make his calling and election sure’ by godliness of life (i. 10). We are not, however, left without traces of the doctrinal position of these false teachers. The Gnostic position which demanded γνώσις, or a hidden wisdom which leads to perfection, is tacitly opposed in the use of the word ἐπίγνωσις, which is used by St. Paul to denote “complete knowledge ” or “saving knowledge”’ (cf. 1 Cor. xiii. 12; Philem. 6). Mayor suggests (of. cit., p. 171) that ἐπίγνωσις came into use to distinguish the “ living knowledge of the true believer from the spurious γνῶσις which had then begun to ravage the Church”. The true ἐπίγνωσις carries with it “all that is needed for life and godli- ness” (i. 8). These Gnostics evidently held that Revelation in itself was incomplete. Those, however, who possess ἐπίγνωσις are made θείας κοινωνοὶ φύσεως, a phrase which originates in a philosophic at- mosphere, and no doubt reflects a sense of opposition to the pure intellectualism of these false teachers, who would claim to be κοινωνοὶ θείας φύσεως by means of wisdom or γνώσις alone. τυφλός ἐστιν µυωπάζων (i. 9) is a reference to the darkness which was mistaken for light, because the γνώσις that accompanied it was so unethical (cf. the whole passage, i. 5-9). σεσοφισµένοις µύθοις (1. 16) refers to those fictions connected with the emanation of zeons, so characteristic of the Gnostic system (cf. 1 Tim. i. 4, iv. 7; 2 Tim. iv. 4; Tit. i. 14), by virtue of which the Person of Christ was regarded as the emanation of an zon, in union with a human body. In contrast to this idea, the writer claims that the Apostles were ἐπόπται . . . τῆς ἐκείνου µεγαλειότητος. The Voice proclaims Him to be actually 6 υἱός pou 6 ἀγαπητός pou (i. 17). What seems to be a denial of the Person and Work of Christ is referred to in i. 1 τὸν ἀγοράσαντα αὐτοὺς δεσπότην ἀρνούμενοι. πλαστοῖς λόγοις (fictitious words) of i. 3 may be compared with σεσοφισµένοις μύθοις of i. 16. µκυριότητος καταφρονοῦντας (ii. 10), δόξας of τρέµουσιν (ii. 11) evidently cannot refer to any denial of human authority, but rather to sceptical views regarding the in- fluence of spiritual powers, good or evil, upon the life of the indivi- dual. Such a belief was part of the orthodox Jewish thought of the time (see Commentary in loc.). ἐλευθερίαν . . . ἐπαγγελλόμενοι (ii. 19) may be set alongside the passage dealing with the misuse and mis- interpretation of the Pauline doctrine of free grace (iii. 16), which provided the theoretic basis for Antinomianism. These false teacherg questioned the truth of the Parousia expectation (iii. 4) on the ground (1) of the uniformity of nature (πάντα οὕτως διαμένει ἀπ᾿ ἀρχῆς κτίσεως) which is met by the argument that the heavens and the earth were created by the word of God, and that the earth has already been
flooded by the same divine agency (iii. 5-7). (2) The indestructibility VOL. V 8