What the Bible Says About
SPEAKING IN TONGUES

The Bible says in I Corinthians 1:22 "For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom." "Signs" are required for the nation of Israel. The sign gifts are recorded in Mark.

 

So what are tongues for? The Bible is very clear.

 

The reference in verse 21 is to Isaiah 28:9-14 and both are speaking of known languages of other countries. Those verses are directed at the nation of Israel, and verse 22 says that they are a sign for that nation, specifically for unbelieving Jews.

Tongues are only spoken three times in the Bible. In Acts 2:4 the disciples were filled with the Holy Ghost and begin to speak in other tongues. WHY? To fulfill the above scripture there must be unbelieving Jews present. Were there?

 

Those Jews were there for the feast days (Pentecost is a Jewish feast), and they were unbelieving because they had never even heard of Jesus. Peter was getting ready to preach and the disciples were getting ready to witness. The tongues they spoke (the actual languages of the visitors) was a "sign" that their message was true!

 

Every tongue that was spoken that day was a known language. The tongues fulfilled two purposes. They were a sign, that the Jews required, to believe the message was true, and the means with which to tell them that truth.

The second case of speaking in tongues occurred in Acts 10. Peter went to an assembly of Gentiles who were ready to be saved and needed to hear the gospel. Gentiles had been scorned before this. Peter himself needed a special revelation from God so he would answer Cornelius' summons. (Acts 10:9-20) So Peter and "certain brethren" (v23) went to Cornelius, and he told them the good news.

 

 

Cornelius and his household were saved while listening to Peter. They received the Holy Spirit.

 

Now Peter was the only one who had received the revelation that Gentiles were no longer unclean, but other saved Jewish brethren were with him. They needed a "sign" that these Gentiles had really gotten saved, or they wouldn't believe it!

 

Tongues was the proof those skeptical Jews needed to believe that the Gentiles had really gotten saved. When Peter had problems explaining to the brethren back in Judea (Acts11:1-18) he pointed to that "sign" saying that the Gentiles had received the Holy Ghost in the same manner (with the tongues) as they themselves had. (v15)

The third instance of speaking in tongues occurred 22 years later at Ephesus. In Acts 18:24-28 Apollos had been preaching the baptism of John. Aquila and Priscilla took him aside and "expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly." He got saved and went his way preaching about Jesus.

Meanwhile Paul met some of Apollos' original disciples at Ephesus and asked:

 

The answer they gave tells any honest Bible student that these disciples of Apollos' couldn't possibly have been saved at that point.

 

The men tell Paul they were baptized "Unto John's baptism."

 

These disciples of Apollos were Jews who had followed the light they had been given thus far. Before Paul arrived they had never heard of Jesus or his sacrifice, but they had believed Apollos preaching and received John's baptism. Just as Apollos was taught about Jesus and "believed through grace," so did Paul teach Apollos' disciples. He told them they must "believe...on Christ Jesus."

Paul laid hands on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied. Does this final example conform to the Bible rules? Yes. These men were Jews who were hearing the gospel for the first time. Remember, "Jews require a sign." Not only that, but Paul was there to speak in a synagogue to unbelievers (v8,9). He had a "ready made" sign to show those unbelievers, by the tongues that were spoken by those newly saved men. This was like what happened with Peter in Acts 2.

These three cases are the only times tongues are spoken in the Bible. Their abuse is discussed at Corinth but this gift is mentioned no where else. This seems incredible if tongues are so important.

The gift of tongues was a Jewish sign gift that was in effect while God was dealing with the Hebrew nation. It is listed twice in I Corinthians 12:8-11 & 28-30. In Paul's later lists in Ephesians 4:8-12 & Romans 12:4-8 tongues are not mentioned at all. Neither are they a "fruit of the Spirit" in Galatians 5:22,23. Paul tried to explain to the church at Corinth about the immediate future (at that time) of the gift of tongues.

 

"Prophecies" refers to the prophets who received direct and specific revelation from God to tell to the people. There are none but false prophets today who claim direct revelation from God. The Bible says:

 

All Christians can prophecy today from the word of God. They can tell an individual about his eternal destiny or the future of the world from what the Bible says. God talks to people today through his word, and where a "prophet" disagrees with the Bible, he is a liar.

"Tongues...Shall cease" refers to "tongues as a sign gift" during God's dealing with the nation of Israel. If tongues are a gift today, why do missionaries spend years studying to the learn the language of their fields? God has temporarily put the nation of Israel aside and the gift of Tongues given to them has ceased!

"Knowledge...shall vanish away" refers to the partial knowledge that we have of God. In many places the Bible speaks of this knowledge, but it still can give us only very limited enlightenment.

 

At this point Christians only know what the Bible says about God and can only prophecy what the Bible says about the future. But in the future that partial knowledge shall be complete.

 

When Paul said "but then face to face" he was referring to the Lord's return."Glass" is a reference to the word of God as in James 1:23. We see the Lord in the Bible but not clearly. When we see him at his coming it will be "face to face" (see II John 12) and with completed knowledge.

 

"That which" is the same "that which" of I John 1:1 : Jesus Christ. John sums it up.

 

Now today Biblical tongues have ceased, but they had not yet done so when Paul wrote to the Corinthians. Note some things about the church at Corinth.

 

1- there were contentions- I Corinthians 1:11

2- there were divisions- I Corinthians 1:12

3- some were puffed up- I Corinthians 4:18-21

4- they ignored fornication in the church- I Corinthians 5:1-5

5- they went to law with each other- I Corinthians 6:1-8

6- there was promiscuity- I Corinthians 7

7- there was idolatry- I Corinthians 8

8- they doubted Paul's authority- I Corinthians 9

9- there were heresies- I Corinthians 11:19

These are only SOME of the problems Paul wrote about in this church. This is NOT a spiritual church! I Corinthians 14 is another chapter written to CORRECT a carnal people! This church is trying to ACT spiritual (when it wasn't) by imitating what happened on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was given.

In the first six verses of I Corinthians 14 Paul said that prophecy is more edifying than tongues. He said that you were speaking into the air if your words were not understood, and that you sounded like a barbarian. In verse 12 you are to seek to edify the church (NOT seek tongues). Prophesying edifies the church according to verse 4. Paul would have rather spoken five words that could be understood than ten thousand that were not.

 

If a church wants visitors to worship God TONGUES IS NOT THE WAY!!! Paul told the Corinthians the rules. In verses 27 & 28 he said that only three people may speak in tongues at any service and then only one at a time and with an interpreter! He told them there should be no emotional display and confusion in verses 32 & 33. No women were to speak in tongues. That's verse 34, and it sure knocks out a lot of the modern day movement! Lastly, if you wanted to be ignorant, go ahead!

Paul knew that he was writing to a carnal church full of spiritual babies. The ENTIRE epistle was written to rebuke them about their doctrine and practices! Why would any church want to be like this one?

Some Christians today say that tongues are for private or personal devotions and that it is a "heavenly" language that nobody understands. The Bible says:

 

1- ALL tongues spoken in Acts 2, 10, and 19 are a sign for some Jews who are listening - not private experiences.

2- The unknown tongues in I Corinthians 14 are in the church - not a private experience.

3- Tongues are ALWAYS a language that someone understands, and they can be interpreted and learned! Acts 2:4,6 & I Corinthians 14:13,16,23,27,27.

4- In the Bible "unknown" ALWAYS means "unknown by some yet known by others." Acts 17:23; II Corinthians 6:9; Galatians 1:22

5- The "tongues...of angels" (the language of heaven) is shown in the Bible to be Hebrew. Acts 26:14, Revelation 19:2,4. Alleluia is Hebrew. It means "praise ye Jehovah."

CONCLUSION

If tongues are so easily proven to be unscriptural why are so many Christians concerned with the subject? Since God has been ruled out there are three possible sources of the modern day tongues movement: Satan, psychological hype, and charlatans. All three make the movement what it is.

Tongues flourish where the Bible is not understood, or where people seek experiences and feelings rather than Bible truth.

 

The Devil's realm is SPIRITUAL DECEPTION! And he uses signs!

 

The Devil IMITATES the real thing to deceive people. His imitations are often so close that people can only tell the difference if they study God's word.

 

The Devil has his own religion.

 

Here you have counterfeit ministers with counterfeit signs! The Bible has a name for those who say they have the JEWISH APOSTOLIC gifts.

 

If you have been deceived by a non-Christian experience of speaking in tongues don't be discouraged. So have many other Christians. You have to determine now whether you will follow your own feelings, or whether you will yield to God's word. The choice is yours.

 

  • I Corinthians 14:37,38

    If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord.

    38 But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant.


Written by

D.J. Root
Pensacola, FLorida, USA

D. J. Root
AV1611Root@juno.com


The King James Bible is the final authority for all doctrine,
faith, and practice. Any deviation from the text is purely inadvertent.

 

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