SPEAKING IN TONGUES: Part II

1CORINTHIANS 14 BACKGROUND

In the first episode, I pointed out two key issues under the topic. First, the Holy Spirit is not a power or force but God Himself. Secondly, that all the incidences where speaking in tongues are reported in the New Testament, they were communicable languages ethnically spoken in the then world. I now turn to 1Corinthians 14.

To understand the argument in 1Corinthians 14, one has to respect the first rule of Bible study and that is Context. Let me outline the context within which chapter 14 is placed for am convinced that this will help us understand whether the issue about tongues is an abnormality being addressed or not. Here is the Outline:

1. Attitude Issues

• Schism: based on teachers (1:10-13)
• Worldly Philosophies manifested in Elitist Snobbery (1:18-24)
• Immaturity (chapters 2-3)

2. Sociological Problems

• Judging Others (chapter 4)
• Sexual improprieties (Incestuous adultery = chapter 5, Litigation of Brethren = chapter 6, Marriage, divorce and Celibacy = chapter 7)

3. Theological Problems

• Devoted Meats and Cultic Meals (Chapters 8 & Chapter 10)
• Profession and Provision (Chapter 9)
• The Role of Women and the Lord’s Supper (Chapter 11)
• Spiritual Gifts (Chapter 12)
• Love (chapter 13)
• Tongues (Chapter 14)
• Issues on Resurrection (Chapter 15)

The Corinthian City was a collection of ethnic groups by the time apostle Paul arrived there. The city had the largest population in Greece with Greeks, Jews and Romans. The geographical location of Corinth was commercially good and therefore attracted other minor ethnic groups like the Phoenicians and Phrygians.

The indigenous inhabitants were Greeks and the Greek language was the socioeconomic language of the then world just as English is to our world. However, Aramaic was the Civil (Political) Language and when Paul started a church there, with the exception of Achaicus (1Corinthian 16:17) who had a Greek name, most of the church members he addresses had Roman names even though they were Jews like Aquila (1Corinthians 16:19), Crispus (1Corinthians 1:14), Gaius (1Corinthians 1:14) and Fortunatus (1Corinthians 16:17).

We also learn that the church was composed of diaspora Jews who could speak Greek as well as Aramaic, some fluently and others broken (1Corinthians 7:18-19). The majority, however, were Gentile converts like the native Greeks, then Romans and other minors (1Corithians 6:9-11, 8:7, 12:2). The church had a few elites and rich members like; the City Treasurer called, Erastus (Romans 16:23) but the majority members were from humble backgrounds and not educated enough even to speak and comprehend other languages beyond nativity.

From this background, we see that the Church at Corinth was a troubled church. Chapter 14, therefore, handles the chaos surrounding communication. In every church service communication is simultaneously Vertical (we communicate to God) and Horizontal (as we communicate to people). So the issue of tongues that the apostle handles in Chapter 14 is essentially about communication.

A Brief Discourse Structural Analysis of chapter 14 however, requires that we ask three fundamental questions:

• Are the tongues in the discourse of Chapter 14 Existing Ethnic Communicative Languages (EECL) that might not be understood by varying ethnic groups in the same congregation? Or not languages altogether?
• Are the tongues in the discourse of Chapter 14 Cognitive Ethnic Languages (CEL) but suffering from the lack of translation and interpretation or squarely a phenomenon of ecstatic utterances and emotions in church?
• If they were heavenly/angelic languages and the speaker is an interlocutor with a heavenly agent, is it a Communicative Speech (CS)? When the speaker doesn’t know what they are saying but insists that they are angelic tongues and they are communicating.

Next, I will briefly discuss the specific verses in the discourse of Paul in 1Corinthians 14 that actually answer the questions I have raised here,

God bless you, I invoke Truth, Reason and Faith

Pr White
The Gospel Hawker
*iTiS Well of Worship Ministries (John 4:24)*