2 Peter 1:19-20 English Standard Version
Christ’s Glory and the Prophetic Word
19 And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, 20 knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation.
What stands out here are two distinct issues. The prophetic word is fully confirmed, meaning that what has occurred has been witnessed over and over again. The second part is that some of the readers of this letter may not have been a witness to that prophetic word yet. “Until that day dawns” speaks to a coming event, one which will be personal because it occurs in the reader’s heart.
How do you tell believers that are inexperienced that there is more to this life in Christ than what they have seen? You cannot be specific because what Christ does in each of us is personal. Pay attention to the light is an encouragement to the novice that a new day is about to dawn in their hearts.
The issue of a personal interpretation speaks to a unity of the Spirit in which the Spirit confirms that which is happening in our hearts is a common reality for those who have placed their faith in Christ. It is common knowledge that the promises of God are confirmed in the Spirit by a yes and amen but we do not all receive those promises at the same place in our walk with Christ? Some things take time.
The last verse of this opening chapter of 2 Peter is “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.”
While we may or may not be carried away as some have experienced, the Spirit in us can and will confirm it is of God. Hearing that is also a matter of experience. If a believer is not quite there yet, the dawn is coming. His promise is yes and amen.