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The Bible tells the story of the restoration of God\u2019s good world<\/span><\/a>, not humanity\u2019s escape from it. <\/em> .<\/mark><\/p>\n But\u00a0the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which\u00a0the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be\u00a0burned up.<\/p>\n 2 Peter 3:10<\/mark> (NKJV)<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n .<\/mark><\/p>\n 2 Peter 3, verse 10 is one of the more commonly referenced verses used to support the idea of the faithful ending up in heaven for all eternity after death (because earth and the rest of creation will be destroyed). But is that what Peter is saying in this passage?<\/p>\n In this post, we\u2019ll examine the message that Peter is making to determine if he\u2019s pointing to us escaping a doomed planet, or if he\u2019s making a different point entirely.<\/p>\n With that said, let\u2019s begin with a brief overview of the letter we call Second Peter.<\/p>\n Dear friends,\u00a0this is now my second letter to you. I have written both of them as reminders\u00a0to stimulate you to wholesome thinking.\u00a0<\/p>\n 2 Peter 3:1 (NIV)<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n .<\/mark><\/p>\n As Peter himself stated, his reason for writing them was to stimulate them to wholesome thinking (and living). He starts the letter by giving a description of wholesome thinking\/living as well as encouraging the church to righteousness. From there, he goes on to warn believers of false teachers that will look to lead them astray in their faith and attempt to have them second-guess their convictions. <\/p>\n Like so many of the other letters in the NT, this letter is written to young groups of believers (churches) as a reminder of the things that they\u2019ve put their faith in as well as an encouragement for them to remain steadfast in the face of adversity. <\/p>\n In life, one of the most effective ways to encourage people to be steadfast in anything is to give them a compelling picture of the \u201cwhy\u201d behind their efforts \u2014 to give them a picture of what they are working toward and why should they look forward to it. And that\u2019s exactly what Peter does in \u201cChapter 3\u201d of the letter, he gives them a compelling picture of what\u2019s to come for the faithful in Christ.<\/p>\n The third chapter of 2 Peter is full of similar words like \u201cworld\u201d & \u201cearth\u201d and lots of talk about fire and melting and destruction. With that being the case, I felt it would be most helpful to look more closely at the words used in the original language (Greek) to get a sense for what Peter was really talking about to clear up any potential confusion within the passage. <\/p>\n To do this, I\u2019ve included most of 2 Peter 3 below (verses 3 thru 18, to be exact) as well as a glossary of the central words in this passage relating to the \u201cdestruction\u201d that Peter\u2019s discussing. In the passage included below, the critical words are highlighted in RED<\/mark> with their original Greek word appended to the end of them. You can then reference the glossary (included just below the passage) to get the definition of the original Greek word.<\/p>\n Once you\u2019ve gone through the passage and gotten a feel for the words used, we\u2019ll examine the components individually and begin putting the picture back together.<\/p>\n .<\/mark><\/p>\n Above all, you must understand that in the last days\u00a0scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires.\u00a0They will say, \u201cWhere is this \u2018coming\u2019 he promised?\u00a0Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.\u201d\u00a0But they deliberately forget that long ago by God\u2019s word\u00a0the heavens(ouranos)<\/sup><\/span> came into being and the earth(g\u0113)<\/sup><\/span> was formed out of water and by water.\u00a0By these waters also the world(kosmos)<\/sup><\/span> of that time\u00a0was deluged and destroyed(apollymi)<\/sup><\/span>.\u00a0By the same word the present heavens(ouranos)<\/sup><\/span> and earth(g\u0113)<\/sup><\/span> are reserved for fire,\u00a0being kept for the day of judgment\u00a0and destruction(apoleia)<\/sup><\/span> of the ungodly.<\/p>\n But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.\u00a0The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise,\u00a0as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient\u00a0with you, not wanting anyone to perish(apollymi)<\/sup><\/span>, but everyone to come to repentance.<\/p>\n But the day of the Lord will come like a thief.\u00a0The heavens(ouranos)<\/sup><\/span><\/span> will disappear with a roar;\u00a0the elements<\/span> will be<\/span> destroyed(ly\u014d)<\/sup><\/span> by fire,\u00a0and the earth(g\u0113)<\/sup><\/span> and everything done in it will be laid bare(heurisk\u00f3)<\/sup><\/span>.<\/p>\n Since everything will be <\/span>destroyed(ly\u014d)<\/sup><\/span> in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives\u00a0as you look forward\u00a0to the day of God and speed its coming.\u00a0That day will bring about the destruction(ly\u014d)<\/sup><\/span> of the heavens(ouranos)<\/sup><\/span> by fire, and the elements<\/span> will melt in the heat.\u00a0But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven(ouranos)<\/sup><\/span> and a new earth(g\u0113)<\/sup><\/span>,\u00a0where righteousness dwells.<\/p>\n So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless\u00a0and at peace with him.\u00a0Bear in mind that our Lord\u2019s patience\u00a0means salvation,\u00a0just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him.\u00a0He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable\u00a0people distort,\u00a0as they do the other Scriptures,\u00a0to their own destruction(ap\u014dleia)<\/sup><\/span>. Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard\u00a0so that you may not be carried away by the error\u00a0of the lawless\u00a0and fall from your secure position.\u00a0But grow in the grace\u00a0and knowledge\u00a0of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.\u00a0To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.<\/p>\n 2 Peter 3: 3-18 (NIV)<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n .<\/mark><\/p>\n Glossary of key Greek words:<\/strong><\/p>\n In Chapter 3 Peter gives a picture of the future destruction of the world. But before he does that, he sets up his point by calling his audience back to an event far in the past: the great flood. (Jesus also used the flood to give insight about what will happen when he returns<\/mark><\/a> \u2014 surely he is where Peter learned this from)<\/p>\n Above all, you must understand that in the last days\u00a0scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires.\u00a0They will say, \u201cWhere is this \u2018coming\u2019 he promised?\u00a0Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.\u201d\u00a0But they deliberately forget that long ago by God\u2019s word\u00a0the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world(kosmos)<\/sup><\/span> of that time\u00a0was deluged and destroyed.\u00a0By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire,\u00a0being kept for the day of judgment\u00a0and destruction of the ungodly.<\/p>\n 2 Peter 3:3-7 (NIV) [emphasis mine]<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n .<\/mark><\/p>\n Kosmos<\/em> is translated \u201cworld\u201d 186 times in the NT. And while it can<\/em> be used to mean the physical earth or creation (see: Acts 17:24<\/span><\/span><\/a>), in the overwhelming majority of cases it\u2019s used to speak of either: <\/p>\n So, when Peter speaks of the kosmos<\/em> being destroyed by the flood, he could be referring to either the destruction of the earth<\/em> or the destruction of humanity\/ungodly human culture<\/em>. But we know that after the flood the the earth wasn\u2019t exterminated, nor was creation destroyed.<\/p>\n So, when Peter speaks of the destruction of \u201cthe world at that time\u201d he clearly was referring to humanity and wicked human culture (as all humans, except righteous Noah and seven of his family members, were destroyed). And what he\u2019s doing by bringing up the effect of the flood was setting up a parallel with the future destruction by fire; The parallel being that wicked humanity \u2014 not the earth \u2014 will be destroyed. <\/p>\n And this is further supported by Peter\u2019s very next statement:<\/p>\n By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire,\u00a0being kept for the day of judgment\u00a0and the destruction of the ungodly.<\/p>\n 2 Peter 3:7 (NIV)<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n .<\/mark><\/p>\n Notice he says that what is to come is \u201cthe destruction of the ungodly<\/em>,\u201d not the destruction of the earth\/creation.<\/p>\n And this brings us to the next important point of examination\u2026<\/p>\n In this passage, there are three different words that are translated \u201cdestroy\u201d\/\u201ddestruction\u201d.<\/p>\n As you can see by referencing the glossary above, ap\u014dleia <\/em>(a noun) and <\/span>apollymi <\/em>(a verb) both communicate literal destruction. But ly\u014d <\/em>(a verb), while also being translated \u201cwill be destroyed,\u201d doesn\u2019t mean destruction as much as it means de-construction (its actual definition is: \u201cto loosen, untie, unbind, or to dissolve into coherent parts\u201d).<\/p>\n Think about it this way: Ly\u014d <\/em>destruction is what happens when you throw a house made of Legos onto a hardwood floor, while ap\u014dleia\/apollymi <\/em>destruction is what happens when you toss that Lego house into a blast furnace.<\/p>\n And here\u2019s something interesting to note when considering the usage of with these words in this passage: the true \u201cdestruction\u201d words (ap\u014dleia <\/em>and <\/span>apollymi<\/em>) are only used in relation to humanity\/wicked human culture, while the word for loosening\/untying\/dissolving (ly\u014d<\/em>) is what\u2019s used when talking about the physical creation (earth and skies).<\/p>\n Now, let\u2019s take a look at the fire that Peter says is coming\u2026<\/p>\n It\u2019s easy to think of fire as a purely destructive force, as we fairly frequently talk about the fires of hell, and so on. And while God certainly uses fire to destroy on occasion, if you look broadly across the examples of holy fire in the Bible, you\u2019ll notice that there are quite a few important moments in the story where fire isn\u2019t destructive at all.<\/p>\n In these watershed moments of the story God uses fire (or something hot) as:<\/p>\n Consider these moments:<\/p>\n What Peter seems to be doing in this passage is weaving another thread into to the existing theme of fire and intense heat as a purifying force in the story of God, His world, and His people. This is made even more clear by our next area of examination\u2026.<\/p>\n But the day of the Lord will come like a thief.\u00a0The heavens will disappear with a roar;\u00a0the elements will be destroyed(ly\u014d)<\/sup><\/span> by fire,\u00a0and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare(heurisk\u00f3)<\/sup><\/span>.<\/p>\n 2 Peter 3:10 (NIV)<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n .<\/mark><\/p>\n If you research 2 Peter 3:10, you\u2019ll discover that over the years there has been a fair amount of disagreement as to how the end of the verse should be translated. Some older Greek manuscripts include the word \u201cheurisk\u00f3\u201d (which is translated in this verse: will be laid bare, will be exposed, or will be revealed), whereas more of the later Greek manuscripts tend to include the word \u201ckatakai\u00f3\u201d instead (which is translated: will be burned up).<\/p>\n But I don\u2019t believe using one word as opposed to the other has a significant effect on the passage. As, when properly viewed through the immediate context of the text around it, both phrases (i.e., revealed or burned up) get you to the same place.<\/p>\n Let me explain what I mean.<\/p>\n
This post is a part of our examination of common passages in scripture that have traditionally been interpreted as communicating the idea that the ultimate goal for humans is to leave the physical world to live in the spiritual location of heaven for all eternity.<\/em><\/p>\n\n
The Content of the Letter<\/h2>\n
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Word Examination<\/h2>\n
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A Poignant Parallel<\/h2>\n
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The Destruction<\/h2>\n
The Fire<\/h2>\n
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Creation Exposed<\/h2>\n
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