2 Peter 3:6

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 2 Peter 3:3-7

To quicken and excite us to a serious minding and firm adhering to what God has revealed to us by the prophets and apostles, we are told that there will be scoffers, men who will make a mock of sin, and of salvation from it. God's way of saving sinners by Jesus Christ is what men will scoff at, and that in the last days, under the gospel. This indeed may seem very strange, that the New-Testament dispensation of the covenant of grace, which is spiritual and therefore more agreeable to the... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - 2 Peter 3:5-6

3:5-6 What they wilfully fail to see is that long ago the heavens were created and the earth was composed out of water and through water; and through these waters the ancient world perished, when it was overwhelmed in a deluge of water. Peter's first argument is that the world is not eternally stable. The point he is making is that the ancient world was destroyed by water, just as the present world is going to be destroyed by fire. The detail of this passage is, however, difficult. He... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - 2 Peter 3:6

Whereby the world that then was ,.... The old world, as it is called in 2 Peter 2:5 ; and as the Ethiopic version here renders it; the world before the flood, that had stood from the creation 1656 years: being overflowed with water ; by the windows of heaven being opened, and the waters over the earth poured down upon it; and by the fountains of the great deep being broken up in it; thus by these waters from above and below, a general inundation was brought upon it; for that the deluge... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - 2 Peter 3:6

Verse 6 It seems, however, strange that he says that the world perished through the deluge, when he had before mentioned the heaven and the earth. To this I answer, that the heaven was then also submerged, that is, the region of the air, which stood open between the two waters. For the division or separation, mentioned by Moses, was then confounded. (Genesis 1:6;) and the word heaven is often taken in this sense. if any wishes for more on this subject, let him read Augustine on the City of God.... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Peter 3:1-9

The Divine commandment. A careful study of this passage is necessary to a clear understanding of the apostle's meaning, and of the place of this urgent exhortation in his argument. For such a study it may be welt to gather up his teaching here round three points. I. THE " WORD " OR " COMMANDMENT " HERE INTENDED . Concerning such we ask: 1 . By whom is it proclaimed? 2 . How is it to be received? 3 . What is it? The theme of both Epistles—Christ's coming. II. ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Peter 3:1-10

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

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Peter 3:1-10

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

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Peter 3:6

Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished. The Greek for" whereby" is δἰ ὧν , literally, "through which things." The plural here presents some difficulty. The most obvious antecedents are "the heavens and the earth" of the last verse; but many commentators refer the relative to the twice-repeated "water." The meaning will be the same whichever view we take. "The fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened;" that is, the... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - 2 Peter 3:6

Whereby - Δι ̓ ὧν Di' hōn. Through which, or by means of which. The pronoun here is in the plural number, and there has been much difference of opinion as to what it refers. Some suppose that it refers to the heavens mentioned in the preceding verse, and to the fact that the windows of heaven were opened in the deluge (Doddridge), others that the Greek phrase is taken in the sense of (διὸ dio) “whence.” Wetstein supposes that it refers to the “heavens and the earth.” But the most obvious... read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - 2 Peter 3:4-6

2 Peter 3:4-6. Where is the promise of his coming To raise the dead, judge mankind, and destroy the earth? We see no sign of any such thing. The promise of Christ’s coming we have Matthew 15:27, The Son of man shall come in his glory, &c.; John 14:3, I will come and receive you to myself, &c., and in many other passages of the gospel; a promise which was renewed by the angels at our Lord’s ascension, and is spoken of in many passages of the epistles, especially in those of St.... read more

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