Hilary of Arles — Commentary on Scripture

A man is the slave of whatever vice controls him.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

It is always worse to sin knowingly than to sin in ignorance.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

To know the way of righteousness is to know Christ and the holy gospel. Peter is talking here about people who have been baptized after professing faith in Jesus but who have then turned away from him.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 3:1

Peter makes a point of mentioning that this is his second letter, so that the recipients will not doubt its authenticity.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 3:3

Here Peter prophesies what will happen in the future, for we must always remember that there are prophets in the New Testament too.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 3:4

People were talking this way as if the flood had never occurred and as if fire had never come down from heaven in the past.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 3:5

The whole creation is basically formed out of water, even if it is solidified in the form of earth or elevated in the way that heaven is.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 3:8

Just as a man works for a day and afterwards remembers what he has done, so God does not forget even after a thousand years. It may be a long time before he gets round to punishing sinners, but when he does so he uses his power in a single instant.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 3:11

As you wait for the end of all things, you must live holy lives according to the three laws—the Old Testament, the New Testament and the law of nature—and you must keep faith in the Trinity, which is the law of godliness.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 3:12

You are waiting for the end as the virgins waited for the bridegroom.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 3:14

When he returns, Christ wants to find you spotless in your faith and uncorrupted in the chastity of your body.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 3:15

Note that Paul wrote to them not according to the wisdom which he possessed but according to the wisdom which was given to him specifically for that purpose.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 3:16

Peter says this because he himself was overwhelmed by Paul’s brilliance.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

2 Peter 3:18

Grow in the faith which is yours by baptism and in the knowledge which comes from putting that faith into practice.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 2 PETER

3 John 1:2

Things are going well for Gaius because his soul is carrying on in good works as the will of his mind directs him.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 3 JOHN

3 John 1:3

The truth of Gaius’s life was seen in the perfection of his works. He was a man who went about without any guile in thought, word or deed. Instead of that, he followed the commandments of God to the best of his ability.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 3 JOHN

3 John 1:6

Visitors praised Gaius to the rest of the church because of his generous hospitality to those who were in God’s service.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 3 JOHN

3 John 1:7

This means that the servants of God have accepted no assistance from those who are not believers.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 3 JOHN

3 John 1:9

This verse teaches us that we ought to bear the abuse of those who insult us with equanimity, but sometimes we have to protest it because if we do not do so, these people will corrupt the minds of those who might otherwise have heard something good about us.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 3 JOHN

3 John 1:12

Demetrius was highly regarded by everybody because of his virtue. Some people take this verse to mean that he was criticized by everyone, but I cannot see how such an interpretation is possible.

INTRODUCTORY COMMENTARY ON 3 JOHN