Oct. 24 Song of Solomon 1-4

Oct. 24

Song of Solomon 1-4

Son 1:1 The Song of songs, which is Solomon's. Beloved

Son 1:2 Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth; for your love is better than wine.

Son 1:3 Your oils have a pleasing fragrance. Your name is oil poured forth, therefore the virgins love you.

Son 1:4 Take me away with you. Let us hurry. The king has brought me into his chambers. Friends We will be glad and rejoice in you. We will praise your love more than wine! Beloved They are right to love you.

Son 1:5 I am dark, but lovely, you daughters of Jerusalem, like Kedar's tents, like Solomon's curtains.

Son 1:6 Don't stare at me because I am dark, because the sun has scorched me. My mother's sons were angry with me. They made me keeper of the vineyards. I haven't kept my own vineyard.

Son 1:7 Tell me, you whom my soul loves, where you graze your flock, where you rest them at noon; For why should I be as one who is veiled beside the flocks of your companions? Lover

Son 1:8 If you don't know, most beautiful among women, follow the tracks of the sheep. Graze your young goats beside the shepherds' tents.

Son 1:9 I have compared you, my love, to a steed in Pharaoh's chariots.

Son 1:10 Your cheeks are beautiful with earrings, your neck with strings of jewels.

Son 1:11 We will make you earrings of gold, with studs of silver. Beloved

Son 1:12 While the king sat at his table, my perfume spread its fragrance.

Son 1:13 My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh, that lies between my breasts.

Son 1:14 My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms from the vineyards of En Gedi. Lover

Son 1:15 Behold, you are beautiful, my love. Behold, you are beautiful. Your eyes are doves. Beloved

Son 1:16 Behold, you are beautiful, my beloved, yes, pleasant; and our couch is verdant. Lover

Son 1:17 The beams of our house are cedars. Our rafters are firs. Beloved

 

Son 2:1 I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valleys. Lover

Son 2:2 As a lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters. Beloved

Son 2:3 As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, his fruit was sweet to my taste.

Son 2:4 He brought me to the banquet hall. His banner over me is love.

Son 2:5 Strengthen me with raisins, refresh me with apples; For I am faint with love.

Son 2:6 His left hand is under my head. His right hand embraces me.

Son 2:7 I adjure you, daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, or by the hinds of the field, that you not stir up, nor awaken love, until it so desires.

Son 2:8 The voice of my beloved! Behold, he comes, leaping on the mountains, skipping on the hills.

Son 2:9 My beloved is like a roe or a young hart. Behold, he stands behind our wall! He looks in at the windows. He glances through the lattice.

Son 2:10 My beloved spoke, and said to me, "Rise up, my love, my beautiful one, and come away.

Son 2:11 For, behold, the winter is past. The rain is over and gone.

Son 2:12 The flowers appear on the earth. The time of the singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land.

Son 2:13 The fig tree ripens her green figs. The vines are in blossom. They give forth their fragrance. Arise, my love, my beautiful one, and come away." Lover

Son 2:14 My dove in the clefts of the rock, In the hiding places of the mountainside, Let me see your face. Let me hear your voice; for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely.

Son 2:15 Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vineyards; for our vineyards are in blossom. Beloved

Son 2:16 My beloved is mine, and I am his. He browses among the lilies.

Son 2:17 Until the day is cool, and the shadows flee away, turn, my beloved, and be like a roe or a young hart on the mountains of Bether.

 

Son 3:1 By night on my bed, I sought him whom my soul loves. I sought him, but I didn't find him.

Son 3:2 I will get up now, and go about the city; in the streets and in the squares I will seek him whom my soul loves. I sought him, but I didn't find him.

Son 3:3 The watchmen who go about the city found me; "Have you seen him whom my soul loves?"

Son 3:4 I had scarcely passed from them, when I found him whom my soul loves. I held him, and would not let him go, until I had brought him into my mother's house, into the chamber of her who conceived me.

Son 3:5 I adjure you, daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, or by the hinds of the field, that you not stir up, nor awaken love, until it so desires.

Son 3:6 Who is this who comes up from the wilderness like pillars of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, with all spices of the merchant?

Son 3:7 Behold, it is Solomon's carriage! Sixty mighty men are around it, of the mighty men of Israel.

Son 3:8 They all handle the sword, and are expert in war. Every man has his sword on his thigh, because of fear in the night.

Son 3:9 King Solomon made himself a carriage of the wood of Lebanon.

Son 3:10 He made its pillars of silver, its bottom of gold, its seat of purple, its midst being paved with love, from the daughters of Jerusalem.

Son 3:11 Go forth, you daughters of Zion, and see king Solomon, with the crown with which his mother has crowned him, in the day of his weddings, in the day of the gladness of his heart. Lover

 

Son 4:1 Behold, you are beautiful, my love. Behold, you are beautiful. Your eyes are doves behind your veil. Your hair is as a flock of goats, that descend from Mount Gilead.

Son 4:2 Your teeth are like a newly shorn flock, which have come up from the washing, where every one of them has twins. None is bereaved among them.

Son 4:3 Your lips are like scarlet thread. Your mouth is lovely. Your temples are like a piece of a pomegranate behind your veil.

Son 4:4 Your neck is like David's tower built for an armory, whereon a thousand shields hang, all the shields of the mighty men.

Son 4:5 Your two breasts are like two fawns that are twins of a roe, which feed among the lilies.

Son 4:6 Until the day is cool, and the shadows flee away, I will go to the mountain of myrrh, to the hill of frankincense.

Son 4:7 You are all beautiful, my love. There is no spot in you.

Son 4:8 Come with me from Lebanon, my bride, with me from Lebanon. Look from the top of Amana, from the top of Senir and Hermon, from the lions' dens, from the mountains of the leopards.

Son 4:9 You have ravished my heart, my sister, my bride. You have ravished my heart with one of your eyes, with one chain of your neck.

Son 4:10 How beautiful is your love, my sister, my bride! How much better is your love than wine! The fragrance of your perfumes than all manner of spices!

Son 4:11 Your lips, my bride, drip like the honeycomb. Honey and milk are under your tongue. The smell of your garments is like the smell of Lebanon.

Son 4:12 A locked up garden is my sister, my bride; a locked up spring, a sealed fountain.

Son 4:13 Your shoots are an orchard of pomegranates, with precious fruits: henna with spikenard plants,

Son 4:14 spikenard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon, with every kind of incense tree; myrrh and aloes, with all the best spices,

Son 4:15 a fountain of gardens, a well of living waters, flowing streams from Lebanon. Beloved

Son 4:16 Awake, north wind; and come, you south! Blow on my garden, that its spices may flow out. Let my beloved come into his garden, and taste his precious fruits. Lover

Oct. 24 1 Thessalonians 1

Oct. 24

1 Thessalonians 1

1Th 1:1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, to the assembly of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

1Th 1:2 We always give thanks to God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers,

1Th 1:3 remembering without ceasing your work of faith and labor of love and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, before our God and Father.

1Th 1:4 We know, brothers loved by God, that you are chosen,

1Th 1:5 and that our Good News came to you not in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit, and with much assurance. You know what kind of men we showed ourselves to be among you for your sake.

1Th 1:6 You became imitators of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Spirit,

1Th 1:7 so that you became an example to all who believe in Macedonia and in Achaia.

1Th 1:8 For from you the word of the Lord has been declared, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith toward God has gone out; so that we need not to say anything.

1Th 1:9 For they themselves report concerning us what kind of a reception we had from you; and how you turned to God from idols, to serve a living and true God,

1Th 1:10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead--Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath to come.

1 John, Introduction, Mark Copeland

                      "THE FIRST EPISTLE OF JOHN"

                              Introduction

When Jesus to earth, He came not only to live a life, but to give life:

"I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more
abundantly." - Jn 10:10

The Gospel of John was designed to produce faith so that we might have
life (Jn 20:30-31). However, it is The First Epistle of John which
describes the nature of that life in greater detail (e.g., 1Jn 3:14).
That we might be sure to live the sort of life God offers through His
Son Jesus Christ, a careful study of The First Epistle Of John is in
order.

AUTHOR

It is assumed in this study that the author is John, the beloved
disciple of Jesus (Jn 13:23; 19:26-27; 20:2; 21:7,20).  Similarities in
style, vocabulary, and themes in both this epistle and the Gospel of
John certainly offer internal evidence for this conclusion.

There is also external evidence that John is the author.  Polycarp, a
close associate of John, appears to make reference to this epistle in a
letter to the Philippians at the beginning of the second century.
Irenaeus, a student of Polycarp, quoted from the epistle and attributed
it to John.

RECIPIENTS

No one is specifically mentioned by name.  John may have been in Ephesus
at the time, and some think this was a general epistle to Christians
throughout Asia Minor (modern day Turkey).  Comments in 1Jn 2:20,27
could imply that John was addressing a specific  group of Christians
that possessed certain spiritual (miraculous) gifts.

DATE

Estimates range from 60 A.D. to 100 A.D.  Most modern scholarship places
it around 95 A.D., but there are also good reasons for believing it was
written prior to the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. (Re-dating The
New Testament, John A. T. Robinson).

PURPOSE AND THEME

In his epistle John frequently states why he was writing:

   *  "these things we write to you that your joy may be full" - 1Jn 1:4

   *  "these things I write to you, that you may not sin" - 1Jn 2:1

   *  "these things I have written to you...that you may know that you
      have eternal life" - 1Jn 5:13

   *  "these things I have written to you...that you may continue to
      believe in the name of the Son of God" - 1Jn 5:13

While these reasons may state the positive purpose for John's letter, it
appears he was also responding to errors prevalent at the time ("these
things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you" -
1Jn 2:26).  If not fully developed in John’s day, there was at least a
precursor to Gnosticism.

Those who later came to be called Gnostics claimed to have a superior
knowledge (the Greek word for knowledge is gnosis).  A fundamental
presupposition was that all matter was evil. Therefore they believed
that God did not create or have anything to do with the material
universe (rather, it was created by a demi-god).  Also, that Christ
could not have come in the flesh (cf. 1Jn 4:1-3).

One branch of Gnosticism, Docetism (dokein, "to seem"), taught that
Jesus only seemed to be physical (contrast that with John’s statement in
1Jn 1:1).  Cerinthus, a contemporary of John, taught that "Jesus" was
physical, but that the "Christ" came upon Him at his baptism, and then
left before His death, so that the "Christ-spirit" never suffered (cf.
1Jn 5:6).

The Gnostics’ application to everyday living took two different
directions.  Since all matter was considered evil, some taught one
should abstain altogether from anything that would satisfy the flesh.
Others claimed it did not matter what one did in the flesh (it was evil
anyway), and to have "full knowledge" it was proper to explore
everything.

John’s purpose therefore appears to be two-fold:

   *  Assure Christians that they have eternal life (1Jn 5:13)

   *  Counter those who denied that Jesus had come in the flesh (1Jn
      4:1-6)

As the theme of this epistle, may I suggest:

       Eternal life is in Jesus Christ, who has come in the flesh

OUTLINE

Here is an outline of the book, from the Holman Illustrated Bible
Dictionary...

Prologue: The Word of Life (1:1-4)

1. God Is Light (1:5-3:10)
   a. Walk in the Light (1:5-2:2)
      1) God is Light (1:5-7)
      2) Resist sin (1:8-2:2)
   b. Obey the command to love (2:3-11)
      1) Know God and keep His commands (2:3-6)
      2) Learn the new command and love others (2:7-11)
   c. Know your spiritual status (2:12-14)
   d. Be warned of enemies of the faith (2:15-27)
      1) Beware of the world (2:15-17)
      2) Beware of the antichrists (2:18-27)
   e. Live like children of God (2:28-3:10)
      1) Be confident and ready for His coming (2:28-3:3)
      2) Be righteous and do not sin (3:4-10)

2. God Is Love (3:11-5:12)
   a. Love one another: part one (3:11-24)
      1) Love in action (3:11-18)
      2) Live in confidence (3:19-24)
   b. Test the spirits (4:1-6)
   c. Love one another: part two (4:7-21)
      1) Love others because God loves you (4:7-10)
      2) Love others because God lives in you (4:11-21)
   d. Obey God and experience the victory of faith (5:1-5)
   e. Believe in the Son and enjoy eternal life (5:6-12)

Conclusion: Confidence and Characteristics of the Child of God (5:13-21)
   a. Know you have eternal life (5:13)
   b. Be confident in prayer (5:14-17)
   c. Do not continue in sin (5:18-20)
   d. Keep yourself from idols (5:21)

REVIEW QUESTIONS

1) Who is author of The First Epistle Of John?
   - John the apostle, the beloved disciple who also wrote The Gospel Of
     John

2) Who were the original recipients of this epistle?
   - Christians in general, likely in Ephesus or scattered throughout
     Asia Minor (Turkey)

3) When was it written?
   - Most date it in 90s A.D.

4) List four reasons John stated for writing this epistle. (1:4; 2:1;
   5:13)
   - "that your joy may be full"
   - "that you may not sin"
   - "that you may know that you have eternal life"
   - "that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God"

5) List another reason John wrote this epistle. (2:26)
   - "Concerning those who try to deceive you"

6) What doctrine later found in Gnosticism is addressed in this epistle?
   - Jesus Christ did not come in the flesh

7) What has been suggested as its two-fold purpose?
   - Assure Christians that they have eternal life
   - Counter those who denied that Jesus had come in the flesh

8) What has been suggested as its theme?
   - Eternal life is in Jesus Christ, who has come in the flesh

9) What are the main divisions of this epistle as outlined above?
   - Prologue: The Word of Life (1:1-4)
   - God Is Light (1:5-3:10)
   - God Is Love (3:11-5:12)
   - Conclusion: Confidence and Characteristics of the Child of God
     (5:13-21)

New, but not new

Well, here is something I have not seen before; a fire tornado!  But is it really a "new thing"?  Read on to find out...

Exodus, Chapter 13

21 Yahweh went before them by day in a pillar of cloud, to lead them on their way, and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light, that they might go by day and by night:  22 the pillar of cloud by day, and the pillar of fire by night, didn’t depart from before the people.

1 Corinthians, Chapter 10

 1 Now I would not have you ignorant, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;  2 and were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea;  3 and all ate the same spiritual food;  4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of a spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ. 

1 Peter, Chapter 2

  1 Putting away therefore all wickedness, all deceit, hypocrisies, envies, and all evil speaking,  2 as newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the Word, that you may grow thereby,  3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious:  4 coming to him, a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God, precious. 5 You also, as living stones, are built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 Because it is contained in Scripture,

“Behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, chosen, and precious:
He who believes in him will not be disappointed.”


  7 For you who believe therefore is the honor, but for those who are disobedient,

“The stone which the builders rejected,
has become the chief cornerstone,”


  8 and,

“a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense.”


For they stumble at the word, being disobedient, to which also they were appointed.  9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, that you may proclaim the excellence of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light:  10 who in time past were no people, but now are God’s people, who had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.

Clouds, I have seen, but a fire tornado?  Well, one more thing to add to the list of new experiences!!!  God led Israel and Jesus leads us; nice parallel, great thought!!!  The picture makes it clear to everyone that such a thing is possible; the rest is understood by faith!!!  All I ask is that you think about it because I will!!!

Oct. 23 Ecclesiastes 11, 12

Oct. 23

Ecclesiastes 11, 12

Ecc 11:1 Cast your bread on the waters; for you shall find it after many days.

Ecc 11:2 Give a portion to seven, yes, even to eight; for you don't know what evil will be on the earth.

Ecc 11:3 If the clouds are full of rain, they empty themselves on the earth; and if a tree falls toward the south, or toward the north, in the place where the tree falls, there shall it be.

Ecc 11:4 He who observes the wind won't sow; and he who regards the clouds won't reap.

Ecc 11:5 As you don't know what is the way of the wind, nor how the bones grow in the womb of her who is with child; even so you don't know the work of God who does all.

Ecc 11:6 In the morning sow your seed, and in the evening don't withhold your hand; for you don't know which will prosper, whether this or that, or whether they both will be equally good.

Ecc 11:7 Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to see the sun.

Ecc 11:8 Yes, if a man lives many years, let him rejoice in them all; but let him remember the days of darkness, for they shall be many. All that comes is vanity.

Ecc 11:9 Rejoice, young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth, and walk in the ways of your heart, and in the sight of your eyes; but know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.

Ecc 11:10 Therefore remove sorrow from your heart, and put away evil from your flesh; for youth and the dawn of life are vanity.

 

Ecc 12:1 Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come, and the years draw near, when you will say, "I have no pleasure in them;"

Ecc 12:2 Before the sun, the light, the moon, and the stars are darkened, and the clouds return after the rain;

Ecc 12:3 in the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those who look out of the windows are darkened,

Ecc 12:4 and the doors shall be shut in the street; when the sound of the grinding is low, and one shall rise up at the voice of a bird, and all the daughters of music shall be brought low;

Ecc 12:5 yes, they shall be afraid of heights, and terrors will be in the way; and the almond tree shall blossom, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail; because man goes to his everlasting home, and the mourners go about the streets:

Ecc 12:6 before the silver cord is severed, or the golden bowl is broken, or the pitcher is broken at the spring, or the wheel broken at the cistern,

Ecc 12:7 and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

Ecc 12:8 Vanity of vanities, says the Preacher. All is vanity!

Ecc 12:9 Further, because the Preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge. Yes, he pondered, sought out, and set in order many proverbs.

Ecc 12:10 The Preacher sought to find out acceptable words, and that which was written blamelessly, words of truth.

Ecc 12:11 The words of the wise are like goads; and like nails well fastened are words from the masters of assemblies, which are given from one shepherd.

Ecc 12:12 Furthermore, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

Ecc 12:13 This is the end of the matter. All has been heard. Fear God, and keep his commandments; for this is the whole duty of man.

Ecc 12:14 For God will bring every work into judgment, with every hidden thing, whether it is good, or whether it is evil.

Oct. 23 Colossians 4

Oct. 23

Colossians 4

Col 4:1 Masters, give to your servants that which is just and equal, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.

Col 4:2 Continue steadfastly in prayer, watching therein with thanksgiving;

Col 4:3 praying together for us also, that God may open to us a door for the word, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds;

Col 4:4 that I may reveal it as I ought to speak.

Col 4:5 Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time.

Col 4:6 Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one.

Col 4:7 All my affairs will be made known to you by Tychicus, the beloved brother, faithful servant, and fellow bondservant in the Lord.

Col 4:8 I am sending him to you for this very purpose, that he may know your circumstances and comfort your hearts,

Col 4:9 together with Onesimus, the faithful and beloved brother, who is one of you. They will make known to you everything that is going on here.

Col 4:10 Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner greets you, and Mark, the cousin of Barnabas (concerning whom you received commandments, "if he comes to you, receive him"),

Col 4:11 and Jesus who is called Justus, who are of the circumcision. These are my only fellow workers for the Kingdom of God, men who have been a comfort to me.

Col 4:12 Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ, salutes you, always striving for you in his prayers, that you may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.

Col 4:13 For I testify about him, that he has great zeal for you, and for those in Laodicea, and for those in Hierapolis.

Col 4:14 Luke, the beloved physician, and Demas greet you.

Col 4:15 Greet the brothers who are in Laodicea, and Nymphas, and the assembly that is in his house.

Col 4:16 When this letter has been read among you, cause it to be read also in the assembly of the Laodiceans; and that you also read the letter from Laodicea.

Col 4:17 Tell Archippus, "Take heed to the ministry which you have received in the Lord, that you fulfill it."

Col 4:18 The salutation of me, Paul, with my own hand: remember my bonds. Grace be with you. Amen.

2 Peter, Chapter 3, Mark Copeland

                     "THE SECOND EPISTLE OF PETER"

                             Chapter Three

OBJECTIVES IN STUDYING THIS CHAPTER

1) To be reminded that there will be scoffers of the promise of the
   Lord's coming

2) To review the catastrophic events to occur when the Lord returns, and
   the promise of new heavens and a new earth

3) To note Peter's estimation of Paul as a brother and his epistles as
   Scripture

4) To carefully consider the twofold admonition at the end of the
   epistle

SUMMARY

In this final chapter Peter seeks to stir up his readers by reminding
them to give heed to the words of the prophets and apostles of the Lord.
Especially as it relates to promise of His coming, for in the last days
scoffers will come who conveniently forget that the Word which tells of
the judgment day by fire was also the same Word which brought about the
destruction of the world by the flood.  Any delay is not to be construed
as slackness on the Lord's part, for time means nothing to the Lord.
Rather, delay is an indication of the Lord's longsuffering, who does not
want any to perish but for all to repent (1-9).

When the day of the Lord does come, it will be unexpected like a thief
in the night.  A mighty conflagration will dissolve the heavens and the
earth with all its works.  In anticipation of such things, Christians
are to focus on holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening
that day when God's promise will be fulfilled of new heavens and a new
earth in which righteousness dwells (10-13).

We should view the longsuffering of the Lord as opportunity for
salvation, even as Paul wrote in his epistles of such things (though
unlearned and unstable souls have twisted his words to their own
destruction, just as they do the rest of the Scriptures).  With
admonitions to beware lest they fall, and to grow in the grace and
knowledge of the Lord Jesus, Peter brings his second epistle to a close
with a doxology to Christ (14-18).

OUTLINE

I. THE SCOFFERS WILL COME (1-9)

   A. REMEMBER THE WORDS SPOKEN BEFORE (1-4)
      1. Peter writes this second epistle to stir up his readers by way
         of reminder
      2. To be mindful of the prophets' words and the apostles'
         commandments
      3. That scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to
         their own lusts
         a. Questioning the promise of the Lord's coming
         b. Declaring that all things continue as they were since
            creation

   B. REMEMBER THE WORLD WAS DESTROYED BEFORE (5-7)
      1. Which the scoffers willfully forget
      2. That the world once perished being flooded with water
      3. The same word that brought destruction by water now promises
         judgment by fire
         a. The heavens and the earth which now exists are reserved for
            fire
         b. When comes the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men

   C. REMEMBER THE LORD'S TIMELESSNESS AND LONGSUFFERING (8-9)
      1. Do not forget that time means nothing to the Lord
         a. One day is as a thousand years
         b. A thousand years is as one day
      2. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, but longsuffering
         a. Not willing that any perish
         b. But that all should repent

II. THE DAY OF THE LORD WILL COME (10-18)

   A. UNEXPECTED WITH CATACLYSMIC DESTRUCTION (10-12)
      1. The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night
      2. The heavens and the earth be dissolved
         a. The heavens will pass away with a great noise
         b. The elements will melt with fervent heat
         c. The earth and its works will be burned up
         d. The heavens will be dissolved being on fire
      3. Since all these things will be dissolved...
         a. What manner of persons ought we to be in holy conduct and
            godliness?
         b. Looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God?

   B. EXPECTED BY THOSE WHO ARE LOOKING (13-18)
      1. According to His promise, we look forward
         a. To new heavens and a new earth
         b. In which righteousness dwells
      2. Looking forward to these things, we should be diligent
         a. To be found by Him in peace
         b. To be without spot and blameless
      3. We thus consider the longsuffering of the Lord to be salvation
         a. Of which the beloved brother Paul has written, according to
            the wisdom given him
         b. In which are some things hard to understand, which the
            unstable and untaught twist to their own destruction
      4. Knowing such things beforehand, we should beware and grow
         a. Beware lest we fall from our own steadfastness, led away
            with the error of the wicked
         b. Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus
            Christ
      5. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.

REVIEW QUESTIONS FOR THE CHAPTER

1) What are the main points of this chapter?
   - The scoffers will come (1-9)
   - The day of the Lord will come (10-18)

2) How did Peter seek to stir up his readers' minds? (1-2)
   - By reminding them of the words of the prophets and the commandments
     of the apostles

3) What would scoffers be saying in the last days? (3-4)
   - "Where is the promise of His coming?"
   - "For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they
     were from the beginning of creation."

4) What do they willfully forget? (5-6)
   - That by the Word of God the world was once destroyed by water

5) What does the Word of God say concerning the heavens and the earth?
   (7)
   - They are kept in store and reserved for fire until the day of
     judgment and perdition of ungodly men

6) What should we be careful not to forget? (8)
   - That time is meaningless to the Lord
   - With the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years
     as one day

7) How will the day of the Lord come? (9)
   - As a thief in the night

8) What will happen when that day comes? (9)
   - The heavens will pass away with a great noise
   - The elements will melt with fervent heat
   - The earth and the works that are in it will be burned up

9) Since all these things will be dissolved, what should we do? (11-12)
   - Concern ourselves with holy conduct and godliness
   - Look for and hasten the coming of the day of God

10) Again, what will happen to the heavens and the elements? (12)
   - The heavens will be dissolved being on fire
   - The elements will melt with fervent heat

11) Despite such an end, what do we look for according to His promise?
    (13)
   - New heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells

12) Looking forward to such things, about what should we be diligent?
    (14)
   - To be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless

13) How should we view the longsuffering of the Lord? (15)
   - Salvation

14) Who else wrote about such things?  How? (15-16)
   - Our beloved brother Paul
   - According to the wisdom given him

15) How does Peter describe the epistles of Paul? (16)
   - As speaking of these things
   - In which are some things hard to understand

16) What do the untaught and unstable do with such writings of Paul?
    (16)
   - They twist them to their own destruction

17) In what category does Peter place the writings of Paul? (16)
   - As part of "the Scriptures"

18) Knowing such things beforehand, what warning does Peter give his
    readers? (17)
   - Beware lest you fall from your own steadfast, being led away with
     the error of the wicked

19) What final admonition does Peter give to his readers? (18)
   - Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ