1 Peter 3:20–21

3:20 after they were disobedient long ago37 when God patiently waited38 in the days of Noah as an ark was being constructed. In the ark39 a few, that is eight souls, were delivered through water. 3:21 And this prefigured baptism, which now saves you40—not the washing off of physical dirt41 but the pledge42 of a good conscience to God—through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,

37	tn This reflects a Greek participle, literally “having been disobedient formerly,” that refers to the “spirits” in v. 19. Many translations take this as adjectival describing the spirits (“who had once been disobedient”; cf. NASB, NIV, NKJV, NLT, NRSV, TEV), but the grammatical construction strongly favors an adverbial interpretation describing the time of the preaching, as reflected above.
38	tn Grk “the patience of God waited.”
39	tn Grk “in which,” referring to the ark; the referent (the ark) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
40	tn Grk “which also, [as] an antitype, now saves you, [that is] baptism.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
41	tn Grk “the removal of the dirt of the flesh,” where flesh refers to the physical make-up of the body with no moral connotations.
42	tn Or “response”; “answer.”