| English Standard Version | New Living Translation |
| 1Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ: | 1This letter is from Simon Peter, a slave and apostle of Jesus Christ. I am writing to you who share the same precious faith we have. This faith was given to you because of the justice and fairness of Jesus Christ, our God and Savior. |
| 2May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. | 2May God give you more and more grace and peace as you grow in your knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord. Growing in Faith |
| 3His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, | 3By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. |
| 4by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. | 4And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires. |
| 5For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, | 5In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, |
| 6and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, | 6and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, |
| 7and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. | 7and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. |
| 8For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. | 8The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. |
| 9For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. | 9But those who fail to develop in this way are shortsighted or blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their old sins. |
| 10Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. | 10So, dear brothers and sisters, work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away. |
| 11For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. | 11Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Paying Attention to Scripture |
| 12Therefore I intend always to remind you of these qualities, though you know them and are established in the truth that you have. | 12Therefore, I will always remind you about these things—even though you already know them and are standing firm in the truth you have been taught. |
| 13I think it right, as long as I am in this body, to stir you up by way of reminder, | 13And it is only right that I should keep on reminding you as long as I live. |
| 14since I know that the putting off of my body will be soon, as our Lord Jesus Christ made clear to me. | 14For our Lord Jesus Christ has shown me that I must soon leave this earthly life, |
| 15And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things. | 15so I will work hard to make sure you always remember these things after I am gone. |
| 16For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. | 16For we were not making up clever stories when we told you about the powerful coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. We saw his majestic splendor with our own eyes |
| 17For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,” | 17when he received honor and glory from God the Father. The voice from the majestic glory of God said to him, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.” |
| 18we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. | 18We ourselves heard that voice from heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain. |
| 19And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, | 19Because of that experience, we have even greater confidence in the message proclaimed by the prophets. You must pay close attention to what they wrote, for their words are like a lamp shining in a dark place—until the Day dawns, and Christ the Morning Star shines in your hearts. |
| 20knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. | 20Above all, you must realize that no prophecy in Scripture ever came from the prophet’s own understanding, |
| 21For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. | 21or from human initiative. No, those prophets were moved by the Holy Spirit, and they spoke from God. |
| ESV Text Edition: 2016. The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®) copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. The ESV® text has been reproduced in cooperation with and by permission of Good News Publishers. Unauthorized reproduction of this publication is prohibited. All rights reserved. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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