I may ask you a tricky (at least for me) question concerning 1Peter 3.20, where it states:
ἀπειθήσασίν ποτε, ὅτε ἀπεξεδέχετο ἡ τοῦ θεοῦ μακροθυμία ἐν ἡμέραις Νῶε, κατασκευαζομένης κιβωτοῦ, εἰς ἣν ὀλίγαι, τοῦτ᾽ ἔστιν ὀκτὼ ψυχαί, διεσώθησαν δι᾽ ὕδατος•
heretofore disobedient, when the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah while the ark was preparing, into which few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water: (Darby-Translation).
δι᾽ ὕδατος ("through water") is questionable as it could be (according to the Exegetical Summary of SIL/Wycliff) instrumentally (they were rescued by the means of the water, e.g. from the godless folks around) OR they were rescued in a local sense through the water (when the flood came they could escape the waters of it, by entering the boat beforehand).
Here the entry in the ES-Volume:
In Greek literature I found both in connection with the same predicate:QUESTION—What does he mean by δι’ ὕδατος ‘through water’?
1. It is used locally; they were saved going through the water.
1.1 They were saved as they were passing through the waters of the flood in the ark [EGT, IVP,
NCBC, NIC, NTC, Sel; NAB].
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1.2 They were saved as they were wading through the water of the flood to get into the ark [ICC,
TNTC].
2. It is used instrumentally; they were saved by means of the water [Alf, BNTC, EGT, NIC,
NTC, Sel, TG, TH, WBC].
2.1 The water was instrumental, in that it floated the ark to safety [BNTC, EGT, TH].
2.2 The water was instrumental, in that it saved them from a flood of human wickedness [NTC].
3. It is used both instrumentally and locally [BNTC, EGT, NIC, NTC, Sel].
Ctesias Fragmenta 1b.565: „ἡ δὲ Σεμίραμις ἐπειδὴ τὸ πλεῖστον μέρος τῶν ἀπὸ τῆς μάχης διασωζομένων διὰ τὸν ποταμὸν ἔτυχε τῆς ἀσφαλείας“
Semiramis could bring the remnant of the battle to safety through the river (locally).
Or
Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca historica 12.43,3: „γενομένης δὲ πολιορκίας, καὶ τοῦ Βρασίδου λαμπρότατα κινδυνεύσαντος, Ἀθηναῖοι μὲν οὐ δυνάμενοι τὸ χωρίον ἑλεῖν ἀπεχώρησαν πρὸς τὰς ναῦς, Βρασίδας δὲ διασεσωκὼς τὴν Μεθώνην διὰ τῆς ἰδίας ἀρετῆς καὶ ἀνδρείας ἀποδοχῆς ἔτυχε παρὰ τοῖς Σπαρτιάταις“.
Brasidas could rescue the town of Methone through his own virtue and by being brave (instrumentally).
As boths seems possible I tend to focus on the focus, the next verse states that the water of the batism saves ("which figure also now saves you, even baptism, not a putting away of the filth of flesh, but the demand as before God of a good conscience, by the resurrection of Jesus Christ,"), maybe from the connection to the surrounding world as in the case of Noah and his rescue from the ungodly folks at that time. At least the relative pronoun revers to the "water". Maybe the lacking article befor "water" could say more. Just a guess. I am far from sure.
Can you help?
Yours Peter