Speaking in tongues is one of the most misunderstood topics found in the New Testament.  A likely reason for this is that many of the people “teaching” on the subject have never spoken in tongues, don’t know anybody who speaks in tongues, don’t want to speak in tongues, and don’t want anybody else to speak in tongues.  As a result they read into all of the related verses and passages their cessationist theology.  This is called “eisegesis”, which means “interpreting text in a way that is consistent with one’s viewpoint”.  The best approach to find the proper interpretation from a text is “exegesis”, which means “drawing the meaning from the text that is consistent with the context and the meaning of its author”.

I grew up Southern Baptist, and upon hearing about the baptism in the Holy Spirit and speaking in tongues, I investigated what my denomination said and what the Pentecostals said.  I wasn’t interested in taking sides.  I just wanted the truth, so I prayerfully read all of the passages and the opinions of all parties involved and finally resolved the issue within my spirit that the cessationists were simply wrong.  God never intended for this experience to pass away until Jesus returns.

Having settled that issue, I began to study all of the aspects of the gifts of the Spirit.  I was especially interested in understanding the gift of tongues.  What I discovered helped clear up some of the misconceptions that I had, many of which came from other Pentecostals but a few were from outside of the Pentecostal camp.

I Corinthians 12:10,28 tell us that there are various kinds of tongues.  Some are known to the hearer but not the speaker, and are used as a sign.  Others are known to nobody except God, and if they’re used in public they should be accompanied by an interpreter.  There are four different purposes and manifestations of tongues.

  1. Tongues as a sign to the unbeliever.   In Mark 16:17 Jesus said that one of the signs that would follow believers is speaking in new tongues.  That happened in Acts 2:4 when the believers received the infilling of the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues on the Day of Pentecost.  People from various regions who had come to Jerusalem for the Feast of Pentecost were astonished to hear dialects from their areas being spoken by the believers as they glorified God.  This enabled Peter to preach his famous sermon which reaped a harvest of three thousand souls.  Many have taught incorrectly that the believers were preaching the gospel in languages that they had never learned, but the Bible doesn’t say that they preached.  It says that Peter preached.  The believers merely spoke the wonderful works of God (Acts 2:11). The fact is they didn’t need to preach to these people in their native tongues, because they all had the common language of Koine Greek, and that was almost certainly the language that Peter used when he delivered his message.  The tongues were simply a way to arrest the attention of the listeners.  In I Corinthians 14:22 Paul told the church at Corinth that tongues are a sign for the unbeliever, so we know that this use of tongues was seen beyond the initial outpouring in Jerusalem.
  2. Tongues for public assembly.  In I Corinthians 14:27,28 Paul said that when believers come together, “If anyone speaks in a tongue, let there be two or at the most three, each in turn, and let one interpret.  But if there is no interpreter, let him keep silent in church, and let him speak to himself and to God.”  This gift can be manifested by any Spirit-filled believer, however in I Corinthians 12:30 we learn that there is also a ministry gift of tongues and interpretation for certain people that is different from the normal manifestation that any believer may have from time to time.  Some people read “Do all speak with tongues?” and conclude that not everybody is supposed to speak with tongues, but the context in this passage is ministry gifts – “Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all workers of miracles?  Do all have gifts of healings?”  Certainly not every believer will have a ministry of tongues or interpretation any more than every believer will have an apostolic or healing ministry, but all believers can have their own prayer language and manifest a message in tongues on occasion as the Spirit wills.
  3. Tongues for edification.  Paul tells us in I Corinthians 14:4 “He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself …”  The word for “edifies” in the Greek is oikodomeo, which means “to build up” as in the construction of a building.  It also carries with it the ideas of emboldening, energizing, restoring, rebuilding, and repairing.  The idea is that because we are living in a fallen world, we are in constant need of spiritual restoration that can only come from the Holy Spirit, and the prayer language is the mechanism to bring that about.  Jude also made reference to this in Jude 20.  “… building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit …”  In I Corinthians 14:14-18 Paul said “For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful.  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.  Otherwise, if you bless with the spirit, how will he who occupies the place of the uninformed say “Amen” at your giving of thanks, since he does not understand what you say?  For you indeed give thanks well, but the other is not edified. I thank my God I speak with tongues more than you all …”  Although Paul was addressing the proper usage of tongues in public assembly here, it seems clear from this passage that Paul was continually praying in tongues  in order to strengthen and build himself up in the faith.
  4. Tongues for intercession.  Romans 8:26 tells us “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.”  When praying for something or someone where we don’t know what to pray for we can just turn it over to the Holy Spirit and allow Him to do the praying for us and through us.