1 Corinthians 14:14 - Printer Friendly

ESV: For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays but my mind is unfruitful.

NIV: For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful.

NASB: For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unproductive.

CSB: For if I pray in another tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful.

NLT: For if I pray in tongues, my spirit is praying, but I don’t understand what I am saying.

KJV: For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful.

NKJV: For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful.

Not every believer was given the spiritual gift of being able to speak in unknown languages in Paul's day. Paul wrote that he wished all those in Corinth had this gift (1 Corinthians 14:5), but clearly that wasn't the case.

The Corinthian church seemed widely impressed with this gift. Paul has not discounted speaking in tongues, but he has corrected them about the practice of exercising the gift publicly, in the church service, if no interpretation was available.

In fact, Paul has written in the previous verse that those with the gift of tongues should ask God to give them the gift of interpretation of tongues, as well. This would allow their gift to be used in the church service to benefit everyone. It would also allow their own personal experience of praying to God in an unknown language by the power of the Holy Spirit to be more meaningful for them.

He writes in this verse that if he prays in a tongue, a language he does not know, his own personal spirit prays, but his mind does nothing. It is "unfruitful" because the one praying does not know what he is saying. Paul does not reject this as a meaningless experience, only a less ideal one. It should not take place in the church service, since nobody who hears the prayer will be able to engage with what is being prayed on either a mental or spiritual level.

First Corinthians 14:1–25 describes why the gift of prophecy is superior to the gift of tongues in church services, especially when nobody with the gift of interpreting tongues is available. Prophecy benefits everyone in the room with a revelation from God. Praying in a tongue, when nobody can interpret, only benefits the one praying. In fact, displaying the gift of tongues without interpretation may do more harm than good—it generates confusion and division. In contrast, the use of prophecy provides the opportunity for unbelievers to hear from God, be convicted about sin, and come to faith in Christ and genuine worship.

Paul encourages the Corinthians to desire the gift of prophecy, especially, among the other gifts. He shows why its use in the church service is superior to the use of the gift of tongues if nobody is available to interpret. Prophecy benefits everyone; praying in tongues with nobody to interpret benefits only the speaker. Only two or three tongues-speakers should contribute to any service, and only then one at a time and followed by interpreters. The same applies to prophecy and the gift of discerning spirits. Orderliness and building up the church are guiding principles for any worship meeting. Modern churches are divided on the extent to who which these gifts are given, or should be practiced.

1 Corinthians 14 concludes Paul's teaching on the spiritual gifts begun in chapter 12. Between them, chapter 13 declared that Christlike love matters most of all. The gift of prophecy is better than the display of the gift of tongues in worship services unless someone with the gift of interpreting tongues is available. Even then, only those things which build up the church should be included in any service, and everything should be done in an orderly way, reflecting the character of God. The final two chapters of this letter discuss the resurrection of Christ and Paul's concluding remarks.

First Corinthians is one of the more practical books of the New Testament. Paul writes to a church immersed in a city associated with trade, but also with corruption and immorality. These believers are struggling to properly apply spiritual gifts and to resist the ungodly practices of the surrounding culture. Paul's letter gives instructions for real-life concerns such as marriage and spirituality. He also deals with the importance of unity and gives one of the Bible's more well-known descriptions of love in chapter 13.