2:2a

Many: This means many of the people who claimed to be Christians.

depravity: The Greek word means “very bad, immoral behavior.” It often refers specifically to sexual immorality, but not always. The other places that Peter used this word in his letters are 1 Peter 4:3, and 2 Peter 2:7, 2:18.

2:2b

the way of truth: This means the true way to live, the way Jesus and the true teachers had taught Christians to live.

will be defamed: The literal meaning of the Greek is “blaspheme, say bad things about.” Peter was saying that the bad behavior of the people who claimed to be Christians but who followed the false teachers would cause other people to say bad things about the Christian teaching about how to live.

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All Scripture quotations in this publication, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, Berean Standard Bible. BSB is produced in cooperation with Bible Hub, Discovery Bible, OpenBible.com, and the Berean Bible Translation Committee.