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Greeting the Faithful

¹Simon Peter, a bondservant and ⚓apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who have obtained ⚓like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:
²⚓Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, ³as His ⚓divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him ⚓who called us by glory and virtue, ⁴⚓by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be ⚓partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Fruitful Growth in the Faith

⁵But also for this very reason, ⚓giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue ⚓knowledge, ⁶to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, ⁷to godliness brotherly kindness, and ⚓to brotherly kindness love. ⁸For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren ⚓nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁹For he who lacks these things is ⚓shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
¹⁰Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent ⚓to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; ¹¹for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Peter’s Approaching Death

¹²For this reason ⚓I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, ⚓though you know and are established in the present truth. ¹³Yes, I think it is right, ⚓as long as I am in this tent, ⚓to stir you up by reminding you, ¹⁴⚓knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as ⚓our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. ¹⁵Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease.

The Trustworthy Prophetic Word

¹⁶For we did not follow ⚓cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the ⚓power and ⚓coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were ⚓eyewitnesses of His majesty. ¹⁷For He received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory: ⚓“This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” ¹⁸And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on ⚓the holy mountain.
¹⁹And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a ⚓light that shines in a dark place, ⚓until ⚓the day dawns and the morning star rises in your ⚓hearts; ²⁰knowing this first, that ⚓no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, ²¹for ⚓prophecy never came by the will of man, ⚓but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.