See that none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or an evil doer, or as a busybody in other men's matters.

But if he undergoes punishment as a Christian, that is no shame to him; let him give glory to God in this name.

For the time is come for judgment to begin at the house of God: and if it begin first at us, what'shall be the end of them that obey not the gospel of God?

And if it is with difficulty that the righteous is saved, what will become of the godless man and the sinner?

Wherefore let them also that suffer according to the will of God commit their souls in well-doing unto a faithful Creator.

The elders among you I exhort, who am a fellow-elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, who am also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed:

be shepherds of the flock of God that is among you, not as though you had to but of your own free will, not from the motive of personal profit but freely,

Not as though ye were lords over the parishes: but that ye be an example to the flock.

And when the chief Shepherd shall be manifested, ye shall receive the crown of glory that fadeth not away.

Likewise, you younger men [of lesser rank and experience], be subject to your elders [seek their counsel]; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another [tie on the servant’s apron], for God is opposed to the proud [the disdainful, the presumptuous, and He defeats them], but He gives grace to the humble.

Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time;

Be sober [well balanced and self-disciplined], be alert and cautious at all times. That enemy of yours, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion [fiercely hungry], seeking someone to devour.

whom withstand stedfast in your faith, knowing that the same sufferings are accomplished in your brethren who are in the world.

And the God of all grace, who called you unto his eternal glory in Christ, after that ye have suffered a little while, shall himself perfect, establish, strengthen you.

By Silvanus, our faithful brother, as I account him , I have written unto you briefly, exhorting, and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand ye fast therein.

She that is in Babylon, elect together with you , saluteth you; and'so doth Mark my son.

Salute one another with a kiss of love. Peace be unto you all that are in Christ.

Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained a like precious faith with us in the righteousness of our God and the'saviour Jesus Christ:

seeing that his divine power hath granted unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that called us by his own glory and virtue;

whereby he hath granted unto us his precious and exceeding great promises; that through these ye may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in that world by lust.

For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

For he that lacketh these things is blind, seeing only what is near, having forgotten the cleansing from his old sins.

For this reason, brethren, be all the more in earnest to make sure that God has called you and chosen you; for it is certain that so long as you practise these things, you will never stumble.

for it is in this way that to you will be generously granted a triumphant admittance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Therefore, I will always remind you of these things, although you know them and are firmly grounded in the truth that you already have.

knowing that the putting off of my tabernacle cometh swiftly, even as our Lord Jesus Christ signified unto me.

Yea, I will give diligence that at every time ye may be able after my decease to call these things to remembrance.

For we revealed to you the power and presence of our Lord Jesus Christ, not men who followed in cunningly devised myths, but men who became eyewitnesses of the majesty of that man.

For when He was invested with honor and [the radiance of the Shekinah] glory from God the Father, such a voice as this came to Him from the [splendid] Majestic Glory [in the bright cloud that overshadowed Him, saying], “This is My Son, My Beloved Son in whom I am well-pleased and delighted”—

we heard this voice ourselves borne from heaven while we were with Him on that sacred mountain.

And we have the word of prophecy made more sure; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day-star arise in your hearts:

knowing this first, that no prophecy of scripture is of private interpretation.

for prophecy never came by human impulse, it was when carried away by the holy Spirit that the holy men of God spoke.

But there arose false prophets also among the people, as among you also there shall be false teachers, who shall privily bring in destructive heresies, denying even the Master that bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.

And through greedy desires and deceptive words they will exploit you [for evil purposes]. But the judgment that they have had coming for a long time, will not delay, but will eventually awaken [i.e., arrive] to bring destruction upon them.

For if God did not [even] spare angels that sinned, but threw them into hell and sent them to pits of gloom to be kept [there] for judgment;

since he did not spare the old world, having preserved only eight persons, including Noah, that preacher of virtue, when he brought the deluge upon the impious world:

and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, having made them an example unto those that should live ungodly;

since he deliver'd that just man Lot, who was grieved at the enormous practices of the licentious;

(for that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their lawless deeds):

then be sure that the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation, and to keep the wicked (who are even now enduring punishment) for the "Day of Judgment";

but chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of defilement, and despise dominion. Daring, self-willed, they tremble not to rail at dignities:

while [those] angels, who are greater in strength and power than they, refuse to speak against such authorities, in condemnation, before the Lord.

But these men, like beasts without reason, whose natural use is to be taken and put to death, crying out against things of which they have no knowledge, will undergo that same destruction which they are designing for others;

suffering wrong as the hire of wrong-doing; men that count it pleasure to revel in the day-time, spots and blemishes, revelling in their deceivings while they feast with you;

having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; enticing unstedfast souls; having a heart exercised in covetousness; children of cursing;

They have left the straight road and gone astray. They have followed the road that Balaam, the son of Beor, trod, who fell in love with the profits of wrongdoing

But he was rebuked for his offense. A donkey that normally cannot talk spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet's insanity.

These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever.

For, uttering great swelling words of vanity, they entice in the lusts of the flesh, by lasciviousness, those who are just escaping from them that live in error;

Saying that they will be free, while they themselves are the servants of destruction; because whatever gets the better of a man makes a servant of him.

For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein and overcome, the last state is become worse with them than the first.

For it were better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after knowing it, to turn back from the holy commandment delivered unto them.

It has happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog turning to his own vomit again, and the sow that had washed to wallowing in the mire.

This is now, beloved, the second epistle that I write unto you; and in both of them I stir up your sincere mind by putting you in remembrance;

that ye should remember the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and the commandments of the Lord and Saviour through your apostles:

knowing this first, that in the last days mockers shall come with mockery, walking after their own lusts,

and saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for, from the day that the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.

For this they willfully forget, that there were heavens from of old, and an earth compacted out of water and amidst water, by the word of God;

by which means the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:

but the heavens that now are, and the earth, by the same word have been stored up for fire, being reserved against the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.

But forget not this one thing, beloved, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some count slackness; but is longsuffering to you-ward, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

But the day of the Lord will come as a thief; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall be dissolved with fervent heat, and the earth and the works that are therein shall be burned up.

Seeing that these things are thus all to be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy living and godliness,

It is new heavens and a new earth that we expect, as He has promised, and in them dwells righteousness.

Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for these things, give diligence that ye may be found in peace, without spot and blameless in his sight.

And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also, according to the wisdom given to him, wrote unto you;

And as he said in all his letters, which had to do with these things; in which are some hard sayings, so that, like the rest of the holy Writings, they are twisted by those who are uncertain and without knowledge, to the destruction of their souls.

For this reason, my loved ones, having knowledge of these things before they take place, take care that you are not turned away by the error of the uncontrolled, so falling from your true faith.

But be growing in the favour and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ: - unto whom be the glory, both now and unto a day that abideth.

That which was from the beginning, that which we have heard, that which we have seen with our eyes, that which we beheld, and our hands handled, concerning the Word of life

(and the life was made known, and we have seen, and testify, and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father, and was made known to us),

that which we have seen and heard declare we unto you also, that ye also may have fellowship with us: yea, and our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ:

and these things we write, that our joy may be made full.

And this is the message which we have heard from him and announce unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

If we say that we have fellowship with him and walk in the darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:

But, if we live in the light [of righteousness] just like God [constantly] lives in the light [of righteousness], we can truly share a relationship with one another and [can know that] the blood of Jesus, God's Son, continues to cleanse [our spirits] from all of our sins.

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous so that he will forgive us our sins, and cleanse us from every unrighteousness.

If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

My little children, these things write I unto you that ye may not sin. And if any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:

And He [that same Jesus] is the propitiation for our sins [the atoning sacrifice that holds back the wrath of God that would otherwise be directed at us because of our sinful nature—our worldliness, our lifestyle]; and not for ours alone, but also for [the sins of all believers throughout] the whole world.

And hereby we know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.

He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him;

but whoso keepeth his word, in him verily hath the love of God been perfected. Hereby we know that we are in him:

he that saith he abideth in him ought himself also to walk even as he walked.

Brothers, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment that ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that ye heard from the beginning.

Yet it is a new command that I am writing you; it is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining.

He that saith he is in the light and hateth his brother, is in the darkness even until now.

He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is no occasion of stumbling in him.

But he that hateth his brother is in the darkness, and walketh in the darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because the darkness hath blinded his eyes.

Babes, I write unto you how that your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake.

I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father.

I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the vain glory of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

Little children, it is the last hour: and as ye heard that antichrist cometh, even now have there arisen many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last hour.

They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us: but they went out , that they might be made manifest that they all are not of us.