SIL Translator’s Notes on 2 Peter 2000 – Page 3

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:4

1:4a

Through these: The literal meaning of the Greek is “by which.” This may refer to what comes immediately before (God’s glory and excellence) or to all of verse 3. Here is another way to translate this phrase:

In this way (Good News Translation)

promises: This word may refer to:

(1) promises of things that God will do for us in the future, for example, the promise of a new heaven and earth which Peter wrote about later in the letter (see 3:13). Peter described these promises as “precious” and “magnificent.”

(2) the things that God promised to give. This would mean his blessings and gifts (Good News Translation).

If it is necessary in your language to choose between these interpretations, it is recommended that you choose the first interpretation. Try to find words to show that these promises are extremely valuable.

1:4b

Peter said that when people receive the good things that God has promised to give, God frees them from the evil influence of the world and they become holy like God instead.

The Berean Standard Bible follows the order of the Greek text but it may be more logical in your language to reverse the order of the clauses and follow the order of Good News Translation and the Meaning Lines in the Display.

you: Peter changed from “us” in 1:4a to “you” in 1:4b. But what he was saying obviously applied to himself as well as to those who would read what he had written.

become partakers of the divine nature: This is a difficult phrase to translate. Peter said that a Christian can share in God’s own nature. This means that his character can become like God’s and he will behave like God does.

escaped: Peter used this word figuratively. Although it literally means “escape,” here it means “be free from.” Peter was saying that the bad way that unbelievers behave would no longer influence the believers to whom he wrote this letter.

corruption: This means literally “the decaying of a dead body.” But the meaning here is probably moral corruption. Peter was saying that when a person desires evil things it spoils that person’s heart and character.

the world: Here, and in 2:20, this refers to people who do not believe in Christ.

Paragraph 1:5–9

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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.

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 2:16

2:16

God caused the donkey Balaam was riding to speak to him in a human voice, and this stopped Balaam at that time from doing something which would have been foolish.

2:16c

prophet: Peter called Balaam a prophet because Balaam predicted things that would happen to Israel and to other nations (read Numbers 24).

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SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:15

1:15

after my departure: Peter spoke of his death as a “departure.” It will be better to translate the meaning directly as “death,” because a literal translation may cause people who read it to think that Peter was physically leaving the place where he was.

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SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 3:6

3:6

through which: The literal meaning of the Greek is “by which.” In Greek the word “which” is plural, and there are different opinions concerning what it refers to:

(1) Some people think it refers to the water in verse 5, and this is how most English versions translate it; see also Good News Translation: “and it was by water also.” There is a problem because the word “which” is plural. This may be because Peter was thinking of the water from above and the water from the seas (see Genesis 7:11). Or he may be thinking of “water” as plural, because the word for “water” in the Hebrew language in which the OT was written is always plural.

(2) Others believe it refers to the water and the word (of God) in verse 5. It was by his word and by water that God created the world, and he used them both to destroy the world. According to this interpretation, the same idea—the word of God—occurs in each of the three verses 5–7. These people think it is unlikely that Peter would use a plural pronoun to refer to a single substance (water), and that he would then also repeat the word “water” later in the same sentence. So for these reasons they prefer this second interpretation.

It is recommended that you follow the first interpretation (1).

the world of that time: Peter has already talked about the flood in 2:5. There he spoke about “the ancient world” and probably he meant the same thing here. This expression then refers to all living creatures on the earth, especially people.

But some scholars think it refers to the whole universe including the heavens and the earth. If it did mean the whole universe here, it would match Peter’s reference to the present heavens and earth in verse 7. This is one reason why some people accept this interpretation.

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SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 2:6

2:6

The third example Peter gave in this chapter is of the wicked people of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. God sent down fire upon these cities and destroyed them so completely that nothing was left of them but ashes. This also shows that God will punish ungodly, wicked people. You can read about this in Genesis 19:1–29.

2:6a

if He condemned…to destruction, reducing them to ashes: God, as a judge, had looked at the evil way the people of Sodom and Gomorrah were behaving and decided that they deserved to be punished.

condemned…to destruction: The version of the Greek Bible that the Berean Standard Bible follows, says condemned…to destruction (instead of just “condemned”). Here are some other translations that follow this text:

he condemned them to extinction (Revised Standard Version)
-or-
condemned them to total destruction (New English Bible)

Whether you use the translation condemned…to destruction or simply “condemned”, the basic meaning is the same.

the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah: Although Peter said that God condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, he meant that God condemned the people who were in those cities. It may be necessary for you to make that clear in your translation.

2:6b

the ungodly: See the note on 2:5a.

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SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 3:17

3:17a

This verse starts with a pronoun which emphasizes that here Peter has stopped talking about the people who were using the Scriptures incorrectly and started talking directly again to the Christians to whom he was writing, urging them not to allow the words of evil men to deceive them. Good News Translation translates this pronoun like this: “But you, my friends.” Berean Standard Bible does not translate the pronoun with any special emphasis.

beloved: See note on 3:1a.

already know these things: Here these things may refer to all that Peter had been saying about Christ’s return. Or it may refer to what he had said immediately before this verse, in verse 16, where he wrote that people would destroy themselves by twisting Scripture.

3:17c

the lawless: See note on 2:7b.

3:17d

secure standing: The literal meaning of the Greek is “stability.” This word is the opposite of “unstable” in the previous verse. If they listened to false teaching, they would doubt what they had believed, and they would no longer firmly trust in Christ. In some languages you can use an idiom like: “you will leave God’s road and get lost.”

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SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:5

1:5–7

In these verses Peter wrote about eight traits which should be a part of every Christian’s character. If your language has abstract nouns, for example, “faith,” you can use these, but in many languages it will be necessary to use verbs to talk about these character traits. The Display of 1:5–7 shows examples of how to use verbs to talk about all these character traits.

1:5a

For this very reason: This probably refers to verses 3 and 4 as a unit and means “because of all that God has done for us.”

make every effort: This means “to try very hard.” It means that a person should use all his strength to do this.

add to your faith virtue: If you are using abstract nouns, you could express this idea as:

try hard to develop a good character as well as your faith.

1:5b

knowledge: This may refer to knowing about things in a way that enables a person to decide wisely about what to do as he lives each day. Or it may refer to knowing about God and what he wants his people to do.

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SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 2:17

Paragraph 2:17–22

Peter continued to describe the wicked way that the false teachers behaved. Because they were so wicked, God was reserving a place in hell for them.

Peter used many metaphors and other figures of speech in this paragraph. This makes his words very vivid. You may not be able to use the same figurative language in your translation, but try to find other ways of making your translation as vivid as the original.

2:17

Peter compared the false teachers to two things: firstly, to springs of water which have dried up, and secondly, to mists or clouds which the wind drives away during a storm and so no rain falls. Both examples refer to events that disappoint people. In the same way the false teachers disappointed people, because their teachings were worthless. People expected to learn from a teacher how to live in the way God wanted them to, but instead these teachers taught them the wrong way.

2:17c

Blackest darkness: Because the false teachers did this, God had reserved a place in deep darkness for them. Use whichever words you have in your language to best explain how intense the darkness was.

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Source: SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 2000

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:4

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 2:16

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:15

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 3:6

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 2:6

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 3:17

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:5

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 2:17

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