New International Version
1 Corinthians 14:15
15So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my understanding; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my understanding.
1 Corinthians 14:15 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also.
- English Standard Version (ESV)What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also.
- New King James Version (NKJV)What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding.
- New Living Translation (NLT)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.
Context of 1 Corinthians 14:15
13For this reason the one who speaks in a tongue should pray that they may interpret what they say. 14For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my understanding; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my understanding. 16Otherwise when you are praising God in the Spirit, how can someone else, who is now put in the position of an inquirer, say “Amen” to your thanksgiving, since they do not know what you are saying? 17You are giving thanks well enough, but no one else is edified.
Read all of 1 Corinthians 141 Corinthians 14:15 word by word
τί οὖν ἐστιν; προσεύξομαι τῷ πνεύματι, προσεύξομαι δὲ καὶ τῷ νοΐ· ψαλῶ τῷ πνεύματι, ψαλῶ δὲ καὶ τῷ νοΐ.Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Whatτίςtis · which?G5101
- is itεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
- thenοὖνoun · therefore/thenG3767
- I will prayπροσεύχομαιproseuchomai · to prayG4336
- with the spiritὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- with the spiritπνεῦμαpneuma · spirit/breath: spiritG4151
- andδέde · thenG1161
- with the understandingνοῦςnous · mindG3563
- alsoκαίkai · andG2532
- I will singψάλλωpsallō · to sing praiseG5567
Cross-references for 1 Corinthians 14:15
- 1 Corinthians 10:19Do I mean then that food sacrificed to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything?
- Romans 3:5But if our unrighteousness brings out God’s righteousness more clearly, what shall we say? That God is unjust in bringing his wrath on us? (I am using a human argument.)
- Romans 8:31What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
- Philippians 1:18But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice,
- 1 Corinthians 14:19But in the church I would rather speak five intelligible words to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue.
- John 4:23Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.
- Romans 1:9God, whom I serve in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you
- Ephesians 5:17Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.
- Ephesians 6:18And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.
- Colossians 3:16Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.
- Jude 1:20But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit,
- Psalms 47:7For God is the King of all the earth; sing to him a psalm of praise.
- Romans 12:1Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
Commentaries on 1 Corinthians 14:15
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15What is it then? - What shall I do? What is the proper course for me to pursue? What is my practice and my desire; see the same form of expression in Romans 3:9, and Romans 6:15. It indicates the “conclusion” to which the reasoning had conducted him, or the course which he would pursue in view of all the circumstances of the case. I will pray with the spirit - I will endeavor to “blend” all the advantages which can be derived from prayer; I will “unite”…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. 15-17It is better to worship with both spirit and understandable words. Public worship should bless God and others. Speaking in tongues without interpretation glorifies God and helps the speaker (14:4), but it does not help others present. say “Amen” to your thanksgiving: Amen was the traditional response to a prayer.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1515. What is it then?--What is my determination thereupon? and--rather as Greek, "but"; I will not only pray with my spirit, which (1Co 14:14) might leave the understanding unedified, BUT with the understanding also [Alford and Ellicott]. pray with the understanding also--and, by inference, I will keep silence altogether if I cannot pray with the understanding (so as to make myself understood by others). A prescient warning, mutatis mutandis, against the…Read the comment
Topics related to 1 Corinthians 14:15
In the dictionaries
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
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