1 Corinthians 14:34, 35 concludes with Paul's commands
We have been going through 1 Corinthians 14:34-35, the passage that appears to silence women in the church to see how carefully Paul has constructed his words in 1 Corinthians 14:36 to contradict the silencing in verses 34 & 35. (For past articles on this topic, please see the 1 Corinthians 14 section).
Now we come to Paul’s conclusions and in keeping with the force of the commands that Paul has given throughout chapter 14, Paul ends with two commands that completely blow away any misunderstanding that verses 34 & 35 are Paul’s words to the church instead of a quote from the Corinthian’s letter to Paul.
What is “therefore” there for?
Paul says in 1 Cor. 14:39 “therefore” my brethren… The word “therefore” is a conjuction that joins together Paul’s words in verses 36-38 with the commands in verses 39 and 40. All of this directly contradicts the injunction found in verses 34 and 35. Let’s see how Paul concludes his contradiction of the silencing of women.
1 Corinthians 14:39 Therefore my brethren, desire earnestly to prophesy…
The first command of Paul’s in his summary is a repeat of what Paul had already commanded in verse 1. Paul writes in Philippians 3:1 that repetition is for our safety. The body of Christ is to desire earnestly to prophesy and this repetition at the end of the chapter is to make sure that we “get it”. Remember that Paul gave the reason why they were to desire earnestly to prophesy and the reason is for the edification of the church (1 Cor. 14:3, 4)
Speaking forth and keeping silent
Now let’s have another look at the entire chapter of 1 Cor. 14 to see what pattern is set forth regarding speaking and not speaking so that we can completely understand Paul’s summary.
“Speaking forth” allowed:
- All commanded to seek spiritual gifts especially prophesying in the assembly (verse 1)
- Prophesying in the assembly edifies, exhorts and consoles (verse 3)
- Prophesying in the assembly edifies all (verse 4)
- Gifts for use for the common good are greater than a gift that only edifies one’s self (verse 5)