The Biblical Gift of Tongues

If you have not read it yet, please go and read the article, The Biblical Truth About Spiritual Gifts. It lays the groundwork for what we are about to discuss here. If you have already read it, then let us get into it...

In 1 Corinthians 14:21, Paul quotes from Isaiah 28:11. This quotation was a curse pronounced upon Israel. In other words, for our Charismatic friends who attempt to deny it, "tongues" are a sign against Israel, a sign for unbelieving Jews. That is the context of the Old Testament quotation. Paul then goes on to say, very clearly, "So then tongues are a sign...to unbelievers." The miraculous "tongues" were a sign to the unbelieving Jews that God was speaking to all nations and calling all men into one new spiritual body composed of both Jews and Gentiles: the Church. “This people” refers to the Jewish nation to whom the prophet Isaiah was speaking. The curse pronounced in Isaiah 28:11 was literally fulfilled in Acts 2, 10, and 19. If you continue reading in Isaiah, he predicts their demise following their rejection of God's sign, which was fulfilled in A.D. 70.

Fernand Legrand, a former Pentecostal, makes the following observation:

“It is worth noting that wherever the sign appears, it is always in the presence of JEWS, and where we do not find Jews, as in Athens or in Malta, neither do we find the sign. ... It is in the very nature of the sign that we find the nature of their unbelief. ... The sign denounced or corrected their lack of faith concerning the salvation of those who spoke languages that were foreign to their own, that is, the Gentiles. .... But this was precisely what the Jews did not want to believe. In fact, they were ‘contrary to all men: forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved’ (1 Thess. 2:15-16). ... The idea of now being made one with foreigners was more than the first-century Jews could stand. The thought alone was enough to fire up their Hebrew atavism. Yet that was the first thing they had to understand and finally admit. So God gave them the best sign possible to make them understand what they could not or would not believe; HE MIRACULOUSLY MADE JEWS SPEAK IN THE LANGUAGES OF FOREIGNERS. IN SO DOING, GOD PUT JEWISH PRAISE INTO THESE PAGAN TONGUES." (All About Speaking in Tongues)

The Greek word glossa (γλῶσσα) means "1. the tongue, a member of the body, the organ of speech. 2. a tongue, i.e. the language used by a particular people in distinction from that of other nations; to speak in foreign [languages]; to speak with new [languages] which the speaker has not learned previously." (Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon); "I) An organ of the body. II) Metaphorically, speech or language. A) Generally. B) Of a particular language or dialect. C) Different than their own native [languages]." (The Complete Word Study Dictionary New Testament).

Whenever the word glossa is used in the plural (glossai) with a singular pronoun or subject, it refers to known, understandable languages that were not learned by the individual. In 1 Corinthians 14:6 and 18, Paul refers to speaking in glossais, meaning languages he already knew. In case you were not aware, Paul could speak four languages fluently. This is what he was referring to; not to some "mystical" language. In 1 Corinthians 12:10, 28, 30; 13:8; 14:5-6, 18, 21-22, and 39, "tongues" clearly refers to actual ethnic languages.

Mark 16:17 (which is much disputed) promised, "they will speak with new tongues." This was a promise of speaking in languages other than one's own native language. This was literally fulfilled in Acts 2, 10, and 19. These were foreign languages which the speakers had not learned. The signs promised in Mark 16:17 were not for believers of generations to come, but for previous believers. The Greek pisteusasi, translated as "believe," is in the aorist tense, indicating those who at some time in the past had believed.

The Corinthians were trying to show off and one-up each other. The "tongues" they would speak in were not genuine Spirit-given tongues. They were ecstatic speech. (This might be why the KJV supplied the word "unknown," which is not in the original Greek, in verses 2, 4, 13, 14, 19, and 27.) If our Charismatic friends would bother paying attention to the context of the chapter, in verses 1-19 Paul condemns the Corinthians for their misuse (pursuing after the gift in order to show off), and then in verses 20-40 corrects them in the biblical use. Verse 27 is very key. In correcting them on how the gift of tongues is to be used biblically, he informs them that they need an interpreter (the interpreter needs to know the same language, which means it is referring to known and understandable human languages, as we see listed in Acts 2), or else they need to remain silent.

Here is another aspect of 1 Corinthians that our Charismatic friends need to understand. When Paul says that the person who speaks in "tongues" "edifies himself," that is not a good thing. The spiritual gifts were given to the Church as a whole so that the entire Church would be edified by their use (12:7). If speaking in tongues only edifies you, then it is not edifying the entire Church. In other words, it is selfishness! This is precisely what Paul gets at with verses 5 and 17. What were the Corinthians doing? They were desiring the flashy gifts of the Spirit so that they could show off to one another. Instead of proof texting your favourite verses, my Charismatic friends, how about you pay attention to what Paul says in verses 7-12. If you do not understand what Paul is saying in those verses, then you need to spend some time meditating upon them and praying for the Spirit's guidance until you do understand them. If you are the only one who understands what you are speaking, then there is a problem. If you do not even understand what you are speaking, then there is an even greater problem.

If everyone around you speaks the same language as you, then what would be the purpose in speaking in "tongues"? If there are no unbelievers around you, then what would be the purpose in speaking in "tongues"? Each and every single spiritual gift is to be used for the edification of the entire Church. If the gift of "tongues" only edifies you, then that is complete selfishness.

Pay attention to the order in 1 Corinthians 12: 8-10, 28, and 29-30. The gift of "tongues" is the least of all spiritual gifts (see also 14:5). Not only is "tongues" not the initial evidence of someone being born again, but if all believers are not appointed and gifted to be apostles, it follows that all believers should not expect, or be expected, to receive any particular gift, including the gift of "tongues." Paul makes that abundantly clear in 1 Corinthians 12:30: "All do not have gifts of healings, do they? All do not speak with tongues, do they? All do not interpret, do they?" The answer is an emphatic, "No!" Also, if Charismatics have to teach people how to "speak in tongues," then it is not the biblical gift of tongues. It is a counterfeit! In 1 Corinthians 13:1, Paul is posing a hypothetical argument. He is not saying that he can or does speak in the languages of angels (if they had any). The fact is, whenever angels spoke with men, they always spoke in an understandable language, requiring no interpreter, such as to the shepherds, the virgin Mary, etc. Never did an angel speak in a language that the hearer could not understand.

None of these gifts are the best way to serve, as Paul makes clear in 1 Corinthians 13. The motive that guides and directs the exercise of the gifts for the benefit of the whole Church (12:7) is love! Love does not express itself through envy, boasting, or pride that places attention on one's self. If love motivates the exercise of the gifts, it is clear what gifts should receive priority in worship. The gift of prophecy (whether explaining the significance of God's actions and words for the present, or revealing what God intends for the future) instructs and convicts those who believe the words spoken.

Nowhere in the New Testament will you find a single verse that encourages praying in tongues. It is not a prayer language. Jesus said, "And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do... Pray then like this:..." Jesus prayed clear, understandable prayers (see John 17), and so should we. Nowhere does Paul encourage praying in tongues. Notice Paul's hypothetical use of the word "if" when speaking to the Corinthians and correcting them about their misuse of tongues. Pay careful attention to verses 14-15: "For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. What am I to do? I will pray with the spirit and I will pray with the mind also; I will sing with the spirit and I will sing with the mind also." Our Charismatic friends think this is positive? How many times throughout the New Testament are we commanded to be in control of our mental faculties? In other words, our minds are not to be idle, but they are to be fruitful (see Phil. 4:8). In verse 39, when Paul says, "do not forbid to speak in tongues," what is the context? It has to do with prophesying, not private prayer. Again, the gift of tongues was a sign for and against unbelieving Israel.

If biblical "tongues" have ceased, it is because of this reason: If I were to tell someone who is meeting me at the train station that he will recognize me because I will be wearing a blue hat, the blue hat is the sign. Once we have met and he recognizes me by the sign of the blue hat, the need for the sign has ceased. Isaiah prophesied that God would speak to the Jews by foreign languages and that they would reject it and subsequently be judged. The sign of this prophecy was fulfilled three times in the book of Acts (2, 10, 19), demonstrating that the way to salvation was open to people from all nations, tribes, peoples, and languages. The Jews rejected the sign and were severely judged in A.D. 70. First Corinthians 13:8 could support "tongues" ceasing, since it is not mentioned further, but, according to verses 9-10, prophecy and knowledge would continue until "the perfect comes." Even faith and hope will be done away with. Once Jesus has returned and ushered in the age to come, what need is there for either faith or hope.

Remember, if you are not edifying the Church, then you are merely edifying yourself, which means you are in sin. Selfishness is sin.