2 Peter 2:14, commentary and pictures

The verse describes an ungodly class of false teachers to be manifested in the last days, identifying spiritualists and corrupt professed believers, and its fulfillment among them just before the coming of Jesus is a sign of His soon coming. They persist in sin, driven by adultery and covetousness, and deceive spiritually unstable people, enticing others toward sinful indulgence while presenting their errors as freedom and righteousness. They are morally corrupt and unable to stop sinning, luring unstable people into error while having trained themselves in greed.

They are not open unbelievers but profess to believe the truth while practicing licentiousness and adultery under a cloak of godliness. They hold the strong delusion that there is nothing displeasing to God in it, holding truth apart from their lives without a living principle controlling conduct and character. Their profession is Christian in name while conduct and character remain ungoverned by living truth.

Their broader character is walking after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, despising authority, presumption and self-will, and speaking evil of dignities. It is further marked by corruption and open pleasure in wrongdoing, and by deceitful self-indulgence.

Having eyes full of adultery that cannot cease from sin means desires fixed on adultery, a licentious mind and outlook, and a soul morally defiled by lust. It brings guilt, corruption and defilement of the whole man. It means counting it pleasure to riot and sporting in deceivings even while feasting with believers.

Beguiling unstable souls means misleading people who are not firmly grounded, drawing weak souls into error. They gain confidence as angels of light and reformers and then allure through the lusts of the flesh and much wantonness, with great swelling words of vanity and boasts of light, knowledge and love of truth, those who had clean escaped from error. Their special prey are inquiring souls dissatisfied with the churches, enticed toward sinful indulgence under the presentation of error as freedom and righteousness.

Unstable souls are those who seem to others to have made thorough work and fully repented while the seeds of rebellion still remain within them, known to God who reads the heart. This inward rebellion is written against their names in the heavenly record as wrestling the truth to their own destruction.

An heart exercised with covetous practices means trained in greed and covetousness, hearts trained in covetous conduct. It means making merchandise of followers with feigned words, with great swelling boasts of light, knowledge and love of truth. It is following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor who loved the wages of unrighteousness.

Cursed children means under a curse as those who believed not the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. It means decidedly denying Christ by iniquitous works, having forsaken the right way and gone astray. It brings the wrath of God upon disobedience and reproach so the way of truth is evil spoken of.

Their end is as spots and blemishes sporting in deceivings, and wells without water to whom the mist of darkness is reserved forever. While promising liberty they are themselves servants of corruption, bringing upon themselves swift destruction whose judgment lingers not. The Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation and to reserve the unjust, especially those who walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, unto judgment to be punished.

In application, they entice others toward sinful indulgence while presenting their errors as freedom and righteousness. Satan involves married men and women and children and youth in impure practices, and those whose thoughts and talk are low and vile have no moral power to resist and fall an easy prey, committing adultery and practicing iniquity in wantonness while still claiming to believe the truth.

The warning applies to people engaged in sacred work whose conduct and imaginations are impure, including improper attentions and lawless affection that break moral boundaries. It applies to watchmen upon the walls of Zion and men and women claiming to teach the law of God who break that law, thereby dishonoring the Lord. Adulterous eyes and thoughts reveal a soul morally defiled by lust.

The same spirit caused much trouble in the early church by men holding to their own opinions and refusing to give them up, thinking their judgment infallible. Cherishing and strengthening wrong ideas led to actions unacceptable to God, as with Lucifer, and spoiled the church. The verse warns God's people today to be on guard, for similar conditions must be met again when strange confusing things arise and deceiving angels present pleasing sophistries that lead men to receive and immortalize injurious theories against the Lord's work.