1. INTERPRETING THE BIBLE.

We need to find out about private interpretations. What causes many to throw up the verse, 1:20 in II Peter, while in a Bible discussion and one person thinks that the other person has left a sure footing based on the whole tenor of Scripture and has left the haven of 'truth', and now stands in a place we might call 'la la land'? That person is said to have a private interpretation. What that person should have is yet to be determined by further discussion, hopefully. So, if a church, a denomination has a 'view', it is not a private interpretation, but possibly, a public interpretation because it is held by more than one, private individual. But this does not determine the truth of a position, just because we have some how escaped from a ' private' interpretation.

TRANSLATIONS:
New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures: "For you know this first, that no prophecy of Scripture springs from any private interpretation".

Concordant Literal New Testament: "Knowing this first, that no prophecy of scripture at all is becoming its own explanation".

NIV: "Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet's own interpretation".

RSV: "First of all you must understand this, that no prophecy of scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation".

Phillip's Modern English: "But you must understand this at the outset,that no prophecy of scripture arose from an individual's interpretation of the truth".

NEB: "But first note this: no one can interpret any prophecy of Scripture by himself".

ASV: "Knowing this first, that no prophecy of scripture is of private interpretation".

NASB: "But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation".

The New Testament in Modern English: "But first be assured of this-that no prophecy of Scripture is of private interpretation".

Charles Williams: "Because you recognize this truth above all else, that no prophecy in Scripture is to be interpreted by one's own mind".

Goodspeed: "You must understand this in the first place, that no prophecy of Scripture can be understood through one's own powers".

Moffatt: "..understanding this, at the outset, that no prophetic scripture allows a man to interpret it by himself".

Schonfield: "But this you must realize first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is to be interpreted individually".

New Berkeley: ".with this most clearly understood, that no prophetic Scripture can be explained by one's unaided mental powers".

Today's English Version: "Above all else, however, remember that no one can explain by himself a prophecy in the Scriptures".

Rotherham: ".this first understanding, That no prophecy of Scripture becomes self-solving".

The Living Bible: "For no prophecy recorded in Scripture was ever thought up by the prophet himself".

Weymouth: "But above all, remember that no prophecy in Scripture will be found to have come from the prophet's own prompting".

It should be a disappointment to many that only the Living Bible and Weymouth gives the best gist of what Peter is really writing about here. Tyndale(1534),Cranmer(1530), Geneva(1557) and Rheims(1582) have this idea of private interpretation also. The Jerusalem Bible and Ferrar Fenton's translation follow the same line.

These translations, in reference to this verse only, (II Peter 1:20) are more translating interpretations and less translations as such (to me). Peter is concerned here with origination of Scripture, not interpretation. W. E. Vine in his Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words (page 268) says this concerning Nouns used for interpretation :

EPILUSIS (epilusis), from epiluo, to loose, solve, explain, denotes a solution, explanation, lit., a release (epi, up, luo, to loose, 2 Pet. 1:20, "(of private) interpretation; " i.e., the writers of Scripture did not put their own construction upon the 'God-breathed'
words they wrote.

Vine's statement does not bring enlightenment to my understanding. Jay Green's Holy Bible Interlinear Hebrew Greek English has a better reading of the text's intent:
'this firstly knowing, that every prophecy of Scripture of (its) own unloosing did not come into being'

II Peter 1:21 goes on to expand verse 20, showing that the scripture originated not by/in or through the will of man, but by the Holy Spirit men were borne along when speaking from God.

With this understanding, we can lay to rest the idea that Peter is speaking about individual interpretation or private interpretation. When we know that we are confronted with words that have their origin from God, then we can be concerned with what they mean.

JERRY W. STERCHI

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