The beginning of verse 21 states, “This water symbolizes baptism that now saves you” (NIV). Baptism saves you. What does Peter mean? He does not mean that those who are baptized are automatically saved regardless of their faith or their lack of faith. Nor does he mean the water has magical healing or cleansing properties. He specifically rejects any such notions in verse 21, where he says baptism is not “a removal of dirt from the body.” It’s literally “from the flesh”—a word commonly used in the