2 Peter 1:21

2 Peter 1:21 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
• New International Version (NIV)For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
• English Standard Version (ESV)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.
• New King James Version (NKJV)for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.

Context of 2 Peter 1:21

19And so we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts. 20But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture becomes a matter of someone’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.

2 Peter 1:21 word by word

οὐ γὰρ θελήματι ἀνθρώπου ἠνέχθη προφητεία ποτέ, ἀλλ᾽ ὑπὸ πνεύματος ἁγίου φερόμενοι ἐλάλησαν ἀπὸ θεοῦ ἄνθρωποι.¶Read the interlinear

• noοὐou · noG3756
• prophecyπροφητείαprophēteia · prophecyG4394
• was everποτέpote · once/whenG4218
• madeφέρωpherō̄ · to bear/leadG5342
• by an actθέλημαthelēma · will/desireG2307
• of humanἄνθρωποςanthrōpos · a humanG444
• by the Holyἅγιοςhagios · holyG40
• Spiritπνεῦμαpneuma · spirit/breath: spiritG4151
• spokeλαλέωlaleō · to speakG2980
• from Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316

Cross-references for 2 Peter 1:21

• Luke 1:70Just as He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient times--
• 2 Timothy 3:16All Scripture is inspired by God and beneficial for teaching, for rebuke, for correction, for training in righteousness;
• 1 Peter 1:11seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow.
• Deuteronomy 33:1Now this is the blessing with which Moses the man of God blessed the sons of Israel before his death.
• Joshua 14:6Then the sons of Judah approached Joshua in Gilgal, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, “You know the word which the Lord spoke to Moses the man of God on account of you and me in Kadesh-barnea.
• 1 Kings 13:1Now behold, a man of God came from Judah to Bethel by the word of the Lord, while Jeroboam was standing at the altar to burn incense.
• 1 Kings 17:18So she said to Elijah, “Why is my business any of yours, you man of God? Yet you have come to me to bring my wrongdoing to remembrance, and to put my son to death!”
• 2 Kings 4:7So she came and told the man of God. And he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debt, and you and your sons can live on the rest.”
• 2 Kings 6:10And the king of Israel sent scouts to the place about which the man of God had told him; so he warned him, so that he was on his guard there, more than once or twice.
• 1 Chronicles 23:14But as for Moses, the man of God, his sons were named among the tribe of Levi.
• 2 Chronicles 8:14Now according to the ordinance of his father David, he appointed the divisions of the priests for their service, and the Levites for their duties of praise and ministering before the priests according to the daily rule, and the gatekeepers by their divisions at every gate; for this is what David, the man of God, had commanded.
• Numbers 16:28Then Moses said, “By this you shall know that the Lord has sent me to do all these deeds; for it is not my doing.
• 2 Samuel 23:2“The Spirit of the Lord spoke through me, And His word was on my tongue.
• Micah 3:7The seers will be put to shame, And the diviners will be ashamed. Indeed, they will all cover their lips Because there is no answer from God.
• 2 Timothy 3:15and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
• Revelation 19:10Then I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Do not do that; I am a fellow servant of yours and your brothers and sisters who hold the testimony of Jesus; worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

Commentaries on 2 Peter 1:21

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 21For the prophecy came not in old time - That is, in any former time, by the will of man - by a man's own searching, conjecture, or calculation; but holy men of God - persons separated from the world, and devoted to God's service, spake, moved by the Holy Ghost. So far were they from inventing these prophetic declarations concerning Christ, or any future event, that they were , carried away, out of themselves and out of the whole region, as it were, of…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 21For the prophecy came not in old time - Margin, or, “at any.” The Greek word ( ̀ pote) will bear either construction. It would be true in either sense, but the reference is particularly to the recorded prophecies in the Old Testament. What was true of them, however, is true of all prophecy, that it is not by the will of man. The word “prophecy” here is without the article, meaning prophecy in general - all that is prophetic in the Old Testament; or, in a…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 16-21Verses 16-21 The gospel is no weak thing, but comes in power, Ro 1:16. The law sets before us our wretched state by sin, but there it leaves us. It discovers our disease, but does not make known the cure. It is the sight of Jesus crucified, in the gospel, that heals the soul. Try to dissuade the covetous worlding from his greediness, one ounce of gold weighs down all reasons. Offer to stay a furious man from anger by arguments, he has not patience to hear…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 20-21comes from one’s own interpretation: This probably means that the prophets did not have to interpret God’s visions by themselves. God made the meaning clear to them so they could speak his message clearly and reliably.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2121. came not in old time--rather, "was never at any time borne" (to us). by the will of man--alone. Jr 23:26, "prophets of the deceit of their own heart." Compare 2Pe 3:5, "willingly." holy--One oldest manuscript has, "men FROM God": the emissaries from God. "Holy," if read, will mean because they had the Holy Spirit. moved--Greek, "borne" (along) as by a mighty wind: Ac 2:2, "rushing (the same Greek) wind": rapt out of themselves: still not in fanatical…Read the comment

Topics related to 2 Peter 1:21

• Holy Spirit
• Prophecy
• Prophets
• Word of God

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Holy Ghost
• Calling
• Corruption
• Cunningly
• Diligence
• Escape
• Glory
• Prophecy

Commentaries on 2 Peter 1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings