2 Peter 3:16: As He Does In All His Letters When He Speaks In Them Of These Matters. There Are Some Things In Them That Are Hard To Understand

2 Peter 3:16

[16] As he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures. (ESV)

The Apostle Peter is speaking of his fellow Apostle, and brother in Christ, Paul. He describes Paul as saying some things that are hard to understand. It would be helpful to note the background of both Peter and Paul. Peter was a fisherman. This does not mean that he was uneducated, but he was more familiar with working with his hands. Paul had a different background.

In Acts 22, we have Paul describing his background. In verse 3, he says, "I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated at the feet of Gamaliel according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as all of you are this day." To be educated by Gamaliel would be akin to saying, "I studied at Harvard." It was a prestigious education.

Notice how even the Apostle Peter struggles with some of what Paul writes. Also, note how Peter does not excuse those who would ignore Paul's writing, or even twist it. Many people will claim that they just cannot read Scripture because it is too difficult to understand. That also is not an excuse. God has given all of the Bible to us to equip us. Ignorance of it is no excuse.

The Apostle Paul told Timothy these words in 2 Timothy 2:15:  "Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth." In other words, Timothy was to do the work necessary to rightly handle the word of truth. We have that same instruction. We need to diligently and wisely study God's Word.

Have you found some of God's Word hard to understand? Maybe you agree with Peter that some of Paul's writings are difficult. Keep studying. Be diligent. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you. He will help you!