II PETER 1:20-21

Roman Catholics make no secret of the fact that their faith is based on the Bible plus church tradition 

that supplements or interprets the Bible. II Peter 1:20 is a common proof text they use to show that 

only the Church has the right to interpret the Bible, not the individual. But it turns out that they, as well 

as many Protestants, have misinterpreted this passage completely. Verse 20 is only part of a sentence, 

which continues into verse 21. Here is the whole passage: “First of all, you must understand this, that 

no prophecy of scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation, because no prophecy ever came by 

human will, but men and women moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” (NRSV)

 

Note that the whole sentence is concerned with the origin of scripture, not its subsequent interpretation. 

This is how two other translations bring out this fact:

        “No prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation of things...” NIV

        “No prophecy recorded in Scripture was ever thought up by the prophet himself.” Living Bible

 

And here are some representative commentators who echo this understanding:

        “Peter is addressing the divine inspiration of Scripture and not discussing its interpretation by his 

contemporaries or by us today.” Robert Harvey & Philip H. Towner, 2 Peter & Jude

        “Peter is talking about the divine origin of Scripture, not about its proper interpretation.” Michael 

Green, 2 Peter and Jude

        “It seems better to understand the reference to the origin rather than the understanding of 

Scripture.” David H. Wheaton, New Bible Commentary)