AND DID NOT SPARE
THE ANCIENT WORLD: kai archaiou kosmou ouk epheisato: (3SAMI) kai archaiou kosmou: (Ge
6:1-8; Job 22:15,16; Mt 24:37, 38, 39; Lk 17:26,27; Heb 11:7)
And (2532)
(kai) indicates that Peter is continuing his illustrations
of God's righteous judgment upon evil.
Spare (5339)
(pheidomai) means to
treat leniently, to forbear, to spare. To avoid or refrain from doing something.
To save someone
from trouble, loss or discomfort (2Co 1:21, 1Co 7:28, With a negative =
Acts 20:29, Ro 8:32) To prevent trouble from happening to someone (e.g.,
see Lxx uses - Ge 19:16 where "put him outside the city" is translated
with pheidomai = "the Lord spared him"!, Ge 20:6).
In the
Septuagint (LXX)
translation of the following OT passages pheidomai is repeatedly
used to translate the phrase "shall not show pity" - Dt 7:16,
13:8, 19:13, 21, 25:12 (cp 1Sa 15:3). From these uses we see that
pheidomai clearly is a tangible demonstration of showing pity.
Pheidomai - 10x -
Acts 20:29; Ro 8:32; 11:21; 1Co 7:28; 2Cor 1:23; 12:6; 13:2; 2Pet 2:4,
5. NAS = refrain, 1; spare, 8; sparing, 1.
Pheidomai - 76x in the
non-apocryphal
Septuagint (LXX)
- Ge 19:16; 20:6;
22:12, 16; 45:20; Ex 2:6; Deut 7:16; 13:8; 19:13, 21; 25:12; 33:3; 1 Sam
15:3; 24:10; 2 Sam 12:4, 6; 18:5, 16; 21:7; 2 Kgs 5:20; 2 Chr 36:15, 17;
Neh 13:22; Es 4:17; Job 6:10; 7:11; 16:5, 13; 20:13; 27:22; 30:10;
33:18; 42:3; Ps 19:13; 72:13; 78:50; Pr 6:34; 10:19; 13:24; 16:17;
17:27; 21:14; 24:11; Eccl 2:25; Isa 13:18; 14:6; 54:2; 58:1; 63:9; Jer
13:14; 14:10; 15:5; 17:17; 21:7; 50:14; 51:3; Lam 2:2, 17, 21; 3:43;
Ezek 5:11; 7:4, 9; 8:18; 9:5, 10; 16:5; 20:17; 24:21; 36:21; Joel 2:17f;
3:16; Jonah 4:10f; Hab 1:17; Zech 11:6
Paul says for example that "I
would like to spare you a great deal of trouble, by offering good advice
about marriage" (paraphrase of 1Cor 7:28) Paul is saying that since
marriage can involve conflicts, demands, difficulties, and adjustments
that singleness does not, since marriage presses two fallen people into
intimate life and this leads to inevitable “trouble.” The troubles of
singleness may be exceeded by the conflicts of marriage. He wants to
spare those who are single this "trouble".
Paul in making addressing the
question "would God do less for His children than He did for His
enemies?" records that
"He who did not spare His own Son, but
delivered Him up for us all (the greatest exhibition of the love of
God toward us), how will He not also with Him freely give (to
bestow out of grace) us all things?" (see note
Romans 8:32)
The
Septuagint or LXX uses pheidomai in a parallel OT passage where God has
asked Abraham to sacrifice Isaac and who was willing to obey. The Lord
declared to Abraham
"Do not stretch out your hand against the lad,
and do nothing to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have
not withheld (Lxx = pheidomai) your son, your only
son, from Me.” (Ge 22:12) and later says
"By Myself I have sworn,
declares the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not
withheld (Lxx = pheidomai) your son, your only son."
(Ge 22:16)
Addressing the Gentiles in his
letter to the Romans Paul teaches that
"if God did not spare (pheidomai) the natural branches, neither will He spare (pheidomai) you." (see
note
Romans 11:21)
The Gentiles should not expect to
be spared if they sin against the truth of the gospel.
The ancient world
describes the world before the Noachian flood. Clearly God did not
refrain from judging and punishing them with the flood and death. This
should serve as a warning and not some myth to be scoffed at as if it
never happened!
(744)
(archaios from arche = beginning) means old, expressing
that which was from the beginning in contrast to palaiós (3820),
old, as having existed a long period of time. Archaíos
reaches back to a beginning, whenever that beginning may have been.
Ancient (744)
(archaios
[word study] from arche = beginning)
is strictly speaking that which has been from the beginning. Archaios reaches
back to a beginning, whenever that beginning may have been. Archaios is contrasted with
another Greek word for "old",
palaios
[word study] which describes
that which has existed a long period of time.
TDNT says archaios...
means “from the beginning,” then “past”
or “old,” often with a reference to origins and with something of the
dignity of “ancient.” In the LXX it can sometimes have the sense of
pre-temporal, as in Is 37:26....in 2Co 5:17 pre-resurrection (Ed:
Before our "co-crucifixion" and "co-resurrection" with Christ) religious
relations and attitudes are in view.
Archaios is used of Satan the
"serpent of old" [from the beginning] in Rev 12:9-note
and Re 20:2-note.
In the beginning of creation, at the
time of the fall of man, sinless Adam became sinner Adam, and henceforth
gave birth to a continual stream of "little sinners" for all were in a
spiritual sense born "in Adam" (cp Ro 5:12-note,
Eph 2:1-note,
1Co 15:22). At regeneration, the new birth, sinners were taken from "in
Adam" and transferred to our new spiritual position as saints who are now
and forever "in Christ" as described in the present passage.
Archaios when used of things,
as here, means "old-fashioned, "antiquated" or "worn out".
Archaios can also mean that
which is ancient or old and thus speaks of former things or of what was long
ago...
"the ancient world"
(before the flood) = 2Pe 2:5-note
"the early days" = Acts 15:7
"from ancient generations" = Acts 15:21
"a disciple of long standing" =Acts 21:16
"the
ancients" = Mt 5:21-note
and Mt 5:33-note
"prophets of old" = Lk 9:8, 19
Archaios - 11x in 11v in the
NAS - Mt 5:21-note,
Mt 5:33-note;
Lk 9:8, 19; Acts 15:7, 21; 21:16; 2Cor 5:17-note;
2Pe 2:5-note;
Rev 12:9-note
Re 20:2-note
Archaios - 19x in the
non-apocryphal
Septuagint (LXX)
- Jdg 5:21; 1Sa 24:13; 1 Kgs 2:35; 4:30; Ps 44:1;
77:5; 79:8; 89:49; 139:4; 143:5; Isa 22:9, 11; 23:17; 25:1; 37:26; 43:18;
Lam 1:7; 2:17; Ezek 21:21;
World
(2889) (kosmos
[word study]) in context is referring primarily to the people
who inhabited the earth prior to the flood but kosmos also
includes the idea of this present world system ideologically and
behaviorally diametrically opposed to God and all He represents as
summed up by God's own appraisal in Genesis
"the
LORD
saw that the
wickedness of
man was
great on the
earth, and that
every
intent of the
thoughts of his
heart was
only
evil
continually" (Ge 6:5)
BUT PRESERVED NOAH A
PREACHER OF RIGHTEOUSNESS WITH SEVEN OTHERS: alla ogdoon Noe dikaiosunes keruka ephulaxen (3SAAI):
But
(235)
(alla) is a conjunction that draws our attention to a
contrast. Here Peter marks the antithesis between God's judgment on the
world and His preservation of Noah and family.
Preserved
(5442)
(phulasso
[word study]) means to be on guard to keep something from
being lost or perishing. It includes the idea of protecting someone and
keeping them in safe custody. Use of phulasso often
implies an assault from without. God was on guard to keep Noah
from perishing. God's man is immortal until he has finished his God
given task (cp the two witnesses in Rev 11:7-note)
The
aorist tense speaks of a past completed
effective action. As an manifestation of God's amazing grace, He
"protected, preserved, guarded" Noah and his family from the destructive
flood. In the midst of wrath we see Peter's first example of God
remembering mercy, preserving the righteous amid judgment. This truth
and that concerning Lot below should encourage all God's children that
even in the face of escalating wickedness (as in America at the dawn of
the new millennium), God is ever at work bringing about the salvation of
those who believe and obey His Word. (cf Gen 6:8, 9)
Phulasso - 31x in 31v - Matt
19:20; Mark 10:20; Luke 2:8; 8:29; 11:21, 28; 12:15; 18:21; John 12:25,
47; 17:12; Acts 7:53; 12:4; 16:4; 21:24f; 22:20; 23:35; 28:16; Rom 2:26;
Gal 6:13; 2 Thess 3:3; 1 Tim 5:21; 6:20; 2 Tim 1:12, 14; 4:15; 2 Pet
2:5; 3:17; 1 John 5:21; Jude 1:24. The NAS renders phulasso as
abstain(1), guard(8), guarded(1), guarding(1), guards(1), keep(5),
keeping(2), keeps(1),kept(4), kept under guard(1), maintain(1),
observe(2), preserved(1), protect(1), watching(1).
Francis Schaffer had an
interesting comment on Noah who he refers to as
"One Man Left in
the Godly Line --- Genesis 6:5-12
brings us to a point in history where there is only one man left in the
godly line. “Isn’t it strange that only one man is left in the godly
line?” But surely Scripture points out that this is the general course
of every era. Man’s heart is in rebellion against God, and the
rebellious heart must be taken into account in balance with the factor
of a sufficient knowledge of God. In each era the case is similar. For
example, by the time of Abraham, the world had thrown away almost all of
its knowledge of the true God. Likewise, by the time of Christ, the Jews
had so turned from God that only a minority accepted their
Old-Testament-prophesied Messiah. And we are amply warned that the end
of our own era will be exactly the same. Because of the rebellion of
man’s heart the course is not upward. Therefore, speaking of the end of
our age, Jesus could say, “When the Son of man cometh, shall he find
faith on the earth?” (Lk 18:8)....Jesus
expressly connects the time of Noah with the time of His second coming."
Seven
others" (ogdoos) speaks of Noah, the eighth
person. The Greek reads more literally "as an eighth one, Noah" and is a
Greek idiom which means "Noah and seven others." (1Pe 3:20-note)
Don't attempt to search for some "mystical" meaning in the number
"eight". It is "mystery" enough that God would desire to preserve even
one!
Preacher
(2783)(kerux
[word study]) describes a herald (town
crier, messenger, proclaimer) who was an honored spokesman
entrusted with a message from an emperor, king, magistrate, prince,
military commander, etc and which he was to
faithfully and reliably proclaim to the intended audience, especially
the masses in regard to the imperial herald. The kerux, who often
served as a close confidant of the king, would travel throughout the
realm announcing to the people whatever the king wished to make known.
It is this note of authoritative declaration that is so appropriately
transferred to the proclamation of the gospel.
Kerux - 3x in 3v - 1Ti 2:7;
2Ti 1:11; 2 Pet 2:5
This proclamation was given with a
sense of formality, gravity and authority which must be heeded. The verb
form of (kerux) is used by Paul in 2Ti 4:2 (see
note) to exhort
Timothy to "preach the Word in season and out".
Noah (note)
was vested with God's authority and entrusted with His "official"
message which he faithfully proclaimed to the antediluvian world for 120
years (Ge 6:3),
warning of coming judgment and showing the way of personal salvation.
Why? Because God is "not wishing for any to perish but for all to come
to repentance." (2Pe 3:9-note)
Kerux in the NT described those employed by God in the work
of proclaiming salvation (1Ti 2:7-note).
How did Noah "preach"? Surely his life lived as salt and light in
the midst of a crooked and perverse generation "preached loudly and
clearly". Certainly every hammer blow to the ark stirred questions in a
world that had never even experienced rain. Noah's answer to those who
ask him to given an explanation of the hope that he possessed surely
included a warning of coming judgment and a plea for righteousness.
William Barclay writes that
...
Kerux is the Greek word for
herald, and the herald was the man who brought a message direct from the
king. This word tells us of certain characteristics of the preaching of
Jesus and these are characteristics which should be in all preaching.
(i) The herald had in his voice a note of certainty. There was no
doubt about his message; he did not come with perhapses and maybes and
probably’s; he came with a definite message. Goethe had it: “Tell me of
your certainties: I have doubts enough of my own.” Preaching is the
proclamation of certainties, and a man cannot make others sure of that
about which he himself is in doubt.
(ii) The herald had in his voice the note of authority. He was
speaking for the king; he was laying down and announcing the king’s law,
the king’s command, and the king’s decision. As was said of a great
preacher, “he did not cloudily guess; he knew.” Preaching, as it has
been put, is the application of prophetic authority to the present
situation.
(iii) The herald’s message came from a source beyond
himself; it came from the king. Preaching speaks from a source beyond
the preacher. It is not the expression of one man’s personal opinions;
it is the voice of God that Jesus spoke to men. (Barclay,
W: The Daily Study Bible Series. The Westminster Press
or
Logos)
Righteousness
(1343)
(dikaiosune
[word study]) stated simply is all that God is, all that He
commands, all that He demands, all that He approves, and best of all,
all that He provides through Christ's substitutionary sacrifice.
Righteousness
is derived from a root word that means “straightness” and thus it refers
to a state that conforms to an authoritative standard. God’s
character is both the authoritative "standard" and the source of the
only righteousness
acceptable to God. When men's character and actions are used to define
the standard of
righteousness
("self righteousness"), their attempts always fall short of God's
perfect standard. Jesus emphasized the inability of man's innate
righteousness
to satisfy God's perfect standard declaring
"that
unless your
righteousness
surpasses that of the
scribes and
Pharisees, you will not
enter the
kingdom of
heaven." (see note on
Matthew 5:20)
Where is God's righteousness
revealed? Paul
says that "the
righteousness of
God is
revealed" in the gospel
(Ro 1:16, 17-note)
and that this gospel was
"promised
beforehand
through His
prophets in the
holy
Scriptures."
(Ro 1:2-note,
cf Acts 10:43)
So it seems reasonable to deduce that for 120 years Noah proclaimed the gospel to the ungodly world who had
suppressed "the
truth in
unrighteousness" (Ro 1:18-note).
Although Peter's purpose here is
not to explain the "way of salvation"
in the OT, I will digress for a moment to address this issue
because I have encountered a number of otherwise edified saints who
sincerely thought that Old Testament righteousness was obtained by
obedience (or works) rather than by faith. Noah although described as righteous
and blameless (Ge 6:8, 9)
achieved this "distinction" not by his works but by faith
(which
showed itself to be genuine by his subsequent "works" or obedience)
as the writer of Hebrews teaches
"By
faith
Noah, being
warned by God
about things not
yet
seen, in
reverence
prepared an
ark for the
salvation of his
household, (here
we see Noah's "works" that emanate from his genuine faith...his works
did not save him but did prove he had saving faith)
by
which he
condemned the
world, and
became an
heir of the
righteousness which is
according to
faith. (see note
Hebrews 11:7).
Although
we do not know exactly how Noah heard the "gospel"
we do know from the above Scriptures (Ro 1:2-note,
cf Acts 10:43)
and from Galatians that the gospel was preached to Abraham and
God's righteousness was imputed to (reckoned or placed upon) Abraham's
spiritual "ledger" or account based upon his faith. Paul writes that
Even
so
Abraham
BELIEVED
GOD, AND IT WAS
RECKONED
(imputed or reckoned) TO HIM AS
RIGHTEOUSNESS. (Ge
15:6) 7 Therefore,
be
sure that it is
those who are of
faith
who are
sons of
Abraham. 8 The
Scripture, (referring
to the Old Testament)
foreseeing that
God would
justify (declare
them to be righteous) the
Gentiles by
faith,
preached
the
gospel
beforehand to
Abraham, saying,
"ALL THE
NATIONS WILL BE
BLESSED
IN YOU. (Gal 3:6, 7, 8)
The "way of salvation"
in both the Old and New Testaments is the same
"for by
grace you have been
saved
through
faith and that not of
yourselves, it is the
gift of
God not as a
result of
works,
so that
no
one may
boast. For we are His
workmanship,
created in
Christ
Jesus for
good
works
which
God
prepared
beforehand
so that we would
walk in them."
(see notes
Ephesians 2:8;
9;
10)
(Torrey's Topic Justification
Before God)
WHEN HE BROUGHT A FLOOD UPON THE WORLD OF THE UNGODLY: kataklusmon kosmo asebon epaxas (AAPMSN):
(See Torrey's Topic
Deluge)
Brought...upon
(1863) (epago from epí = upon + ágo =
lead away)
means to cause something to befall one, usually something evil, although
in the present context something quiet just and right because of their
evil behavior. Epago was used to describe “setting on or
letting loose” the dogs! The "Hound of heaven" so to speak will
be let loose on these ungodly false teachers.
Epago - 3x in 3v - Acts
5:28; 2Pet 2:1, 5
Flood (2627)
(kataklusmos from kata =
an intensifier or meaning against, down upon + klúzo = to
dash, flood) literally describes a dashing down upon and then an
overflowing, a deluge or destruction by water overflowing. (note)
Kataklusmos - 4x in 4v -
Matt 24:38, 39; Luke 17:27; 2Pet 2:5
This dramatic
Greek word gives us
the word "cataclysm" (which Webster defines as
a momentous and violent event marked by overwhelming upheaval and
demolition or an event that brings great changes, a violent upheaval,
another name for catastrophe). The coming of
the cataclysmic flood and the preservation of Noah were both the work of
God and both occurred simultaneously. It is interesting that in the
first verse Peter described these false teachers as bringing destruction
upon themselves but here God Himself is clearly the "Bringer".
God's "bringing" is therefore clearly justified and is not based
on divine whim or caprice.
Barnes writes that Peter's
argument here is, that if God would cut off a wicked race in this
manner, the principle is settled that the wicked will not escape. (Barnes
Notes on the NT)
World
(2889) (kosmos
[word study]) in context is referring primarily to the people
who inhabited the earth prior to the flood but kosmos also
includes the idea of this present world system ideologically and
behaviorally diametrically opposed to God and all He represents as
summed up by God's own appraisal in Genesis
"the
LORD
saw that the
wickedness of
man was
great on the
earth, and that
every
intent of the
thoughts of his
heart was
only
evil
continually" (Ge 6:5)
Ungodly
(765) (asebes
from a = w/o + sébomai = worship, venerate)
means lack of interest in the things of God and a
behavior and lifestyle consistent with such an irreverent attitude. See
the depth study of the related word
ungodliness (asebeia
[word study]).
It pertains to violating norms for a proper relation to deity, and in
short means irreverent (lacking proper respect of God) or impious.
Living as if God does not exist and with no regard for Him.
Asebes is used 8 times in
the NT...
Romans 4:5-note
But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the
ungodly, his faith is reckoned as righteousness,
Romans 5:6-note For
while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the
ungodly.
1Timothy 1:9 realizing the fact that law is not made for a righteous
man, but for those who are lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly
and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their
fathers or mothers, for murderers
1 Peter 4:18-note
And if it is with difficulty that the righteous is saved, what will
become of the godless man and the sinner?
2 Peter 2:5 and did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a
preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood
upon the world of the ungodly; 6 and if He condemned the cities
of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having
made them an example to those who would live ungodly thereafter;
2Peter 3:7-note
But the present heavens and earth by His word are being reserved for
fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly
men.
Jude 1:4 For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were
long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons
who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only
Master and Lord, Jesus Christ. 15 to execute judgment upon all, and to
convict all the ungodly of all their ungodly deeds which they have done
in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly
sinners have spoken against Him."
Asebes - 185 times in the
non-apocryphal
Septuagint (LXX)
(Ge 18:23, 25; Ex 9:27; 23:7; Deut. 25:1; Job 3:17; 8:13, 19f, 22; 9:24,
29; 10:3, 15; 11:20; 15:20, 34; 16:11; 18:5; 20:5, 29; 21:7, 16f, 28;
22:18; 24:2, 6; 27:7f, 13; 32:3; 34:8, 18, 26; 36:6, 12, 18; 38:13, 15;
40:12; Ps. 1:1, 1:4-6; 9:5; 10:2, 13; 11:5; 12:8; 17:9, 13; 26:5, 9;
31:17; 37:28, 35, 38; 51:13; 58:10; Prov. 1:7, 10, 22, 32; 2:22; 3:25,
33, 35; 4:14, 19; 9:7; 10:3, 6f, 11, 15f, 20, 24f, 27f, 30, 32; 11:3,
7ff, 11, 18f, 23, 31; 12:5ff, 10, 12, 21, 26; 13:5f, 9, 19, 22, 25;
14:11, 19, 32; 15:6, 8f, 18, 28f; 16:2, 4; 17:23; 18:3, 5, 22; 19:28;
20:26; 21:4, 7, 10, 12, 22, 26f, 29f; 24:15f, 20, 22, 24; 25:5, 26;
28:1f, 12, 24, 28; 29:2, 7, 16; Eccl. 3:16f; 7:15, 25; 8:10, 13f; 9:2;
Isa. 5:23; 11:4; 13:11; 24:8; 25:2, 5; 26:10, 19; 28:21; 29:5; 33:14;
48:22; 55:7; 57:21; Jer. 5:26; 12:1; 23:19; 25:31; 30:23; Ezek 20:38;
33:8f, 11f, 14; Hos. 14:9; Hab 1:4, 9, 13
Read and study Psalm 1, an excellent summary of the
righteous versus the ungodly (wicked).
Psalm 1:1 How blessed is the man
who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked (Lxx = asebes),
nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers!
4 The wicked (Lxx = asebes) are not so, but they are like chaff
which the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the wicked (Lxx = asebes) will not stand in the
judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
6 For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the
wicked (Lxx = asebes) will perish.
After you've compared and contrasted
the godly (righteous) and ungodly (wicked) look over the verse by verse
notes -
Psalm 1:1;
Psalm 1:2;
Psalm 1:3;
Psalm 1:4;
Psalm 1:5;
Psalm 1:6
Asebes describes the person
without reverence for God, not by merely being irreligious, but by
acting in contravention of God’s demands. Clearly "ungodly"
is an apt description of all who are unsaved.
The ungodly
man or woman is the one who has little or no time for God in their life.
They have deceived themselves into believing that they can rule God out
of their affairs and their thinking even though God is the greatest
Being in the universe, the One Who makes sense out of life, the One
around Whom all of life revolves and without Whom no creature could even
take a breath. To eliminate such a Glorious Being from one's thinking is
what it means to be
ungodly.
Ungodly means want
or lack of reverence or piety toward God (which speaks of one's heart
attitude) and thus living without regard for God and in a way that
denies His existence and right as Supreme Ruler and Authority (which
speaks of one's actions emanating from one's attitude). Asebes
suggests a disregard of the existence of God, a refusal to retain Him in
knowledge and a habit of mind leads to open rebellion. It is a general
reference to all that is anti-God.
Jude writes that the ungodly will infiltrate the true church of God, for
even in his day
"certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were
long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons
who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only
Master and Lord, Jesus Christ." (Jude 1:4)
Ungodly is one of Jude’s favorite words.
While these men claimed to belong to God, they were, in fact, ungodly
in their thinking and their living. They might have “a form of
godliness,” but they lacked the force of godliness that directs
one's thinking and actions "Godward". It is a basic principle, that
doctrinal deviation often accompanies and often justifies ethical and
moral sin. Their lack of reverence for God was demonstrated by the fact
that they infiltrated the church of God to corrupt it and gain riches
from its people.
The Bible declares that there is
hope even for the ungodly
for while we were still
helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly"
(Ro 5:6-note)
and for the one who "believes in Him who justifies the ungodly,
his faith is reckoned as righteousness" (Ro 4:5-note)
Ungodly is used in this verse generally, as characterizing
mankind lying universally in sin, thus setting before us the great
contrast of man in his own worthlessness and God in His mercy in
justifying by faith. Where faith is not exercised, man remains ungodly
and therefore exposed to the wrath of God.
Peter explains that for the
unjustified ungodly individual
"the present heavens and earth by His
word are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and
destruction (the state after death wherein exclusion from salvation
is a realized fact, wherein ungodly men, instead of becoming what they
might have been, are lost and ruined, not annihilated, as some falsely
teach) of ungodly men." (see note
2 Peter 3:7)
In short, the earth is personified as a man waiting for the day of
judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
Paul gives a concise, accurate
description of the "ungodly" in Romans writing that they
are
"filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full
of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, slanderers,
haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil,
disobedient to parents, without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving,
unmerciful." (see note
Romans 1:29-31)
John MacArthur writes that the
lifestyle of the ungodly
"is inevitably empty,
vain, and void of substance. The life of an unbeliever is bound up
in thinking and acting in an arena of ultimate trivia. He consumes
himself in the pursuit of goals that are purely selfish, in the
accumulation of that which is temporary, and in looking for
satisfaction in that which is intrinsically deceptive and
disappointing. The unregenerate person plans and resolves
everything on the basis of his own thinking. He becomes his own
ultimate authority and he follows his own thinking to its ultimate
outcome of futility, aimlessness, and meaninglessness—to the
self–centered emptiness that characterizes our age...The second
characteristic of ungodly persons is ignorance of God’s
truth. Their thinking not only is futile but spiritually
uninformed...Fallen mankind has a built–in inability to know and
comprehend the things of God—the only things that ultimately are
worth knowing...the ungodly are unresponsive to truth
(cf. Isa 44:18, 19, 20 see1Th 4:5-
note). Just as a corpse cannot
hear a conversation in the mortuary, the person who is spiritually
“dead in [his] trespasses and sins” (Ep
2:1-note) cannot
hear or understand the things of God, no matter how loudly or
clearly they may be declared or evidenced in his presence...The
knowledge that the ungodly person hates is not practical, factual
knowledge. On the contrary, he prides himself in how much he
knows.
(MacArthur,
J: Ephesians. Chicago: Moody Press
or
Logos)
The attitude of the
ungodly man or woman "is nowhere more clearly exposed than in
the popular admonition to do one’s own thing. Man’s “own thing”
is sin, which characterizes his whole natural being. Self-will is
the essence of all sin. Although Satan was responsible for their
being tempted to sin, it was the voluntary placing of their own
will-s above God’s that caused Adam and Eve to commit the first
sin." (MacArthur,
J: Romans 1-8. Moody)
Hiebert
draws a sobering conclusion from this verse writing that...
"The example warns that
even though the whole world may be involved in sin and corruption, man
cannot sin with impunity. The fact that vast numbers are participating
in and condoning sin may harden evil-doers in their wickedness, but
their numbers will never shelter them from the wrath of God."
