• Four Questions About the End Answered
    The Watchtower—2010 | August 1

    • Learn from history. God “did not hold back from punishing an ancient world, but kept Noah, a preacher of righteousness, safe with seven others when he brought a deluge upon a world of ungodly people,” wrote Peter. (2 Peter 2:5) Regarding those who scoff, Peter said: “According to their wish, this fact escapes their notice, that there were heavens from of old and an earth standing compactly out of water and in the midst of water by the word of God; and by those means the world of that time suffered destruction when it was deluged with water. But by the same word the heavens and the earthb that are now are stored up for fire and are being reserved to the day of judgment and of destruction of the ungodly men.”​—2 Peter 3:5-7.

  • Four Questions About the End Answered
    The Watchtower—2010 | August 1

    • b Peter is here making a symbolic reference to the earth. The Bible writer Moses similarly referred to the earth in a symbolic way. He wrote: “All the earth continued to be of one language.” (Genesis 11:1) Just as the literal earth does not speak “one language,” it is not the literal earth that will be destroyed. Rather, as Peter states, it is ungodly men who will suffer destruction.