God & Savior

2 Peter 3:9

The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise as some understand slowness, but is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance.
2 Peter 3:9
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Study notes

The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, but is patient, not wanting anyone to perish but everyone to come to repentance.

Explanation

Scoffers mocked the promise of Christ's return because so much time had passed (3:3-4). Peter answers that God's timing is not like ours (3:8). The delay shows His patience, giving people time to repent.

Original language
  • βραδύνει (bradunei): to delay
    Greek · Verb, present, active, indicative, 3rd person singular · Strong's G1019 · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    Delays, is slow.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, 2 Peter 3:9, word 2

  • κύριος (kurios): lord
    Greek · Noun, nominative, singular, masculine · Strong's G2962G · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    Lord.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, 2 Peter 3:9, word 3

  • ἐπαγγελίας (epangelias): promise
    Greek · Noun, genitive, singular, feminine · Strong's G1860 · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    Promise.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, 2 Peter 3:9, word 5

  • βραδύτητα (bradutēta): slowness
    Greek · Noun, accusative, singular, feminine · Strong's G1022 · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    Slowness.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, 2 Peter 3:9, word 8

  • μακροθυμεῖ (makrothumei): to have patience
    Greek · Verb, present, active, indicative, 3rd person singular · Strong's G3114 · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    Is patient, long-suffering.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, 2 Peter 3:9, word 11

  • βουλόμενός (boulomenos): to plan
    Greek · Verb, present, middle, participle, nominative, singular, masculine · Strong's G1014 · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    Wanting, willing.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, 2 Peter 3:9, word 15

  • ἀπολέσθαι (apolesthai): to destroy
    Greek · Verb, 2nd aorist, middle, infinitive · Strong's G0622 · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    To perish.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, 2 Peter 3:9, word 17

  • μετάνοιαν (metanoian): repentance
    Greek · Noun, accusative, singular, feminine · Strong's G3341 · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    Repentance.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, 2 Peter 3:9, word 21

Cross-references
  • 2 Peter 3:8 · Surrounding passage

    With the Lord a day is like a thousand years.

  • Ezekiel 33:11 · Background

    I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked.

  • 1 Timothy 2:4 · Same theme

    God wants all people to be saved.

Sources

Original language and places

Reference data from open datasets, shown as published by their sources. Word-by-word English is a literal guide, not a translation.

Original language (Greek)

οὐ βραδύνει κύριος τῆς ἐπαγγελίας, ὥς τινες βραδύτητα ἡγοῦνται· ἀλλὰ μακροθυμεῖ εἰς ὑμᾶς μὴ βουλόμενός τινας ἀπολέσθαι ἀλλὰ πάντας εἰς μετάνοιαν χωρῆσαι.

  1. οὐou“Not”
    Particle, negative · “no” · Strong's G3756
  2. βραδύνειbradunei“does delay”
    Verb, present, active, indicative, 3rd person singular · from βραδύνω · “to delay” · Strong's G1019
  3. κύριοςkurios“Lord”
    Noun, nominative, singular, masculine · “lord” · Strong's G2962G
  4. τῆςtēs“the”
    Article, genitive, singular, feminine · from ὁ · “the/this/who” · Strong's G3588
  5. ἐπαγγελίας,epangelias“promise,”
    Noun, genitive, singular, feminine · from ἐπαγγελία · “promise” · Strong's G1860
  6. ὥςhōs“as”
    Particle · from ὡς · “which/how” · Strong's G5613
  7. τινεςtines“some”
    Indefinite pronoun, nominative, plural, masculine · from τις · “one” · Strong's G5100
  8. βραδύτηταbradutēta“slowness”
    Noun, accusative, singular, feminine · from βραδύτης · “slowness” · Strong's G1022
  9. ἡγοῦνται·hēgountai“esteem;”
    Verb, present, middle or passive (deponent), indicative, 3rd person plural · from ἡγέομαι · “to govern” · Strong's G2233
  10. ἀλλὰalla“but”
    Conjunction · from ἀλλά · “but” · Strong's G0235
  11. μακροθυμεῖmakrothumei“is patient”
    Verb, present, active, indicative, 3rd person singular · from μακροθυμέω · “to have patience” · Strong's G3114
  12. εἰςeis“toward”
    Preposition · “toward” · Strong's G1519
  13. ὑμᾶςhumas“you”
    Personal pronoun, 2nd person, accusative, plural · from σύ · “you” · Strong's G4771
  14. μὴmē“not”
    Particle, negative · from μή · “not” · Strong's G3361
  15. βουλόμενόςboulomenos“willing”
    Verb, present, middle, participle, nominative, singular, masculine · from βούλομαι · “to plan” · Strong's G1014
  16. τιναςtinas“[for] any”
    Indefinite pronoun, accusative, plural, masculine · from τις · “one” · Strong's G5100
  17. ἀπολέσθαιapolesthai“to perish”
    Verb, 2nd aorist, middle, infinitive · from ἀπολλύω · “to destroy” · Strong's G0622
  18. ἀλλὰalla“but”
    Conjunction · from ἀλλά · “but” · Strong's G0235
  19. πάνταςpantas“all”
    Adjective, accusative, plural, masculine · from πᾶς · “all” · Strong's G3956
  20. εἰςeis“to”
    Preposition · “toward” · Strong's G1519
  21. μετάνοιανmetanoian“repentance”
    Noun, accusative, singular, feminine · from μετάνοια · “repentance” · Strong's G3341
  22. χωρῆσαι.chōrēsai“to come.”
    Verb, aorist, active, infinitive · from χωρέω · “to make room for” · Strong's G5562
  • Prepared by the God & Savior team. Not yet reviewed by an editor.
  • Greek words: STEP Bible (STEPBible.org), based on work at Tyndale House, Cambridge. CC BY 4.0. Source (version ed476a8)