The author of 2 Peter addresses the question of the delay of the Second Coming (3:1-9) and then discusses what “the day of the Lord” will be like, as well as its impact upon the current creation (3:10-13). The language employed in v. 10 suggests that the heavens and earth in that “day” will undergo a radical change, perhaps even destroyed. The heavens are said to “pass away/depart” (pareleusetai) with a “rushing sound/roar” (hroizēdon); as well “essential elements” (stoicheia) as they “burn” (kausoumena) “shall be destroyed” (luthēsetai); and “both earth and the ‘works/products’ in it shall ____(?)____.” What verb we should read in this last clause (v. 10d) and what meaning it has is widely disputed. And then in v. 12 he again mentions “the coming of the day of God through which heavens, as they are burnt with fire (puroumenoi), shall be destroyed (luthēsontai) and essential elements, as they are burnt (kausoumena), melt (tēketai).” This is followed by new heavens and new earth (v. 13, language also found in Greek Isaiah 65:17).
In the general context the writer is concerned about non-believers who discount the promises regarding Christ’s Second Coming and thus ignore the “day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly” which will accompany this event (3:7). God’s patience restrains his hand, giving opportunity for people to repent and thus no longer come under condemnation (3:9). But the day of the Lord will come and when it arrives life as humans know it, will cease because God’s judgment will result in its destruction — the heavens and the earth. This is what 3:10-13 then describes.
Let’s examine some of the terminology the writer uses in 3:10-13 to describe this destruction. While the Greek verb luō can mean “set free, loose,” the object affected usually is a person, animal, or a thing such as sandals or hair. When the object is a building, temple or some other kind of construction, this verb has the sense “destroyed” or “abolished, brought to an end.” Of course, other things can be abolished, such as laws, sabbath, works of Satan, or birth pangs. In the case of 2 Peter 3:10-13 the objects of this verb are “essential elements” (v. 10) and “heavens” (v. 12). The usual meaning of this language then would imply that these “essential elements” and “heavens” are abolished through some extraordinary act. They no longer have form or structure and cease to exist in their previous form.
The verb parerchomai can describe the motion of “passing by” some point of reference (usually an object occurs with this verb or some descriptor indicate how this movement occurred), but in 2 Peter 3:10 there is no object and in such instances the verb has the sense “pass away, disappear.” Flowers and generations “pass away,” i.e., die and disappear. Jesus says several times that “heaven and earth will pass away” (e.g., Matthew 5:18; 24:35; Mark 13:31; Luke 16:17; 21:33). The language used here by the writer of 2 Peter (perhaps mirroring that used by Jesus) indicates that “the heavens” will “disappear,” i.e., they no longer will exist.
And then there are the verbs that describe some process of burning. The writer uses kausoō twice, referring to the “essential elements” in verses 10 and 12. This verb means “be consumed by heat, burn up,” again suggesting a destructive process. However, this verb does not have much usage prior to 2 Peter 3:10. It does occur in first century AD authors and following, but primarily in medical texts (the cognate noun kausos describes a fever).
The other verb related to burning used by the writer is puroō which describes something on fire and so burning or something that is made very hot and so is glowing. It is true that this verb is used in contexts that describe a refining process, particularly in the Greek Old Testament (e.g., Psalm 11:7; 16:3; 17:21; 25:2; 65:10; cf. Job 22:25; Zechariah 13:9; Isaiah 1:25; Jeremiah 9:6; Daniel 11:35(Theodotion); 12:10(Theodotion)), but in these contexts other verbs in parallel stichs describe refining and testing processes or else relate this process to purification in some way