This verb means to flee from and successfully escape something dangerous or harmful. Peter uses it three times in his second epistle in the context of escaping worldly corruption. Believers have escaped the defilement of the world through knowing Christ (2 Pet 1:4). False teachers entice those barely 'escaping' from error (2:18). Most tragically, some who escaped defilement become re-entangled, making their latter state worse (2:20). The word emphasizes successful flight from danger, though that freedom can be lost.