Peter stirs up the church’s sincere mind by reminding us that God’s Word has always promised both judgment and renewal, even when scoffers mock Christ’s return and encourage lawless living. The God who created by his word and once judged the world with water will, by that same word, bring the Day of the Lord—patiently saving his beloved, yet surely exposing all things in refining fire. Because Jesus has paid for our sins, we wait with hope, pursuing holiness now as we long for the new heavens and new earth where righteousness dwells.