Elemental Imagery, Stoic Physics, and Jewish Cosmogony: Enargeia, Synecdoche, and Conceptual Blending in 2 Peter 3

Elemental imagery, Stoic physics, and Jewish cosmogony converge in 2 Peter 3 to create a rhetorically sophisticated vision of apocalyptic renewal. The repeated invocation of elemental terms in 2 Pet. 3 serves both as vivid imagery and as synecdoche, inviting the audience to visualize the dissolution and recreation of the cosmos. Applying conceptual blending theory to 2 Pet. 3 can describe how the author of 2 Peter brings together widespread Stoic ideas about elemental physics (fire, water, earth, air) with biblical motifs of creation and divine intervention, which allows the author to make a distinctive apocalyptic argument to a broad audience, not merely those familiar with Jewish cosmogony. Ultimately, 2 Peter’s rhetorical sophistication challenges the audience to contemplate the implications of the coming ‘day of the Lord’ for ethical living, bridging diverse cosmological traditions within early Christian thought.