1 Corinthians 14:18-25

Tree of Life Version

¹⁸I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you. ¹⁹However, in Messiah’s community I would rather speak five words with my mind, so I may also instruct others, than ten thousand words in a tongue.

²⁰Brothers and sisters, stop being children in your thinking—rather, be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature. ²¹In the Prophets^[a] it is written,

“By those with strange tongues
and by the lips of strangers
I will speak to this people.
And not even then will they listen to me,” says Adonai.

²²Therefore tongues are a sign not for believers but for unbelievers—but prophecy is a sign not for unbelievers but for believers. ²³So if Messiah’s whole community comes together and everyone speaks in tongues, and uninstructed or unbelieving people come in, won’t they say that you are crazy? ²⁴But if all are prophesying and some unbelieving or ungifted person comes in, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all. ²⁵The secrets of his heart become known, and so he will fall down on his face and worship God, declaring, “God really is among you!”^[b]

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Footnotes

1 Corinthians 14:21 Lit. Law, here applied to Torah, Prophets, and Writings; the quote is from Isa. 28:11-12.
1 Corinthians 14:25 cf. Isa. 45:14; Dan. 2:47; Zech. 8:23.

1 Corinthians 14:18-25

New International Version

¹⁸I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you. ¹⁹But in the church I would rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue.^(A)

²⁰Brothers and sisters, stop thinking like children.^(B) In regard to evil be infants,^(C) but in your thinking be adults. ²¹In the Law^(D) it is written:

“With other tongues
and through the lips of foreigners
I will speak to this people,
but even then they will not listen to me,^(E)
says the Lord.”^[a]

²²Tongues, then, are a sign, not for believers but for unbelievers; prophecy,^(F) however, is not for unbelievers but for believers. ²³So if the whole church comes together and everyone speaks in tongues, and inquirers or unbelievers come in, will they not say that you are out of your mind?^(G) ²⁴But if an unbeliever or an inquirer comes in while everyone is prophesying, they are convicted of sin and are brought under judgment by all, ²⁵as the secrets^(H) of their hearts are laid bare. So they will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, “God is really among you!”^(I)