2 Peter 1:20,21 - Joseph Benson’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

Knowing this first That you may not rashly or ignorantly put a sense upon any part of the prophetic writings, not intended by the Divine Spirit which dictated them; that no prophecy of the Scripture No prediction contained therein; is of any private interpretation Greek, ιδιας επιλυσεως, an expression of which various interpretations have been given, but only two of them shall be here noticed; namely, Doddridge's, who renders it, of private impulse, or original; and Macknight's, who reads, of private invention. But certainly no such sense can, with propriety, be forced upon the words: and why should it? Why should not the literal signification of them be acquiesced in? namely, that given in our translation. For surely no prophecy of Scripture, and hardly any doctrine, precept, or promise thereof, will or can be properly or fully understood by any man, let his natural abilities be what they may, without supernatural light from God, without the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, Ephesians 1:17. For, as the apostle argues, 1 Corinthians 2:11; 1 Corinthians 2:14, (where see the notes,) as a man could not understand the things that belong to human nature, if he had not a human spirit in him, so the things of God, divine things, knoweth no man, clearly and fully, but by the illumination of the Spirit of God, which must be sought by sincere, fervent, importunate, persevering prayer. In other words, No man's private natural reason will enable him to understand the Scriptures, and the truths which they contain, properly and fully, and especially to relish, love, and delight in them, without the guidance of that Spirit which dictated them. And if this be true respecting the Scriptures in general, it is particularly so with regard to the prophetic writings; for prophecy especially came not of old by the will of man Of any man's own will or pleasure. No true prophet either prophesied when he pleased or what he pleased. But holy men of God The penmen of the sacred Scriptures; spake Uttered their predictions or recorded them; as they were moved by the Holy Ghost By an extraordinary impulse of the Divine Spirit, whose organs only they were in declaring what he was pleased to suggest to them; and what he moved, and enabled them to communicate, he must enable us to understand and profit by.