2 Peter 3 Study Notes

3:10 God’s patience toward sinners is not inexhaustible. The day of the Lord will be sudden and will catch many people unprepared, as when a burglar sneaks in and robs a house (cp. Mt 24:43-44; Lk 12:39-40).

3:11-14 Peter insisted that the anticipation of the Lord’s return and its accompanying events of judgment should rouse Christians to holy living. Evil will be completely destroyed when Christ returns, and righteousness will permanently dwell in new heavens and a new earth (cp. Is 32:16).

3:15-16 Peter notes that the teaching in Paul’s letters said that the Lord’s patience provided opportunities for salvation (Rm 2:4). Peter grouped Paul’s letters together with the rest of the Scriptures. This reference does not necessarily mean that Paul’s letters were already circulating as a complete collection. Peter may simply have been referring to the Pauline letters that were widely known and accepted as Scripture at the time he wrote 2 Peter. In any event, Peter clearly affirms the God-given authority of Paul’s writings (1:20-21; see note at 1:19-21).

3:17-18 Since Peter’s readers had now been warned about the false teachers in their midst, he instructed them to be on their guard and not be led astray. He also encouraged them to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ (cp. 1:2-11). He closed with a doxology in which he ascribed glory to Christ both now and forever.