Chapter
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Verse

2 Peter 2:6

ESV if by turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes he condemned them to extinction, making them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly;
NIV if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly;
NASB and if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an example of what is coming for the ungodly;
CSB and if he reduced the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes and condemned them to extinction, making them an example of what is coming to the ungodly;
NLT Later, God condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and turned them into heaps of ashes. He made them an example of what will happen to ungodly people.
KJV And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly;

What does 2 Peter 2:6 mean?

Peter continues his list of "if" statements, citing examples of God's judgment against those who rebel against Him. He is making the case that God will also bring the same kind of judgment against the false teachers in the church.

After mentioning God's judgment of the rebellious angels, then that of the entire world except for Noah and his family during the flood, Peter now points to the example of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:1–29). In response to the sinfulness of the people of those cities, God sent fire from the sky to destroy both towns and all of their residents.

We generally associate Sodom with the sin of homosexuality, which was the most pervasive and famous of their errors. But Ezekiel described the wickedness of her people in much greater detail, saying they "…had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy. They were haughty and did an abomination before me. So I removed them…" (Ezekiel 16:49–50). Modern culture has much in common with these ancient people.

Again, Peter uses an example in which God's judgment on those in rebellion was sudden and unexpected, offering no chance of escape (Proverbs 29:1). But as we see in the next verse, the righteous Judge has offered mercy in the form of a warning to those He wants to save. Peter will soon make the same connection for his readers: God's judgment is coming, but He offers salvation to those who trust in Christ.
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