2 Peter 3:4 (YLT)

Passage

and saying, `Where is the promise of his presence? for since the fathers did fall asleep, all things so remain from the beginning of the creation;'

Nearby Context

2 Peter 3:2 to be mindful of the sayings said before by the holy prophets, and of the command of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour,

2 Peter 3:3 this first knowing, that there shall come in the latter end of the days scoffers, according to their own desires going on,

2 Peter 3:4 and saying, `Where is the promise of his presence? for since the fathers did fall asleep, all things so remain from the beginning of the creation;'

2 Peter 3:5 for 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,

2 Peter 3:6 through which the then world, by water having been deluged, was destroyed;

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "all things", "saying", "where", "promise", "presence", "since", "fathers", and "fall". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "all things" and "saying", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "this first knowing that there shall come..." into verse 5's "for this is unobserved by them willingly...", so "all things" and "saying" 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 "all things" and "saying" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.