The heavens being on fire - See on 2 Peter 3:10 . (note). It was an ancient opinion among the heathens that the earth should be burnt up with fire; so Ovid, Met., lib. i. v. 256. Esse quoque in fatis reminiscitur, adfore tempus, Quo mare, quo tellus, correptaque regia coeli Ardeat; et mundi moles operosa laboret read more
We, according to his promise, look for new heavens - The promise to which it is supposed the apostle alludes, is found Isaiah 65:17 ; : Behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind; and Isaiah 66:22 ; : For as the new heavens and the new earth which I will make shall remain before me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed, etc. Now, although these may be interpreted of the glory of the Gospel dispensation, yet, if St. Peter refer... read more
Verse 10 10.But the day of the Lord will come. This has been added, that the faithful might be always watching, and not promise to-morrow to themselves. For we all labor under two very different evils — too much haste, and slothfulness. We are seized with impatience for the day of Christ already expected; at the same time we securely regard it as afar off. As, then, the Apostle has before reproved an unreasonable ardor, so he now shakes off our sleepiness, so that we may attentively expect... read more
Verse 11 Heaven and earth, he says, shall pass away for our sakes; is it meet, then, for us to be engrossed with the things of earth, and not, on the contrary, to attend to a holy and godly life? The corruptions of heaven and earth will be purged by fire, while yet as the creatures of God they are pure; what then ought to be done by us who are full of so many pollutions? As to the word godlinesses (pietatibus ,) the plural number is used for the singular, except you take it as meaning the... read more
Verse 12 12Looking for and hasting unto, or, waiting for by hastening; so I render the words, though they are two participles; for what we had before separately he gathers now into one sentence, that is, that we ought hastily to wait. Now this contrarious hope possesses no small elegance, like the proverb, “Hasten slowly,” (festina lente .) When he says, “Waiting for,” he refers to the endurance of hope; and he sets hastening in opposition to topor; and both are very apposite. For as quietness... read more
The certainty of the Lord's coming. I. CONFUTATION OF SCOFFERS . 1 . St. Peter's purpose in writing, He took a deep interest in the spiritual welfare of the Christians of Asia Minor; he felt a great affection for them; he calls them "beloved" four times in this chapter. We do not know whether he had ever seen them face to face. It may be that Silvanus had made known to him their circumstances, their dangers, their temptations. So he writes to them. In the First Epistle he... read more
Fact of second coming, especially in its accompaniments. I. AIM OF THE EPISTLE . 1 . To stir them up by reminding them. "This is now, beloved, the second Epistle that I write unto you; and in both of them I stir up your sincere mind by putting you in remembrance." There is here the first of four designations of them as beloved in this chapter. It was already a second Epistle that he was writing to the same circle; not much time had elapsed since the writing of the First... read more
But the day of the Lord will come. The word ἥξει , will come, stands emphatically at the beginning of the clause; whatever the mockers may say, whatever may happen, come certainly will the day of the Lord. "The day of the Lord" meets us often in the prophets; it is usually associated with the thought of judgment (see Isaiah 2:12 ; Ezekiel 13:5 ; Joel 1:15 ; Malachi 3:2 ). In the New Testament it signifies the second advent of Christ ( 1 Thessalonians 5:2 ; 1 Corinthians 1:8 ;... read more
Destiny and duty. This passage is woven to the preceding by a link so clear and close that there is no need for indicating it. But we proceed to notice— I. THE CERTAINTY AND YET THE UNCERTAINTY OF THE PASSING AWAY OF THE PRESENT SYSTEM OF THINGS . 1 . What will "pass away"? "Heavens;" i.e., firmament. "Elements;" not the forces we usually so name, because they include "fire," which is here the revolutionary force; but, according to Farrar and... read more
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Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - 2 Peter 3:11
All these things shall be dissolved - They will all be separated, all decomposed; but none of them destroyed. And as they are the original matter out of which God formed the terraqueous globe, consequently they may enter again into the composition of a new system; and therefore the apostle says, 2 Peter 3:13 ; : we look for new heavens and a new earth - the others being decomposed, a new system is to be formed out of their materials. There is a wonderful philosophic propriety in the words... read more