The Lord Knows How (To Get Us Out Of This Mess)
“…then the Lord knows how to rescue
the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the
day of judgment…" (2 Peter 2:9 NASU)
This is not a pleasant chapter to read, but its portrayal of the corrupt
influence the world sometimes has on disciples is sadly accurate, and therefore
its message is important to us.
This chapter is about the exploitation of those trying to serve the Lord. There
are the false teachers who introduce false ways, and in their gross misconduct,
give an excuse to the enemies of righteousness in the world to malign the truth
(vs. 1-3). Examples from both history and contemporary events show how the
hypocrisy and sin of religious pretenders can give truth a bad name.
Then Peter cites Biblical events of the past to show how God can rescue the
righteous from such evil environments. He rescued Noah from his world (v. 5) and
Lot from his (vs. 6-8). Yes, the Lord knows both how to "rescue the godly" and
punish those committed to doing evil.
The world will bring us to ruin if it can. It will exalt itself against God and
all that is holy. It will daily suffer dreadful pain as the "wages of its own
wrongdoing", and yet continue on its evil course. It will seek to entice the
faithful away from their God with "arrogant words of vanity" by "promising them
freedom." All the while, the exploiters are actually in dreadful servitude of
their own corruption, and continue to follow their master as he leads them
toward the eternal "black darkness" (2:12-19).
Like Lot, we may at times feel "oppressed" and "tormented" by what we see around
us. But we remember that the Lord knows how to deliver His faithful ones out of
this mess. "Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal,
"The Lord knows those who are His," and, "Everyone who names the name of the
Lord is to abstain from wickedness" (2 Timothy 2:19).
By Jon W. Quinn
The Final Page
From Expository Files 19.12; December 2012
