Having eyes full of adultery, they never stop sinning, seducing unstable souls, having a heart trained in greed, they are accursed children;
Truth to Learn
False teachers serve themselves, not those whom they teach.
Behind the Words
The word translated “seducing” is deleadzō, which means “to entrap with bait.” It is a picture of a fisherman (like Peter) who baits a hook with the intent of ensnaring the fish.
“Unstable” is translated from astēriktos, which is made up of the privative a and stēridzō, meaning “firm or established.” Hence, this word means “unstable, unsteady, or unsettled.”
The word “trained” is from gumnadzō (from which we get our English word gymnasium), which means “to practice.” It is expressed here in the perfect tense which implies past completed action with an ongoing effect. In other words, they are “well practiced.”
“Greed” is translated from the Greek word pleonexia, which refers to “covetousness or greediness.”
Meaning Explained
Peter has been quite open in his condemnation of these false teachers, and he has still more to say about them. He says that they have “eyes full of adultery,” which can be literally translated as “eyes full of an adulteress.” What he is saying is that even at these feasts where they are ostensibly “fellowshipping with other believers,” these false teachers cannot even look upon a woman without lustful thoughts. They are, as Peter has said previously, totally consumed in their fleshly lusts, and now he also says that they “never stop sinning;” they allow their eyes to lead their souls into sin without any hindrance whatsoever.
Once again, let me remind you that, outwardly, these false teachers are pious and righteous, pretending to teach the word of truth but instead they are corrupting the message, turning it into their own message instead of God’s message. Their purpose, of course, is to satisfy their own desires for power, possessions, and passion. These false teachers are preying on the souls of immature or unstable Christians with a message that, instead of freeing them, is entrapping them further in their ways of sin. And, these false teachers were well practiced in greedy covetousness.
These false teachers are not at all what they appear to be. Perhaps they do not even recognize what it is that is driving them. Instead of being caring and loving shepherds of the flock entrusted to them, they are more focused on what they can get out of the flock than what they can give to the flock. Their message may sound, innocent, and comforting, but their real purpose is not to meet the spiritual needs of the flock but to meet their own physical needs.
Application
The next time you hear a message that doesn’t seem quite right, let me urge you to be like the Christians of Berea in Acts 17:11 who “searched the scriptures daily to see whether these things are so.” Do not assume that because they are in the pulpit they have some special revelation from God regarding the truth of the Word. Check it out yourself and let the Spirit of God teach you.
In God's service, for His glory,
Copyright © 2017 Will Krause. All rights reserved