1 Corinthians 14

¹Pursue the love, and seek earnestly the spiritual things, and rather that ye may prophecy,

²for he who is speaking in an [unknown] tongue — to men he doth not speak, but to God, for no one doth hearken, and in spirit he doth speak secrets;

³and he who is prophesying to men doth speak edification, and exhortation, and comfort;

⁴he who is speaking in an [unknown] tongue, himself doth edify, and he who is prophesying, an assembly doth edify;

⁵and I wish you all to speak with tongues, and more that ye may prophecy, for greater is he who is prophesying than he who is speaking with tongues, except one may interpret, that the assembly may receive edification.

⁶And now, brethren, if I may come unto you speaking tongues, what shall I profit you, except I shall speak to you either in revelation, or in knowledge, or in prophesying, or in teaching?

⁷yet the things without life giving sound — whether pipe or harp — if a difference in the sounds they may not give, how shall be known that which is piped or that which is harped?

⁸for if also an uncertain sound a trumpet may give, who shall prepare himself for battle?

⁹so also ye, if through the tongue, speech easily understood ye may not give — how shall that which is spoken be known? for ye shall be speaking to air.

¹⁰There are, it may be, so many kinds of voices in the world, and none of them is unmeaning,

¹¹if, then, I do not know the power of the voice, I shall be to him who is speaking a foreigner, and he who is speaking, is to me a foreigner;