2 Peter 3:5 (DRB)

Passage

For 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:

Nearby Context

2 Peter 3:3 Knowing this first: That in the last days there shall come deceitful scoffers, walking after their own lusts,

2 Peter 3:4 Saying: Where is his promise or his coming? For since the time that the fathers slept, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.

2 Peter 3:5 For 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:

2 Peter 3:6 Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished.

2 Peter 3:7 But the heavens and the earth which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of the ungodly men.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "wilfully", "ignorant", "heavens", "before", "earth", "water", and "through". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "wilfully" and "ignorant", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 4's "Saying Where is his promise or his..." into verse 6's "Whereby the world that then was being...", so "wilfully" and "ignorant" 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 "wilfully" and "ignorant" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.