Robertson Word Pictures - 2 Peter 3:16 - 3:16

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Robertson Word Pictures - 2 Peter 3:16 - 3:16


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This Chapter Verse Commentaries:

As also in all his epistles (hōs kai en pasais epistolais). We do not know to how many Peter here refers. There is no difficulty in supposing that Peter “received every one of St. Paul’s Epistles within a month or two of its publication” (Bigg). And yet Peter does not here assert the formation of a canon of Paul’s Epistles.

Speaking in them of these things (lalōn en autais peri toutōn). Present active participle of laleō. That is to say, Paul also wrote about the second coming of Christ, as is obviously true.

Hard to be understood (dusnoēta). Late verbal from dus and noeō (in Aristotle, Lucian, Diog. Laert.), here only in N.T. We know that the Thessalonians persisted in misrepresenting Paul on this very subject of the second coming as Hymenaeus and Philetus did about the resurrection (2Ti 2:17) and Spitta holds that Paul’s teaching about grace was twisted to mean moral laxity like Gal 3:10; Rom 3:20, Rom 3:28; Rom 5:20 (with which cf. Rom 6:1 as a case in point), etc. Peter does not say that he himself did not understand Paul on the subject of faith and freedom.

Unlearned (amatheis). Old word (alpha privative and manthanō to learn), ignorant, here only in N.T.

Unsteadfast (astēriktoi). See note on 2Pe 2:14.

Wrest (streblousin). Present active indicative of strebloō, old verb (from streblos twisted, strephō, to turn), here only in N.T.

The other scriptures (tas loipas graphas). There is no doubt that the apostles claimed to speak by the help of the Holy Spirit (1Th 5:27; Col 4:16) just as the prophets of old did (2Pe 1:20.). Note loipas (rest) here rather than allas (other). Peter thus puts Paul’s Epistles on the same plane with the O.T., which was also misused (Matt 5:21-44; Mat 15:3-6; Mat 19:3-10).