2 Peter 2:4 For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment;
Peter begins a series of “what ifs” to drive home a point of warning to those who become involved in corrupt and false teachings. Since there are so many of these warning (five of them in the following verses), it shows the seriousness of the topic he has taken up. It is crucial that believers know the truth of the gospel and the orthodox doctrine of who Jesus is. It is helpful to keep in mind the context of this letter and how Peter began it. Belief in the true faith in Jesus Christ will bring eternal life, but any distortion of that will be bring judgment. The first example is about the angels who sinned and were judged. This is a difficult verse to interpret in detail because of the vague references. The ESV translates the Greek as “hell” but the original is “Tartarus.” In ancient thought, Tartarus was the lowest part of the underworld. Another way to think of this is the farthest away from God one can get. They were bound and cast into the “lowest hell” because of their sin. At some point in the future, they will be judged for their sin. There is a lot in the background thought of this verse that is difficult to track down. Rather than try to figure out the meaning of this vague language, we should simply realize the seriousness of sin and God’s judgment of it. Sin must be taken seriously. We must be on guard against deceit and temptation because even the best of us (the “angels”) can fall.
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