EasyEnglish Bible 2018
2 Peter 2:16
16But a donkey told him that he was not obeying God. We know that donkeys cannot talk. But that donkey spoke with a human voice. It stopped the prophet Balaam from doing more crazy things.
2 Peter 2:16 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)But was rebuked for his iniquity: the dumb ass speaking with man’s voice forbad the madness of the prophet.
- New International Version (NIV)But he was rebuked for his wrongdoing by a donkey—an animal without speech—who spoke with a human voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.
- English Standard Version (ESV)but was rebuked for his own transgression; a speechless donkey spoke with human voice and restrained the prophet's madness.
- New King James Version (NKJV)but he was rebuked for his iniquity: a dumb donkey speaking with a man’s voice restrained the madness of the prophet.
Context of 2 Peter 2:16
14All the time, they are looking for women who will have sex with them. They never stop doing wicked things. They teach people who have weak minds to believe wrong things. They just want more and more things to make themselves happy. God will certainly punish these people, because they are so bad. 15These false teachers have left the way which is good and right. Like Balaam, Beor's son, they have gone the wrong way. Balaam wanted money so much that he did wrong things to get it. But a donkey told him that he was not obeying God. We know that donkeys cannot talk. But that donkey spoke with a human voice. It stopped the prophet Balaam from doing more crazy things. 17These false teachers promise good things that will never happen. They are like a dry well that has no water. They are like clouds in a storm which the wind blows away so that no rain comes. God will certainly send them to the darkest place in hell. He has kept that place ready for them. 18The messages that these teachers speak seem very important. But their words really mean nothing. In that way, they lead people away from God. Some people have not been believers for very long. They have only just become free from the wrong things that people do. But the false teachers tell these people to do bad things that will make them happy.
Read all of 2 Peter 22 Peter 2:16 word by word
ἔλεγξιν δὲ ἔσχεν ἰδίας παρανομίας· ὑποζύγιον ἄφωνον ἐν ἀνθρώπου φωνῇ φθεγξάμενον ἐκώλυσεν τὴν τοῦ προφήτου παραφρονίαν.Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- Butδέde · thenG1161
- wasἔχωechō · to have/beG2192
- rebukedἔλεγξιςelegxis · rebukeG1649
- forπαρανομίαparanomia · lawlessnessG3892
- hisἴδιοςidios · one's own/privateG2398
- theὑποζύγιονhupozugion · donkeyG5268
- dumbἄφωνοςaphōnos · muteG880
- speakingφθέγγομαιphtheggomai · to speakG5350
- withἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
- man’sἄνθρωποςanthrōpos · a humanG444
- voiceφωνήphōnē · voice/sound: voiceG5456
- forbadκωλύωkōluō · to preventG2967
- the madnessπαραφρονίαparaphronia · insanityG3913
- of the prophetπροφήτηςprophētēs · prophetG4396
Cross-references for 2 Peter 2:16
- Numbers 22:22God was angry because Balaam went with the men. The angel of the Lord stood on the road to stop Balaam. Balaam was riding on his donkey and his two servants were with him.
- Ecclesiastes 7:25I decided to study many things so that I would become wise. I wanted to understand the reason why things happen. I also wanted to know why it is stupid to be wicked, and why it is crazy to do foolish things.
- Ecclesiastes 9:3Finally, the same thing happens to everyone on the earth. That seems to be a terrible thing. People choose to do evil things. While they are alive, they choose to live like fools. And after that, they die.
- Hosea 9:7The time for Israel's punishment has arrived! The Lord must now pay them back for their sins. The Israelites will soon know about it! You do many sins and you hate the Lord. Because of that, you say that his prophets are fools. You think that his messengers are crazy.
- Luke 16:11So if people cannot trust you with money in this world, nobody will trust you with really valuable things.
- Acts 26:11I went to our Jewish meeting places to take hold of believers. I told my men to punish them. I tried to make the believers say bad things against God. I was very angry with them. So I even travelled to cities in other countries to punish them.
Commentaries on 2 Peter 2:16
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16The dumb ass, speaking with man's voice - See the note on Numbers 22:28. The madness of the prophet - Is not this a reference to the speech of the ass, as represented in the Targums of Jonathan ben Uzziel and Jerusalem? "Wo to thee, Balaam, thou sinner, thou madman: there is no wisdom found in thee." These words contain nearly the same expressions as those in St. Peter.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16But was rebuked for his iniquity - The object of Peter in this seems to be to show that God employed the very extraordinary means of causing the ass on which he rode to speak, because his iniquity was so monstrous. The guilt of thus debasing his high office, and going forth to curse the people of God - a people who had done him no wrong, and given no occasion for his malediction - was so extraordinary, that means as extraordinary were proper to express…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 10-16Verses 10-16 Impure seducers and their abandoned followers, give themselves up to their own fleshly minds. Refusing to bring every thought to the obedience of Christ, they act against God's righteous precepts. They walk after the flesh, they go on in sinful courses, and increase to greater degrees of impurity and wickedness. They also despise those whom God has set in authority over them, and requires them to honour. Outward temporal good things are the…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 10-16This description of the false teachers focuses more on how they were living than on what they were teaching.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1616. was rebuked--Greek, "had a rebuke," or conviction; an exposure of his specious wickedness on his being tested (the root verb of the Greek noun means to "convict on testing"). his--Greek, "his own": his own beast convicted him of his own iniquity. ass--literally, "beast of burden"; the ass was the ordinary animal used in riding in Palestine. dumb--Greek, "voiceless-speaking in man's voice"; marking the marvellous nature of the miracle…Read the comment
Topics related to 2 Peter 2:16
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 2 Peter 2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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