2 Peter 1:3

seeing that his divine power hath granted unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that called us by his own glory and virtue;

The true basis of saving knowledge is in God through Christ, who granted to the apostles full and complete knowledge of everything that pertains to life and godliness. The blessed promise of Christ that the Holy Spirit would guide the apostles into "all truth" is certainly in the background of the statement here. The significance of this is seen in the fact that all subsequent "revelations" so-called, are relegated to the status of not pertaining to life and godliness. The very fact of the saving knowledge delivered through the apostles being complete (as Paul also said in 2 Timothy 3:17), effectually denies the need of any subsequent information bearing upon life and godliness. In the light of this truth, what must be thought of the claims of a Mary Baker Eddy or Joseph Smith, or of any others claiming to add anything to the word of God?

His divine power ... Zerr thought that inasmuch as salvation is the subject matter here, "Divine power refers to the gospel, for Romans 1:16 declares that the gospel is the power of God unto salvation";[12] and this is certainly true.

Hath granted unto us ... "The us here points back to ours of verse 1 and refers to the apostles of Christ."[13] Also, Macknight's beautiful paraphrase of the thought here stresses the same idea: "Certainly God's divine power has gifted to us, the apostles of his Son, all things necessary to bring mankind to a godly life."[14]

Life and godliness ... The "life" here means eternal life, ever the principal concern of New Testament writers. "Godliness" is from a word occurring four times in this letter and also in one of Peter's speeches (Acts 3:12).[15] It was also used by Paul in the letters of the second imprisonment, being therefore apostolic, and not "a late first century word" as once alleged.

[12] E. M. Zerr, Bible Commentary, 2Peter (Marion, Indiana: Cogdill Foundation, 1954), p. 268.

[13] Raymond C. Kelcy, The Letters of Peter and Jude (Austin, Texas: R. B. Sweet Company, 1972), p. 119.

[14] James Macknight, Macknight on the Epistles, 2Peter (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, reprint, 1969), p. 523.

[15] B. C. Caffin, op. cit., p. 2.