Lesson 36

Second Peter

Warning against dangers facing the Church

Chapter 3

The Certainty of the Believers Hope – The Return of Christ

 

Peter’s next example where the F/T’s have missed the boat if you will is in 3:6

They have overlooked the fact of catastropheism has occurred, that is something that superseded natural laws therefore destroys uniformitarianism.

 

through which (water)  the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water.

 

 

was destroyed, being flooded with water.

- have 2 verbs here, one to describe what happened and the other to tell us how it happened

 

 

 

 

 

 

Summary observations:

1. The environment that existed prior to the flood was destroyed, ruined as a consequence of God’s judgment.  Gen 6:5-7

 

2. The divine viewpoint points to the reality of catastropheism, events that supersede natural laws which were established by God.

 

3. The academic world out there does not accept catastropheism at any point and the universal flood specifically. 

They have many blind spots:

a. Rejection of Genesis and Job as reliable.

 

b. Disregarding strata graphic evidences of a global flood.

- have come up with a horizontal thrust theory to account for older type strata being on top of younger strata.

 

c. Disregarding the cause of Mountains, orogenesis, or mountain building. Platonics.  Psalm 104:5-9

 

d. Disregarding the time of glacier formation (ice ages). 

Job 38:29-30 at the time of the flood.

 

e. Disregarding normal genetic codes in the development within species. (biogenesis)

 

4. What academia says took millions of years to occur actually took 371 days, the length of the flood when focused on the earth.

 

5. We need to remember that the flood was also a judgment from the justice of God.

 

6. Those who hold to the uniformitarian or evolutionary view deny divine judgment in the past and hence also in the future.

 

 

3:7 Deals with reality of future judgment

But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire,

Peter sets the contrast here between the past judgment by the flood that he just covered and the future judgment of the earth that is detailed in 3:10,12.

 

 

His point is that these heavens and earth or the universe as we know it is being held in reserve for a future judgment by His Word, His power.

 

 

 

kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.

- kept  is the present passive participle of  thre,w  meaning to keep or guard

-  the ongoing keeping or guarding the heavens and the earth refers to the ongoing task of Jesus Christ the God, man in hypostatic union in upholding or sustaining all things by the word of His power.  Heb 1:2-3;  also Col 1:17

 

 

destruction of ungodly men

- avpw,leia,  destruction or ruin here of eternal punishment,  judgment  in the LOF  the result of the GWTJ.

 

 

- The who!  ungodly men  avsebh,j,   describes the unbeliever as one having no reverential awe or respect for God  and who He is, having rejected Christ as Savior.

 

 

3:7 But the present heavens and earth by His Word are reserved for fire, being kept for a day judgment and destruction of ungodly men (UB).

 

Summary Observations:

1.  Since these F/T’s are negative to divine revelation concerning past history being willfully ignorant they are also negative to and ignorant of the reality of the future history of the earth.

 

2.  As a result of God’s covenant with Noah  there will never be another judgment of mankind by a universal flood as per 3:6.

- Gen 9:9-17   (sign of this covenant is the rainbow)

 

3.  Fire is often used to characterize the judgment of God which flows from His perfect righteousness and executed by His justice.

 

4.  Many OT prophesies confirm this fact: Isa. 66:15-16; Joel 2:30; Zeph 1:18; 3:8; Mal 4:1-3

 

5.  Note that the unbelievers after the GWTJ will not cease to exist but will fall under the eternal ruin and destruction (avpw,leia) in the LOF.

 

 

3:8 - 9 Orientation to Time; Peter is addressing believers not the F/T’s here!

Peter answers the question why should the Lord be so long in coming!

 

But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved,

 

-  It appears that some of these believers were being influenced by the input from the false teachers and were failing to apply the Word in life and were becoming disoriented to the prophetic word 1:19

 

But stop letting this one fact escape your notice beloved

 

 

Peter is exhorting them to not be like the F/T’s in vs:5 who through willful negative volition rejected the true origins “by the Word of God.”

 

So what is the fact that is blatantly obvious is presented next. (emphatic position)

that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day.

 

 

3:8  But stop letting this one fact escape your notice, Beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day.

 

Summary Observations:

1.  With the command here to stop letting this one fact escape your notice he’s exhorting these believers to not let the propaganda of the F/T’s to influence and distort their thinking.

- stay focused on the truth

 

2.  We must remember that as far as God's faithfulness to His promises, it does not matter if He gave His promise yesterday or a thousand years ago. He will still remain faithful and will fulfill every promise completely (cf. Ps. 90:4).

 

3.  Most common interpretation of this verse is that these are purely figurative numbers and could represent any period of time.

- their view is that since God is transcendent He is therefore not subject to a realization of time elapse

 

4.  God is not governed by time in the same sense as we are but He is clearly cognizant of time lapse which is noted in the dispensations.

 

5.  We evaluate events and time verses time while God looks at time verses Eternity and the fulfillment of His plan.

 

6. This common interpretation fails in several areas:

a. It denies the simplest meaning without any basis for it, basic hermeneutic principle.

b. Fails to deal with or understand the comparative analogy introduced by w`j (hos).

c. Opens the door for evolution instead of closing it as per the strong thrust of the context dealing with the uniformitarian view.

 

7. The correct interpretation must:

a. deal adequately with the context that is the refutation of uniformitarianism.

b. deal with the comparative established in these 2 clauses.

- say something meaningful, different but related

c. take into account the Biblical usage of “day.”

 

8. Day is used in Scripture 3 ways:

a. literal 24 hour day, or a solar day

1. Gen 1:3-31  during the 6 days of restoration

2. The Sabbath day  Ex 20:10; 31:12-16  (given to Israel alone)

3. As a believer we are to live one day at a time, that is to take each day as a grace gift, an opportunity to glorify God as we apply His Word regardless of the external circumstances.  Matt. 6:31-34; Rom 14:5,6

 

b. Less than 24 hours.

1. the moment of time we believed in Christ,  2 Cor. 6:2

2. the day of Christ, the Rapture  Phil 1:6, 10, 2:16 (twinkling of an eye)

3. the day will show it 1 Cor. 3:13  the point of evaluation for each believer at JSC, the illumination of our f2 production

 

c. More than 24 hours

1. “Day of the Lord” or that day refers to the whole program of events including the 7 years of the Tribulation, the Second Advent and the entire millennial reign of Christ.

Isa 2:12; 13:6,9; Ezk 30:3; Joel 1:15; 2:31;  Isa 2:11; 2 Pet 3:10

  

2. “Day of God  2 Pet 3:12  refers to the eternal state begins with the new heavens and earth