God’s Judgment is Real

2 Peter 2:4-10a

⁴For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment; ⁵if he did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; ⁶if by turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes he condemned them to extinction, making them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; ⁷and if he rescued righteous Lot, greatly distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked ⁸(for as that righteous man lived among them day after day, he was tormenting his righteous soul over their lawless deeds that he saw and heard); ⁹then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, ¹⁰and especially those who indulge in the lust of defiling passion and despise authority.

This passage contains both Law and Gospel, as Peter outlines the punishments God meted out upon those who chose open rebellion against Him while He rescued those who love Him. This included those who lived during the time of Noah, the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, and even the angels. Peter addressing those who believed in Jesus at one time, but deny the divine judgment at Christ’s second coming. They believed that God would not hold them accountable for their misdeeds. Clearly, if you follow Peter’s logic and evidence, these apostates were wrong.

Three times in these verses, we find Peter using the phrase “did not spare” in reference to his three examples of God’s judgment. If God did not spare angels, Noah’s contemporaries, or Sodom, why would He change His standards and spare those who were openly rebellious during Peter’s time – or ours.

Hidden within this passage is the presence of the number eight and, while that detail is not earth-shatteringly important, it is interesting and does play a part in God’s grand plan. That emphasis begins with the description of Noah “with seven others”. Those eight people began God’s second chance for mankind after the world-wide flood. I don’t want to make too much of this little Scriptural nuance, but it is most certainly interesting.

The OT salvific connections of the number eight include circumcision, which took place on the eighth day (Gen 17:12). Circumcision on the eighth day receives attention in the NT as well (Lk 1:59; Acts 7:8; Phil 3:5). Paul compares circumcision as the rite of initiation into the old covenant with Baptism, which initiates one into the new covenant by way of incorporation into Christ’s death and resurrection (Col 2:11–13). The Hebrew method of counting days is inclusive; thus, the eighth day was the first day of the baby’s second week of life. Similarly, Christ’s transfiguration, which prefigures the resurrection, is counted by Luke as occurring “eight days” after the prior pericope in the Gospel (Lk 9:28). Indeed, Christ’s resurrection took place, not coincidentally, on “the first day of the week” (Mt 28:1; Lk 24:1; Jn 20:1), that is, on Sunday. Starting with Easter Sunday itself (Jn 20:19) and the next Sunday (“eight days later,” Jn 20:26), this day of the week is the Christian Sabbath that marks the new life given through Christ’s resurrection (Acts 20:7; 1 Cor 16:2).

Giese, C. P. ©2012. 2 Peter and Jude. (p. 113). Saint Louis, MO: CPH.

The above is for general knowledge and, while I find it interesting it’s not vital. Of most importance in this passage is the fact that God will not be trifled with for He is holy and mighty. For now, He is withholding His hand of wrath because He is also merciful and wants as many as possible to come to know Him as Savior. But that hand will not be withheld forever. His judgments, while they are infinitely just, are also completely sure. For those who stand washed in the blood of Jesus, those judgments are withheld with love. We are made righteous through His death on the cross. For those who wish to ignore God’s power in their lives, I am fearful.