Q: When I share Bible truth with some of my Greek Orthodox friends, they say, "That's your interpretation, and according to 2 Peter 1:20, we cannot have a private interpretation of the Bible apart from what the church teaches." Is that really what 2 Peter 1:20 means?
A: And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit (2 Pet 1:19-21).
Peter is not talking about the interpretation that we give the Scriptures; he is talking about the interpretation that the Bible writers gave the Scriptures.
We know that the Bible writers wrote using their own words, for each one wrote in his own individual style. Luke was a physician (Col 4:14), so his description of the healing of the lame man sounds like something a doctor would say (Acts 3:7). This might lead you to think that when Bible writers sat down to write the Scriptures that God spoke to them and they just gave their own interpretation of what God said. Peter is saying that Bible writers did not give their private interpretation of God's words, that the prophecy of the Scripture came when "men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit."
Remember, Peter is talking about how the Bible came to to us, not how we receive it. It didn't come from someone's own interpretation. Rather, they chose their words by the will of God.
A: And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit (2 Pet 1:19-21).
Peter is not talking about the interpretation that we give the Scriptures; he is talking about the interpretation that the Bible writers gave the Scriptures.
We know that the Bible writers wrote using their own words, for each one wrote in his own individual style. Luke was a physician (Col 4:14), so his description of the healing of the lame man sounds like something a doctor would say (Acts 3:7). This might lead you to think that when Bible writers sat down to write the Scriptures that God spoke to them and they just gave their own interpretation of what God said. Peter is saying that Bible writers did not give their private interpretation of God's words, that the prophecy of the Scripture came when "men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit."
Remember, Peter is talking about how the Bible came to to us, not how we receive it. It didn't come from someone's own interpretation. Rather, they chose their words by the will of God.
No comments:
Post a Comment