| DB1 | | Tongues and Prophecy 1Cor.14.1-25 | NEB Contents | notes| 14 | New English Bible (New Testament) | Passage | New Testament in Greek (UBS.Ed.26) |
| 14 1 | Put love first; but there are other gifts of the Spirit at which you should aim also, and above all prophecy. | Tongues and Prophecy 1Cor.14.1-25 | Διώκετε τὴν ἀγάπην, ζηλοῦτε δὲ τὰ πνευματικά, μᾶλλον δὲ ἵνα προφητεύητε. |
| 2 | When a man is using the language of ecstasy he is talking with God, not with men, for no man understands him; he is no doubt inspired, but he speaks mysteries. | ὁ γὰρ λαλῶν γλώσσῃ οὐκ ἀνθρώποις λαλεῖ ἀλλὰ θεῷ, οὐδεὶς γὰρ ἀκούει, πνεύματι δὲ λαλεῖ μυστήρια· | |
| 3 | On the other hand, when a man prophesies, he is talking to men, and his words have power to build; they stimulate and they encourage. | ὁ δὲ προφητεύων ἀνθρώποις λαλεῖ οἰκοδομὴν καὶ παράκλησιν καὶ παραμυθίαν. | |
| 4 | The language of ecstasy is good for the speaker himself, but it is prophecy that builds up a Christian community. | ὁ λαλῶν γλώσσῃ ἑαυτὸν οἰκοδομεῖ· ὁ δὲ προφητεύων ἐκκλησίαν οἰκοδομεῖ. | |
| 5 | I should be pleased for you all to use the tongues of ecstasy, but better pleased for you to prophesy. The prophet is worth more than the man of ecstatic speech - unless indeed he can explain its meaning, and so help to build up the community. | θέλω δὲ πάντας ὑμᾶς λαλεῖν γλώσσαις, μᾶλλον δὲ ἵνα προφητεύητε· μείζων δὲ ὁ προφητεύων ἢ ὁ λαλῶν γλώσσαις, ἐκτὸς εἰ μὴ διερμηνεύῃ, ἵνα ἡ ἐκκλησία οἰκοδομὴν λάβῃ. | |
| 6 | Suppose, my friends, that when I come to you I use ecstatic language: what good shall I do you, unless what I say contains something by way of revelation, or enlightenment, or prophecy, or instruction? | Νῦν δέ, ἀδελφοί, ἐὰν ἐλθω πρὸς ὑμᾶς γλώσσαις λαλῶν, τί ὑμᾶς ὠφελήσω, ἐὰν μὴ ὑμῖν λαλήσω ἢ ἐν ἀποκαλύψει ἢ ἐν γνώσει ἢ ἐν προφητείᾳ ἢ ἐν διδαχῇ; | |
| 7 | Even with inanimate things that produce sounds - a flute, say, or a lyre - unless their notes mark definite intervals, how can you tell what tune is being played? | ὁμως τὰ ἀψυχα φωνὴν διδόντα, εἰτε αὐλὸς εἰτε κιθάρα, ἐὰν διαστολὴν τοῖς φθόγγοις μὴ δῷ, πῶς γνωσθήσεται τὸ αὐλούμενον ἢ τὸ κιθαριζόμενον; | |
| 8 | Or again, if the trumpet-call is not clear, who will prepare for battle? | καὶ γὰρ ἐὰν ἀδηλον σάλπιγξ φωνὴν δῷ, τίς παρασκευάσεται εἰς πόλεμον; | |
| 9 | In the same way if your ecstatic utterance yields no precise meaning, how can anyone tell what you are saying? You will be talking into the air. | οὑτως καὶ ὑμεῖς διὰ τῆς γλώσσης ἐὰν μὴ εὐσημον λόγον δῶτε, πῶς γνωσθήσεται τὸ λαλούμενον; ἐσεσθε γὰρ εἰς ἀέρα λαλοῦντες. | |
| 10 | How many different kinds of sound there are, or may be, in the world! Nothing is altogether soundless. | τοσαῦτα εἰ τύχοι γένη φωνῶν εἰσιν ἐν κόσμῳ, καὶ οὐδὲν ἀφωνον· | |
| 11 | Well then, if I do not know the meaning of the sound the speaker makes, his words will be gibberish to me, and mine to him. | ἐὰν οὖν μὴ εἰδῶ τὴν δύναμιν τῆς φωνῆς, ἐσομαι τῷ λαλοῦντι βάρβαρος καὶ ὁ λαλῶν ἐν ἐμοὶ βάρβαρος. | |
| 12 | You are, I know, eager for gifts of the Spirit; then aspire above all to excel in those which build up the church. | οὑτως καὶ ὑμεῖς, ἐπεὶ ζηλωταί ἐστε πνευμάτων, πρὸς τὴν οἰκοδομὴν τῆς ἐκκλησίας ζητεῖτε ἵνα περισσεύητε. | |
| 13 | I say, then, that the man who falls into ecstatic utterance should pray for the ability to interpret. | διὸ ὁ λαλῶν γλώσσῃ προσευχέσθω ἵνα διερμηνεύῃ. | |
| 14 | If I use such language in my prayer, the Spirit in me prays, but my intellect lies fallow. | ἐὰν γὰρ προσεύχωμαι γλώσσῃ, τὸ πνεῦμά μου προσεύχεται, ὁ δὲ νοῦς μου ἀκαρπός ἐστιν. | |
| 15 | What then? I will pray as I am inspired to pray, but I will also pray intelligently. I will sing hymns as I am inspired to sing, but I will sing intelligently too. | τί οὖν ἐστιν; προσεύξομαι τῷ πνεύματι, προσεύξομαι δὲ καὶ τῷ νοΐ· ψαλῶ τῷ πνεύματι, ψαλῶ δὲ καὶ τῷ νοΐ. | |
| 16 | Suppose you are praising God in the language of inspiration: how will the plain man who is present be able to say 'Amen' to your thanksgiving, when he does not know what you are saying? | ἐπεὶ ἐὰν εὐλογῇς ἐν πνεύματι, ὁ ἀναπληρῶν τὸν τόπον τοῦ ἰδιώτου πῶς ἐρεῖ τὸ Ἀμήν ἐπὶ τῇ σῇ εὐχαριστίᾳ, ἐπειδὴ τί λέγεις οὐκ οἶδεν; | |
| 17 | Your prayer of thanksgiving n may be all that could be desired, but it is no help to the other man. | σὺ μὲν γὰρ καλῶς εὐχαριστεῖς, ἀλλ' ὁ ἑτερος οὐκ οἰκοδομεῖται. | |
| 18 | Thank God, I am more gifted in is ecstatic utterance than any of you, | εὐχαριστῶ τῷ θεῷ, πάντων ὑμῶν μᾶλλον γλώσσαις λαλῶ· | |
| 19 | but in the congregation I would rather speak five intelligible words, for the benefit of others as well as myself, than thousands of words in the language of ecstasy. | ἀλλὰ ἐν ἐκκλησίᾳ θέλω πέντε λόγους τῷ νοΐ μου λαλῆσαι, ἵνα καὶ ἀλλους κατηχήσω, ἢ μυρίους λόγους ἐν γλώσσῃ. | |
| 20 | Do not be childish, my friends. Be as innocent of evil as babes, but at least be grown-up in your thinking. | Ἀδελφοί, μὴ παιδία γίνεσθε ταῖς φρεσίν, ἀλλὰ τῇ κακίᾳ νηπιάζετε, ταῖς δὲ φρεσὶν τέλειοι γίνεσθε. | |
| 21 | We read in the Law: 'I will speak to this nation through men of strange tongues, and by the lips of foreigners; and even so they will not heed me, says the Lord.' | - By men of strange tongues 1Cor.14.21 | Is.28.11-12 | Dt.28.49 | ἐν τῷ νόμῳ γέγραπται ὅτι Ἐν ἑτερογλώσσοις |
| 22 | Clearly then these 'strange tongues' are not intended as a sign for believers, but for unbelievers, whereas prophecy is des-gned not for unbelievers but for those who hold the faith. | ὡστε αἱ γλῶσσαι εἰς σημεῖόν εἰσιν οὐ τοῖς πιστεύουσιν ἀλλὰ τοῖς ἀπίστοις, ἡ δὲ προφητεία οὐ τοῖς ἀπίστοις ἀλλὰ τοῖς πιστεύουσιν. | |
| 23 | So if the whole congregation is assembled and all are using the 'strange tongues' of ecstasy, and some uninstructed persons or unbelievers should enter, will they not think you are mad? | Ἐὰν οὖν συνέλθῃ ἡ ἐκκλησία ὁλη ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ καὶ πάντες λαλῶσιν γλώσσαις, εἰσέλθωσιν δὲ ἰδιῶται ἢ ἀπιστοι, οὐκ ἐροῦσιν ὅτι μαίνεσθὲ; | |
| 24 | But if all are uttering prophecies, the visitor, when he enters, hears from everyone something that searches his conscience and brings conviction, | ἐὰν δὲ πάντες προφητεύωσιν, εἰσέλθῃ δέ τις ἀπιστος ἢ ἰδιώτης, ἐλέγχεται ὑπὸ πάντων, ἀνακρίνεται ὑπὸ πάντων, | |
| 25 | and the secrets of his heart are laid bare. So he will fall down and worship God, crying, 'God is certainly among you!' | τὰ κρυπτὰ τῆς καρδίας αὐτοῦ φανερὰ γίνεται, καὶ οὑτως πεσὼν ἐπὶ πρόσωπον προσκυνήσει τῷ θεῷ, ἀπαγγέλλων ὅτι Ὄντως ὁ θεὸς ἐν ὑμῖν ἐστιν. | |