2 Peter 3:5
What does 2 Peter 3:5 mean?
A plain-English look at 2 Peter 3:5 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What 2 Peter 3:5 means
Peter exposes the scoffers’ selective memory: they deliberately ignore that by God’s word the ancient heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and through water. Creation itself refutes their claim that “all things continue” unchanged. The world is not self-originating or self-sustaining; it is the product of God’s powerful speech. The reference to water recalls the ordering of chaos and the separation of waters, highlighting divine sovereignty. Their forgetfulness is willful, not innocent. They choose not to remember what would undermine their argument. By pointing to creation, Peter shows that the same word that once brought forth the world can as easily bring about its judgment and renewal.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000For this they wilfully forget, that there were heavens from of old, and an earth compacted out of water and amidst water, by the word of God;
KJV
King James Version · 1611For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901For this they wilfully forget, that there were heavens from of old, and an earth compacted out of water and amidst water, by the word of God;
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949But in taking this view they put out of their minds the memory that in the old days there was a heaven, and an earth lifted out of the water and circled by water, by the word of God;
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862for this is unobserved by them willingly, that the heavens were of old, and the earth out of water and through water standing together by the word of God,
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752For this they are wilfully ignorant of: That the heavens were before, and the earth out of water and through water, consisting by the word of God:
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890For this is hidden from them through their own wilfulness, that heavens were of old, and an earth, having its subsistence out of water and in water, by the word ofGod,
Context
In response to the scoffers’ claim (v4), verse 5 reminds readers of creation by God’s word—an event the mockers choose to forget. This anchors Peter’s logic: past divine intervention invalidates the assumption of uninterrupted natural order. Verse 6 will add the flood as another historical intervention, while verse 7 will project forward: the present heavens and earth are reserved by the same word for fire in the day of judgment.
Cross references
Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- Genesis 1:9
And God said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.
- Psalms 33:6
By the word of Jehovah were the heavens made, And all the host of them by the breath of his mouth.
- 2 Thessalonians 2:10
and with all deceit of unrighteousness for them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
- Colossians 1:17
and he is before all things, and in him all things consist.
- John 3:19
And this is the judgment, that the light is come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light; for their works were evil.
- Genesis 1:6
And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.
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