2 Peter 3:7 (DBY)

Passage

But the present heavens and the earth by his word are laid up in store, kept for fire unto a day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.

Nearby Context

2 Peter 3:5 For 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 of God,

2 Peter 3:6 through which [waters] the then world, deluged with water, perished.

2 Peter 3:7 But the present heavens and the earth by his word are laid up in store, kept for fire unto a day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.

2 Peter 3:8 But let not this one thing be hidden from you, beloved, that one day with [the] Lord [is] as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

2 Peter 3:9 [The] Lord does not delay his promise, as some account of delay, but is longsuffering towards you, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "present", "heavens", "earth", "word", "laid", "store", "kept", and "fire". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "present" and "heavens", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 6's "through which waters the then world deluged..." into verse 8's "But let not this one thing be...", so "present" and "heavens" belong inside that flow. In 2 Peter context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "present" and "heavens" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.