But please remember a few things. Here it mentions the Master who bought them. The word bought is used in a particular way. Does the word convey the sense that the bought ones are the saved ones? If these bought ones are the saved ones, then we have to admit that a saved person can perish. But if this word has a different meaning, then one cannot say this any longer. It is true that the Bible tells us that we are bought by the Lord with a price. But we have to see the scope of what the Lord Jesus bought on the cross. Did He buy the believers only, or did He buy the whole world? From the Bible we can see that the Lord did not buy the believers only, but He bought the whole world as well. Matthew 13:44 says, "The kingdom of the heavens is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid, and in his joy goes and sells all that he has, and buys that field." This shows us that the Lord Jesus sold whatever He had to buy the treasure. But not only did He buy the treasure, He bought the field as well. The treasure is a small part, but the field is a big part. The treasure is in the field. In order to obtain the treasure, the Lord bought the whole field. The purpose of buying the field was not for the field, but for the treasure. Please remember that the purpose of the Lord's buying was for the small part, but He bought the big part. His purpose is to get the treasure, but the scope of His buying was the field. Those in the kingdom of the heavens are the treasure. But what the Lord bought was the field.

Hence, we cannot say that everyone that is bought by the Lord is saved. The scope of buying is greater than the scope of salvation. The work of buying and redemption on His cross is different from His work of substitution. The Lord's substitution is only for all the believers, but He died for the whole world. He made the scope wide enough. But this does not mean that the whole world is saved. If Peter were to change a word here, if he were to say "denying the Master who saved them," then it would be very serious. But Peter has used a big enough word. He said "denying the Master who bought them." Hence, we can see that this group of people has not been saved at all. This word bought is a very broad word. By this word alone, one cannot say that they are saved.

Second, the word Master, despotes, here is not a common word either. It should not be translated as lord, but should be translated as master. It is not the Lord as in the Lord Jesus, but the Master as one who has temporal control of a person. It refers to an earthly master. There is no life relationship here. According to a strict interpretation of the Bible, this is not a relationship between them and the Lord, but a relationship between them and their master. Hence, this group of people has not been saved at all. No one can say, Jesus is Lord, except in the Holy Spirit, for whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. These ones are like Judas. They have never confessed Jesus as Lord.

Third, Peter tells us that this group of people are the false teachers and the false believers. Peter also told us that there were false prophets among the people. He also said that there will be false teachers. These false prophets refer to the false prophets in the Old Testament. All the readers of the Bible know that no false prophet in the Old Testament was saved. We can say boldly that this group of people have not been saved at all. They followed their cleverness and their ideas, secretly bringing in destructive heresies, and even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. Hence, 2 Peter 2:1 does not refer to the perdition of the saved ones.