Chapter One

Superscription and greeting (1–2). Ascending through the degrees of virtue (3–9). Persuasion to steadfastness in faith with indication of the nearness of the Apostle’s death (10–15). The Transfiguration of the Lord (16–18). Old Testament prophetic word (19–21).

2 Peter 1:1. Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have received a faith equal to ours in the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ: 2 Peter 1:2. May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus Christ our Lord. Following apostolic custom (cf. 1 Pet 1:2; Rom 1:7; Titus 1:1), the Apostle Peter begins his epistle with a greeting—the imparting of grace and peace to Christians, in which “from the very beginning the Apostle awakens the thoughts and souls of the believers, urging them in the work of preaching to be equal to the Apostles. For since all have received equally precious grace, it would be unjust to have a deficiency in anything in which all turned out to be equal” (Blessed Theophilus). At once the Apostle names the divine side of salvation—“in the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ” (verse 1) and the human side—“in the knowledge of God and of our Lord Jesus Christ” (verse 2).

2 Peter 1:3. His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness, 2 Peter 1:4. by which he has granted us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you might become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that reigns in the world through lust; “From verse 3 the epistle proper begins. As they note, one could compare it to a stream that is broad and deep already at its very source. The very beginning of the epistle is full of fire and life and power and carries the reader into the very fullness of evangelical grace, just as in the first epistle” (Bishop Michael). In verses 3 and 4 the Apostle speaks of the divine side of salvation—of what God has done for people: meanwhile, later, in 2 Pet 1:5-8, he speaks of what believers themselves must do to fulfill their Christian calling. In Christianity, according to the Apostle, the fullness of true life is given from the almighty and all-powerful power or grace of God, the blessed possibility is given to people to become partakers of the divine nature. “We became partakers of the divine nature through the manifestation of the Lord and God, who united the beginning of our nature in himself and sanctified it; if the beginning is holy, then the whole is holy” (Blessed Theophilus).

2 Peter 1:5. For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 2 Peter 1:6. to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 2 Peter 1:7. to godliness brotherly affection, to brotherly affection love. The response on the part of Christians to the action of God’s grace is not only escape from the corruption in the world (2 Pet 1:4), but above all positive virtue in its various branches. The Apostle in verses 5–7 shows the degrees of progress. In the first place comes “faith,” since it is the foundation and support of good. In the second place comes “virtue,” that is, deeds; for without them, as the Apostle James says (Jas 2:26), “faith without works is dead.” Next comes “understanding.” What kind of understanding? Knowledge of the hidden mysteries of God, which is accessible not to everyone, but only to those who constantly practice good deeds. After it comes “self-control.” For it too is necessary for those who have attained to this measure—so that they do not become arrogant at the greatness of the gift. But since through brief self-control one cannot make the gift secure, one must surpass it with perseverance. It will accomplish everything, and “godliness” will bring peace, and hope in God will perfect. To godliness will be added “brotherly affection,” and to all this love...” (Blessed Theophilus).

2 Peter 1:8. For if these things are in you and abound, they will keep you from being useless or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 1:9. But whoever lacks these things is blind, having shut his eyes, having forgotten the cleansing from his former sins. Having earlier depicted (2 Pet 1:2-6) the grace-blessed state of Christians in its ideal norm, the Apostle now says that the Christian ideal of faith and life must be embodied in the entire life of Christian community, that only the preservation and increase of spiritual grace-filled inheritance opens the path to true Christian knowledge; on the contrary, whoever does not have the moral foundations of life mentioned by the Apostle is like a person with closed eyes. “The saying of the Apostle Peter is similar to what was said by the blessed James, namely: whoever hears the word but does not do it is like a man who looks at his natural features in a mirror” (Jas 1:23) (Blessed Theophilus).

2 Peter 1:10. Therefore, brothers, be even more diligent to confirm your calling and election, doing so you will never stumble; 2 Peter 1:11. for in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. In contrast to the instability shown in 2 Pet 1:9 among people of spirit alien to Christianity, true Christians must rely on their Christian calling and election in both teaching and life, hoping for entrance into the eternal kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ. “Notice how the Apostle first wanted to urge by fear—by the coming of the Judge—but now persuades by promise—by entrance into the eternal kingdom of God” (Blessed Theophilus).

2 Peter 1:12. Therefore I will always be ready to remind you of these things, although you know them and are established in the present truth. 2 Peter 1:13. And I think it is right, as long as I am in this body, to arouse you by a reminder, 2 Peter 1:14. knowing that the putting off of my body is coming soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me. 2 Peter 1:15. But I will make every effort that you may be able to recall these things at any time after my departure. Although the readers of the epistle know the Christian truth well and firmly (verse 12. Cf. 1 Pet 1:12), the Apostle in his pastoral care considers it his duty to remind them of it and rouse them from spiritual sleep, especially in view of the approaching end that he foresees and perhaps even specially revealed to him by the Lord (cf. John 21:18; see 2 Tim 4:6). At this point, the Apostle’s elevated view is remarkable, shared by him with other sacred biblical writers of the Old and New Testament (Isa 38:12; Wis 9:15; 2 Cor 5:1) on the immortality of the human spirit despite the corruptibility of its bodily shell, as if its temporary “tent” (σκήνωμα), and on death as a “putting off” (ἀπόθεσις) of this tent and as a “departure” (ἔξοδος) of the spirit to the Heavenly Father (cf. John 14:2a). Regarding verse 15, Blessed Theophilact notes: “Some understand this with such a reordering: ‘I will make every effort to have you always after my departure,’ that is, to remember you daily and continuously, and from this they derive the thought that the saints even after death remember those remaining here and pray for the living. Those who invoke the divine grace of the saints see the justice of this every day. So some understand it; but others understand it differently. The latter read and understand this verse simply: I will make every effort so that you remember this always even after my departure, that is, we continuously repeat the same thing to you in order to make it a habit for you, so that through constant and unwavering assimilation of this you may free yourselves from the charge of disobedience and ignorance, but also keep this testament after my death firmly and unchanged.”

2 Peter 1:16. For we did not follow cunningly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. 2 Peter 1:17. For he received honor and glory from God the Father, when a voice was borne to him from the majestic glory: This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased. 2 Peter 1:18. And this voice we ourselves heard borne from heaven, when we were with him on the holy mountain. Requiring strict and constant attention from the believers to the words of his preaching, the Apostle here proves the unquestionable importance of following this teaching, contrasting the divine truthfulness of gospel teaching with the beautiful poems of the pagans and the seductive tales (already beginning then) of heretical teachings (cf. 1 Tim 4:7). The Apostle as it were says: “Nothing of the sort can be suspected in us. For we delivered the teaching in unadorned language, as Paul says to the Corinthians (1 Cor 2:4), and we delivered what we ourselves saw with our own eyes when we ascended with him to the holy mountain” (Blessed Theophilus). As a striking example in which the greatness and power of the Lord Jesus Christ were particularly manifested, and concerning which, as an actual event, the Apostles and evangelists testify (see Matt 17:1 and following; Mark 9:2 and following; Luke 9:28 and following), the Apostle Peter speaks here of the Transfiguration of the Lord, with particular emphasis on the fact that the apostles, including Peter, themselves heard the voice of God the Father that came to Jesus Christ from heaven.

2 Peter 1:19. And we have the prophetic word confirmed, to which you do well to pay attention, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; 2 Peter 1:20. knowing first of all that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of personal interpretation. 2 Peter 1:21. For no prophecy ever came by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. In connection with the mention of the greatness and glory of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Apostle now gives, as in his first epistle (1 Pet 1:10-12), a remarkable in its depth and precision revelation of the biblical understanding of true prophecy. And first of all, the Apostle calls the prophetic word (verse 19) βεβαιότερον, Slavonic “most known”—firmer, as a word more ancient, justified and confirmed by New Testament events. Just as Christ the Savior himself after his Resurrection referred to Moses and all the prophets in explaining that it was necessary for him to suffer, die, rise again, and enter into his glory, so the first-ranking Apostle Peter sees the proof of the glory and greatness of the Lord Christ not only in the Gospel event of the Transfiguration of the Lord and apostolic accounts of this event (verses 16–18), but in the “most reliable prophetic word,” which he here compares to a lamp shining in a dark place, thereby showing the guiding and life-giving significance of God’s word in the life of sinful humanity. “Attending to these accounts of the prophets, you will not be deceived in your hope,” the Apostle says. “For in due time they will be justified by events, which the Apostle called ‘day,’ continuing the figurative speech, for he at once spoke of a lamp, of a dark place, which is night. So when, he says, ‘day’ comes, that is, the manifestation of events, then in your hearts will rise the ‘morning star,’ that is, the coming of Christ, foretold by the prophets, and as true light it will illuminate your hearts” (Blessed Theophilus). In commending the attentiveness of the readers to the guidance of the prophetic word (verse 19), the Apostle at the same time wishes to elevate in the readers and together with all Christians the consciousness of the special importance of the prophetic word, pointing out that it came about in an extraordinary, supernatural manner and therefore must be interpreted and explained in a manner appropriate to the sacred importance of its origin. “Prophets receive prophecies from God, but not as they wish, but as the Spirit of God acts; they were aware and understood the prophetic word sent to them, but did not provide explanations. That the prophets, while the Spirit of God acted upon them, were aware that a word from the Spirit of God was being sent to them, is evident from the fact that they submitted willingly and spoke what they wanted to, and about what they did not want, they were silent. It is not so with false prophets. They did not retain consciousness while the action took place, but driven to frenzy, like the drunk, they did not know what was happening to them.... And that the prophets prophesied not in ecstasy is evident from the following. The prophets of the Old and New Testament prophesied in one Spirit. And the Apostle Paul says: ‘if another person receives a revelation, the first should stop’ (1 Cor 14:30). From this it is clear that the prophets willingly prophesied, remaining in their natural state” (Blessed Theophilus). Thus, according to the teaching of the Apostle Peter, the prophets “were not passive instruments of the Spirit; their consciousness was not suppressed, for, according to the word of the Apostle, they ‘tested’ what was revealed to them by the Spirit (1 Pet 1:11), that is, freely received and understood what was revealed to them. On one side there is revelation from the Spirit, on the other—self-activity and individuality of the prophets” (Prof. D. I. Bogdashevsky). Having thus depicted the essential sides of true prophecy, the Apostle in 2 Pet 2:1 and following characterizes and distinguishes false prophecy and teaching.