2 Peter 3:7

Contextual Overview

³ It is important for you to understand what will happen in the last days. People will laugh at you. They will live following the evil they want to do. ³ First of all you must understand this, that scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own passions ³ This fyrst vnderstode that ther shall come in the last dayes mockers which will walke after their awne lustes ³ knowing this first, that in the last days mockers will come, walking after their own lusts, ³ Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, ³ It is most important for you to understand what will happen in the last days. People will laugh at you. They will live doing the evil things they want to do. ³ knowing this first, that in the last days mockers shall come with mockery, walking after their own desires, ³ Knowing this first, that there will come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, ³ knowing this first, that in the last days mockers will come, walking after their own lusts, ³ that there will come scoffers in the last days,

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

the heavens: 2 Peter 3:10, Psalms 50:3, Psalms 102:26, Isaiah 51:6, Zephaniah 3:8, Matthew 24:35, Matthew 25:41, 2 Thessalonians 1:8, Revelation 20:11, Revelation 21:1

against: 2 Peter 2:9, Matthew 10:15, Matthew 11:22, Matthew 11:24, Matthew 12:36, Mark 6:11, 1 John 4:17

and perdition: Romans 2:5, Philippians 1:28, 2 Thessalonians 2:3, 1 Timothy 6:9, Revelation 17:8, Revelation 17:11

Reciprocal: Genesis 6:13 - the earth Genesis 8:21 - as I Genesis 9:11 - neither shall all Job 14:12 - till the heavens Job 21:30 - the wicked Job 24:1 - seeing Psalms 114:4 - General Proverbs 21:12 - overthroweth Proverbs 27:12 - General Ecclesiastes 3:17 - for Ecclesiastes 11:9 - know Isaiah 1:28 - the destruction Isaiah 28:17 - and the waters Isaiah 34:4 - all the Jeremiah 44:22 - could Ezekiel 24:9 - I will Daniel 7:9 - his throne Joel 3:14 - for Nahum 1:5 - the earth Nahum 1:8 - with Zephaniah 1:15 - is Malachi 4:1 - the day Luke 21:22 - the days Luke 21:33 - General John 16:11 - judgment Acts 2:20 - sun Acts 17:31 - he hath appointed Romans 5:6 - ungodly 2 Thessalonians 1:9 - be Hebrews 1:11 - shall perish Hebrews 6:2 - eternal Hebrews 10:39 - unto 1 Peter 4:18 - where

Cross-References

Genesis 2:25
And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.

Genesis 2:25
And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.

Genesis 2:25
The man and his wife were naked, but they were not ashamed.

Genesis 2:25
The man and his wife were both naked, but they were not ashamed.

Genesis 2:25
And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.

Genesis 2:25
They were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not ashamed.

Genesis 2:25
And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed or embarrassed.

Genesis 2:25
Forsothe euer eithir was nakid, that is, Adam and his wijf, and thei weren not aschamed.

Genesis 2:25
And they are both of them naked, the man and his wife, and they are not ashamed of themselves.

Genesis 2:25
And the man and his wife were both naked, and they were not ashamed.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

But the heavens and the earth which are now,.... In being, in distinction from, and opposition to the heavens that were of old, and the earth standing in and out of the water, and the world that then was when the waters of the flood overflowed it:

by the same word are kept in store; that is, by the word of God, as in 2 Peter 3:5; and the Syriac, Arabic, and Ethiopic versions read, "by his word"; by the same word that the heavens and the earth were made of old, or in the beginning, are they kept, preserved, and upheld in their being; or "are treasured up"; the heavens and the earth are a rich treasure, they are full of the riches God, as the God of nature and providence; and they are kept with care, as a treasure is, not to be touched or meddled with at present, but must continue in the same position and use; or they are laid up in the stores, and scaled up among the treasures of divine wrath and vengeance, and will be brought out another day, and made use of, to the destruction of the ungodly inhabitants of the world, and to aggravate and increase their misery and ruin: for it is further said of them, that they are

reserved unto fire; for though the world is, and has been preserved a long time without any visible alteration in it, yet it will not be always so preserved: and though it is, and will be kept from being drowned by water again, through the promise and power of God, yet it is kept and reserved for a general conflagration; see 2 Peter 3:10. And as the old world was put into a natural situation, so as to be drowned by water, there are now preparations making in nature, in the present world, for the burning of it; witness the fiery meteors, blazing stars, and burning comets in the heavens, and the subterraneous fires in the bowels of the earth, which in some places have already broke out: there are now many volcanos, burning mountains and islands, particularly in Sicily, Italy, and the parts adjacent, the seat of the beast, and where it is very likely the universal conflagration will begin, as Aetna, Vesuvius, Strombilo, and other volcanos; and even in our own island we have some symptoms and appearances of these fires under ground, as fiery eruptions in some places, and the hot waters at the Bath, and elsewhere, show; from all which it is plain that the heavens and earth, that now are, are not as they always were, and will be, but are reserved and prepared for burning; and that things are ripening apace, as men's sins also are, for the general conflagration. Josephus w relates, that Adam foretold that there would be a destruction of all things, once by the force of fire, and once by the power and multitude of water; and it is certain the Jews had knowledge of the destruction of the earth by fire, as by water: they say x,

"that when the law was given to Israel, his (God's) voice went from one end of the world to the other, and trembling laid hold on all the nations of the world in their temples, and they said a song, as it is said, Psalms 29:9, "and in his temple doth everyone speak of his glory": all of them gathered together to wicked Balaam, and said to him, what is the voice of the multitude which we hear, perhaps a flood is coming upon the world? he said unto them, "the Lord sitteth upon the flood, yea, the Lord sitteth King for ever", Psalms 29:10. Thus hath the Lord swore, that he will not bring a flood upon the world; they replied to him, a flood of water he will not bring, but

מבול של אש, "a flood of fire" he will bring, as it is said, Isaiah 66:16, "for by fire will the Lord plead",''

or judge: and hence they speak y of the wicked being judged with two sorts of, judgments, by water, and by fire: and, according to our apostle, the heavens and earth are kept and reserved to fire,

against the day of judgment, and perdition of ungodly men; the time when God will judge the world is fixed, though it is not known; and it is called a "day", because of the evidence and light in which things will appear, and the quick dispatch of business in it; and the "judgment" spoken of is the future judgment, and which is certain, and will be universal, righteous, and eternal, and when wicked and ungodly men will be punished with everlasting destruction: the bodies of those that will be alive at the general conflagration will be burnt in it, though not annihilated, and will be raised again, and both soul and body will be destroyed in hell.

w Antiqu. Jud. l. 1. c. 2. sect. 3. x T. Bab. Zebachim, fol. 116. 1. y Zohar in Gen. fol. 50. 4. & 51. 1.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

But the heavens and the earth which are now - As they now exist. There is no difficulty here respecting what is meant by the word “earth,” but it is not so easy to determine precisely how much is included in the word “heavens.” It cannot be supposed to mean “heaven” as the place where God dwells; nor is it necessary to suppose that Peter understood by the word all that would now be implied in it, as used by a modern astronomer. The word is doubtless employed in a popular signification, referring to the “heavens as they appear to the eye;” and the idea is, that the conflagration would not only destroy the earth, but would change the heavens as they now appear to us. If, in fact, the earth with its atmosphere should be subjected to an universal conflagration, all that is properly implied in what is here said by Peter would occur.

By the same word - Dependent solely on the will of God. He has only to give command, and all will be destroyed. The laws of nature have no stability independent of his will, and at his pleasure all things could be reduced to nothing, as easily as they were made. A single word, a breath of command, from one Being, a Being over whom we have no control, would spread universal desolation through the heavens and the earth. Notwithstanding the laws of nature, as they are called, and the precision, uniformity, and power with which they operate, the dependence of the universe on the Creator is as entire as though there were no such laws, and as though all were conducted by the mere will of the Most High, irrespective of such laws. In fact, those laws have no efficiency of their own, but are a mere statement of the way in which God produces the changes which occur, the methods by which He operates who “works all in all.” At any moment he could suspend them; that is, he could cease to act, or withdraw his efficiency, and the universe would cease to be.

Are kept in store - Greek, “Are treasured up.” The allusion in the Greek word is to anything that is treasured up, or reserved for future use. The apostle does not say that this is the only purpose for which the heavens and the earth are preserved, but that this is one object, or this is one aspect in which the subject may be viewed. They are like treasure reserved for future use.

Reserved unto fire - Reserved or kept to be burned up. See the notes at 2 Peter 3:10. The first mode of destroying the world was by water, the next will be by fire. That the world would at some period be destroyed by fire was a common opinion among the ancient philosophers, especially the Greek Stoics. What was the foundation of that opinion, or whence it was derived, it is impossible now to determine; but it is remarkable that it should have accorded so entirely with the statements of the New Testament. The authorities in proof that this opinion was entertained may be seen in Wetstein, in loc. See Seneca, N. Q. iii. 28; Cic. N. D. ii. 46; Simplicius in Arist. de Coelo i. 9; Eusebius, P. xv. 18. It is quite remarkable that there have been among the pagan in ancient and modern times so many opinions that accord with the statements of revelation - opinions, many of them, which could not have been founded on any investigations of science among them, and which must, therefore, have been either the result of conjecture, or handed down by tradition. Whatever may have been their origin, the fact that such opinions prevailed and were believed, may be allowed to have some weight in showing that the statements in the Bible are not improbable.

Against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men - The world was destroyed by a flood on account of the wickedness of its inhabitants. It would seem from this passage that it will be destroyed by fire with reference to the same cause; at least, that its destruction by fire will involve the perdition of wicked men. It cannot be inferred from this passage that the world will be as wicked at the general conflagration as it was in the time of Noah; but the idea in the mind of Peter seems to have been, that in the destruction of the world by fire the perdition of the wicked will be involved, or will at that time occur. It also seems to be implied that the fire will accomplish an important agency in that destruction, as the water did on the old world. It is not said, in the passage before us, whether those to be destroyed will be living at that time, or will be raised up from the dead, nor have we any means of determining what was the idea of Peter on that point. All that the passage essentially teaches is, that the world is reserved now with reference to such a consummation by fire; that is, that there are elements kept in store that may be enkindled into an universal conflagration, and that such a conflagration will be attended with the destruction of the wicked.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 7. But the heavens and the earth, which are now — The present earth and its atmosphere, which are liable to the same destruction, because the same means still exist, (for there is still water enough to drown the earth, and there is iniquity enough to induce God to destroy it and its inhabitants,) are nevertheless kept in store, τεθησαυρισμενοι, treasured up, kept in God's storehouse, to be destroyed, not by water, but by fire at the day of judgment.

From all this it appears that those mockers affected to be ignorant of the Mosaic account of the formation of the earth, and of its destruction by the waters of the deluge; and indeed this is implied in their stating that all things continued as they were from the creation. But St. Peter calls them back to the Mosaic account, to prove that this was false; for the earth, c., which were then formed, had perished by the flood and that the present earth, &c., which were formed out of the preceding, should, at the day of judgment, perish by the fire of God's wrath.