返回Chapter 2
Chapter 2
Chapter Two
2 Pet. 2:1. There were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies and, denying the Lord who bought them, will bring upon themselves swift destruction.
2 Pet. 2:2. And many will follow their debauchery, and through them the way of truth will be blasphemed.
2 Pet. 2:3. And out of covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words;
By false teachers the apostle means the like-minded followers of Nicolaus and Cerinthus, and by the name of prophecy, commonly attributed to both prophets and false teachers, he warns the faithful not to heed false prophets. What the difference is between the one and the other, Paul taught when he said that no one calls Jesus Lord "except by the Holy Spirit" (1 Cor. 12:3). Then he begins to expose the heresy of the Nicolaitans, saying that they are doubly wicked. For in doctrine they are extremely impious, since they blaspheme the Master Christ; in life they are utterly depraved, which he now expresses by mentioning their "debauchery," and a little further on he will explain even more. By the word "covetousness" he shows that they acquire gain in a shameful manner. For covetousness sometimes means injustice, and sometimes the baseness of acquisition in general. That is why the word "exploit" is fittingly used. To show that they are completely foreign to divine teaching, he says that they use flattering words. But, he says, they will receive what is due for their impiety, namely death.
2 Pet. 2:3. The judgment against them has long been prepared, and their destruction does not slumber.
2 Pet. 2:4. For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but, binding them with chains of hellish darkness, delivered them to be kept for judgment unto punishment;
2 Pet. 2:5. And if He did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly;
2 Pet. 2:6. and if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction, reducing them to ashes, having set them as an example to those who would live ungodly thereafter,
2 Pet. 2:7. He delivered righteous Lot, who was distressed by the conduct of those living in outrageous licentiousness.
2 Pet. 2:8. (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, was tormented in his righteous soul day after day, seeing and hearing their lawless deeds) –
2 Pet. 2:9. The Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation, and to reserve the unrighteous unto the day of judgment to be punished.
The phrase "long ago prepared" signifies God's foreknowledge. For God by foreknowledge prepared good things for the good, and likewise for the wicked the place proper to them. For judgment has long been prepared. Not without reason does the apostle begin with believers, who are more honorable, but he wishes to show that they are liable to greater condemnation for their sins. They have the advantage of being the first called to apostleship. Therefore, for going astray from the right path they will also be subject to greater condemnation. Having intentionally presented proof through examples, he did not draw a conclusion of one kind only, but joined together both the example and the rewards of the righteous. And he would have needed to draw a conclusion about what was proposed above, that is, about the sinners on whose account the example was presented, and to say: if He did not spare those, will He then spare the present impious ones? Or affirmatively: all the more will He not spare these. But the apostle does not do this. Why? Because the conclusion reveals itself when two examples have been presented, of good and of evil. What pertains to evil alone does not yet pertain to good. For good is not repaid with evil. Therefore, since it was not sufficient to end the proposition with one conclusion alone, he employed a different expression and finished what was needed with an exclamation. But why does he append examples of good people to examples of wicked ones? We shall speak of this in the appropriate place. As we said above, by the form of clear speech, the thought does not follow from the propositions, for no conclusion has been added such as usually follows after such a construction, but it is simply proved by example that for sins there is punishment, and for righteousness there is reward. The apostle speaks as if to say: God knows how to inevitably punish without mercy those living in sins, as He punished the angels who sinned, the antediluvian people, and the cities of Sodom. He knows how to reward also those who practice righteousness, as He rewarded Noah and Lot. The course of the discourse is as follows: it is said that the false teachers will be punished for their blasphemies and for their dissolute life; examples are presented: God did not spare the angels who sinned, nor did He spare the first world. Then those who struggled in righteousness are mentioned, and it is said that God preserved both Noah and Lot, on account of their chastity, from the destruction of the people of their time. For Noah was not carried away by the impiety of the antediluvian people, and Lot in no way imitated the debauchery of the inhabitants of Sodom, and when they demanded the Angels received by him in the form of men as strangers for impure purposes, he did not hand them over, although he endured very many insults from the crowd pressing upon him. This is what is indicated by the word "distressed" (2 Pet. 2:7). And concerning Lot this is also said: "the Lord knows how to deliver the godly from temptation" (2 Pet. 2:9), and so forth. Above, the apostle said nothing about the righteous; he spoke only about the impious and their punishment, and mentioned the righteous only in the examples. This was, first, in order to recount the history of the destruction of the impious and the salvation of the righteous; second, in order that through their juxtaposition he might set forth the terrible malice of sinners and the bright perfections of the virtuous; and finally, in order to persuade his listeners to hate the impiety of the former on account of the punishments for it, and to love the virtue of the latter on account of its saving power.
2 Pet. 2:10. And especially those who walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise authority. Presumptuous, self-willed, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries.
Now from the above-cited examples the apostle skillfully transitioned to the main subject. He speaks of the accursed Nicolaitans, Naassenes, and Cerdonians; for their wickedness has many names and is considered together, as similar in foul deeds and designations. They represented the first principles of the world's existence as the Abyss and Silence, and some of these principles they strangely called mothers and ages (αἰώνας); from these same sources Marcion also took his evil seeds. Then, having rejected the Lord's participation in the creation of the world and in providence, they fearlessly gave themselves over to every fleshly impurity. Whoever wishes to learn about this more fully, let him take in hand the book of Irenaeus of the Celts, composed about them and inscribed "Against the Falsely-Named Knowledge"; in it are described their sins, especially those of the most debauched Marcus and the women corrupted by him, and the remaining abominations committed by the rest, which, because of their harmfulness, no one could set forth in writing or even recall. It is not surprising that those who despise and do not fear dominion will fearlessly conduct themselves before every glory as well. The holy apostle Jude Thaddaeus will speak more clearly about this when he mentions the body of Moses as well. But Peter only hinted at this, touched upon it, and ended his discourse. Yet having received the occasion from him, we speak also about what lies before us.
2 Pet. 2:11. whereas even Angels, though superior to them in strength and power, do not bring a reviling judgment against them before the Lord.
Wishing to restrain them from such audacity, he says: whereas even angels, who surpass them in might and power, do not pronounce against them a reviling judgment before the Lord. The Apostle, as we have noted, says one and the same thing as the Apostle Jude; for he too, restraining those who are bold of tongue, persuades them by this very same example. However, he speaks more extensively: "Michael the Archangel did not dare to pronounce a reviling judgment" (Jude 1:9). Peter now wishes to say something similar, that these wretched ones have no restraint in blaspheming glories, whereas even angels, who surpass these vile ones in power and might, do not pronounce against them, that is, against principalities, a reviling judgment before the Lord. And since the devil partakes of a certain glory, because he is "the beginning of the creation of the Lord" (Job 40:14), the Archangel did not pronounce a reviling word against him. But if the one more deserving of reproach, that is, the devil, as a partaker of glory, did not receive reproach from Michael before the Lord, then exceedingly foolish are those who hastily revile principalities, when they themselves are far below the dignity of angels. By "principalities" he means the divine powers, or also the ecclesiastical authorities, against whom they rise up and whom they ceaselessly slander.
2 Pet. 2:12. But these, as natural brute beasts, led by nature, born to be caught and destroyed, speaking evil of the things that they do not understand, shall perish in their own corruption.
2 Pet. 2:13. They shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, for they count it pleasure to revel in daily luxury;
Some explained this thus: they will perish in their own corruption, like irrational animals born naturally, that is, differing in no way from cattle that are born for destruction alone. "Like irrational animals, led by nature," that is, living by sensuality alone, and not by mind and rational life. Therefore they are also easily caught to be led along a corrupt life, being led and carried away by anger and lust, blaspheming what they do not know, that is, with their characteristic ignorance, which is why they will perish in the corruption they have earned, receiving the recompense for the lawlessness which they themselves prepared for themselves voluntarily. "They count it pleasure to revel in daily luxury," that is, in daily gratification of the throat they place their true goal, their true and beloved prudence and pleasure. However, one must know that Sacred Scripture, when it censures what is found in people by nature, that is, what is characteristic of animals, likens them to irrational beasts. It says, for example: "Man who is in honor and lacks understanding is like the animals that perish" (Ps. 48:13); and also: "Do not be like the horse and the mule" (Ps. 31:9); again: "They are well-fed stallions" (Jer. 5:8); and also: "Be wise as serpents and innocent as doves" (Matt. 10:16). Scripture says this not by changing nature, but only by persuading people to restrain themselves from natural inclinations. When it proclaims something salvific, it borrows the likeness from what is higher, for example: "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful" (Luke 6:36). And here too it does not transform nature, but only commands to do this, as far as one's strength allows.
2 Pet. 2:13. Shameless and defilers, they delight in their deceits, feasting with you.
2 Pet. 2:14. They have eyes full of lust and unceasing sin; they entice unstable souls; their heart is trained in covetousness: they are sons of cursing.
2 Pet. 2:15. Having forsaken the right way, they have gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness,
2 Pet. 2:16. But he was rebuked for his own transgression: the dumb donkey, speaking with a human voice, restrained the madness of the prophet.
The order is as follows: shameless and defilers; "their heart is trained in covetousness," that is, skilled in covetousness; sons of cursing; feasting together with you; having eyes full of lust and unceasing sin; they entice unstable souls, whom Paul also called "women laden with sins" (2 Tim. 3:6); they, having forsaken the right way, went the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, and so forth; their voices are waterless springs, clouds driven by a storm, and so forth. And for what reason does the darkness of the age to come await them? For their excessive vanity, by which they entice with defilements and fleshly lusts those who had formerly been in error and had sincerely left it to return, like a dog, to their own vomit. What is inserted explains and confirms their vanity. The meaning is as follows: they, he says, have nothing belonging to purity, but cling to the pure society like stains on a clean garment. When they seduce someone and succeed in making the men and women who have fallen into their nets impure, they consider this a delight, completing their own corruption. Even when feasting with you, they do this not out of love and fellowship with others, but because they find this time convenient for seducing women. For having eyes, they look at nothing other than lust, and unceasingly having this in mind and sinning, as sons of cursing, they entice unstable souls. For their heart is trained in nothing other than covetousness, that is, in debauchery or in greed, and through both the one and the other, having forsaken the way that could have led them to salvation, they strayed from it and became subject to the same fate as Balaam, the son of Bosor, because he too, out of love for gifts, loved the wages of unrighteousness. But he was rebuked for his transgression. "A dumb donkey, speaking with a human voice, restrained the madness of the prophet" (2 Pet. 2:16). From this we learn that Balaam, having once received a prohibition from God against going to Balak, was again driven to it by his arrogant passion, which he nourished with his frenzied sorcery, but, bridled by the fear of God and the terrible signs that occurred during the journey, he did not change the word of blessing, which was a matter not of sorcery. For the prophets utter their oracles with awareness. For this reason the apostle also called him a "prophet," as one who was aware of what he was saying. For if he had not been aware of his words, he could not have chosen what was better. Thus, his blessing was a matter not of divination, but of the power of God.
2 Pet. 2:17. These are waterless springs, clouds and mists driven by a storm: for whom the gloom of eternal darkness is reserved.
2 Pet. 2:18. For, uttering great swelling words of vanity, they entice through the lusts of the flesh and lewdness those who have barely escaped from those living in error.
2 Pet. 2:19. They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by whom a person is overcome, by him he is also enslaved.
Having inserted much into the middle of his discourse, including among other things the example of Balaam, the apostle again begins to speak about the impure Gnostics. He likens them to waterless springs, because they have lost the purity of preaching and the sweet water of life. He compares them to clouds driven by the wind, meaning an adverse wind, which is why he also called it a tempest, since a tempest brings whatever it drives into complete disorder. They are, he says, clouds that are not bright, as the saints are, but dark, full of gloom. He also gives the reason for this, namely that out of vanity they utter swelling words, enticing through fleshly lust into debauchery those who had completely escaped it, or who, if they were once in error, had afterwards submitted themselves to the Lord. They themselves, he says, being slaves of the aforementioned impurity, which he rightly also called corruption, promise freedom to those they deceive. And as to why they promise freedom to others while themselves being slaves of sin, he brings forth a fine proof of this: whoever is overcome by any passion is also a slave to it. But this will be explained more fully further on.
2 Pet. 2:20. For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first.
2 Pet. 2:21. It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them.
2 Pet. 2:22. But it has happened to them according to the true proverb: The dog returns to his own vomit, and the washed sow goes to wallow in the mire.
By these words he confirms two points: first, that the one who is defeated necessarily serves his conqueror, and second, that those who have known the truth but again cling to their former impiety fall into an evil worse than before. He also adds a proverb confirming the same thing (Prov. 26:11). The meaning of the discourse is as follows: if those who through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ have escaped the defilements of the world become entangled in them again and are overcome by them, then they are undoubtedly enslaved by them, and their condition becomes worse than it was before their knowledge of this slavery, for Satan strives to make them fall into greater evil. For this reason the apostle says that, given such a future for those who willingly return to evil, it would have been better for them not to have known the truth than, having known it, to fall into greater evil. For even a dog returning to its own vomit becomes still more disgusting, just as a pig seeking to wash itself of filth, if it does so in filth itself, turns out even filthier than before.
2 Pet. 2:1. There were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies and, denying the Lord who bought them, will bring upon themselves swift destruction.
2 Pet. 2:2. And many will follow their debauchery, and through them the way of truth will be blasphemed.
2 Pet. 2:3. And out of covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words;
By false teachers the apostle means the like-minded followers of Nicolaus and Cerinthus, and by the name of prophecy, commonly attributed to both prophets and false teachers, he warns the faithful not to heed false prophets. What the difference is between the one and the other, Paul taught when he said that no one calls Jesus Lord "except by the Holy Spirit" (1 Cor. 12:3). Then he begins to expose the heresy of the Nicolaitans, saying that they are doubly wicked. For in doctrine they are extremely impious, since they blaspheme the Master Christ; in life they are utterly depraved, which he now expresses by mentioning their "debauchery," and a little further on he will explain even more. By the word "covetousness" he shows that they acquire gain in a shameful manner. For covetousness sometimes means injustice, and sometimes the baseness of acquisition in general. That is why the word "exploit" is fittingly used. To show that they are completely foreign to divine teaching, he says that they use flattering words. But, he says, they will receive what is due for their impiety, namely death.
2 Pet. 2:3. The judgment against them has long been prepared, and their destruction does not slumber.
2 Pet. 2:4. For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but, binding them with chains of hellish darkness, delivered them to be kept for judgment unto punishment;
2 Pet. 2:5. And if He did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly;
2 Pet. 2:6. and if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction, reducing them to ashes, having set them as an example to those who would live ungodly thereafter,
2 Pet. 2:7. He delivered righteous Lot, who was distressed by the conduct of those living in outrageous licentiousness.
2 Pet. 2:8. (for that righteous man, dwelling among them, was tormented in his righteous soul day after day, seeing and hearing their lawless deeds) –
2 Pet. 2:9. The Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation, and to reserve the unrighteous unto the day of judgment to be punished.
The phrase "long ago prepared" signifies God's foreknowledge. For God by foreknowledge prepared good things for the good, and likewise for the wicked the place proper to them. For judgment has long been prepared. Not without reason does the apostle begin with believers, who are more honorable, but he wishes to show that they are liable to greater condemnation for their sins. They have the advantage of being the first called to apostleship. Therefore, for going astray from the right path they will also be subject to greater condemnation. Having intentionally presented proof through examples, he did not draw a conclusion of one kind only, but joined together both the example and the rewards of the righteous. And he would have needed to draw a conclusion about what was proposed above, that is, about the sinners on whose account the example was presented, and to say: if He did not spare those, will He then spare the present impious ones? Or affirmatively: all the more will He not spare these. But the apostle does not do this. Why? Because the conclusion reveals itself when two examples have been presented, of good and of evil. What pertains to evil alone does not yet pertain to good. For good is not repaid with evil. Therefore, since it was not sufficient to end the proposition with one conclusion alone, he employed a different expression and finished what was needed with an exclamation. But why does he append examples of good people to examples of wicked ones? We shall speak of this in the appropriate place. As we said above, by the form of clear speech, the thought does not follow from the propositions, for no conclusion has been added such as usually follows after such a construction, but it is simply proved by example that for sins there is punishment, and for righteousness there is reward. The apostle speaks as if to say: God knows how to inevitably punish without mercy those living in sins, as He punished the angels who sinned, the antediluvian people, and the cities of Sodom. He knows how to reward also those who practice righteousness, as He rewarded Noah and Lot. The course of the discourse is as follows: it is said that the false teachers will be punished for their blasphemies and for their dissolute life; examples are presented: God did not spare the angels who sinned, nor did He spare the first world. Then those who struggled in righteousness are mentioned, and it is said that God preserved both Noah and Lot, on account of their chastity, from the destruction of the people of their time. For Noah was not carried away by the impiety of the antediluvian people, and Lot in no way imitated the debauchery of the inhabitants of Sodom, and when they demanded the Angels received by him in the form of men as strangers for impure purposes, he did not hand them over, although he endured very many insults from the crowd pressing upon him. This is what is indicated by the word "distressed" (2 Pet. 2:7). And concerning Lot this is also said: "the Lord knows how to deliver the godly from temptation" (2 Pet. 2:9), and so forth. Above, the apostle said nothing about the righteous; he spoke only about the impious and their punishment, and mentioned the righteous only in the examples. This was, first, in order to recount the history of the destruction of the impious and the salvation of the righteous; second, in order that through their juxtaposition he might set forth the terrible malice of sinners and the bright perfections of the virtuous; and finally, in order to persuade his listeners to hate the impiety of the former on account of the punishments for it, and to love the virtue of the latter on account of its saving power.
2 Pet. 2:10. And especially those who walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise authority. Presumptuous, self-willed, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries.
Now from the above-cited examples the apostle skillfully transitioned to the main subject. He speaks of the accursed Nicolaitans, Naassenes, and Cerdonians; for their wickedness has many names and is considered together, as similar in foul deeds and designations. They represented the first principles of the world's existence as the Abyss and Silence, and some of these principles they strangely called mothers and ages (αἰώνας); from these same sources Marcion also took his evil seeds. Then, having rejected the Lord's participation in the creation of the world and in providence, they fearlessly gave themselves over to every fleshly impurity. Whoever wishes to learn about this more fully, let him take in hand the book of Irenaeus of the Celts, composed about them and inscribed "Against the Falsely-Named Knowledge"; in it are described their sins, especially those of the most debauched Marcus and the women corrupted by him, and the remaining abominations committed by the rest, which, because of their harmfulness, no one could set forth in writing or even recall. It is not surprising that those who despise and do not fear dominion will fearlessly conduct themselves before every glory as well. The holy apostle Jude Thaddaeus will speak more clearly about this when he mentions the body of Moses as well. But Peter only hinted at this, touched upon it, and ended his discourse. Yet having received the occasion from him, we speak also about what lies before us.
2 Pet. 2:11. whereas even Angels, though superior to them in strength and power, do not bring a reviling judgment against them before the Lord.
Wishing to restrain them from such audacity, he says: whereas even angels, who surpass them in might and power, do not pronounce against them a reviling judgment before the Lord. The Apostle, as we have noted, says one and the same thing as the Apostle Jude; for he too, restraining those who are bold of tongue, persuades them by this very same example. However, he speaks more extensively: "Michael the Archangel did not dare to pronounce a reviling judgment" (Jude 1:9). Peter now wishes to say something similar, that these wretched ones have no restraint in blaspheming glories, whereas even angels, who surpass these vile ones in power and might, do not pronounce against them, that is, against principalities, a reviling judgment before the Lord. And since the devil partakes of a certain glory, because he is "the beginning of the creation of the Lord" (Job 40:14), the Archangel did not pronounce a reviling word against him. But if the one more deserving of reproach, that is, the devil, as a partaker of glory, did not receive reproach from Michael before the Lord, then exceedingly foolish are those who hastily revile principalities, when they themselves are far below the dignity of angels. By "principalities" he means the divine powers, or also the ecclesiastical authorities, against whom they rise up and whom they ceaselessly slander.
2 Pet. 2:12. But these, as natural brute beasts, led by nature, born to be caught and destroyed, speaking evil of the things that they do not understand, shall perish in their own corruption.
2 Pet. 2:13. They shall receive the reward of unrighteousness, for they count it pleasure to revel in daily luxury;
Some explained this thus: they will perish in their own corruption, like irrational animals born naturally, that is, differing in no way from cattle that are born for destruction alone. "Like irrational animals, led by nature," that is, living by sensuality alone, and not by mind and rational life. Therefore they are also easily caught to be led along a corrupt life, being led and carried away by anger and lust, blaspheming what they do not know, that is, with their characteristic ignorance, which is why they will perish in the corruption they have earned, receiving the recompense for the lawlessness which they themselves prepared for themselves voluntarily. "They count it pleasure to revel in daily luxury," that is, in daily gratification of the throat they place their true goal, their true and beloved prudence and pleasure. However, one must know that Sacred Scripture, when it censures what is found in people by nature, that is, what is characteristic of animals, likens them to irrational beasts. It says, for example: "Man who is in honor and lacks understanding is like the animals that perish" (Ps. 48:13); and also: "Do not be like the horse and the mule" (Ps. 31:9); again: "They are well-fed stallions" (Jer. 5:8); and also: "Be wise as serpents and innocent as doves" (Matt. 10:16). Scripture says this not by changing nature, but only by persuading people to restrain themselves from natural inclinations. When it proclaims something salvific, it borrows the likeness from what is higher, for example: "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful" (Luke 6:36). And here too it does not transform nature, but only commands to do this, as far as one's strength allows.
2 Pet. 2:13. Shameless and defilers, they delight in their deceits, feasting with you.
2 Pet. 2:14. They have eyes full of lust and unceasing sin; they entice unstable souls; their heart is trained in covetousness: they are sons of cursing.
2 Pet. 2:15. Having forsaken the right way, they have gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness,
2 Pet. 2:16. But he was rebuked for his own transgression: the dumb donkey, speaking with a human voice, restrained the madness of the prophet.
The order is as follows: shameless and defilers; "their heart is trained in covetousness," that is, skilled in covetousness; sons of cursing; feasting together with you; having eyes full of lust and unceasing sin; they entice unstable souls, whom Paul also called "women laden with sins" (2 Tim. 3:6); they, having forsaken the right way, went the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, and so forth; their voices are waterless springs, clouds driven by a storm, and so forth. And for what reason does the darkness of the age to come await them? For their excessive vanity, by which they entice with defilements and fleshly lusts those who had formerly been in error and had sincerely left it to return, like a dog, to their own vomit. What is inserted explains and confirms their vanity. The meaning is as follows: they, he says, have nothing belonging to purity, but cling to the pure society like stains on a clean garment. When they seduce someone and succeed in making the men and women who have fallen into their nets impure, they consider this a delight, completing their own corruption. Even when feasting with you, they do this not out of love and fellowship with others, but because they find this time convenient for seducing women. For having eyes, they look at nothing other than lust, and unceasingly having this in mind and sinning, as sons of cursing, they entice unstable souls. For their heart is trained in nothing other than covetousness, that is, in debauchery or in greed, and through both the one and the other, having forsaken the way that could have led them to salvation, they strayed from it and became subject to the same fate as Balaam, the son of Bosor, because he too, out of love for gifts, loved the wages of unrighteousness. But he was rebuked for his transgression. "A dumb donkey, speaking with a human voice, restrained the madness of the prophet" (2 Pet. 2:16). From this we learn that Balaam, having once received a prohibition from God against going to Balak, was again driven to it by his arrogant passion, which he nourished with his frenzied sorcery, but, bridled by the fear of God and the terrible signs that occurred during the journey, he did not change the word of blessing, which was a matter not of sorcery. For the prophets utter their oracles with awareness. For this reason the apostle also called him a "prophet," as one who was aware of what he was saying. For if he had not been aware of his words, he could not have chosen what was better. Thus, his blessing was a matter not of divination, but of the power of God.
2 Pet. 2:17. These are waterless springs, clouds and mists driven by a storm: for whom the gloom of eternal darkness is reserved.
2 Pet. 2:18. For, uttering great swelling words of vanity, they entice through the lusts of the flesh and lewdness those who have barely escaped from those living in error.
2 Pet. 2:19. They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by whom a person is overcome, by him he is also enslaved.
Having inserted much into the middle of his discourse, including among other things the example of Balaam, the apostle again begins to speak about the impure Gnostics. He likens them to waterless springs, because they have lost the purity of preaching and the sweet water of life. He compares them to clouds driven by the wind, meaning an adverse wind, which is why he also called it a tempest, since a tempest brings whatever it drives into complete disorder. They are, he says, clouds that are not bright, as the saints are, but dark, full of gloom. He also gives the reason for this, namely that out of vanity they utter swelling words, enticing through fleshly lust into debauchery those who had completely escaped it, or who, if they were once in error, had afterwards submitted themselves to the Lord. They themselves, he says, being slaves of the aforementioned impurity, which he rightly also called corruption, promise freedom to those they deceive. And as to why they promise freedom to others while themselves being slaves of sin, he brings forth a fine proof of this: whoever is overcome by any passion is also a slave to it. But this will be explained more fully further on.
2 Pet. 2:20. For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first.
2 Pet. 2:21. It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them.
2 Pet. 2:22. But it has happened to them according to the true proverb: The dog returns to his own vomit, and the washed sow goes to wallow in the mire.
By these words he confirms two points: first, that the one who is defeated necessarily serves his conqueror, and second, that those who have known the truth but again cling to their former impiety fall into an evil worse than before. He also adds a proverb confirming the same thing (Prov. 26:11). The meaning of the discourse is as follows: if those who through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ have escaped the defilements of the world become entangled in them again and are overcome by them, then they are undoubtedly enslaved by them, and their condition becomes worse than it was before their knowledge of this slavery, for Satan strives to make them fall into greater evil. For this reason the apostle says that, given such a future for those who willingly return to evil, it would have been better for them not to have known the truth than, having known it, to fall into greater evil. For even a dog returning to its own vomit becomes still more disgusting, just as a pig seeking to wash itself of filth, if it does so in filth itself, turns out even filthier than before.