What Scripture Says About Languages, Interpretation, and Order
let him keep silence in the church.
Opening Scripture — Acts 2:8 (KJV)
“And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born?”
Main passages: Acts 2:1–13 and 1 Corinthians 12–14. Scripture quotations below are from the KJV.
At Pentecost, Yahweh gave the disciples the ability to speak in languages their hearers recognized. When Paul instructed the assembly at Corinth, he required interpretation whenever a tongue was spoken publicly. These passages show two ways the hearers could understand the message. At Pentecost, they understood it directly in their native languages. At Corinth, when the language was unfamiliar to the assembly, an interpreter had to make the words understandable.
1. At Pentecost, the people heard their own native languages
Acts 2:4 says the disciples “began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” Luke then describes what the crowd heard.
“Every man heard them speak in his own language.”
— Acts 2:6
“We do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God.”
— Acts 2:11
Luke names people from many regions, including Parthia, Media, Mesopotamia, Egypt, Rome, Crete, and Arabia (Acts 2:9–11). The crowd recognized the speakers as Galileans and marveled that they could hear the message in the languages in which they had been born (Acts 2:7–8).
The passage tells us both what the people heard and why they could understand it. They heard the wonderful works of Yahweh proclaimed in their own languages. Luke records no separate interpreter at Pentecost because people in the crowd could already understand what they heard.
2. At Corinth, a tongue had to be interpreted for the assembly
Paul gave specific instructions for speaking in tongues when believers gathered.
“If any man speak in an unknown tongue, let it be by two, or at the most by three, and that by course; and let one interpret. But if there be no interpreter, let him keep silence in the church; and let him speak to himself, and to God.”
— 1 Corinthians 14:27–28
Paul’s instructions are straightforward.
- Two or at most three may speak in tongues.
- They must speak one at a time.
- Someone must interpret so the assembly can understand.
- If there is no interpreter, the speaker must keep silent in the assembly.
The requirement is that someone present can make the words understood.
3. A language can be meaningful, yet unknown to the hearer. And should onely be given with interpretation
Paul explains what happens when people hear words whose meaning they do not know.
“Therefore if I know not the meaning of the voice, I shall be unto him that speaketh a barbarian, and he that speaketh shall be a barbarian unto me.”
— 1 Corinthians 14:11
In this verse, barbarian means a foreigner to the other speaker. Each person hears the other’s voice, but neither can understand the words. Paul applies the same principle to prayer and thanksgiving in the gathering. How can someone say “Amen” to a prayer when he does not know what has been said? The person speaking may give thanks sincerely, but “the other is not edified” (1 Corinthians 14:16–17).
That helps explain Paul’s statement in verse 2 that “no man understandeth him.” Paul is describing what happens among those who hear the tongue without understanding it. His remedy for the assembly is interpretation, so that the people can receive what was spoken (1 Corinthians 14:5, 13).
4. Paul chose five understandable words over ten thousand in a tongue
“Yet in the church I had rather speak five words with my understanding, that by my voice I might teach others also, than ten thousand words in an unknown tongue.”
— 1 Corinthians 14:19
Paul says “Let all things be done unto edifying.”
Paul also asks what would happen if visitors entered and everyone was speaking in tongues. Would they conclude that the gathering had lost its senses? (1 Corinthians 14:23). His concern extends to the person who walks in and needs to hear something he can understand.
Paul closes the chapter with both instructions in view. He says to “forbid not to speak with other languages ” and then adds, “Let all things be done decently and in order” (1 Corinthians 14:39–40). The order he has just given includes taking turns, interpreting, and keeping silent publicly when no interpreter is available.
5. What the other passages tell us
Passage | What Scripture records |
Acts 2:4–11 | People in the crowd recognize their native languages and understand the message directly. |
Acts 10:44–48 | Those with Peter hear Cornelius’s household speak in tongues and magnify Yahweh. Luke gives no details about specific languages or an interpreter. |
Acts 19:1–7 | The disciples at Ephesus speak in tongues and prophesy. Luke gives no details about the languages spoken or who understood them. |
1 Corinthians 12:10, 29–30 | Paul lists tongues and interpretation among the gifts and makes clear that the same gift is not given to every believer. |
1 Corinthians 14:27–28 | Paul explicitly requires interpretation for tongues spoken publicly in the assembly and commands silence there if no interpreter is available. |
Acts 2 gives the clearest example of tongues as recognizable human languages. Acts 10 and Acts 19 give shorter accounts, so we cannot say from those verses exactly which languages were spoken or who understood them. The explicit rule for the gathered assembly comes from 1 Corinthians 14.
Questions for a home Sabbath discussion
Questions for a Home Sabbath Discussion
Speaking in Tongues
- Read Acts 2:4–11. What did the people in the crowd recognize about the languages they heard? What were the disciples declaring in those languages?
- Read 1 Corinthians 14:6–11. Why does Paul compare speech people cannot understand to a trumpet giving an uncertain sound? What happens when the hearer cannot understand the speaker?
- Read 1 Corinthians 14:12–13. What does Paul say the gifts should accomplish for the assembly? What does he tell the person who speaks in a tongue to pray for?
- Read 1 Corinthians 14:16–17. Why does it matter whether another person can say “Amen” to a prayer of thanksgiving?
- Read 1 Corinthians 14:18–19. Why would Paul rather speak five words people can understand than ten thousand words in a tongue?
- Read 1 Corinthians 14:26–28. How many people does Paul allow to speak in tongues during the gathering? In what order should they speak? What should the speaker do if no interpreter is present?
- Compare Acts 2:6–11 with 1 Corinthians 14:27–28. At Pentecost, the listeners understood what they heard in their own languages. In Corinth, Paul instructed someone to interpret. What do both passages teach us about the importance of being understood?
If there be no interpreter,
let him keep silence in the church.
No comments:
Post a Comment