1 Corinthians 14:20

1 Corinthians 14:20 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Brethren, be not children in understanding: howbeit in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men.
• New International Version (NIV)Brothers and sisters, stop thinking like children. In regard to evil be infants, but in your thinking be adults.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Brothers, do not be children in your thinking. Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Brethren, do not be children in understanding; however, in malice be babes, but in understanding be mature.

Context of 1 Corinthians 14:20

18I thank God that I speak in different kinds of languages more than all of you. 19But when the church meets together, I want to help other believers and teach them. So I would rather say five words that people understand than thousands of words in a different language. My Christian friends, do not continue to think like children think. Instead, think properly like men and women should think. The only way you should be like babies is to keep away from evil things. 21This is written in the Bible: ‘I will send strangers to speak to my people. They will speak my message to them in strange languages. But even when I do this, my people will not listen to me.’ That is what the Lord God has said. 22So the gift to speak in different languages is like a sign. It shows God's power to people who do not believe in him. It is not a sign to help believers. But the gift to speak clear messages from God shows his power to believers. It is not a sign for those people who do not believe.

1 Corinthians 14:20 word by word

Ἀδελφοί, μὴ παιδία γίνεσθε ταῖς φρεσίν, ἀλλὰ τῇ κακίᾳ νηπιάζετε, ταῖς δὲ φρεσὶν τέλειοι γίνεσθε.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Brethrenἀδελφόςadelphos · brotherG80
• beγίνομαιginomai · to beG1096
• notμήmē · notG3361
• childrenπαιδίονpaidion · childG3813
• in understandingὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• in understandingφρήνphrēn · thinkingG5424
• howbeitἀλλάalla · butG235
• in maliceκακίαkakia · evilG2549
• be ye childrenνηπιάζωnēpiazō · be childlikeG3515
• butδέde · thenG1161
• menτέλειοςteleios · perfectG5046

Cross-references for 1 Corinthians 14:20

• 1 Corinthians 3:1My Christian friends, I could not teach you as I would teach people who have God's Spirit. I had to teach you as people who belong only to this world. You were like little children who could not understand the message about Christ very well.
• 1 Corinthians 13:11When I was a child, I talked like a child. My thoughts were a child's thoughts. I understood things in a way that a child understands. But now that I have become a man, I have stopped being like a child.
• Psalms 119:99I understand more than all my teachers, because I think about your rules.
• Isaiah 11:3To obey the Lord will make him very happy. He will not judge people because of what he sees with his eyes. He will not judge them because of what he hears about them with his ears.
• Romans 16:19Everyone knows that you obey God well. So I am very happy because of you. But I want you to understand clearly what things are good. And I want you to stay away from the things that are bad.
• Ephesians 4:14So then we will not be like children any more. Our minds will not become confused by strange ideas. We will not change what we believe, from one thing to another. Some people teach things that are not true. They do clever things to deceive people. But we will not agree with their false message.
• Philippians 1:9This is what I pray for you. I pray that you will continue to love each other more and more. I pray that you will know God better and better. I pray that you will understand all those things that are true.
• Hebrews 5:12After all this time as believers in Jesus, you ought to be teachers. Instead of that, you still need someone to teach you the first lessons about God's message. You have become like babies, who need milk instead of proper food.
• Hebrews 6:1So we must go on from the first lessons that we learned about Christ. We must grow as believers so that we understand more and more. We should not go back to those first lessons again and again. We already know that we must turn away from wrong things that lead to death. We know that we must trust God.
• 2 Peter 3:18Instead, you must grow as believers in our Lord Jesus Christ, who saves us. Continue to know him better and better. He will be kind to you and he will help you more and more. We praise him as he deserves! He is great now and he will be great for ever!
• Psalms 131:1Lord, I am not proud. I do not think that I am a great person. I do not try to do great things. I do not worry about things that are too hard for me to understand.
• Matthew 11:25At this moment, Jesus said, ‘Father, you rule over everything in heaven and on the earth! People who do not know many things can now understand your message. And so I thank you. But you have hidden these things from some other people. Those people think that they understand everything. They think that they are wise.
• Matthew 18:3He said, ‘I tell you this: You must change and become like little children. If not, you will never come into the kingdom of heaven.
• Matthew 19:4Jesus replied, ‘You surely have read about this in the Bible. At the start, when God created the world, he made people male and female.
• Mark 10:15I tell you this: A person must become like a little child for God to rule in his life. If he does not become like a child, he will not come into the kingdom of God.’
• 1 Peter 2:2Instead, you should want to learn about God more and more. New babies always want their mothers' milk, which makes them grow strong. God's true message is like good food that will make you strong in your spirits. Then you will continue to grow as believers so that God saves you.

Commentaries on 1 Corinthians 14:20

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 20Be not children in understanding - There are three words here to which we must endeavor to affix the proper sense. 1. signifies children in general, but particularly such as are grown up, so as to be fit to send to school in order to receive instruction; 2. , from , not, and , I speak, signifies an infant; one that cannot yet speak, and is in the lowest stage of infancy; 3. , from , I complete or perfect, signifies those who are arrived at perfect…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 20Brethren, be not children in understanding - Be not childish; do not behave like little children. They admire, and are astonished at what is striking, novel, and what may be of no real utility. They are pleased with anything that will amuse them, and at little things that afford them play and pastime. So your admiration of a foreign language and of the ability to speak it, is of as little solid value as the common sports and plays of boys. This, says…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-25Verses 15-25 There can be no assent to prayers that are not understood. A truly Christian minister will seek much more to do spiritual good to men's souls, than to get the greatest applause to himself. This is proving himself the servant of Christ. Children are apt to be struck with novelty; but do not act like them. Christians should be like children, void of guile and malice; yet they should not be unskilful as to the word of righteousness, but only as…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 20To understand these matters maturely, consider the purpose of spiritual gifts. Do not treat them as ends for personal enjoyment.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2020. Brethren--an appellation calculated to conciliate their favorable reception of his exhortation. children in understanding--as preference of gifts abused to nonedification would make you (compare 1Co 3:1; Mt 10:16; Ro 16:19; Ep 4:14). The Greek for "understanding" expresses the will of one's spirit, Ro 8:6 (it is not found elsewhere); as the "heart" is the will of the "soul." The same Greek is used for "minded" in Ro 8:6. men--full-grown. Be childlike…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Corinthians 14:20

• Children
• Commandments
• Language
• Malice
• Preaching
• Righteous
• Wisdom

In the dictionaries

• Child
• Confusion
• Desire
• Edification
• Except
• Pipe
• Profit
• Tongues, Gift of
• Babe
• Corinthians, First Epistle to the

Commentaries on 1 Corinthians 14

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings