Key Verse Spotlight
2 Peter 3:8 - Meaning and Application
Understand how this verse speaks to what you're facing and how to apply it today
Translation: World English Bible — Catholic Edition
" But don’t forget this one thing, beloved, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. "
2 Peter 3:8
Verse in Context
Understanding the surrounding verses prevents misinterpretation:
6 by which means the world that existed then, being overflowed with water, perished.
7 But the heavens that exist now and the earth, by the same word have been stored up for fire, being reserved against the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.
8 But don’t forget this one thing, beloved, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
9 The Lord is not slow concerning his promise, as some count slowness; but he is patient with us, not wishing that anyone should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will be dissolved with fervent heat; and the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.
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The apostle uses these words to teach and steady Christians in the truth of the Lord’s coming. We can see his kindness and concern in the way he speaks to them, calling them beloved. He had a loving concern even for ungodly people who refused to believe God’s revelation, but he had a special care for true believers. Because he knew they still had some ignorance and weakness, he warned them carefully.
Here we can notice the truth Peter states: with the Lord, one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day. In human life, there is a great difference between a day and a year, and an even greater one between a day and a thousand years. But with God, who lives in eternity, where there is no passing time, there is no difference. All things, past, present, and future, are always before him, so a delay of a thousand years is no more to him than a delay of a day or an hour is to us.
We should also notice why this truth matters. This is the one thing the apostle does not want us to be ignorant of. A holy awe and reverent fear of God are needed if we are to worship and glorify him rightly. Believing how far above us he is helps produce and keep that proper fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom.
This is a truth that serves our peace, so Peter works to keep it from being hidden from us. That is the sense of the original words, “Let not this one thing be hidden from you.” If people have no real knowledge or belief in the eternal God, they are very likely to think of him as being like themselves. Yet it is hard for us to think rightly about eternity. For that reason, it is not easy to gain the knowledge of God that is truly necessary.
From This Chapter
2 Peter 3:1
"This is now, beloved, the second letter that I have written to you; and in both of them I stir up your sincere mind by reminding you"
2 Peter 3:2
"that you should remember the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets and the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Savior,"
2 Peter 3:3
"knowing this first, that in the last days mockers will come, walking after their own lusts"
2 Peter 3:4
"and saying, “Where is the promise of his coming? For, from the day that the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.”"
2 Peter 3:5
"For they willfully forget that there were heavens from of old, and an earth formed out of water and amid water by the word of God,"
2 Peter 3:6
"by which means the world that existed then, being overflowed with water, perished."
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