Skip to main content
Psalmlog Logo

2 Peter 1

Peter grounds the call to growing godliness in God’s provision, eyewitness testimony to Christ’s majesty, and the Spirit-given prophetic word.

Peter writes to believers who share his faith in Jesus Christ, urging them to grow in godliness through the power and promises God has given. He expects his death soon and wants them to remember his teaching after his departure. To establish the grounds of that teaching, he recalls hearing the Father’s voice on the mountain and directs his readers to Scripture’s prophetic word, whose source is the Holy Spirit.

sermon or Bible study notesdoubtdeath and what comes after
Read
1Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have obtained a like precious faith with us in the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ:
2Grace to you and peace be multiplied in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord,
3seeing that his divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and virtue,
4by which he has granted to us his precious and exceedingly great promises; that through these you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world by lust.
5Yes, and for this very cause adding on your part all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence; and in moral excellence, knowledge;
6and in knowledge, self-control; and in self-control, perseverance; and in perseverance, godliness;
7and in godliness, brotherly affection; and in brotherly affection, love.
8For if these things are yours and abound, they make you to not be idle or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9For he who lacks these things is blind, seeing only what is near, having forgotten the cleansing from his old sins.
10Therefore, brothers, be more diligent to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never stumble.
11For thus you will be richly supplied with the entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
12Therefore I will not be negligent to remind you of these things, though you know them and are established in the present truth.
13I think it right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you,
14knowing that the putting off of my tent comes swiftly, even as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me.
15Yes, I will make every effort that you may always be able to remember these things even after my departure.
16For we didn’t follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.
17For he received from God the Father honor and glory when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
18We heard this voice come out of heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain.
19We have the more sure word of prophecy; and you do well that you heed it as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts,
20knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of private interpretation.
21For no prophecy ever came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke, being moved by the Holy Spirit.
World English BibleRead in NIV in Psalmlog →Highlighted verses are the most connected.
Key verses
2 Peter 1:19The prophetic word shines like a lamp while believers await the dawn associated with Christ’s coming.
2 Peter 1:5God’s gifts become the grounds for diligence, beginning a sequence of virtues that culminates in love.
2 Peter 1:10Peter connects assurance of God’s calling with the diligent practice of the virtues he has just named.
Where this chapter reaches

Matthew and Luke recount the mountain event Peter recalls, sharing the Father’s declaration about his Son and the revelation of Jesus’ glory. The chapter also shares with 2 Timothy an emphasis on Scripture’s divine source, and with Psalm the image of God’s word as a lamp.

2 Peter 1's chapter linksAll strongest linksHover or tap a book
Notice

After reading the whole chapter

Which quality in verses 5–7 needs attention in your life, and how does God’s provision shape that work?

Write on this

What do Peter’s approaching death and his concern for remembrance make you want to record or pass on?

Write on this

Questions people ask about 2 Peter 1

What does “partakers of the divine nature” mean in 2 Peter 1:4?

The phrase describes sharing in the life and holiness God grants through his promises. Peter connects it with escape from the world’s corruption and growth in godliness. The surrounding verses describe people being changed through knowing God; they give no suggestion that believers become gods or share God’s unique supremacy.

What does it mean to make your calling and election sure?

Peter tells believers to confirm their calling and election through growth in the qualities listed in verses 5–7. The chapter begins with faith received and divine power given, so diligence rests on God’s provision. Peter links this growth with steadiness and entrance into Christ’s eternal kingdom.

What does “no prophecy of Scripture is of private interpretation” mean?

The wording has prompted debate about whether Peter means prophecy’s origin or its interpretation. Verse 21 gives the clearest context: prophecy came through people moved by the Holy Spirit, rather than through human will. The passage establishes prophecy’s divine source and does not prohibit an individual from reading Scripture.

Read it. Now write it.

Start an entry on 2 Peter 1. Your words go beside the text, and you get one next step for the week.

2 Peter · 3 chapters
123
What the Bible says about doubt →What the Bible says about death →

Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).