1Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ: 2May mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.
3Beloved, while I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I was constrained to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. 4For there are certain men who crept in secretly, even those who were long ago written about for this condemnation: ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into indecency, and denying our only Master, God, and Lord, Jesus Christ.
5Now I desire to remind you, though you already know this, that the Lord, having saved a people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who didn’t believe. 6Angels who didn’t keep their first domain, but deserted their own dwelling place, he has kept in everlasting bonds under darkness for the judgment of the great day. 7Even as Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, having in the same way as these given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are shown as an example, suffering the punishment of eternal fire. 8Yet in the same way, these also in their dreaming defile the flesh, despise authority, and slander celestial beings. 9But Michael, the archangel, when contending with the devil and arguing about the body of Moses, dared not bring against him an abusive condemnation, but said, “May the Lord rebuke you!” 10But these speak evil of whatever things they don’t know. They are destroyed in these things that they understand naturally, like the creatures without reason. 11Woe to them! For they went in the way of Cain, and ran riotously in the error of Balaam for hire, and perished in Korah’s rebellion. 12These are hidden rocky reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you, shepherds who without fear feed themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots; 13wild waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, for whom the blackness of darkness has been reserved forever. 14About these also Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied, saying, “Behold, the Lord came with ten thousands of his holy ones, 15to execute judgment on all, and to convict all the ungodly of all their works of ungodliness which they have done in an ungodly way, and of all the hard things which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” 16These are murmurers and complainers, walking after their lusts—and their mouth speaks proud things—showing respect of persons to gain advantage.
17But you, beloved, remember the words which have been spoken before by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. 18They said to you, “In the last time there will be mockers, walking after their own ungodly lusts.” 19These are those who cause divisions and are sensual, not having the Spirit.
20But you, beloved, keep building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit. 21Keep yourselves in God’s love, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. 22On some have compassion, making a distinction, 23and some save, snatching them out of the fire with fear, hating even the clothing stained by the flesh.
24Now to him who is able to keep them from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory in great joy, 25to God our Savior, who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen.
2 Peter 2 is an extended defense and polemic against false teachers and their teaching. At first, the false teachers of Peter’s day presented themselves as genuine followers of Jesus Christ and seemed to give credible evidence of genuine faith. In reality, however, they were secretly posing as believers in order to deceive the flock of God (2:1, cf. 1 John 2:18, 19, Jude 4). So Peter wrote 2 Peter in part to expose their deception and to warn true believers in the church. Unfortunately, their destructive influence had already enticed some recent converts away from the way of righteousness, promising them freedom from moral restraints and future judgment (2:18, 19).
In verse 20 Peter pronounces that the final state of those who get entangled with this false teaching is worse than their first state (a probable quote from Jesus, cf. Matthew 12:45, Luke 11:26). Although this could be a reference to the recent converts mentioned in 2 Pet 2:18 (the closest antecedent), Peter is most likely referring to the false teachers who predominate the context. Either way, Peter’s point is clear: individuals who embrace Christianity and then reject it for the world will face a more severe judgment than if they never knew the way of righteousness in the first place (2 Pet 2:21; cf. Luke 10:10-14).
Controversy surrounds this verse. Is Peter asserting that genuine believers can lose their salvation? Three possible interpretations exist. First, some advocate that the false teachers and their followers were genuine believers who apostatized and will face eternal damnation (i.e., loss of salvation view). This understanding seems straightforward enough but contradicts other clear teachings in Scripture concerning eternal security (e.g., Romans 8:28-39, John 10:28, 29). Second, a few suggest that Peter referred to genuine believers who will not suffer eternal damnation but loss of eternal rewards. While this view harmonizes Peter’s statement with more clear passages on eternal security, it fails to deal adequately with the severe judgment language in 2 Peter (e.g., 2:1, 9, 12, 17, 3:6-12, 16) and to explain how their final state is worse than being unsaved. Third, others understand that Peter wrote of individuals who merely appeared to be saved but actually never genuinely believed. They had a superficial knowledge of Christ and only temporarily escaped the shameful defilements of the world through their association with Christians. Therefore, the ultimate end of these unbelievers is eternal damnation (cf. 2:17). This final opinion, also known as the “phenomenological view,” is the preferred view. This understanding works best with Peter’s concluding proverbs about the true nature of dogs and pigs (2:22). Just as these animals naturally engage in defiling activities, the false teachers revealed their true spiritual condition when they returned to their depraved lifestyle.