1 Corinthians 14:29 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others weigh what is said.

NIV: Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said.

NASB: Have two or three prophets speak, and have the others pass judgment.

CSB: Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should evaluate.

NLT: Let two or three people prophesy, and let the others evaluate what is said.

KJV: Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the other judge.

NKJV: Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others judge.

After explaining how inappropriate use of spiritual gifts is harmful, Paul is setting down ground rules. These are guidelines for how church services are to be conducted in Corinth. The church was clearly full of believers with a variety of spiritual gifts. Apparently, those with speaking gifts, such as tongues and prophecy, were not exercising those gifts in an orderly way. Paul has limited the number of people speaking in tongues during a service to two or three, in turn, and only if someone can interpret what has been said.

Now he turns to those with the gift of prophecy. This gift involved receiving a revelation from God of some kind to deliver in clear language to those gathered. Many churches and teachers believe the gifts of tongues and prophecy are far less common in modern times than they were in the early church, especially since the New Testament was published in its current form. Others are convinced these gifts are still distributed by the Holy Spirit to a significant number of believers.

In either case, Paul also restricts the number of prophets speaking during a service to two or three. Since they claim to represent revelation from God, Paul also instructs "others" to weigh what they have said. This likely involves an analysis of the revelation to determine if it is truly from God (Acts 17:11; 1 John 4:1). Perhaps the "others" Paul has in mind are those with the spiritual gift of discerning whether a "spirit" is from God or another source (1 Corinthians 12:10).

John warned believers in the early church that many false prophets were in the world and that they must "test the spirits" before believing what any self-proclaimed prophet said (1 John 4:1–3).

First Corinthians 14:26–40 includes specific instructions to the Corinthians on an orderly worship service. These meetings should reflect the character of God. Everyone should have an opportunity to bring a hymn, a lesson, a prophetic revelation from God, and even to speak in a tongue if someone is able to interpret. Each must happen one at a time, in turn, and only two or three tongues-speakers or prophets should contribute during a single service. Wives must remain silent and be in submission to their husbands. Only that which builds up the church should be included.

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.