What is speaking in tongues? Is it demonic? What does it look like? What is its purpose? Some people oppose it because they don’t understand it, but it is mentioned in the Bible and listed as one of the Gifts of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:7-11).
These are the gifts of the Spirit:
1 Corinthians 12: (NLT) 7 A spiritual gift is given to each of us so we can help each other. 8 To one person the Spirit gives the ability to give wise advice; to another the same Spirit gives a message of special knowledge. 9 The same Spirit gives great faith to another, and to someone else the one Spirit gives the gift of healing. 10 He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages,[in various tongues] while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said. 11 It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.
The initiation of speaking in tongues:
In Acts 2:5-24, the disciples received the Holy Spirit and began speaking in tongues. There were many people in the crowd in Jerusalem from other countries who spoke various languages and were there for Pentecost. These people were amazed, but there were skeptics in the crowd (in verse 13) who were saying that the people speaking in tongues were drunk. Then Peter corrected the skeptics and pointed to Joel 2:28-32 as evidence of a fulfilled prophecy of the Holy Spirit.
Paul’s usage of this gift:
Sometimes people quote 1 Cor 14:33, which says that “God is not the author of confusion (or disorder)” as a scripture against tongues, but this is the same chapter in which Paul endorses it, so the confusion is not related to the act of praying in the Spirit; it’s related to how it is done in the assembly.
1 Cor 14:18 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than any of you. 19 But in a church meeting, I would rather speak five understandable words to help others than ten thousand words in an unknown language.
1 Cor 14:27 No more than two or three should speak in tongues. They must speak one at a time, and someone must interpret what they say. 28 But if no one is present who can interpret, they must be silent in your church meeting and speak in tongues to God privately. 29 Let two or three people prophesy, and let the others evaluate what is said. 30 But if someone is prophesying and another person receives a revelation from the Lord, the one who is speaking must stop. 31 In this way, all who prophesy will have a turn to speak, one after the other, so that everyone will learn and be encouraged. 32 Remember that people who prophesy are in control of their spirit and can take turns. 33 For God is not a God of disorder but of peace, as in all the meetings of God’s holy people
In 1 Corinthians 14, Paul addresses the problem of disorganization in worship gatherings. Some people would get up and start praying in tongues, while others would prophesy, doing so during a sermon or discussion. Paul asked for order in the service. This is why we have an “order of service” in modern churches today. Typically, it involves elements such as pre-service prayer, praise and worship, a sermon, a benediction, and an offering, all presented in a specific order. His point was that the Holy Spirit doesn’t take control of people and force them to do something; the Holy Spirit leaves control in the person’s hands, so they must wait their turn and not talk over each other. This way, everyone can speak, the message is delivered, and new believers aren’t confused. The ultimate message is that when we operate in love, we will follow an orderly structure, enabling people to receive the word of God for that meeting and be edified.
Varying views on how the Holy Spirit Gift of Tongues operates:
Some believe that speaking in tongues is a ministry gift that always requires interpretation, and praying in tongues by oneself is wrong. Meanwhile, others believe that tongues is both a Ministry Gift for the congregation that requires interpretation and a devotional gift an individual can engage in when praying in the Spirit to God. The devotional gift is when we pray in tongues TO GOD, so there is no need for interpretation. Some reject the latter and only believe the former is correct. 1 Corinthians 14 can help us determine what is happening.
1 Corinthians 14:2 For if you have the ability to speak in tongues, you will be talking only to God, since people won’t be able to understand you. You will be speaking by the power of the Spirit, but it will all be mysterious. 3 But one who prophesies strengthens others, encourages them, and comforts them. 4 A person who speaks in tongues is strengthened personally, but one who speaks a word of prophecy strengthens the entire church.
In 1 Corinthians 14:2, Paul says that when one prays in the Spirit (in tongues), he is speaking unto God and not men, and that speaking in tongues is a mystery to humans. Then in verses 3-4, he compares speaking in tongues to prophesying (speaking naturally) by saying that prophesying exhorts, edifies, and comforts the people, but speaking in tongues edifies oneself. Notice he says that speaking in tongues by oneself is communion with God and it edifies oneself.
“Babbling like an imbecile” simply for the sake of it is NOT speaking unto God nor edifying to the self, so there is clearly a distinction, implying that praying in tongues is something that God recognizes as a valid prayer and communication, and there is self-edification even though the speaker doesn’t understand the language. The difference would be in the intention and heart posture. Remember, this is a supernatural ability, not a natural one, so the speaker doesn’t understand the language they are speaking with their natural understanding. That is why it is listed alongside other gifts of the Spirit, such as miracles and healing, as we see in Mark 16:16-18 and 1 Corinthians 12:7-11.
This is distinct from the gift of tongues for the congregation, which requires an interpretation, as Paul explains in 1 Corinthians 14:13-18.
1 Cor 14:13 So anyone who speaks in tongues should pray also for the ability to interpret what has been said. 14 For if I pray in tongues, my spirit is praying, but I don’t understand what I am saying. 15 Well then, what shall I do? I will pray in the spirit, and I will also pray in words I understand. I will sing in the spirit, and I will also sing in words I understand. 16 For if you praise God only in the spirit, how can those who don’t understand you praise God along with you? How can they join you in giving thanks when they don’t understand what you are saying? 17 You will be giving thanks very well, but it won’t strengthen the people who hear you.
18 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than any of you. 19 But in a church meeting I would rather speak five understandable words to help others than ten thousand words in an unknown language.
Paul says he prays and sings both in the Spirit and in his natural language, but the natural language is more useful in general so that everyone can understand. Furthermore, in 1 Corinthians 14:18, Paul notes that speaking in tongues is valuable and even says he does it more than the others, but he reminds them that when ministering to a congregation, there must be interpretation to edify the congregation.
Paul explains in verse 22-25 that the purpose of tongues is to be a sign to the unbeliever that God’s power is at work, and prophecy is for edifying the church. However, if people don’t have interpretation, an unbeliever will just think they are crazy, and while prophecy edifies believers, it can convict an unbeliever if it involves a word of knowledge that reveals their secret sins.
1 Corinthians 14:22 So you see that speaking in tongues is a sign, not for believers, but for unbelievers. Prophecy, however, is for the benefit of believers, not unbelievers. 23 Even so, if unbelievers or people who don’t understand these things come into your church meeting and hear everyone speaking in an unknown language, they will think you are crazy. 24 But if all of you are prophesying, and unbelievers or people who don’t understand these things come into your meeting, they will be convicted of sin and judged by what you say. 25 As they listen, their secret thoughts will be exposed, and they will fall to their knees and worship God, declaring, “God is truly here among you.”
In addition, Paul makes it clear that no one should be competing to be heard. Meaning people should NOT be talking over one another, and that rule also applies to prophecy in the common language of the congregation.
1 Corinthians 14:26 Well, my brothers and sisters, let’s summarize. When you meet together, one will sing, another will teach, another will tell some special revelation God has given, one will speak in tongues, and another will interpret what is said. But everything that is done must strengthen all of you. 27 No more than two or three should speak in tongues. They must speak one at a time, and someone must interpret what they say. 28 But if no one is present who can interpret, they must be silent in your church meeting and speak in tongues to God privately.
29 Let two or three people prophesy, and let the others evaluate what is said. 30 But if someone is prophesying and another person receives a revelation from the Lord, the one who is speaking must stop. 31 In this way, all who prophesy will have a turn to speak, one after the other, so that everyone will learn and be encouraged. 32 Remember that people who prophesy are in control of their spirit and can take turns. 33 For God is not a God of disorder but of peace, as in all the meetings of God’s holy people.
Later in verses 39-40, Paul says not to forbid speaking in tongues as long as things are done in order.
1 Corinthians 14:39 So, my dear brothers and sisters, be eager to prophesy, and don’t forbid speaking in tongues. 40 But be sure that everything is done properly and in order.
So where does the devotional gift idea come from? 1 Cor 14:2 tells us a person can edify themselves with it. Moreover, 1 Corinthians 14:4 distinguishes devotional tongues from congregation tongues and prophecy. It says, “A person who speaks in tongues is strengthened personally, but one who speaks a word of prophecy strengthens the entire church.” This chapter of Corinthians focuses more on the ministry gift, so we must look at other scriptures for the definition of the devotional gift. Paul says in Ephesians 6:18 to “pray in the Spirit at all times.” In addition, he says, in Romans 8:26-27, that the “Holy Spirit helps us pray the perfect will of God when we don’t know what to pray.” Then Jude writes in Jude 1:20 that believers should “build themselves up in their most holy faith” by “praying in the Holy Spirit.” This refers to the devotional gift, not the ministry gift, since it leads to a believer being edified or “built up” themselves.
This is where the conclusion that the devotional gift of “praying in tongues” is “praying in the Spirit” (Ep 6:18) comes from, because this is how Christians can “build themselves up” (Jude 1:20) or “edify” (1 Cor 14:4) themselves. We do this by praying to God in a way that only He understands (in tongues) because it is for God’s ears only (1 Cor 14:2), and in doing so, the Holy Spirit will pray the perfect will of God through the believer (Rom 8:26-27). Meanwhile, the congregation’s gift of tongues requires interpretation because the recipients are human, not God.
Conclusion:
To reiterate, 1 Corinthians 14 primarily discusses ministering gifts to the congregation through prophecy in both a known tongue (Prophecy) and an unknown tongue (Speaking in Tongues). Then there are two types of speaking in tongues: the ministry gift, which is FROM God and TO THE CONGREGATION, and requires an interpreter, and the devotional gift, which is FROM THE BELIEVER and TO GOD.
The Ministry Gift of speaking in tongues TO THE CONGREGATION requires an interpreter so that the whole congregation can understand and be edified or built up by it, just like with prophecy, which does the same thing just in a known language which requires no interpreter (1 Cor 14:3).
The devotional gift is personal prayer from a believer in tongues TO GOD, and this is for personal edification (1 Cor 14:2). Praying in tongues devotionally to God can be done in a corporate setting. In that case, each congregation member is praying to God at the same time in devotional tongues. There is no need for an interpreter, as it is not a message from God to the congregation; instead, it is from a believer or believers (corporate prayer) praying to God together. Devotional praying in the Spirit is for personal edification (1 Cor 14:2-4, Ep 6:18, Jude 1:20) and allows us to pray out the perfect will without interference from the limitations of our minds (Rom 8:26).
This implies prophecy can be given in a known tongue or unknown tongue, and the latter will require interpretation so it can be understood by the whole group, for the edification and exhortation and the comfort of the people hearing (1 Cor 14:3). The difference is orientation either from a believer to God or from God to the congregation.
Cessationism:
Some believe that the gifts of the Spirit from 1 Corinthians 12:7-11 have ceased since the first century. However, there are scriptures that say the gifts of the Spirit and ministerial offices will remain until the “perfecting of the church” (1 Cor 13:8-10 & Ep 4:13). This clearly hasn’t happened yet and seemingly won’t until the return and reign of Christ. We also specifically see this gift listed with healing and exorcism as signs that follow the believers in Mark 16:15-18, which means it is part of the Great Commission, so it’s pretty important.
1 Corinthians 13:8 Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages [in tongues] and special knowledge will become useless. But love will last forever! 9 Now our knowledge is partial and incomplete, and even the gift of prophecy reveals only part of the whole picture! 10 But when the time of perfection comes, these partial things will become useless.
Ephesians talks about ministry offices that operate in the gifts more frequently, like Prophets, Evangelists, Apostles, Teachers, Pastors.
Ep 4:11 Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. 12 Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. 13 This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.
Here is a critical aspect of it: denying speaking in tongues and calling it “the devil’s language” is heresy, according to Paul. Read what he wrote at the end of 1 Corinthians chapter 14 (v37-40).
1 Cor 14:37 If you claim to be a prophet or think you are spiritual, you should recognize that what I am saying is a command from the Lord himself. 38 But if you do not recognize this, you yourself will not be recognized. 39 So, my dear brothers and sisters, be eager to prophesy, and don’t forbid speaking in tongues. 40 But be sure that everything is done properly and in order.
He says that tongues are not to be forbidden, but they must be done in order. In addition, he says that anyone who calls themselves a prophet and denies his prescription for using the gifts of the Spirit, such as speaking in tongues and prophecy, as mentioned in this chapter, is to be unrecognized. So, Paul discredits people who reject the gift of speaking in tongues as false teachers.
Is it Supernatural Translation only?
Some say speaking in tongues is a “heavenly language”, distinct from human languages. While others say speaking in tongues is actually a supernatural translation of various human languages rather than a heavenly spiritual language.
There is something called the International Phonetic Alphabet. It’s like the Periodic Table of Elements but for phonetics (mouth sounds). The original Periodic Table was incomplete, but it was based on the rules that govern atoms. There were predictions about the undiscovered elements based on principles in chemistry, and holes were left for those elements until they were discovered over time. Similarly, the IPA added phonemes over time and has holes awaiting confirmation of the existence of certain sounds in human languages, based on the fact that there is a finite number of shapes that the human mouth can make to create phonemes. Each language today uses a specific set of those phonemes, which is why some words in English have silent letters. The original version of those words came from a language that had phonemes that don’t exist in English and therefore are unpronounceable in English. If God built all matter with a specific set of elements, then what if the original human language included all the phonemes, and at the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11, they simply fractured from the original “heavenly language”?
Genesis 11:1-9 states that all humans spoke one language, and they rebelled against God, building a tower to the heavens. As a result, God supernaturally divided their languages. This is the biblical explanation for the existence of multiple languages. So there was a supernatural reunification of languages through the Holy Spirit for those with “ears to hear” (Matt 13:9-17, Isa 6:9-10). In other words, this was a reversal of the Tower of Babel incident from Genesis 11.
I believe that the original pre-Babel language was a combination of all languages, and God divided them to prevent their unification against God. Then in Acts 2, we see a reversal of Genesis 11, reunifying humanity under the Kingdom of Heaven through Christ. Instead of a unique “heaven language” distinct from human languages, I believe it is just the original language before the division of languages at the Tower of Babel. So, I conclude that since the languages were divided supernaturally, this supernatural gift of tongues allows us to access that original pre-fractured language, which means that through it a person can access all earthly languages because they were all fractured from one original language at Babel. I believe that is the “heavenly language”. Learn more about this here.
I conclude that speaking in tongues includes translation from one human language to another but is not limited to that. After all, how does speaking another human language that one does not understand edify an individual believer personally (1 Cor 14:2)?
Let’s simulate this based on the setting of 1 Corinthians 14. The Holy Spirit gives a prophecy and a tongue in a 1st-century Greek-speaking church in Corinth. The one prophesying will simply prophesy in Greek, and they will all understand it. Now another believer has a word for the congregation in another tongue, let’s say Chinese. Now the congregation needs an interpreter.
Why would God give a tongue in a human language like Chinese if there are no Chinese speakers present?
If there was one person who spoke it, then it could be a private prophecy to that person, but this is in front of the whole congregational setting, so that doesn’t make much sense. One may say, well, it is the Chinese speaker’s job to translate. The problem is that this is a natural ability, not a supernatural gift of interpretation. 1 Cor 12 and 14 are about the use of supernatural gifts of the Spirit like healing, miracles, word of knowledge and wisdom, and discerning of spirits.
People who have this view of speaking in Tongues only being a supernatural translation are thinking of a different scenario. In a setting where the Greek Christian is on a mission trip in China, then supernatural translation would allow them to preach to the Chinese people in their language without knowing it themselves. But this is NOT the scenario in 1 Cor 14. The scenario in this chapter of Corinthians is prophecy to the local church in Corinth, which speaks mostly Greek, and maybe there are some people who can speak other Mediterranean languages.
Alternatively, if speaking in tongues is a heavenly language coming from God and “no human can understand it,” as 1 Cor 14:2 says, then it needs a supernatural Holy Spirit interpretation. This makes sense if it is a supernatural language that has not been accessed naturally by humans (at least since Babel if the above theory about languages is true).
The way I see it, there is no point in supernaturally speaking Chinese to a Greek congregation if no one in the congregation speaks Chinese, and even if someone does, that is a natural ability to understand, not a supernatural one. The gift of Interpretation can translate Chinese to Greek, but the question remains: why would God prophesy in a human language just to supernaturally translate it into another human language?
Paul says in 1 Cor 14:22-24 that speaking in tongues is a sign to the unbeliever, while prophecy benefits the believers. He even says unbelievers would naturally think the church is crazy if they are only speaking in tongues with no interpretation, but with prophecy in the common language, their secret thoughts can be revealed, and they will recognize God’s power.
How is God speaking in Chinese to a Greek congregation a sign to unbelievers when to them it would just seem like one guy babbled in a foreign language and another claimed to have translated it? Unless they have someone who speaks Chinese naturally to confirm it was authentic, there is no proof that the translation is accurate and therefore no reason to believe anything supernatural is happening. Even if there were confirmation of an accurate translation, the unbelievers would have to believe it was supernatural in order to be moved by it. This is what happened in Acts 2.
In Acts 2:13, the skeptics said they sounded drunk, even though others could hear these “Galilean Jews” speaking in the languages of various ethnic groups from the Middle East, Mediterranean Europe, and North Africa. What happened? How can one person hear drunk babbling and another hear the gospel in their language? At first, one may think that the people speaking in tongues were each speaking different languages independently, i.e., one person speaking Greek, another Ethiopian, another Arabic, etc. But the skeptics thought they were all drunk, which means they probably heard random babbling from all of them.
Even if someone spoke only one language, they would still be aware of other languages, especially in the Levant, which is right in the middle of Eurasia. So people living there would have been used to others speaking foreign languages. It seems illogical for these people to conclude that all these individuals were drunk because they were speaking a different language. Wouldn’t a person assume that the orator is simply talking to one group of people who share that language, since they speak a foreign language?
So why did they think the people were babbling drunkards? One possibility is that multiple people were speaking the native languages of the visiting Jews, and the locals were skeptical because they didn’t recognize the languages. The other is that it wasn’t one spirit-filled person each speaking a foreign language, but rather all of them were babbling in the natural, and only those whose ears God opened through the Spirit heard the gospel in their language? That means that only the people who heard the interpretation were amazed, and those who called them drunk couldn’t hear because their spiritual ears were closed.
Hypothetical scenario: if a modern person were to travel back in time to that location and record it with their phone, it would simply sound like babbling. But if that time traveler (let’s assume an English speaker) was a believer and filled with the Spirit, I believe the Spirit would have allowed them to personally hear the gospel in their language, even though modern English hadn’t yet developed. This shows that speaking in tongues is not limited to supernatural translation of human languages but can sound like “babbling” like a drunkard in the natural, which is then interpreted supernaturally into a language that everyone can understand.
In Acts 2 on Pentecost, the Jews of the diaspora who traveled to the Holy Land for Pentecost observed a bunch of monolingual, likely uneducated Galilean Jews speaking as if they were polyglots. Multiple believers spoke in tongues, and Jews from other regions of the world were astonished. Then Peter preached to them that it was a prophetic fulfillment from Joel 2:28-32, and 3000 people got saved that day (Acts 2:41). Speaking other human natural languages by the Holy Spirit makes sense in a situation where there is a diverse group of unbelievers like on the mission field, or among multilungual visitors like in Acts 2, but not in the 1 Corinthians 14 scenario with a local congregation that speaks the same local language.
The supernatural (or heavenly) language view allows Speaking in Tongues to function both ways, rather than exclusively as a translation between human languages, allowing it to serve as a sign to unbelievers and lead to personal edification and praying out God’s perfect will.
Other events in Scripture featuring this Gift:
In Acts 19:1-7, Paul is teaching 12 men in Ephesus about the difference between John’s baptism and Jesus’s baptism. Once they got baptized in the name of Jesus, they started speaking in tongues. Since there was a water baptism, they were most likely outside, near a natural body of water, where others could see and be moved by their speaking in foreign languages. The text doesn’t say this, so there’s no reason to believe it. Of course, it’s also possible that each of the 12 men was of a different nationality and spoke to each other in their native tongues. However, it’s just as possible that no one else was around and that those 12 men all spoke the same language, which means they were praying in the Spirit directly to God.
Furthermore, when Peter ministered to the household of the Gentile proselyte Cornelius in Acts 10:34-48, the entire family believed and received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit, and they began speaking in tongues (Acts 10:44-48). Why did they need to speak in tongues? They all lived in the same house, so surely they shared a common language for communication. Unlike Acts 2, this moment didn’t involve multitudes of Jews from other countries; it was a single household, yet they all spoke in tongues. This seems like it was the devotional gift rather than the ministry gift.
Why does speaking in tongues appear more than any other gift of the Spirit (Mark 16:17, Acts 2:1-4, Acts 10:44-48, Acts 19:1-7)? Could it be that it has a more significant role in the lives of believers? Notice that in Mark 16:16-18, speaking in tongues is grouped with other signs that follow believers, such as exorcism, healing, and supernatural protection.
It seems to me that speaking in tongues is about communicating with God on a deeper level. A gift for believers to help them with the Great Commission (Acts 1:8, Mark 16:15-18). Many of the scriptures lead me to conclude that speaking in tongues or praying in the Spirit can be exercised TO GOD from an individual in private or from many believers in corporate prayer/worship to pray out the will of God more effectively, and FROM GOD, through a speaker to the congregation (similar to prophecy), but requires an interpreter led by the Spirit, so that everyone can understand.
BONUS – Baptism of the Holy Spirit:
Baptism of the Holy Spirit is defined as receiving the power of God as a believer and is typically accompanied by the outward evidence of speaking in tongues. There is a distinction between the indwelling and infilling of the Holy Spirit. Those two terms come from John 14:16-17, which states that the Holy Spirit will dwell with us and shall be in us. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit occurs when we get saved. The disciples received the Holy Spirit because they believed in Jesus, as stated in John 20:22-23. However, they were instructed to remain in Jerusalem until Pentecost (Luke 24:49 and Acts 1:8) to receive the infilling of the Holy Spirit. The infilling of the Holy Spirit refers to the distribution of the power Jesus spoke of in Luke 24:49 that they would receive by tarrying in Jerusalem after he left. This power arrived 10 days after Christ’s ascension in Acts 1:8, and Jesus said this power was necessary for them to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, all of Judea, Samaria, and the other parts of the earth.
This is what happens on Pentecost in Acts 2. Similarly, in Acts 8:12-13 Philip evangelized, and the Samaritans received Jesus and became believers, but it wasn’t until Peter and John showed up afterward to lay hands on people so that they could receive the power of the Holy Spirit in verses 14-17. This shows that salvation and baptism of the Holy Spirit can be distinct events in a believer’s life. However, in the case of Cornelius in Acts 10:44-48, it can also happen all at once, as evident in the fact that they spoke with tongues as Peter preached to them and they believed.
The same thing happens in Ephesus in Acts 19:1-7, when Paul preaches to 12 men who get saved, then are baptized in the name of Jesus in water, and then AFTERWARDS Paul lays his hands on them to receive the Holy Spirit (just like Peter and John in Acts 18). Speaking in tongues shows up in these scriptures as a sign that the Holy Spirit has empowered a person. This power is the source of the gifts of the Spirit that Paul discusses in 1st Corinthians 12.