Why is silence emphasized in 1 Corinthians 14:28 if no interpreter is present? Text and Immediate Translation 1 Corinthians 14:28 : “But if there is no interpreter, he should remain silent in the church and speak only to himself and to God.” The key verb is σιγάτω (sigatō) — “let him keep silent.” The command is imperative, categorical, and situationally bound to the absence of an interpreter. --- Literary Context: Chapters 12–14 Paul writes a three-chapter unit on spiritual gifts. The arc is unmistakable: • Ch. 12 – Variety of gifts, one body. • Ch. 13 – Love as the governing motive. • Ch. 14 – Edification through intelligibility. Tongues without interpretation violate the goal Paul states five times in ch. 14: “so that the church may be built up” (vv. 5, 12, 17, 26). Silence is the practical instrument that protects edification. --- Historical and Greco-Roman Background Corinth’s mystery religions employed ecstatic speech (cf. inscriptions at the temple of Dionysus). Such utterances were prized for their spectacle. Paul counters the culture: corporate worship must be markedly different—orderly, intelligible, Christ-exalting. --- The Theological Principle of Edification 1. Understandability: “Unless you utter intelligible speech… how will anyone know what is being said?” (v. 9). 2. Witness: Tongues are “a sign for unbelievers” (v. 22), but uninterpreted tongues invert the sign, making believers appear “mad” (v. 23). 3. Holiness: God is a God “not of disorder but of peace” (v. 33). Whatever obscures His character must cease—or in this text, fall silent. --- Canonical Echoes of Sacred Silence • Leviticus 10:3—After unauthorized fire, Moses tells Aaron, “You must remain silent.” • Habakkuk 2:20—“The LORD is in His holy temple; let all the earth be silent before Him.” • Zechariah 2:13—Silence marks reverence in Yahweh’s presence. Paul draws on this Old Testament motif: silence is the fitting response when God’s holiness or people’s edification is at stake. --- Text-Critical Certainty Papyrus 46 (c. AD 200) contains 1 Corinthians 14 nearly verbatim to modern critical editions; Codex Vaticanus (B, 4th cent.) and Codex Sinaiticus (ℵ, 4th cent.) agree. No viable variant challenges σιγάτω. Manuscript evidence is overwhelmingly uniform, verifying that the call to silence is original, not a later editorial control on charismatic practice. --- Early-Church Practice • Didache 11 teaches that itinerant prophets should be tested; if unedifying, “let him be silent.” • Justin Martyr’s First Apology 67 describes worship as Scripture reading and exposition, highlighting intelligibility. Uninterpreted glossolalia is absent in 2nd-century liturgy, reflecting Pauline influence. --- Pastoral and Practical Application 1. Discern interpreters. If none are recognized, the tongue-speaker may pray privately (v. 28b). 2. Guard the visitors. Paul envisions outsiders present (vv. 23–24); clarity magnifies the gospel’s plausibility. 3. Model reverence. Periods of intentional silence can accentuate God’s transcendence and invite contemplative prayer. --- Answer to the Central Question Silence is mandated because: • It protects the congregation’s edification. • It preserves the church’s witness before unbelievers. • It upholds the character of God as orderly and intelligible. • It aligns with the biblical pattern that awe before God often calls for hushed reverence. When no interpreter is present, tongues shift from a corporate gift to a private devotion; the fitting corporate response is quiet worship “to himself and to God,” ensuring that all things, “done decently and in order” (v. 40), redound to the glory of Christ. |
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