Bible verses about "tongues" | Twentieth_Century

¹⁷ Moreover these signs shall attend those who believe. In my Name they shall drive out demons; they shall speak with 'tongues';

⁸ Love never fails. But, whether it be the gift of preaching, it will be done with; whether it be the gift of 'tongues,' it will cease; whether it be knowledge, it, too, will be done with.

¹⁰ To another the gift of preaching; to another the gift of distinguishing between true and false inspiration; to another varieties of the gift of 'tongues'; to another the power to interpret 'tongues.'

⁴⁶ For they heard them speaking with 'tongues' and extolling God. At this Peter asked:

²⁸ In the Church God has appointed, first, Apostles, secondly Preachers, thirdly Teachers; then he has given supernatural powers, then power to cure diseases, aptness for helping others, capacity to govern, varieties of the gift of 'tongues.'

²⁷ If any of you use the gift of 'tongues,' not more than two, or at the most three, should do so-each speaking in his turn-and some one should interpret them.

¹ In the course of the Festival at the close of the Harvest the disciples had all met together, ² When suddenly there came from the heavens a noise like that of a strong wind rushing by; it filled the whole house in which they were sitting. ³ Then there appeared tongues of what seemed to be flame, separating, so that one settled on each of them; ⁴ And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with strange 'tongues' as the Spirit prompted their utterances. ⁵ Now there were then staying in Jerusalem religious Jews from every country in the world; ⁶ And, when this sound was heard, numbers of people collected, in the greatest excitement, because each of them heard the disciples speaking in his own language. ⁷ They were utterly amazed, and kept asking in astonishment: "What! Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? ⁸ Then how is it that we each of us hear them in our own native language? ⁹ Some of us are Parthians, some Medes, some Elamites; and some of us live in Mesopotamia, in Judea and Cappadocia, in Pontus and Roman Asia, ¹⁰ In Phrygia and Pamphylia, in Egypt and the districts of Libya adjoining Cyrene; some of us are visitors from Rome, ¹¹ Either Jews by birth or converts, and some are Cretans and Arabians--yet we all alike hear them speaking in our own tongues of the great things that God has done." ¹² They were all utterly amazed and bewildered. "What does it mean?" they asked one another. ¹³ But there were some who said with a sneer: "They have had too much new wine." ¹⁴ Then Peter, surrounded by the eleven other Apostles, stood up, and, raising his voice, addressed the crowd. "Men of Judea," he began, "and all you who are staying in Jerusalem, let me tell you what this means. Mark well my words. ¹⁵ These men are not drunk, as you suppose; for it is only now nine in the morning! No! ¹⁶ This is what is spoken of in the prophet Joel-- ¹⁷ 'It shall come about in the last days,' God says, 'That I will pour out my Spirit on all mankind; your sons and your daughters shall become Prophets, your young men shall see visions, and your old men dream dreams; ¹⁸ Yes, even on the slaves--for they are mine--both men and women, I will in those days pour out my Spirit, ¹⁹ And I will show wonders in the heavens above, and signs on the earth below--Blood and fire and mist of smoke; ²⁰ The sun shall become darkness, and the moon blood-red, Before the Day of the Lord comes--that great and awful day. ²¹ Then shall every one who invokes the Name of the Lord be saved.' ²² Men of Israel, listen to what I am saying. Jesus of Nazareth, a man whose mission from God to you was proved by miracles, wonders, and signs, which God showed among you through him, as you know full well-- ²³ He, I say, in accordance with God's definite plan and with his previous knowledge, was betrayed, and you, by the hands of lawless men, nailed him to a cross and put him to death. ²⁴ But God released him from the pangs of death and raised him to life, it being impossible for death to retain its hold upon him. ²⁵ Indeed it was to him that David was referring when he said-- 'I have had the Lord ever before my eyes, For he stands at my right hand, that I should not be disquieted. ²⁶ Therefore my heart was cheered, and my tongue told its delight; Yes, even my body, too, will rest in hope; ²⁷ For you wilt not abandon my soul to the Place of Death, nor surrender me, your holy one, to undergo corruption. ²⁸ Thou have shown me the path to life, you wilt fill me with gladness in your presence.' ²⁹ Brothers, I can speak to you the more confidently about the Patriarch David, because he is dead and buried, and his tomb is here among us to this very day. ³⁰ David, then, Prophet as he was, knowing that God 'had solemnly sworn to him to set one of his descendants upon his throne,' looked into the future, ³¹ And referred to the resurrection of the Christ when he said that 'he had not been abandoned to the Place of Death, nor had his body undergone corruption.' ³² It was this Jesus, whom God raised to life; and of that we are ourselves all witnesses. ³³ And now that he has been exalted to the right hand of God, and has received from the Father the promised gift of the Holy Spirit, he has begun to pour out that gift, as you yourselves now see and hear. ³⁴ It was not David who went up into Heaven; for he himself says- -'The Lord said to my master: "Sit on my right hand, ³⁵ Till I put your enemies as a footstool under they feet."' ³⁶ So let the whole nation of Israel know beyond all doubt, that God has made him both Lord and Christ--this very Jesus whom you crucified." ³⁷ When the people heard this, they were conscience-smitten, and said to Peter and the rest of the Apostles: "Brothers, what can we do?" ³⁸ "Repent," answered Peter, "and be baptized every one of you in the Faith of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹ For the promise is for you and for your children, and also for all those now far away, who may be called by the Lord our God." ⁴⁰ With many other words Peter enforced his teaching, while the burden of his exhortations was--"Save yourselves from the perverse spirit of this age." ⁴¹ So those who accepted his teaching were baptized, and about three thousand people joined the disciples on that day alone. ⁴² They devoted themselves to the teaching of the Apostles and to the Common Life of the Church, to the Breaking of the Bread and to the Prayers. ⁴³ A deep impression was made upon every one, and many wonders and signs were done at the hands of the Apostles. ⁴⁴ All who became believers in Christ held everything for the common use; ⁴⁵ They sold their property and their goods, and shared the proceeds among them all, according to their individual needs. ⁴⁶ Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the Temple Courts, and to the Breaking of Bread at their homes, while they partook of their food in simple-hearted gladness, praising God, and winning the good-will of all the people. ⁴⁷ And the Lord daily added to their company those who were in the path of Salvation.

³⁹ Therefore, my Brothers, strive for the gift of preaching, and yet do not forbid speaking in 'tongues.'

² He who, when speaking, uses the gift of 'tongues' is speaking, not to men, but to God, for no one understands him; yet in spirit he is speaking of hidden truths.

¹ Seek this Love earnestly, and strive for spiritual gifts, above all for the gift of preaching. ² He who, when speaking, uses the gift of 'tongues' is speaking, not to men, but to God, for no one understands him; yet in spirit he is speaking of hidden truths. ³ But he who preaches is speaking to his fellow men words that will build up faith, and give them comfort and encouragement. ⁴ He who, when speaking, uses the gift of 'tongues' builds up his own faith, while he who preaches builds up the faith of the Church. ⁵ Now I want you all to speak in 'tongues,' but much more I wish that you should preach. A Preacher is of more account than he who speaks in 'tongues,' unless he interprets his words, so that the faith of the Church may be built up. ⁶ This being so, Brothers, what good shall I do you, if I come to you and speak in 'tongues,' unless my words convey some revelation, or knowledge, or take the form of preaching or teaching? ⁷ Even with inanimate things, such as a flute or a harp, though they produce sounds, yet unless the notes are quite distinct, how can the tune played on the flute or the harp be recognized? ⁸ If the bugle sounds a doubtful call, who will prepare for battle? ⁹ And so with you; unless, in using the gift of 'tongues,' you utter intelligible words, how can what you say be understood? You will be speaking to the winds! ¹⁰ There is, for instance, a certain number of different languages in the world, and not one of them fails to convey meaning. ¹¹ If, however, I do not happen to know the language, I shall be a foreigner to those who speak it, and they will be foreigners to me. ¹² And so with you; since your are striving for spiritual gifts, be eager to excel in such as will build up the faith of the Church. ¹³ Therefore let him who, when speaking, uses the gift of 'tongues' pray for ability to interpret them. ¹⁴ If, when praying, I use the gift of 'tongues,' my spirit indeed prays, but my mind is a blank. ¹⁵ What, then, is my conclusion? Simply this-I will pray with my spirit, but with my mind as well; I will sing with my spirit, but with my mind as well. ¹⁶ If you bless God with your spirit only, how can the man in the congregation who is without your gift say 'Amen' to your thanksgiving? He does not know what you are saying! ¹⁷ Your thanksgiving may be excellent, but the other is not helped by it. ¹⁸ Thank God, I use the gift of 'tongues' more than any of you. ¹⁹ But at a meeting of the Church I would rather speak five words with my mind, and so teach others, than ten thousand words when using the gift of 'tongues.' ²⁰ Brothers, do not show yourselves children in understanding. In wickedness be infants, but in understanding show yourselves men. ²¹ It is said in the Law-'In strange tongues and by the lips of strangers will I speak to this people, but even then they will not listen to me, says the Lord.' ²² Therefore the gift of the 'tongues' is intended as a sign, not for those who believe in Christ, but for those who do not, while the gift of preaching is intended as a sign, not for those who do not believe in Christ, but for those who do. ²³ So, when the whole Church meets, if all present use the gift of 'tongues,' and some men who are without the gift, or who are unbelievers, come in, will not they say that you are mad? ²⁴ While, if all those present use the gift of preaching, and an unbeliever, or a man without the gift, comes in, he is convinced of his sinfulness by them all, he is called to account by them all; ²⁵ The secrets of his heart are revealed, and then, throwing himself on his face, he will worship God, and declare 'God is indeed among you!' ²⁶ What do I suggest, then, Brothers? Whenever you meet for worship, each of you comes, either with a hymn, or a lesson, or a revelation, or the gift of 'tongues,' or the interpretation of them; let everything be directed to the building up of faith. ²⁷ If any of you use the gift of 'tongues,' not more than two, or at the most three, should do so-each speaking in his turn-and some one should interpret them. ²⁸ If there is no one able to interpret what is said, they should remain silent at the meeting of the Church, and speak to themselves and to God. ²⁹ Of preachers two or three should speak, and the rest should weigh well what is said. ³⁰ But, if some revelation is made to another person as he sits there, the first speaker should stop. ³¹ For you can all preach in turn, so that all may learn some lesson and all receive encouragement. ³² (The spirit that moves the preachers is within the preachers' control; ³³ For God is not a God of disorder, but of peace.) This custom prevails in all the Churches of Christ's People. ³⁴ At the meetings of the Church married women should remain silent, for they are not allowed to speak in public; they should take a subordinate place, as the Law itself directs. ³⁵ If they want information on any point, they should ask their husbands about it at home; for it is unbecoming for a married woman to speak at a meeting of the Church. ³⁶ What! did God's Message to the world originate with you? or did it find its way to none but you? ³⁷ If any one thinks that he has the gift of preaching or any other spiritual gift, let him recognize that what I am now saying to you is a command from the Lord. ³⁸ Any one who ignores it may be ignored. ³⁹ Therefore, my Brothers, strive for the gift of preaching, and yet do not forbid speaking in 'tongues.' ⁴⁰ Let everything be done in a proper and orderly manner.