wish the establishing of the reading of ayanais for awalais, which some bave proposed, and so explain it of the riot of those pretended love-feasts, into which indeed it is not impossible that luxury might soon come, when persons of such a character were concerned in them; and probably that was the occasion of laying them aside. d Banqueting with you.] It is not to be thought that luxury could be introduced into those feasts, which they celebrated with the church, without detecting their e Having eyes full of adultery: OpIan- f Balaam [the son] of Bosor.] There is one manuscript which reads Beor, and this reading is confirmed by the Syriac version. Mr. Ainsworth and Dr. Lightfoot suppose, that the apostle, in writing Bosor for Beor, used the Chaldee dialect, as he writ in the neighbourhood of Babylon. See Ainsworth on Num. xxii. 5; and Dr. Lightfoot's Addenda to his Hore Hebraicæ, on 1 Cor. xiv. cap. 4. g Swelling 322 iv. Deluding others with vain promises of liberty. with man's voice, for 17 These are wells without water, clouds served for ever. 18 For when they wantonness, SECT. reproof of his transgression; for the dumb beast dumb ass speaking on which he rode, speaking with the voice of a bad the madness of the 2 Peter man, restrained the madness of the prophet, when prophet. 11. 16. he would have pressed on to his own destructi17 on. These, notwithstanding all their boasted pretensions, are fountains without water; they that are carried with a are clouds agitated by a whirlwind, easily yield- tempes, to whom the ing to every wind of persecution or temptation, mist of darkness is reand themselves big with storms and tempests : But after all their turbulence and mischief, they will be found in the number of those to whom is reserved blackness of darkness for ever, even the judgment of eternal darkness and despair. 18 They sometimes indeed affect sublime strains of language, which are often void of any real mean- speak great swelling words of vanity, they ing, and speaking swelling [words] of vanity 8, allure through the lusts they ensnare in the lusts of the flesh, which they of the flesh, through practise and promote in all variety of lascivious- much those that were clean ness, those who were, so far as we can judge by escaped from them their external behaviour, quite escaped from who live in error: them that have their conversation in error, and they draw back into apostacy some, who appeared to have set their faces in good earnest towards the kingdom of heaven; by which means they become partakers in the guilt of that aggravated condemnation and ruin which these deluded and unhappy persons bring upon them19 selves. For promising them liberty, they are so mise them liberty, far from performing their engagements, that they themselves are they are themselves the despicable slaves of cor- the servants of corruption, and have not power and spirit enough ruption: for of whom to extricate themselves out of that infamous the same is he brought bondage; for by whomsoever any one is defeat- in bondage. ed and conquered, by him he is of course also en. slaved; and it is too evident to admit of dispute, that these wretched men are continually conquered by sin. 20 19 White they pro a man is overcome, of And they ought certainly to be reckoned 20 For if after they have escaped the pol among the most miserable of mankind; for if, lutions of the world having escaped the pollutions of the world, by the through the knowknowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, ledge of the Lord they and g Swelling words of vanity.] It is ob- an reading okiyws, which some other copies served, that here, and in many other in some degree imitate, where they do not places, these heretical teachers are re- entirely follow, leaves a strong suspicion presented as seducing their followers, not on my mind, that the apostle might intend by the power of miracles, but by the arts those who had almost escaped. I have of address. therefore taken a medium, and retaining the usual reading in the version, have paraphrased the words in what I apprehend the most natural sense, with some regard to the other copies. h Quite escaped, &c.] The words olwg anopuyoles, which is the received reading, certainly signify, those who were thorough ly or entirely escaped, But the Alexandri i From Reflections on such as disgrace their profession. entangled therein, and 323 iv. and Saviour Jesus they are entangled and subdued by them again, CT. Christ, they are again caught as it were in their nets, and so lying at overcome, the latter their mercy to be wounded and destroyed by end is worse with them them, their last state is certainly much worse II. 20. than the beginning. than the first: have known the way it, to turn from the holy 2 Peter 21 For it had been For it had been better for them not to have 21 better for them not to known the way of righteousness at all, than hav of righteousness, than, ing known [it,] and professed a desire and resoafter they have known lution of walking in it, to have turned aside commandment from the holy commandment delivered to them; delivered unto them. for by this means their guilt is so much the more aggravated; their conduct is the more pernici. ous to others, and consequently to themselves. 22 But it is happened But indeed when the matter comes thoroughly 22 unto them according to the true proverb, The to be considered, it will appear, that under all dog is turned to his own the external appearances of reformation, there vomit again; and, The was still an evil nature and principle remaining, sow that was washed, which at length prevailed; so that it is happened to them according to the true proverb, The dog [is] returned to gorge up his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed from the filthiness she had before contracted, having still the same unclean nature prevailing, is returned to wallow in the mire, and so makes herself as filthy as she had ever been before. (Compare Prov. xxvi. 11.) to her wallowing in the mire. IMPROVEMENT. It is indeed matter of grievous lamentation, that such wretches Ver. as those who are here described, should be any-where found in 13 the christian church. Let us be the less surprised, if any such spots and blemishes are discovered among us, on whom the ends of the world are come; but let the licentious character, here drawn, be noted with a just abhorrence, that if any such persons are found, they may with becoming indignation be put away. Many there are who seem to be as irrational and ravenous as brute beasts, and 12 are far more pernicious to society than the race of savage or poisonous animals. They are indeed children of a curse, and they 14 will inherit the curse, who thus contrive to make their lives one scene of iniquity, whose eyes, and lips, declare more wickedness in their hearts than they have power to execute. But it should 324 iv. St. Peter writes with the same view he did before: SECT. be remembered, they are accountable to God, not only for all they do, but for all they desire and wish to do; and they are inVer. cessantly aggravating that terrible account. These disciples of 15 16 Balaam will surely receive his reward; those dark clouds will 17 quickly, if they continue thus to obscure with their crimes the horizon in which they ought to shine as stars, be doomed to blackness of darkness for ever. May persons of such a character, how specious soever the form which they wear, be universally detect18 ed and disgraced; may none of their swelling words of vanity entice and ensnare those who appear just escaping from the delusions of error and the fetters of vice; and may none permit themselves to be seduced by promises of liberty, from such mean and miser19 able slaves of corruption. Finally, let us learn, by the awful conclusion of this chapter, to guard against all temptations to apostacy; may we never, after 20 having long escaped the pollutions of the world, be entangled again, 21 and overcome by them. Better, far better, would it have been for us, not to have known the way of righteousness, than, having known it, to turn away from the holy commandment: our last end, in this case, would be worse than the beginning; and those expressive similes, taken from such loathsome and detestable animals, would not be sufficient to paint out the degree, in which we should ourselves be loathsome and odious, in the sight of that God, who is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity, and cannot look upon evil, (Habak. i. 13). May we therefore, with the righteous, 2 hold on our way; and taking care to preserve the cleanness of our hands and hearts, may we daily wax stronger and stronger, (Job xvii. 9,) and shine with an increasing lustre; for the path of the just should be as the shining light, that shineth more and more unta the perfect day. (Prov, iv. 18.) SECT. V. 2 Peter 111. 1. SECT. V. That they might be effectually guarded against the artifices of those who scoff at religion, or lie in wait to deceive, the apostle directs them to adhere closely and steadily to the holy scriptures; and represents to them the absolute certainty, and awful manner, of the destruction of this world; concluding with several weighty and pertinent exhortations. 2 Pet. III. throughout. 2 PETER III. 1. 2 PETER III. 1. THIS second epistle I now write to you, my THIS second epistle, dearly beloved brethren, with the same pur a This second epistle.] Archbishop Tillotson seems to think, this last chapter to pose beloved, I now write unto be a distinct epistle by itself. See his Works, Vol. II. p. 718. Grotius imagines that |