¹ But there arose false-prophets also among the people, as, among you also, there shall be, false-teachers,—men who will stealthily bring in destructive parties, even the Master that bought them, denying, bringing upon themselves speedy destruction;

² And, many, will follow out their wanton ways,—by reason of whom, the way of truth, will be defamed,

³ And, in greed, with forged words, will they, of you, make merchandise: for whom, the sentence from of old, is not idle, and, their destruction, doth not slumber.

⁴ For—if, God, spared not, messengers, when they sinned, but, to pits of gloom, consigning them, in the lowest hades, delivered them up to be kept, unto judgment,—

⁵ And, an ancient world, spared not, but, with seven others, preserved, Noah, a proclaimer, of righteousness, a flood, upon a world of ungodly persons, letting loose,—

⁶ And, the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, reducing to ashes, he condemned, an example of such as should be ungodly, having set forth,—

⁷ And, righteous Lot, when getting worn out by the behaviour of them who were impious in wantonness, he rescued—

⁸ For, in seeing and hearing, since he dwelt right among them, as a righteous man, he used to torment his soul, day by day, with their lawless deeds—

⁹ [Then] the Lord knoweth how to rescue, the godly out of trial; but to keep, the unrighteous unto a day of judgment to be punished;—

¹⁰ Most of all, however, them who go their way, after the flesh, with a coveting of defilement, and who despise, lordship,—daring! willful! before dignitaries, they tremble not, defaming,

¹¹ where, messengers, though, greater in might and power, are not bringing against them [before the Lord] a defamatory accusation,—

¹² These, however, as unreasoning creatures that have been bred as being, by nature, for capture and destruction, in the things they are ignorant of, uttering defamation, in their spoiling, shall also be made a spoil,—

¹³ Doing wrong themselves, for a reward of wrong, accounting, a delight, their day-time delicacy, spots and blemishes, indulging in delicacies with their stratagems, as they carouse together with you,

¹⁴ Having, eyes, full of an adulteress, and that cannot rest from sin, enticing unstable souls, having, a heart trained in greed,—children of a curse,—

¹⁵ Forsaking a straight path, they have gone astray, following out the way of Balaam [son] of Beor, who loved, a reward of wrong,

¹⁶ But had, a reproof, of his own transgression, a dumb beast of burden, in man’s voice, finding utterance, forbade the prophet’s madness.

¹⁷ These, are fountains without water, and mists, by a tempest, driven along,—for whom, the gloom of darkness, hath been reserved;

¹⁸ For, great swelling words of vanity, uttering, they entice with carnal covetings—in wanton ways—them who are, well-nigh, escaping from the men who, in error, have their behaviour;

¹⁹ Promising, freedom to them, they themselves, being all the while, slaves of corruption,—for, by whom one hath been defeated, by the same, hath he become enslaved,—

²⁰ For, if, having escaped from the defilements of the world by a personal knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, but, by the same having again become entangled, they are defeated, the, last, state hath become, for them, worse than, the first;

²¹ For, better, had it been for them—not to have obtained a personal knowledge of the way of righteousness, than, having obtained such knowledge, to turn back out of the holy commandment delivered unto them.

²² There hath befallen them the thing [spoken of] in the true proverb—A dog, turning back unto his own vomit, and—A sow, as soon as washed, unto wallowing in mire.