"Denying The
Lord That Bought Them"
2 Peter 2:1
Does this
verse of Scripture teach that the Lord Jesus Christ died for and redeemed all
men, even false prophets, even those who perish under the wrath of God in hell?
Of course not! Such a theory of redemption is a declaration that there is no
redemption by the blood of Christ alone. It blasphemes God, robs Christ of the
glory of his work, asserts that his blood was shed in vain for many,and, making him a failure, is a denial of his eternal
Diety. I would as quickly deny the virgin birth of Christ as deny the efficacy
of his atonement!
Such an
interpretation of this text runs in direct opposition to the universal
testimony of Holy Scripture regarding the death and redemptive work of our
Savior (Isa. 53:8-10; John 10:11, 15, 16, 26; 17:9, 20; Rom. 3:24-26; 8:31-34;
2 Cor. 5:21; Gal. 3:13; Eph. 1:7; 5:25-27; Col. 2:14; 2 Tim. 1:9-10; Heb. 1:3;
9:12; 10:5-14; 1 Pet. 1:18-20; 2:24; 3:18; Rev. 1:5, 5:9).
The subject
being discussed in this passage is not the redemptive work of Christ, but false
teachers. Only a deliberately dishonest man would take a statement found in 2
Peter 2 and use it to denounce the biblical doctrine of particular, effectual
redemption clearly taught in such passages as Isaiah 53, John 10, and Romans 8.
No scripture is of any private interpretation (2 Pet.
What then
does this statement, "the Lord that bought them," mean? It means that
Jesus Christ, by virtue of his obedience to God as our Substitute, is the
sovereign Lord, Master, absolute Despot of the universe (John 17:2;
Don Fortner