SIL Translator’s Notes on 2 Peter 2000 – Page 5

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:3

Section 1:3–15

Peter taught about how people who believe in Christ should behave

Here is the basic message of this section: Christ has given Christians everything they need to live in a way that is good and that pleases him, so every Christian should try hard to become a strong and mature Christian. If they become that kind of Christian, it will be right and proper for God to allow them to enter heaven, Christ’s eternal kingdom.

Paragraph 1:3–4

In the Greek of these 2 verses, it is not clear to whom the 3rd person pronouns, “His,” “Him,” and “He,” refer. It is probable, however, that it is the same person throughout both verses. Both God and Christ are mentioned together in the previous verse, so that does not help us choose. Because of this, many translations (New International Version (2011 Revision), Revised Standard Version) leave the pronouns like the Greek, so that the person reading the letter must decide for himself. You may decide to do the same thing. However it may not be possible in your language to do this and therefore you must make a decision. Studying the 2 verses together, it does seem that some of what Peter says about this person, for example, that “he called us,” is normally used only of God himself (see 1 Corinthians 1:9). Therefore, if in your language, you need to make clear to whom these pronouns refer, it would be better to choose God, rather than Christ (see Good News Translation for one way of doing this). The Berean Standard Bible does this by capitalizing the first letter of these pronouns here. This is the interpretation these Notes will follow.

1:3a-b

Peter told the people to whom he wrote this letter that everything they needed to live as genuine Christians was available to them because they now knew God.

His divine power: This refers to the power which God has because he is God.

life and godliness: There are two ways to interpret this:

(1) These are two separate ideas, so the meaning is “spiritual (or eternal) life and godly behavior”. (Berean Standard Bible, New International Version (2011 Revision), The Jerusalem Bible, New English Bible, Revised Standard Version)

(2) These are two related words, and one describes the other, so the meaning is “a truly godly life”. (Good News Translation, Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)

It is recommended that you follow the first interpretation.

godliness: This means the good behavior of a person who has willingly chosen to live for God, and who wants to please him by doing everything in the way God wants him to.

1:3c

by His own glory and excellence: The Greek words here could mean one of two things:

(1) “by means of his own glory and goodness”. This means that God called us to be his people because of his own perfect and glorious character. This is the normal way of understanding the Greek. (Berean Standard Bible, New International Version (2011 Revision), New English Bible, The Jerusalem Bible)

(2) “to his own glory and goodness”. This means that God called us to share in his own glory and goodness. (Good News Translation, Revised Standard Version)

It is recommended that you follow the first interpretation.

glory: The word glory means many different things in the New Testament. Here it refers to God’s greatness, his glorious character.

excellence: This also refers to God’s character, to his moral goodness.

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

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 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

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

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.

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:6

1:6a

self-control: This refers to a person controlling his own body, and refusing to do evil things even if he wants to do them.

1:6b

perseverance: This refers to being patient while suffering, and to being steadfast. Here is another way to translate this word:

endurance (New Revised Standard Version)

1:6c

godliness: See note on 1:3a.

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:7

1:7a

brotherly kindness: This is one word in Greek. It refers to how brothers and sisters of the same family love each other and show that they care about each other. Christians in Peter’s time used it also to refer to how Christians loved other Christians.

1:7b

love: The Greek word Peter used here means “love” for all people, not only for families and other Christians.

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:8

1:8

In this verse Peter told what good results would come if Christians did the things he wrote about in 1:5–7. In the next verse he told about the bad results that would come if they did not do those things.

1:8b

ineffective: This means “useless, unable to do anything good.”

unproductive: This is similar in meaning to “ineffective” and means “barren, not producing anything good.”

Berean Standard Bible translates these two words in a way that emphasizes their negative meaning. “Ineffective” means “not effective” and unproductive means “not productive.” It is also possible to translate the words in a way that expresses a positive meaning. For example:

you will be useful and productive
-or-
they will make you active and effective (Good News Translation)

in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ: This may mean one of two things:

(1) “concerning your knowing the Lord Jesus Christ.” If this is what Peter was saying, he meant that knowing Jesus Christ would result in people living in a good way. For example:

knowing our Lord Jesus Christ has not made your lives either complacent or unproductive. (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)

(2) “towards knowing the Lord Jesus Christ.” If this is what Peter was saying, he meant that if people lived in a good way, it would result in them knowing Jesus Christ even better. For exmaple:

they will bring you to a real knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (The Jerusalem Bible)

It is recommended that you follow the first interpretation.

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:9

1:9a

Here Peter was not talking about problems that people have with their physical eyes. Instead, he was using metaphors to describe spiritual blindness. When people say that a person is spiritually blind, they mean that he does not understand about God or about living God’s way. One thing that people should understand about living God’s way is that after God has forgiven them for sinning against him, they should live in a way which pleases him. Peter wrote that people who do not understand this are like blind people.

nearsighted to the point of blindness: These are two kinds of eye problems. When a person is nearsighted, he can see clearly only things which are very near to him. When referring to a person’s blindness, this indicates that he is completely unable to see. Good News Translation combines the two:

so short-sighted that he cannot see (Good News Translation)

The most important thing to do when you are translating this part of this verse is to check that the people who will read your translation understand that Peter was writing about spiritual blindness.

1:9b

cleansed from his past sins: The Greek verb here, which Berean Standard Bible translates as cleansed, means “to be made clean.” The New Testament often talks about a Christian being “cleansed” from his sins (see Titus 2:14). Many scholars believe that Peter is here talking about baptism, but it is probably best to translate this verb as “forgiven” in this context. (For more discussion on this word and other possible ways of translating it, see 1:9 in the UBS Handbook Handbook on the Letter from Jude and the Second Letter from Peter.)

Paragraph 1:10–11

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:10

1:10a

Peter told the people to whom he wrote this letter that they should demonstrate by behaving well that God had called them to be his people. When other people saw the Christians behaving well, it would help the other people to understand that God had called the Christians to be his people.

brothers: Peter called the people to whom he wrote this letter his “brothers” because they were also members of God’s family. This was a common way for New Testament writers to address those to whom they were writing (see Galatians 1:11; Hebrews 3:12; James 1:2; 1 John 3:13). It may be advisable to translate this as “fellow believers” so that people who read your translation will not think that Peter was writing to his physical brothers.

strive: The Greek contains a word here that the Berean Standard Bible has left implicit. However, this word is in most translations and can have one of two meanings:

(1) “more.” Most English versions interpret it in this way. They say that here it modifies the meaning of the word strive to mean “strive even more.” For example:

be all the more eager (New International Version (2011 Revision))
-or-
try even harder (Good News Translation)

(2) “rather.” In verse 5, Peter had already urged the Christians to whom he was writing to do all that they could do to live in a good way. So some scholars believe that Peter used the word “rather” in order to contrast what he would write next with the preceding verse. He was saying, therefore, that Christians should not forget that God has cleansed us from the spiritual uncleanness that sinning against him caused. Instead, they should eagerly desire to show others that they were God’s people by the way they behave.

It is recommended that you follow the first interpretation (1) like most English versions. See the Meaning Line in the Display for an example.

make your calling and election sure: Here, election means “choice.” The Bible clearly states that it is God who chooses and calls a person to become a Christian (see paragraph 1:3–4). But Peter wrote that Christians must cause their calling by God to be sure and certain. There are two possible ways of understanding this:

(1) From the preceding verses, it seems that Peter meant that, by behaving in a way that is full of character traits that are spiritually and morally excellent, we will prove to ourselves and to others that God has called us to be his people.

(2) However, some people think that Peter meant that his readers needed to do all these things in order to ensure that their calling and election would not lapse, but would be permanent.

It is recommended that you follow the first interpretation (1) as it fits the context best.

1:10b

stumble: The Greek word that Peter used here literally means “to stumble” or “to trip.” Here it is used as a figure of speech and can mean one of two things:

(1) “to fall away from your faith,” that is, “to turn away from God.” Many versions follow this by saying “fall away” (Good News Translation, The Jerusalem Bible).

(2) “to commit serious sin.” Obviously all Christians sin, but here some scholars believe that Peter was saying that if a believer did all the things he had just been talking about, he would not sin in a really serious way.

The first interpretation (1) is recommended. If you are following this interpretation, try to find an idiomatic expression in your language that means this same thing. Here is an example: “you will at no time leave God’s road.” If you decide to use the word “stumble,” it may be necessary to add something that will tell the people who read your translation that this word refers to turning away from God.

Made available under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License (CC BY-SA) creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0

Step into the multitudes of languages of the Bible and join the worldwide conversation!

Source: SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 2000

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:3

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:4

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:5

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:6

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:7

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:8

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:9

SIL Translator's Notes on 2 Peter 1:10

Step into the multitudes of languages of the Bible and join the worldwide conversation!

American Bible Society