2 Peter- Outline - Donald Guthrie: New Testament Introduction

I. GREETING (1:1–2)
The writer introduces himself in this epistle as Simon Peter and addresses those who share the same faith as he possesses.
II. TRUE KNOWLEDGE (1:3–21)
a. The quest for a higher nature (1:3–4)
• Every Christian has access to a divine power which enables him to live a godly life. His attitude towards the present world must be to escape from its
corruption through receiving a share of the divine nature. This is real knowledge.
b. The progressive character of Christian virtues (1:5–11)
• This Christian knowledge is many-sided and contains aspects far removed from mere intellectual apprehension although it includes this. The apostle
gives a list of virtues which should be striven for, reaching a climax in love (verses 5–7). This is the way to become fruitful in the knowledge of Christ,
and those who are diligent in this direction will have an abundant entrance into God’s kingdom.
c. The apostolic attestation of Christian knowledge (1:12–21)
1. The author expresses his intention to remind the readers of these things, not only while he still lives, but also after he has died, through his writings
(verses 12–15).
2. The content of the Christian message is contrasted with mythology, for the author has had first-hand acquaintance with a real event, the transfiguration,
which testified to the glory of Christ (verses 16–18).
3. On the basis of this an exhortation is addressed to the readers to pay attention to the prophetic word to which the apostle and his fellow eyewitnesses
bear testimony. A warning is added about the private interpretation of prophetic Scriptures, because these are inspired by the Spirit of God (verses
19–21).
III. FALSE KNOWLEDGE (2:1–22)
By way of contrast attention is now focused upon advocates of false knowledge who will trouble the church.
a. What may be expected from the false prophets (2:1–3)
• Their coming will be secretive. They will deny the Master. They will lead others into immoral practices. They will exploit others in their greed by
deceptive methods. But their destruction is certain.
b. What they may expect from God (2:4–10)
• Examples of God’s judgment are quoted from earlier history to illustrate the fate of these enemies of the truth. The fate of the fallen angels, the
antediluvian world, and Sodom and Gomorrah shows the certainty of judgment against sin, but also the assurance of divine mercy towards the godly
by the examples of Noah and Lot.
c. A description of ungodly people (2:11–22)
• The apostle now describes people he has already observed and draws attention to their arrogance, their irrational outlook, their immoral conduct, their
bad effect on others, their greed and their deceptive promises. Some of these people have already known something of Christ, but their return to their
former ways is deplored in strong terms. It would have been better for them not to have known the truth at all.
IV. THE PRESENT CHALLENGE (3:1–18)
In this closing portion of the epistle, the apostle turns to present problems and exhortations.
a. A reminder (3:1–2)
• The present letter, like the former one which the readers have received, has for its purpose to remind them of the apostolic prediction about scoffers to
come. Since it is witnessed by the prophetic word and the Lord’s own teaching, the rise of these scoffers should not take them unawares.
b. An explanation (3:3–10)
• There are some who are turning the delay in the Lord’s return into an occasion for scoffing. But they ignore that creation itself is the work of God, who
in his own time will bring it to consummation. As God acted in judgment by water in the time of the flood, so he will act in judgment by fire at the day of
judgment. The delay in the coming should therefore be interpreted as an act of mercy, and not as an evidence of God’s indifference to his promises. In
any case, the timing of the final act is unknown, but will surely come.
c. An exhortation (3:11–18)
• In view of approaching judgment, what sort of persons ought the Christians to be? The apostle mentions three things: holiness, godliness, expectancy.
Their lives must conform to the hope of a new creation where righteousness dwells. There must be a zeal for purity, and tranquillity. Paul’s letters
mention the Lord’s forbearance and this should be an encouragement, although some have twisted his meaning. The epistle ends with a warning to
the readers against being carried away by error, and an earnest plea to them to grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ.