Verse 13 says, “Suffering unrighteousness as the wages of unrighteousness, counting luxury in the day to be pleasure; spots and blemishes, reveling in their deceits, feasting together with you.” In verse 13 some manuscripts read “receiving the wages of unrighteousness.” Here unrighteousness refers to unrighteous doings. Peter uses the word “unrighteousness” in this verse in a governmental way.
According to verse 13, the false teachers are spots and blemishes. This means that the lust-indulging heretics are to genuine believers, who are God’s treasure, like spots and blemishes to precious gems.
Furthermore, these false teachers revel in their deceits. They are happy, beside themselves with pleasure, whenever they deceive others. They revel in the fact that they cause others to be deceived.
Verse 14 continues, “Having eyes full of adultery and not ceasing from sin, enticing unstable souls, having a heart practiced in covetousness, children of curse.” These details also describe the false teachers.
Verse 15 says, “Forsaking the straight way, they have gone astray, following the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness.” The straight way here, as the way of the truth (v. 2) and the way of righteousness (v. 21), is to live an upright life without crookedness or bias, without unrighteousness.
Having gone astray, the false teachers followed the way of Balaam. Balaam was not a false prophet of the Gentiles, but a real prophet. However, Balaam was one who loved the wages of unrighteousness (Num. 22:5, 7; Deut. 23:4; Neh. 13:2; Rev. 2:14).
Verse 16 says, “But had reproof of his own transgression—a dumb beast of burden, speaking with a man’s voice, restrained the madness of the prophet.” This refers to Balaam, who was restrained by a donkey, a beast of burden, speaking with a human voice. This verse says that this miraculous speaking restrained the madness of the prophet. This indicates that the prophet Balaam was mad in his pursuit of money, in his pursuit of the wages of unrighteousness. Therefore, God used the miraculous speaking of a beast of burden to restrain him.
Verse 17 continues, “These are springs without water and mists driven by a storm, for whom the gloom of darkness has been kept.” Here we see that the heretical teachers are dried up. They are springs without water and mists driven by a storm. They are waterless clouds carried along by winds (Jude 12), having nothing of life to meet the need of the thirsty ones.
Peter says that the “gloom of darkness has been kept” for these false teachers. This also refers to God’s governmental dealing and indicates that a particular place has been prepared for them.
In verse 18 Peter says, “For uttering great swelling words of vanity, they entice by fleshly lusts, in sensuality, those who are barely escaping from them who live in error.” The Greek word rendered “sensuality” also means licentiousness, as in verse 2. The word “live” also means to behave, to conduct themselves.
Verse 19 says, “Promising freedom to them, while they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by whom anyone has been overcome, by this one he has been enslaved.” In this verse the Greek word rendered “corruption” is phthora and denotes corruption unto destruction, destruction that comes with corruption, destroying by means of corrupting.
The false teachers promised freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption. They have been overcome by Satan, and now they are enslaved by the one who has overcome them.