II Peter 2: Examples of Evil

II Peter 2 is a good example of why the Old Testament is relevant to New Testament Christians!  Peter cites numerous examples from the Old Testament to drive home the point that evil is real, and God knows how to judge it and deliver from it.

Peter includes mention of:

• Fallen angels (vs. 4)
• Noah (vs. 5), delivered from the flood that came upon a wicked world
• Lot (vs. 6-8), delivered from the judgment that came upon evil Sodom and Gomorroah
• Balaam and his donkey (vs. 15-16)

He also uses two expressions to describe the condition of those who return to their sin after experiencing God's grace: that of a dog returning to its vomit and a sow wallowing in the mud after its bath.

The picture that Peter draws in this chapter is two-edged.  Certainly there is judgment described for all those who turn their backs on God - as He has punished those in the past, so God can be counted on to do the same now and in the future.  But also woven throughout these stories are hints of salvation and deliverance for the righteous who put their trust in God.  Like Noah, like Lot, the Lord "knows how to rescue the godly from trial" (vs. 9).