2 Peter: Holiness, Not Cheap Grace

Sources: Willis Barnstone, ed., The Other Bible: Ancient Alternative Scriptures (HarperCollins, 1984); Bart Ehrman, The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings, 3d ed. (Oxford, 2004); I. Howard Marshall et al., Exploring the New Testament: A Guide to the Letters and Revelation (IVP, 2002), chapter 21.

I. "Peter's Testament"
"Peter's testament" is like a 'farewell discourse' from a legend.

The letter's authorship is disputed.

The circumstances indicate a generation of Christians has passed (3:4).
Paul's letters are being circulated and read among the scriptures (3:16).
The letter was less widely known than 1 Peter in the early church, and even then its authorship was disputed.
How much this matters depends on the reader's agenda.

The message stresses the costs of missing out on the gospel's breathtaking opportunities (1:5-11, 1:16-19).

'False teachers' misrepresent Paul's teaching in order to indulge their sinful desires and return to their old lives (2:20-22).

Distorting Paul's gospel of grace? (3:16-17)

2 Peter 2 probably uses Jude ('plagiarizes' is anachronistic).

"Source criticism" investigates such dependencies and their possible significance.

The dilemma is framed in a stark Jewish-Christian apocalyptic context:

Disciples are granted life, godliness, deliverance someday, and entrance into the kingdom of Jesus Christ (1:3-4, 11).
The end of both groups is fire: the last judgment of the Lord Jesus (3:1-13, cf. Malachi 4).
The stakes are absolute (2:1, 2:20, 3:16).

The delay in that judgment expresses God's missional mercy on those who can still repent (3:8-9).
So 2 Peter reminds, encourages, and warns the tempted

to persevere (1:12-21, 3:1-2) and "grow in grace and knowledge of Christ" (1:10-11, 3:18).

Disciples are called to virtue, preparedness, holiness, and stability (1:5-11, 3:11-17).
This goodness hastens the very judgment day it awaits (3:12).