Beloved, this is now the second letter that I have written to you; and in both of them I stir up your sincere mind by reminding you; 2that you should remember the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and the commandments of us, the apostles of the Lord1 and Saviour: 3knowing this first, that in the last days there will come mockers, walking after their own lusts2, 4and saying, “Where is the promise of his coming? For, from the day that the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.” 5For this they willfully forget, that there were heavens from of old, and an earth formed out of water and amid water, by the Word of God3; 6by which means the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished. 7But the heavens that now are, and the earth, by the same Word have been stored up for fire, being reserved against the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
8But do not forget this one thing, beloved, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9The Lord is not slow concerning his promise, as some count slowness; but is patient with us, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
10But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. 11Therefore since all these things are thus to be destroyed, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy living and godliness, 12looking for and earnestly desiring the coming of the day of God, by reason of which the heavens being on fire will be dissolved, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? 13But, according to his promise, we look for
“new heavens and a new earth,” 4
in which dwells righteousness.
14Therefore, beloved, seeing that you look for these things, be diligent to be found in peace, without blemish and blameless in his sight. 15Regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also, according to the wisdom given to him, wrote to you; 16as also in all of his letters, speaking in them of these things. In those are some things hard to be understood, which the ignorant and unsettled twist, as they also do to the rest of Al-Kitab5, to their own destruction.
17You therefore, beloved, knowing these things beforehand, beware lest, being carried away with the error of the wicked, you fall from your own steadfastness. 18But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour ‘ISA6 AL-MASIH7. To him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.
- 3:2 Lord, translated from the Greek kurios. Depending on context, it can refer to: 1. God, 2. ’ISA AL-MASIH, 3. men in authority, such as kings, landlords, etc., 4. a respectful salutation meaning, “sir.” ↩︎
- 3:3 Quoted in the Injil, Jude 1:17-18 which says: But you, beloved, remember the words which have been spoken before by the apostles of our LORD ‘ISA AL-MASIH. They said to you that “In the last time there will come mockers, walking after their own ungodly lusts.” ↩︎
- 3:5 God, English translation of theos. It is the Greek equivalent of elohim and eloah (Hebrew) which are related to allah (Arabic) and alaha (Syriac), all of which translate as “God,” and refer to the one true God. ↩︎
- 3:13 Promised in the Taurat, Shaya 65:17 which says: “For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former things shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.”
Also promised in the Taurat, Shaya 66:22 which says: “For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me,” says YAHWEH, “so shall your seed and your name remain.” ↩︎ - 3:16 Al-Kitab, is an Arabic-derived term for “the Scriptures.” It is related to the Aramaic ketab and Hebrew terms ketab, miktab, and ktb. The same meaning of “the Scriptures” is expressed in Greek by graphe. In this verse, it refers to the whole Taurat, or Tanakh / Old Testament, as well as the Injil, which was in the process of being written and compiled. In particular, the Apostle Paul’s writings are singled out as part of Al-Kitab. This includes at least 13 letters by Apostle Paul found in the Injil—everything from Romans to Philemon. ↩︎
- 3:18 ‘ISA – The names ‘ISA (Arabic), ISHO (Syriac) and JESUS (Greek, IESOUS) are all derived from the Hebrew name YEHOSHUA, which means “YAHWEH saves.” (YAHWEH is God’s personal name revealed to Prophet Musa in the Taurat, Exodus 3:15 – God said moreover to Musa, “You shall tell Bani-Israel this, ‘YAHWEH, the God of your fathers, the God of Ibrahim, the God of Ishaq, and the God of Yaqub, has sent me to you.’ This is my Name forever, and this is how I am to be remembered to all generations.”) ↩︎
- 3:18 AL-MASIH – an Arabic title equivalent to the Messiah (Hebrew) or Christ (Greek), all of which mean the Anointed One, that is, God’s Chosen One. In ancient times, divinely-appointed kings, priests and prophets were anointed with oil to signify their appointment to office. All of them point ahead to God’s ultimate Anointed One, the Messiah, AL-MASIH. Al-Kitab unanimously points to ‘ISA Ibn Maryam as the only person worthy to bear the title AL-MASIH. He is the one whom God sent into this world to save people from sin, and to usher in God’s Kingdom at his Second Coming. ↩︎