2 Peter 1:21 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.
This verse continues the thought of the previous verse and makes clearer the idea of inspiration. The prophets did not invent what they said. In particular, they did not invent the words about a coming Messiah. There were so-called prophets in ancient Israel and Judah who spoke from their own thinking. For example, in Jeremiah’s day, there were prophets who said that God would rescue Jerusalem from the Babylonians. Jeremiah 28:9 says that the words of the true prophet will come true. Time proved all the prophets who spoke from their own thinking were wrong. Jeremiah who spoke God’s word was correct. Speaking the truth from God may land us in hot water and even persecution before those who speak from their own thinking. One of the dangers of theology is coming up with interpretations that are not based on the clear revelation of the Bible. True prophets will speak through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will put ideas and even specific words into the minds of prophets. The Old Testament prophets were moved by the Holy Spirit to speak words about the coming Messiah. They did not have all the details (Romans 16:25) but they had glimpses into the future. We are looking back now on what they said and we can see how they were correct. Time has proven that they were indeed inspired.
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