Question: The Bible seems to teach Divine election very clearly, and yet 2 Peter 3:9 says that God is not willing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. How do you explain this verse?
Thanks for your question. I have found two main ways this verse is dealt with by reformed people; the first being my approach (shared by people such as Dr. R.C. Sproul, Dr. James White, and others); and another by such people as Dr. John Piper.
Without doubt, this is the single most popular verse used to dismiss the biblical doctrine of election, bar none. We usually assume the meaning of the verse without taking time to study it, which is the very hallmark of tradition. In fact, traditions are so strong that many do not even feel the need to study the verse in context because they believe there is no need to do so. I have to admit that I did this for many years. Those most enslaved to tradition are those who think they do not have any. First of all then, let us read the verse in its context.
2 Peter 3:1-9 – This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved. In both of them I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you should remember the predictions of the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior through your apostles, knowing this first of all, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation.” For they deliberately overlook this fact, that the heavens existed long ago, and the earth was formed out of water and through water by the word of God, and that by means of these the world that then existed was deluged with water and perished. But by the same word the heavens and earth that now exist are stored up for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly. But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.
The first thing we notice is that the subject of the passage is not salvation but the second coming of Christ. Peter is explaining the reason for the delay in Christ’s second coming He is still coming, and will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night (v. 10).
The second thing to notice is the clear identity of the people he is addressing. He speaks of the mockers as “them”, but everywhere else he speaks to his audience as “you” and the “beloved.” This is very important because the assumption that is usually made is that the “you” the “any” and the “all” of 2 Peter 3:9 refers to everyone on the planet.
But surely “all” means “all,” right? Well usually, yes, but not always. This has to be determined by the context in which the words are found. For example, if a teacher asks his class of students, “Are all here?” he is not asking if everyone on the planet is present in the room, but rather he is referring to all the students enrolled in the class.
So, the question in 2 Peter 3:9 is whether “all” refers to all human beings without distinction, or whether it refers to everyone within a certain group.
The context indicates that Peter is writing to a specific group and not to all of mankind “to those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours” 2 Peter 1:1. The audience is confirmed when Peter writes, “This is now the second letter that I am writing to you, beloved.” (2 Peter 3:1)
Can we be even more specific? Yes, because if this is the second letter addressed to them, the first makes it clear who he is writing to. 1 Peter 1:1 – “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who are elect” So Peter is writing to the elect in 2 Peter 3:8, 9, saying:
“But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”
If the “any” or “all” here refers to everyone in human history, the verse would prove universalism rather than Christianity. (Universalism is the false doctrine that teaches that everyone will in the end be saved, with no one going to hell). If God is not willing that any person perish, then what? No one would ever perish! Yet, in context, the “any” that God wills not to perish must be limited to the same group he is writing to, the elect, and the “all” that are to come to repentance is the very same group. Christ’s second coming has been delayed so that all the elect can be gathered in. God is not willing that any of the elect should perish, but that all of them come to repentance. Rather than denying election, the verse, understood in its biblical context, is one of the strongest verses in favor of it.
The second way to look at 2 Peter 3:9 is the way John Piper approaches it – which is found here.
I think Dr. Piper’s argument is terrific and gives great insight on a number of important points, but disagree that the passage (2 Peter 3:9) actually teaches what he says it does. The context of 2 Peter 3 shouts and screams that Peter, when speaking of “all”, is actually referring to all of the elect.
John Piper actually agrees that 2 Peter 3:9 appears to be talking about a limited “any”. Indeed, normal use of language demands it. You can’t fill in “any WHAT” with whatever you wish. It has to come from the context. Piper’s position of “two wills of God” would certainly come into play, however, for passages like 1 Tim 2:4 and the like.
Therefore, since I like, agree with, and see the need for Piper’s explanation on God’s multiple wills and I certainly see that the language of 2 Peter 3 demands a clear presentation of who the “any” are (and it’s not “all humans”), I would suppose it could be said that I go with both … just not both for 2 Peter 3.
So … I’m in Phoenix, too. Where do I find King’s Church?
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John
this has been a very helpful thread!
Thanks.
I would only add my two cents to it by acknowledging the “work” of the Holy Spirit acknowledged by the Apostle Peter in the first epistle that bears his name.
And I would elucidate that point with these verses from Genesis 1:1-2
Gen 1:1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
Gen 1:2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
Peter writes about the sanctification work of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit has been here from the beginning working among the creations, both the Elect and otherwise.
He is the one who selects us excising us from the worldwide population by the Gospel of the Kingdom message.
He is the one who vindicated Christ before the Throne of Grace once He was raised up from the dead and speaking confirmation in our hearts the same vindication. While everybody is guilty before God, not everybody turns to God seeking salvation through Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit.
And one final notation from the Apostle Paul’s epistle to the Corinthians, 2 Cor. 2:16:
2Co 2:14 But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere.
2Co 2:15 For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing,
2Co 2:16 to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things?
It is a hard pill to swallow and impossible for one to make the conclusion that God desires “all” to be saved when we have such contrary evidences revealed in the Scriptures that teach us otherwise. Your analogy of a teacher asking the question about those students of his class makes it clear about this truth.
Thanks again for such a clear testimony of the Truth sometimes hard to comprehend!
I leave off here with these Words of Faith and Truth in Grace:
Jer 33:14 “Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah.
Jer 33:15 In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David, and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.
Jer 33:16 In those days Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will dwell securely. And this is the name by which it will be called: ‘The LORD is our righteousness.’
Well, while those days have come and gone, yet the power of the Spirit of those Words about the events of those days remains and as is apparent to all of us these days in the world we find ourselves sojourning through, not everyone in the world these days accepts that the LORD is our righteousness!
Some people simply reject Christ out of hand. The fragrance of Christ is a message of death to them!
Some people are attempting to gain sufficient merit before God by their own works of righteousness so as to be accepted by God for entrance into His Paradise on their terms and not on the terms of the Gospel of the Kingdom! These shall not make it in!
And, then, of course, there is the Elect of God, known from the foundation of the world, adopted, called and chosen from the world, who stand firm in Christ’s work by His gift of Faith fully acquitted and accepted in the Beloved living for the Glory of the Lord, minute by minute daily!
I’d like to ask a question, but please know first, I have no agenda. I leaned heavily toward Reformed Theology but have struggled with this verse and have found many Reformed explanations wanting. So the question I ask is out of genuine interest in your response and for no other reason. (Isn’t it sad I have to explain that?) So here’s the question:
Why this wording? Why “not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance”? If the meaning were different than the wording, why weren’t different words used? ( I know that’s impossible to answer) My point is that even given the context, IMO, this particular wording gives an entirely different impression than what most Reformed scholars say it does. If the Lord is Sovereign (as I believe He is), if He has predestined some for salvation and some not, than what’s the purpose in the patience and the point of wishing none to perish? Why wish it if it’s not going to happen anyway? It would seem, both given the context and the wording, that its bit more muddy than your explanation makes it appear. I just don’t see where the “all” in this passage can only mean the elect given that the Lord is “not wishing that any should perish…”. If the definition of “all” is the elect, it would seem to make the “wishing that none should perish” unnecessary.
I look forward to your answer.
Jeff Parsons
Hi Jeff – Just a quick response: I am trying to understand your thinking but instead find the passage making perfect sense in the way I interpret it. God has His ends (which is His elect coming to a saving knowledge of Christ) but He accomplishes these ends through the use of means – through prayer, through careful and patient teaching (2 Tim 2:25,26); through the preaching of the gospel (“how shall they hear without a preacher” Romans 10:14), and through Christ not coming back until all the elect come to repentance. Once He returns, He will separate the sheep from the goats and there will be no time left for repentance. It is this aspect that is spelt out clearly for us in 2 Peter 3:9.
The reason Jesus did not return to earth yesterday is because there were more of His elect to come in to the fold today. He is not slack concerning His promise though – He will return, but in the meantime, He is not willing that any of His elect perish but that all of them come to repentance. Far from being an unnecessary statement, it is a source of great comfort to know that God has not forgotten His promise, and that He will accomplish all He desires in the saving of His elect people.
Stan,
John Piper mentions the approach I would make to the text but only as a POSSIBLE interpretation, but then seems to steer away from it because he feels Arminians might not be convinced by it. I have a tremendous respect for Dr. Piper but here, as elsewhere, would want to build my thinking on what the text actually says rather than build my thinking and defense upon the possible view of the naysayers.
King’s Church is a new church just starting but for current location, you can find us at http://www.kingschurchaz.com
Thanks for this, John. In context then, we might read the text to say,
“The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any [of you; of the elect] should perish, but that all [of you; of the elect] should reach repentance.”
Wonderful, wonderful article!
I find it interesting that God is expressing concern that the elect might NOT reach repentance…doesn’t reformed theology teach that the elect are not able to resist His grace? Why would God be concerned that the elect might not reach repentance?
Buddy – You ask “why would God be concerned that the elect might not reach repentance?” I think the passage is saying that the reason why Jesus’ second coming might seem to be delayed (to us) is because God is not willing that any of the elect should perish but that all of them reach repentance.
Lets assume that some of God’s elect sheep will come to Christ today (which I think is a valid assumption). Well then, this being the case, Jesus’ second coming did not happen yesterday for the simple reason that if He had done so, the elect sheep would not have had opportunity to have done so.
A person is not saved just because they are elect, but because they come to Christ in saving faith – and it is the elect who will do so (Acts 13:48). And, they will do so through the use of means, which include the preaching of the gospel and Christ not returning in His second coming until all His elect reach repentance.
Jesus will not lose a single sheep given to Him by the Father, and He Himself said “And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.” (John 6:39)
Lets make it personal. If you (Buddy) came to Christ on a certain date, aren’t you glad that Jesus did not return to earth the day before? 2 Peter 3:9 is teaching that He did not do so, because of His great love for you – He was not in any way willing that you would perish but that you would reach repentance.
“Lets make it personal. If you (Buddy) came to Christ on a certain date, aren’t you glad that Jesus did not return to earth the day before?”
But if he would have come 1000 years ago I would not have been born and would not have sinned. So by God delaying, more people are being born, and more people being condemned.
Or are you saying the elect are a group of people that includes people that have not been born yet? I assume you are.
At any rate, verses like this harm my belief in the inerrancy of the Bible, but not my belief in Christ.
Having read it more, are you also assuming predestination? Because without predestination no one would be the elect and every day more and more are dying and condemned.
When God elected people for salvation, He did so before even one person was ever created (Ephesians 1:4).
That does make sense. It’s interesting to think that one day, the very last of the elect will repent and trust Christ, and then that’s it.
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