The Greek adjective amathēs (ἀμαθής) means ignorant or unlearned — composed of the alpha-privative and manthanō (to learn). It appears once in 2 Peter 3:16, describing those who twist Paul's writings because of their ignorance.
Peter warns that the ignorant and unstable twist Paul's difficult writings to their own destruction (2 Peter 3:16). Amathēs combined with astēriktoi (unstable) is a dangerous combination — ignorance without a stable foundation leads to theological distortion. Biblical literacy and doctrinal stability are not optional — they are matters of spiritual life and death. The remedy is growth in grace and knowledge (2 Peter 3:18).