For 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: Refutation of their scoffing from Scripture history.
Willingly - willfully: they do not wish to know. Their ignorance is voluntary. Are ignorant of - in contrast to 2 Peter 3:8, "be not ignorant of this." х Lanthanei (G2990) ... lanthaneto (G2990), 'This escapes THEIR notice (sagacious philosophers though they think themselves): let this not escape YOURS.'] They shut their eyes to the Scripture record of creation and the deluge: the latter is parallel to the coming judgment by fire; as Peter remembered Jesus' words (Luke 17:26-27).
By the word of God - not by a fortuitous concurrence of atoms (Alford). Of old - `from of old:' from the first beginning. A confutation of their objection, 'all things continue as they were FROM THE BEGINNING OF CREATION.' Before the flood, the same objection to the possibility of it might have been as plausibly urged. The heavens (sky) and earth have been FROM OF OLD, how unlikely that they should not continue so? But the flood came in spite of their reasonings; so will the conflagration of the earth come in spite of the "scoffers" of the last days, changing the whole order of things (the "world" х kosmos (G2889)], 'order'), and introducing the new heavens and earth (2 Peter 3:13). Earth standing out of, х sunestoosa (G4921)] - 'consisting of,' 'formed out of the water.' The waters under the firmament were at creation gathered together into one place, and the dry land emerged out of, and above them.
In, х di' (G1223) hudatos (G5204)] - 'by means of the water,' as an instrument (along with fire), in the changes wrought on the earth's surface, to prepare it for man. Held together BY the water. The earth arose out of the water by the efficacy of the water itself (Tittmann). Berosus, the Chaldean, records the tradition in Babylon of a great flood under Xisuthrus, who built the ark. So the Egyptian and Hindu monuments. The Chinese record a great flood under the emperor Yao. So the Greeks, under Deucalion and Pyrrha. The beginning of established government is referred by the Greeks to Minos; by the Hindus to Menu; the Assyrian Nines; the Egyptian first mortal king, Menes: all have the root MEN, which appears in Nimrod.