
{1}1{/}

{I}1_{/}Symeon Peter, a 
servant and apostle of 
Jesus Christ, to those 
who have been sanctified 
by our God and Savior 
Jesus Christ and have 
received a faith as 
precious as ours:
{I}2_{/}may grace and 
peace abound in you 
through the knowledge of 
God and of Jesus our 
Lord. 
WE SHARE IN THE DIVINE 
NATURE{/}

{I}3_{/}His divine power 
has given us everything 
we need for life and 
piety. First the 
knowledge of the One who 
called us through his own 
Glory and Might, by which 
we were given the most 
extraordinary and 
precious promises. 
{I}4_{/}Through them you 
share in the divine 
nature, after repelling 
the{I}_{/}corruption and 
evil desires of this 
world.
{I}5_{/}So, strive with 
the greatest 
determination and 
increase your faith with 
strength, strength with 
knowledge, 
{I}6_{/}knowledge with 
moderation, moderation 
with constancy, constancy 
with piety, {I}7_{/}piety 
with mutual affection, 
mutual affection with 
charity. {I}8_{/}If all 
these riches are in you 
so as to abound in you, 
you will not be idle and 
useless; you will rather 
be rooted in the 
knowledge of Jesus Christ 
our Lord. {I}9_{/}Whoever 
is not aware of this is 
blind and shortsighted 
and is forgetful of the 
cleansing of former sins.
{I}10_{/}Therefore, 
brothers and sisters, 
strive more and more to 
respond to the call of 
God who chose you. If you 
do so, you will never 
stumble. 
{I}11_{/}Moreover you 
will be generously 
granted entry to the 
eternal kingdom of our 
Lord and Savior Jesus 
Christ.
{I}12_{/}So I shall 
always remind you of 
these things, though you 
know them and remain firm 
in the truth that you 
have. {I}13_{/}It seems 
fitting that as long as I 
live in the tent of this 
body, I refresh your 
memory of them, 
{I}14_{/}knowing that my 
tent may soon be folded 
up, as our Lord Jesus 
Christ has shown me. 
{I}15_{/}I will, 
nonetheless, endeavor to 
see that after my 
departure, you will be 
constantly reminded of 
all this.
THE FOUNDATION OF 
FAITH{/}

{I}16_{/}Indeed, what we 
taught you about the 
power and the return of 
Christ Jesus our Lord was 
not drawn from myths or 
formulated theories. We 
ourselves were 
eyewitnesses of his 
majesty, {I}17_{/}when he 
received glory and honor 
from God the Father, when 
from the magnificent 
Glory this most 
extraordinary word came 
upon him: "This is my 
beloved Son, this is my 
Chosen One." {I}18_{/}We 
ourselves heard this 
voice from heaven when we 
were with him on the holy 
mountain.
{I}19_{/}Therefore, we 
believe most firmly in 
the message of the 
prophets which you should 
consider rightly as a 
lamp shining in a dark 
place, until the break of 
day, when the Morning 
Star shines in your 
hearts.
{I}20_{/}Know this well: 
no prophecy of Scripture 
can be handed over to 
private interpretation, 
{I}21_{/}since no 
prophecy comes from human 
decision, for it was men 
of God, moved by the Holy 
Spirit, who spoke.
FALSE TEACHERS{/}

{1}2{/}

{I}1_{/}Just as there 
have been false prophets 
in the midst of the 
people of Israel, so will 
there be false teachers 
among you. They will 
introduce harmful sects 
and, by denying the 
Master who saved them, 
they will bring upon 
themselves sudden 
perdition. {I}2_{/}Many, 
nonetheless, will imitate 
their vices and because 
of them the Way of Truth 
will be discredited. 
{I}3_{/}They will take 
advantage of you with 
deceitful words for the 
sake of money. But their 
condemnation{I}_{/}has 
already begun and their 
destruction awaits them.
{I}4_{/}In fact, God did 
not pardon the angels who 
sinned but cast them into 
hell, confining them in 
the dark pits, keeping 
them there until the Day 
of Judgment. 
{I}5_{/}Neither did he 
pardon the ancient world 
when he unleashed the 
waters of the flood upon 
the world of wicked 
people, but protected 
only Noah, the eighth 
prophet of righteousness. 
{I}6_{/}God also 
condemned the cities of 
Sodom and Gomorrah, 
reducing them to ashes, 
to serve as a warning to 
the wicked in the future. 
{I}7_{/}But he saved Lot, 
a good man deeply 
afflicted by the 
unbridled conduct of 
those vicious people. 
{I}8_{/}For Lot, a 
righteous man who lived 
in their midst, suffered 
day after day in the 
goodness of his heart as 
he saw and heard of their 
crimes.
{I}9_{/}So, then, the 
Lord knows how to free 
from trial those who 
serve him and keep the 
wicked for punishment on 
the Day of Judgment.
{I}10_{/}He will do this 
especially for certain 
people who follow the 
baser desires of their 
nature and despise the 
Lord's majesty. Proud and 
daring they are not 
afraid of insulting 
fallen spirits 
{I}11_{/}while the 
angels, who are superior 
to them in strength and 
power, do not permit 
themselves any injurious 
accusation in the 
presence of the Lord.
{I}12_{/}Those people are 
like irrational animals 
born to be caught and 
killed; after they have 
slandered what they 
cannot understand, they 
will end like animals 
{I}13_{/}and they will 
suffer the repayment of 
their wickedness. 
They enjoy fleeting 
pleasures; they are 
obscene and vicious who 
delight in deceiving you 
when they share in your 
fraternal meals. 
{I}14_{/}They cannot look 
at a woman without 
desiring her, they do not 
tire of sinning and 
seducing weak souls. They 
are full of greed - an 
accursed people.
{I}15_{/}They abandoned 
the right way and 
followed Balaam, son of 
Beor who was attached to 
what he gained from his 
wrongdoing. {I}16_{/}But 
he was rebuked for his 
sin: his she-ass began to 
speak with a human voice, 
stopping the prophet in 
his madness. 
{I}17_{/}These people are 
like waterless springs, 
clouds driven by a storm 
which move swiftly into 
the blackest darkness.
{I}18_{/}With their 
boastful and empty 
discourses, they 
encourage the lust and 
impure desire of those 
who have just freed 
themselves from the 
common errors.
{I}19_{/}They promise 
freedom when they 
themselves are slaves of 
corruption: for people 
are slaves to whatever 
dominates them. 
{I}20_{/}Indeed, after 
being freed from worldly 
vices through the 
knowledge of the Lord and 
Savior Jesus Christ, they 
returned to those vices 
and surrendered to them; 
and their present state 
has become worse than the 
first. {I}21_{/}It would 
have been better for them 
not to have known the way 
of holiness{I}_{/}than, 
knowing it, to turn away 
from the sacred doctrine 
that they had been 
taught. {I}22_{/}In their 
case these proverbs are 
relevant: "The dog turns 
back to its own vomit," 
and: "Hardly has the pig 
been washed than it again 
wallows in the mud."
WHY IS THE SECOND COMING 
OF CHRIST DELAYED?{/}

{1}3{/}

{I}1_{/}Dearly beloved, 
this is the second letter 
I write to you. 
In{I}_{/}both of them I 
have intended to remind 
you of sound doctrine. 
{I}2_{/}Do not forget the 
words of the holy 
prophets and the teaching 
of our Lord{I}_{/}and 
Savior, as you heard it 
through his apostles.
{I}3_{/}Remember, first 
of all, that in the last 
days scoffers will 
appear, their mockery 
serving their evil 
desires. {I}4_{/}And they 
will say, "What has 
become of his promised 
coming? Since our fathers 
in faith died, everything 
still goes on as it was 
from the beginning of the 
world." {I}5_{/}Indeed, 
they deliberately ignore 
that in the beginning the 
heavens existed first and 
earth appeared from the 
water, taking its form by 
the word of God. 
{I}6_{/}By the same word 
of God, this world 
perished in the Flood. 
{I}7_{/}Likewise, the 
Word of God maintains the 
present heavens and earth 
until their destruction 
by fire; they are kept 
for the Day of Judgment 
when the godless will be 
destroyed. {I}8_{/}Do not 
forget, beloved, that 
with the Lord, one day is 
like a thousand years, 
and a thousand years is 
like one day. {I}9_{/}The 
Lord does not delay in 
fulfilling his promise, 
though some speak of 
delay; rather he gives 
you time because he does 
not want anyone to 
perish, but that all may 
come to conversion. 
{I}10_{/}The Day of the 
Lord is to come like a 
thief. Then the heavens 
will dissolve with a 
great noise; the elements 
will melt away by fire, 
and the earth with all 
that is on it will be 
burned up.
{I}11_{/}Since all things 
are to vanish, how holy 
and religious your way of 
life must be, {I}12_{/}as 
you wait for the Day of 
God and long for its 
coming, when the heavens 
will dissolve in fire and 
the elements melt away in 
the heat. {I}13_{/}We 
wait for a new heaven and 
a new earth in which 
justice reigns, according 
to God's promise.
{I}14_{/}Therefore, 
beloved, as you wait in 
expectation of this, 
strive that God may find 
you rooted in peace, 
without blemish or fault.
{I}15_{/}And consider 
that God's patience is 
for our salvation, as our 
beloved brother Paul 
wrote to you, with the 
wisdom given him. 
{I}16_{/}He speaks of 
these things in all his 
letters. There are, 
however, some points in 
them that are difficult 
to understand, which 
people who are ignorant 
and immature in their 
faith twist, as they do 
with the rest of the 
Scriptures, to their own 
destruction.
{I}17_{/}So then, dearly 
beloved, as you have been 
warned, be careful lest 
those people who have 
gone astray deceive you 
in turn and drag you 
along, making you stumble 
and finally fall away. 
{I}18_{/}Grow in the 
grace and knowledge of 
our Lord and Savior Jesus 
Christ: to him be glory, 
now and to the day of 
eternity. Amen.

