Changes to 2 Peter 2 – Part 2 CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO
This lesson is Part 2 about changes in 2 Peter 2. Since 2 Peter 2 is about false teachers and how they beguile unstable souls, you can be sure that there will be some significant changes in the modern Bibles to disguise their work. Today we are going to identify 17 things that have been changed in the NIV in this one chapter alone that make major doctrinal differences to the text.
This lesson is not just an argument for the King James Bible. Today you are going to see one of the contributing factors to apostasy in the body of Christ, the perversion of the words of God. These changes mask the work of false teachers making it more difficult for you to detect what they are doing.
Note these additional serious changes in 2 Pet 2:
Merchandise of you – 2 Pet 2:3 – changed to “exploit you” – the change to “exploit” makes you think that the false teachers are only interested in exploiting you for money – while they are certainly interested in your money, their interest runs much deeper than that – they want your soul – “you” are the merchandise [Gal 6:3, Matt 23:15, Rev 18:13] – that’s why they speak evil of the truth – they want you to follow them rather than the truth and the men who preach the truth – you are the prize.
Chains of darkness – 2 Pet 2:4 – changed to “gloomy dungeons” – this change removes the reference to the darkness that chains the angels [Job 10:21-22, Eph 6:12, Col 1:13] – darkness is also the “mist” [see Acts 13:11] that blinds them in v.17 – this verse has also been changed – when we get saved, we come out of darkness – yet these false teachers are trying to get you back in the bondage and blindness of darkness where the Pharisees were when Jesus was here [Lk 11:34-35] – you see, false teachers will use darkness to bring you into bondage here, to blind you to the truth of God’s words.
If – 2 Pet 2:4 – four more “if’s” were added in v.4-9 – these additions are characteristic of the devil himself [Matt 4:3-6, Matt 27:40-42] – his fingerprints are on the changes being made here – can’t you “see” who is behind the changes in this chapter.
Saved – 2 Pet 2:5 – changed to “protected” – Noah is a great picture of salvation and when the word “saved” is removed from the text you miss the whole picture [1 Pet 3:20-21] – the Lord is not only protecting us from false teachers, he has saved us from them!!
The world of the ungodly – 2 Pet 2:5 – changed to “ungodly people” – the trouble in Noah’s day was not just with the “people” – the trouble was with the “world” including the beasts, creeping things and the fowls [Gen 6:7] – everything that breathed died except for what was in the ark – the trouble then is like it is now [Lk 17:26] – they worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator [Rom 1:25] – don’t you think for a moment that this concern for and worship of “nature” is just the result of politics, science and education – it is a doctrine of the devil propagated by false teachers meant to turn this whole world away from God and into the sins of Rom 1:28-31.
The conversation of the wicked – 2 Pet 2:7-8 – changed to “lawless men” and “lawless deeds” – listen, the most law abiding men in Jesus’ day were the wickedest [the Pharisees Matt 23] – a great law abiding citizen came to Jesus in Matt 19:16-26 to find out how to have eternal life – he continued to be law abiding yet died and went to hell – the trouble in Lot’s day was not lawlessness – it was wickedness – interestingly it was not their “deeds’ only that caused Lot to be vexed – it was their “conversation,” self-interpreted in the King James Bible as their behavior, what Lot was “seeing,” and their words, what Lot was “hearing” – in our country, freedom of speech has been used by false teachers to change peoples’ behavior and destroy this country – the same is true of false teachers among brethren – their conversation [words and behavior] is destroying the church.
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