What does 2 Peter 2:4 mean?
Peter has just affirmed that the false teachers in the church will, ultimately, be condemned and destroyed by God. Here, he begins a series of "if" statements to make the case that God does indeed bring judgment upon those who rebel against Him.In this verse, he begins with the angels who sinned. Peter may be referring to the events described in Genesis 6:1–4, during which the "sons of God" took human wives. Some understand this to mean that it was angels who inter-married with human women in rebellion against God and were punished. Others suggest Peter means to describe angels who were cast from heaven along with Lucifer, the devil, when he rebelled.
In either case, God did not let this rebellion stand. He judged and punished these fallen angels. Specifically, Peter uses the Greek word "Tartarus," which was a part of the Greek underworld. This is somewhat different from the other biblical references to "hell," though it shares a close relation. Peter says that these angels remain there, being held in chains, or pits, of darkness until God is ready to fully judge them for their sin.
2 Peter 2:1–9 describes false teachers who greedily spread lies about Christ’s authority. They encourage Christians to indulge in sexual sin. They pursue erotic desires in the open, are experts in greed, despise authority, live in bold arrogance, and blaspheme things they don’t understand. Peter assures that these deceivers will be punished for the harm they’ve caused. This includes leading people away from Christ and back into the sinful practices from which they had begun to escape. God did not spare sinful angels, or the wicked of Noah’s day, or the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, and will not spare these false teachers, either.
False teachers had entered the early community of Christians. These deceivers lied to the believers, challenging the authority of Jesus. They also invited others to indulge in their sexual sin. Sadly, there are still versions of these false teachers plaguing the modern Christian community. Peter harshly describes the sins of these ''cursed children,'' the eternal judgment waiting for them, and the tragic impact their deception is having on those enticed by them.
