Petri Ii 3
1 hanc ecce vobis carissimi secundam scribo epistulam in quibus excito vestram in commonitione sinceram mentem
This, dear friends, is my second letter to you. In both of them I have tried, by appealing to your remembrance, to arouse your better feelings.
2 ut memores sitis eorum quae praedixi verborum a sanctis prophetis et apostolorum vestrorum praeceptorum Domini et salvatoris
I want you to recall what was foretold by the holy prophets, as well as the command of our Lord and Saviour given to you through your apostles.
3 hoc primum scientes quod venient in novissimis diebus in deceptione inlusores iuxta proprias concupiscentias ambulantes
First be assured of this, that, as the age draws to an end, scoffers, led by their own passions,
4 dicentes ubi est promissio aut adventus eius ex quo enim patres dormierunt omnia sic perseverant ab initio creaturae
will come and ask scoffingly – “Where is his promised coming? Ever since our ancestors passed to their rest, everything remains just as it was when the world was first created!”
5 latet enim eos hoc volentes quod caeli erant prius et terra de aqua et per aquam consistens Dei verbo
For they wilfully shut their eyes to the fact that long ago the heavens existed; and the earth, also – formed out of water and by the action of water, by the fiat of God;
6 per quae ille tunc mundus aqua inundatus periit
and that by the same means the world which then existed was destroyed in a deluge of water.
7 caeli autem qui nunc sunt et terra eodem verbo repositi sunt igni servati in diem iudicii et perditionis impiorum hominum
But the present heavens and earth, by the same fiat, have been reserved for fire, and are being kept for the day of the judgment and destruction of the godless.
8 unum vero hoc non lateat vos carissimi quia unus dies apud Dominum sicut mille anni et mille anni sicut dies unus
But you, dear friends, must never shut your eyes to the fact that, to the Lord, one day is the same as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
9 non tardat Dominus promissi sed patienter agit propter vos nolens aliquos perire sed omnes ad paenitentiam reverti
The Lord is not slow to fulfil his promise, as some count slowness; but he is forbearing with you, as it is not his will that any of you should perish, but that all should be brought to repentance.
10 adveniet autem dies Domini ut fur in qua caeli magno impetu transient elementa vero calore solventur
The day of the Lord will come like a thief; and on that day the heavens will pass away with a crash, the elements will be burnt up and dissolved, and the earth and all that is in it will be disclosed.
11 cum haec igitur omnia dissolvenda sint quales oportet esse vos in sanctis conversationibus et pietatibus
Now, since all these things are in the process of dissolution, think what you yourselves ought to be – what holy and pious lives you ought to lead,
12 expectantes et properantes in adventum Dei diei per quam caeli ardentes solventur et elementa ignis ardore tabescent
while you wait for the coming of the day of God and strive to make it come soon. At its coming the heavens will be dissolved in fire, and the elements melted by heat,
13 novos vero caelos et novam terram et promissa ipsius expectamus in quibus iustitia habitat
but we look for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness will have its home, in fulfilment of the promise of God.
14 propter quod carissimi haec expectantes satis agite inmaculati et inviolati ei inveniri in pace
Therefore, dear friends, in expectation of these things, make every effort to be found by him spotless, blameless, and at peace.
15 et Domini nostri longanimitatem salutem arbitramini sicut et carissimus frater noster Paulus secundum datam sibi sapientiam scripsit vobis
Regard our Lord’s forbearance as your one hope of salvation. This is what our dear friend Paul wrote to you, with the wisdom that God gave him.
16 sicut et in omnibus epistulis loquens in eis de his in quibus sunt quaedam difficilia intellectu quae indocti et instabiles depravant sicut et ceteras scripturas ad suam ipsorum perditionem
It is the same in all his letters, when he speaks in them about these subjects. There are some things in them difficult to understand, which untaught and weak people distort, just as they do all other writings, to their own ruin.
17 vos igitur fratres praescientes custodite ne insipientium errore transducti excidatis a propria firmitate
You must, therefore, dear friends, now that you know this beforehand, be on your guard against being led away by the errors of reckless people, and so lapsing from your present steadfastness;
The Great Flood
