Those who were under the LAW(Jews) required signs to beleive something was authentically of God. The Nation of Israel began with the SIGN of circumcision. Tongues were
for a sign, were said to be a sign gift, and were prophesied to CEASE, when the saints at Corinth would “grow up” and get them a “perfect understanding” of this tongues business(1st Corinthians 2:6 KJB).

The collective consciousness of the other churches needed
not be admonished further concerning this matter of tongues(1st Corinthians 2:6)because they had a copy of the letter Paul wrote Corinth and they believed the things Paul taught (1st Corinthians 14:32-38 KJB) were the
very commandments of “THE LORD”.

All the rest of the churches had a copy of the Lord’s rules concerning tongues(1st Corinthians 14, and they would indeed FORBID A WOMAN from diong such in the assembly, for they had a “perfect understanding” that it was againts the Law and the commandment of the Lord Jesus
Christ to ever allow a woman to do such in the church.

The charismatic movement would cease to exist, if those who participate in such shameful lasciviousness would immediately quit trusting their feelings and begin to believe what the Scriptures alone testify concerning that which they erroneously claim to be tongues.

That which the charismatics erroneously call the gift of tongues is no doubt clearly identified as …………….. profane an vain babblings,
which are supposed to be shunned.

The tongues crew today are not wise(Romans 1:22 KJB).
They are terribly misled and misleading others. They are indeed ignorant and blind as they follow false teachers
and their feelings instead of that which God has preserved for us in the VOLUME OF BOOK.

I have judged for many years that the tongues babblers
are for sure led by “a spirit”, but that the “spirit” by the which they are led is most certainly not the Holy Spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Thank you for allowing me to have my say.

Sincerely,

Brad

Thanks for your comment. Good discussion.

The discussion of Paul’s use of the NT in other passages is an involved one, and outside of what we can respond to here. However, Matt Waymeyer has done a helpful job in a series of articles that can be found here. We would recommend them.

We would still suggest that in quoting from Isaiah 28:11 Paul was particularly focused on unbelieving Jews – as those who were intimately acquainted with the book of Isaiah.

Below is an extended section from John MacArthur’s commentary on 1 Corinthians. I hope it will be helpful in providing some clarification for our view:

Hopefully having shamed the Corinthians into attention by confronting their abuse of the gifts, Paul explains to them the true purpose of tongues. He begins with a freely rendered passage from Isaiah 28:11–12. Hundreds of years before Christ, the Lord told Israel that one day He would speak to this people by strange tongues from the lips of strangers. Despite this miraculous sign, however, she would not listen to Me.

Those strange tongues, Paul says, are what you now know and experience as the gift of languages. God has given that gift as a sign, not to those who believe, but to unbelievers. Here is the heart of chapter 14 and the most important truth about this phenomenon: it was given as a sign, and as a sign to unbelievers, specifically unbelieving Jews, the unbelievers among this people. The gift of tongues was given solely as a sign to unbelieving Israel. . . .

Some 15 years or so before Isaiah prophesied about the strange tongues from the lips of strangers, the northern kingdom of Israel had been conquered and taken captive by the Assyrians (in 722 B.C.) because of unbelief and apostasy. The prophet then warned the southern kingdom, Judah, that the same judgment awaited her at the hands of the Babylonians. The proud religious leaders of Judah would not listen to Isaiah. His teaching was too simple. He talked to them, they claimed, as if they were babies, “Those just weaned from milk” and “just taken from the breast.” He taught them as if they were kindergartners: “Order on order, order on order, line on line, line on line, a little here, a little there” (Isa. 28:9–10). God had indeed spoken to them simply, in order that the least mature among them could understand and so that no Israelite would have an excuse for not knowing the Lord’s will and promise. The essence of His promise was, “Here is rest, give rest to the weary,” and “Here is repose”; yet Israel “would not listen” (v. 12).

About 800 years before Isaiah, God had warned Israel that “The Lord will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as the eagle swoops down, a nation whose language you shall not understand” (Deut. 28:49). The strange language of their conquerors would be a sign of God’s judgment. About 100 years after Isaiah, the Lord warned through Jeremiah, “Behold, I am bringing a nation against you from afar, O house of Israel, … a nation whose language you do not know, nor can you understand what they say” (Jer. 5:15). The sign of judgment would be a language they could not understand.

When the apostles spoke at Pentecost and were heard in their own language by Jews from many countries (Acts 2:7–11), those Jews should have known that God’s judgment was imminent. His judgment had fallen on rebellious Israel and then on rebellious Judah. How much more would it fall on those of His people who now had crucified the Son of God? In A.D. 70 that great judgment fell, when Jerusalem was utterly destroyed by the Roman general Titus (later emperor). Over one million Jews were slaughtered; thousands more were taken captive; the Temple was plundered, desecrated, and then utterly destroyed; and the rest of the city was burned to the ground. One historian comments that Jerusalem had no history for 60 years. Just as Jesus had predicted when He wept over the city, “Your enemies will throw up a bank before you, and surround you, and hem you in on every side, and will level you to the ground and your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not recognize the time of your visitation” (Luke 19:44; cf. 21:20–24).

After the destruction of Jerusalem, and especially of the Temple, the reason for tongues ceased to exist. The judgment of which it was a sign had come. After the Pentecost manifestation of tongues, Peter, by implication, reminded his hearers of that judgment: “Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ–this Jesus whom you crucified” (Acts 2:36; cf. vv. 22–23).

Great question. The answer is found in verse 21 of chapter 14, which is a quote from Isaiah 28:11.

That verse (Isaiah 28:11) is specifically speaking of the fact that the sound of foreign languages will be a sign to Israel — demonstrating to them that they are under God’s judgment.

That prophecy came true, in an immediate sense, in the Babylonian captivity — since the Jews were taken captive to a foreign land where Hebrew was not spoken.

But the prophecy also applied in an extended sense to Pentecost — when the Jews again heard foreign languages spoken. This time it was a sign of God’s judgment on their nation for rejecting their Messiah.

The fact that Paul quoted from Isaiah 28:11 indicates that he had this background in mind in 1 Corinthians 14. Whether or not Paul is expanding this OT reference to include Gentile unbelievers is something commentators debate. But the reference primarily refers to unbelieving Jews — given Paul’s use of Isaiah 28:11.

Hope that helps,
NB

Thanks for your comments. Time only allows a brief response, but hopefully it will be helpful.

1) The gift of tongues was a gift given to the speaker, not to the hearers (who were unbelievers). If the apostles simply spoke in their own language (Greek or Aramaic), but were understood in other languages (like Egyptian or Phrygian) the “gift” would actually be a gift of hearing on the part of the unbeliever. But the text presents the “gift” as a gift of speaking on the part of believers (in this case the apostles and their associates).

According to Acts 1:15, there were around 120 persons who were in the upper room on the day of pentecost. So, I don’t think we have to limit the number of tongues-speakers just to the 12 apostles (though they played the most prominent role, of course).

I might add that, historically, the church fathers understood Acts 2 as a gift of speaking, not a gift of hearing. (We will talk more about them on Thursday.) There is, moreover, nowhere else in the NT (Mark 16, Acts 10, 19, 1 Cor. 12-14) where tongues is described as a gift of hearing. It is always a speaking gift.

2) You also asked about how to respond or view fellow believers who differ with us in their understanding of the spiritual gifts. Provided their views do not violate first-level doctrines (see yesterday’s post), I think we reason with them through the Scriptures so that we might each have a better understanding of God’s revealed truth. Paul does not reveal the source of the Corinthian confusion in 1 Corinthians 12-14, he simply seeks to instruct them as to what is right.

3) Regarding 1 Corinthians 13 and the perfect, we would direct you to a three-part series we did on that subject:

Part One

Part Two

Part Three

Thanks,
NB

It is to me the strangest thing to see people wo speak only one language persue after “spiritual gifts” whereby THEY THEMSELVES can be glorified by God.

Wat a stark contrast to the Hebrew apostles who where given the gift of the languages of the Gentiles, so that the Gospel of the New Testament would be procliamed BEFORE the Inscription thereof, by those very same apostles.

A thought occured to me just as I was reading:
The Apostles where Hebrews travelling into Asia, Rome, Greece and Turkey, aswell as other parts of the world (As evidenced in Acts with the Ethiopian officer). How amazing it was for them to be able to speak or translate (Without prior training) the Gospel into the languages of Unbelievers to see the effect that the Spirit would have in redemption. Imgine going to say, Mongolia and just pitching up without any prior language training and procliam the Gospel to people who have NEVER heard or read it before?

Equally what vain idle babblings of “Selfish” personal edification would do to GLORIFY God, I would NEVER know?

Paul esteems arightly that they are “mad”. What GLORY does our Saviour or His Spirit derive from personal languages? Is the purpose of anguage r tongues not to edify BY TRANSFERRING Truth in Love?

What would it profit a man to speak a personal “utterance” TO A LOST SINNER, WHEN NOBODY understands what is said? Does this Gorify God? I would contend NOT SO.

I thank the LORD for the responsibility He has placed upon us to study, to apply our talents or “gifts”, but let us not presume ourselves higher esteemed than what we are: Redeemed sinners…Repentant and saved with a mission to be wells of living waters. If a fountain where to block its water for itself and not to OVERFLOW with the waters of life, what business do we have to seek gifts for our OWN BENEFIT, when lost sinners are dying about us?

Thank you NATHAN.

SOLA DEO GLORIA!

In the post you said this:

“5. Acts – It was a sign for unbelieving Jews (2:5, 12, 14, 19).

1 Corinthians – As in Acts, the gift of tongues was a sign for unbelieving Jews (14:21–22; cf. Is. 28:11). Note that the gift is even called a “sign” in 14:22 (the word “sign” is from the same Greek word as “sign” in Acts 2:22). Thus, the Corinthian use of tongues was a sign just as the Apostles use of tongues was a sign.”

If we go on to verse 22-25 it says this:

“22 Thus tongues are a sign not for believers but for unbelievers, while prophecy is a sign [3] not for unbelievers but for believers. 23 If, therefore, the whole church comes together and all speak in tongues, and outsiders or unbelievers enter, will they not say that you are out of your minds? 24 But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is convicted by all, he is called to account by all, 25 the secrets of his heart are disclosed, and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you.”

If I am reading this plainly it never says anywhere that this was a sign for non-believeing Jews. It says it was a sign for “non-believers” in general. Why the huge leap? Nothing else in the following verses even hints towards a non-believing Jew but any non-believer that “enters” will be convicted. Can you elaborate on this point a bit more for me? I thin Paul is taking an Old Testament verse and applying it in general I don’t believe he is making a point for non-believeing Jews.

First: I see two possible scenarios for what took place in Acts 2:

1. The Holy Spirit came and bunch of disciples started speaking in tongues and some understood and asked “how is it that we hear them in our own language?” And others did not understand and accused them of drunkenness.

2. But from the text in Acts 2, I would not presume that the Apostles or disciples spoke in any other language than their own. It says in Acts 2:8 “And how is it that we each HEAR them in own language to which we were born?”

Maybe I am just off my rocker, but it seems to me that there’s a possibility that Peter (and any other Apostle or disciple that might have been speaking) was speaking in his natural language, not in a foreign tongue. It was those that were listening who heard in their own language. It would be like sitting at the United Nations listening to a translation on a headset of the person speaking.

Peter certainly could not speak in all the foreign languages at the same time. But yet the text lists thirteen different languages. If tongues was limited to the Apostles (which would’ve been 11), then that left two languages out.

Second thought: What do we do about those that are genuine believers, bear good fruit and are doctrinally sound and yet still speak in tongues?

1. Is what they are doing man made? And if it is, how can we prove it?
2. Is it because they are influenced by Satan? If so, how can we prove it?

Final thought: When tongues cease?

It says that tongues will cease, not have ceased. It says they will cease when the perfect comes. As I recall perfect means complete are better yet mature. So tongues will cease when maturity comes. And I think that is a big part of Paul’s argument and discussion about tongues. The question is it the maturity of the individual, the maturity of the local body or the maturity of the entire bride? Since Paul is addressing a local body in Corinthians, I can see it being a combination of the individual and the local body

13Therefore let one who speaks in a tongue pray that he may interpret. 14For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. 15What is the outcome then? 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.

Paul is clearly pointing out here the necessity to pray again with your mind b/c praying in the spirit (w/o interpretation) is unfruitful! Yet many, as donsands say, are being edified though they have no idea (or shouldn’t anyway) what they just prayed about! I think we should as these ppl “is your mind fruitful when you pray with tongues” and if they say yes point them to this verse and if they say no ask, what is the point?!