2 Peter 1:16-21 (NKJV) For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty. 17 For He received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” 18 And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain.
19 And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; 20 knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, 21 for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.
V16 “For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty.” Fables refer to heathen religions spiritual writings and oral traditions. Peter tells the readers that we were eyewitnesses of these things. Peter wants the readers to know that these things are not fables but real events that he, Peter, saw with his eyes. What specifically event did Peter refer to? He spoke of the power and coming of the Lord Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matthew 17, Mark 9, and Luke 9).
V17 “For He received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Peter shares his memory of that event. He saw and heard the blessings of God the Father upon the Son of God. The “excellent glory” is heaven itself. The quote is from Matthew 17:5. The glory is the majesty of His person, His character, His abilities, His faithfulness, etc. If the glory of Ahasuerus is great, then what must be the glory of the King of all kings? (Esther 1:4). To understand the relationship of God the Father and God the Son and the Trinity, please read the Athanasian Creed: https://www.crcna.org/welcome/beliefs/creeds/athanasian-creed and/or the Chalcedonian Statement: https://ccel.org/s/schaff/encyc/encyc03/htm/ii.3.4.2.htm
V18 “And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain.” They are among the few that actually know what God’s voice is like. The voice came from heaven (the sky). When Peter mentions the details it lends support to inspiration because they are eye-witness details.
V19 “And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts…” The prophetic word refers to the Old Testament prophets. Some prophesies were fulfilled that day. Peter views the fulfillment of many prophesies authenticate Jesus as THE Messiah (see https://www.jewsforjesus.org.au/articles/the-top-40-messianic-prophecies). Peter wishes for the believers to read and study the OT prophets and take heed of the words. God’s words are enlightening that shines truth into the evil hearts of humans and gives further understanding to believers (see Proverbs 4:18). The rest of the verse refers to the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus when He comes to deliver Israel and rule the universe as King of all kings for 1,000 years.
Wuest Word Studies: “Vincent quotes two authorities on this matter: “To appreciate this we must put ourselves somewhat in the place of those for whom St. Peter wrote. The New Testament, as we have it, was to them non-existent. Therefore we can readily understand how the long line of prophetic scriptures, fulfilled in so many ways in the life of Jesus, would be a mightier form of evidence than the narrative of one single event in Peter’s life” (Lumby). “Peter knew a sounder basis for faith than that of signs and wonders. He had seen our Lord Jesus Christ receive honor and glory from God the Father in the holy mount; he had been dazzled and carried out of himself by visions and voices from heaven; but nevertheless, even when his memory and heart are throbbing with recollections of that sublime scene, he says, ’we have something surer still in the prophetic word.’ . . . It was not the miracles of Christ by which he came to know Jesus, but the word of Christ as interpreted by the Spirit of Christ” (Samuel Cox).”
V20 “…knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation…” There are proper interpretations (plain, normal sense) and private interpretations (subject opinions as using interpretation methods as allegory, symbolism, etc. Prophets speaking on their own are liars (Jeremiah 23:16-17 and Ezekiel 13:15-17). False prophets give false interpretations of the true prophets and give private messages originating in their own hearts and minds.
V21 “…for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” No one is allowed to conjure or dream up their own prophesy and claim it is from God (never came by the will of man). The Greek word for “moved” is (G5342) φέρω phérō, which means “to carry some burden” (Thayer). This is an Old Testament understanding (Isaiah 14:28, Ezekiel 12:10, and Zechariah 9:1). God reveals His thoughts to His prophets and guides their choice of words. The prophets wrote in their own style and vocabulary.
(Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary) INSPIRATION—a technical term for the Holy Spirit’s supernatural guidance of those who received special revelation from God as they wrote the books of the Bible. The end result of this inspiration is that the Bible conveys the truths that God wanted His people to know and to communicate to the world.
The primary purpose of the Bible is to lead people to a personal relationship with God as Savior. But everything taught by the Bible on any subject is helpful and instructive for the complete Christian life (2 Tim. 3:16–17). Because Christianity relates to the real world, the Bible’s declarations about the earth and history are completely trustworthy.
Robertson’s Word Pictures adds: “There they “spoke from God.” Peter is not here warning against personal interpretation of prophecy as the Roman Catholics say, but against the folly of upstart prophets with no impulse from God.”
Most prophets were males, but there are female prophets, too (2 Chronicles 34:23-24–Huldah).
From Never Thirsty (I know very little about this website, so be cautious): “There are only eleven women that the Bible specifically called a prophetess. Nine of them were true prophetesses. They are: Miriam (Exodus 15:20); Deborah (Judges 4:4); Huldah (2 Kings 22:14; 2 Chronicles 34:22); wife of Isaiah (Isaiah 8:3); Anna (Luke 2:36-38); and the four daughters of Philip (Acts 21:8-9). Two of them were false prophetesses: Noadiah (Nehemiah 6:14) and Jezebel (Revelation 2:20).
“Over half of these prophetesses (six) appear in the New Testament. Four of the prophetesses are virgin daughters. Three of the prophetesses are wives (Deborah, Huldah, and the wife of Isaiah). One is known as a widow named Anna. The marital status of the other prophetesses is unknown. The Bible provides the most information about the prophetess Miriam. Here is a table that summarizes this information.” https://www.neverthirsty.org/bible-qa/qa-archives/question/prophetesses-in-the-bible/
We learn:
- Peter was an eye-witness of Jesus’s ministry
- About Biblical inspiration