2 Tim. 2:10-15, 1 Chron. 29:17, James 4:6-10, Gal. 6:9, Acts 17:11.

 “And consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation — as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures” (2 Peter 3:15, 16, NKJV).

 When discussing the apostle Paul’s letters, Peter writes that in them, and in some other places in Scripture, there are “some things hard to understand” (2 Pet. 3:16, NKJV). These words are twisted or distorted by “ignorant and unstable people” (2 Pet. 3:16, NIV) to their own destruction. Peter does not say that all things are difficult to understand, but only that some are.
 And we know that, don’t we? What honest reader of the Bible hasn’t come across texts that seem strange and difficult to understand? Certainly, at some point or another, we’ve all had this experience.
 That’s why, we will take a look this week, not so much at difficult texts per se, but at what might be the reasons for these challenges and how, as faithful seekers of truth from God’s word, we can work through them. In the end, some of these challenging statements might never be solved this side of heaven. At the same time, the vast majority of texts in the Bible present no difficulty whatsoever, and there’s no need to allow the small number of difficult ones to weaken our trust in the reliability and authority of God’s Word as a whole.
 Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, June 20.