complete verse (1 Corinthians 14:1)

Following are a number of back-translations of 1 Corinthians 14:1:

  • Uma: “So, relatives, what we must really do first is love others. And after that, we must also strive to get abilities from the Holy Spirit. And the ability that is the most useful is the ability to speak God’s words.” (Source: Uma Back Translation)
  • Yakan: “That is what you should really strive for, to love your fellow-men. And you should also aspire for the expertises from the Spirit of God especially the expertise of speaking the word of God.” (Source: Yakan Back Translation)
  • Western Bukidnon Manobo: “Therefore, brothers, it’s necessary that what you put first in your breath is your love for your companions. And it’s good also, if you ask for the skills which the Holy Spirit gives, espcially the skill to interpret that which God causes to understand.” (Source: Western Bukidnon Manobo Back Translation)
  • Kankanaey: “Do everything in your power then to love-one-another, and at-the-same-time also desire-strongly to receive the various abilities that the Holy Spirit gives, especially the ability of God’s spokesman (also rendered as in v.3).” (Source: Kankanaey Back Translation)
  • Tagbanwa: “It is really important that you always strive-hard-after this valuing, however hope-for/expect also the abilities that the Espiritu Santo freely-gives, especially that of having-put-into-one’s-mind what God is making known to everyone.” (Source: Tagbanwa Back Translation)
  • Tenango Otomi: “Now earnestly endeavor that you love your fellow men, each one of you. And also want that God will give to you the strength to do his work. But most intensely want that there be those people who will speak the word God puts in their minds to speak.” (Source: Tenango Otomi Back Translation)

Spirit (of God) (Japanese honorifics)

Like a number of other East Asian languages, Japanese uses a complex system of honorifics, i.e. a system where a number of different levels of politeness are expressed in language via words, word forms or grammatical constructs. These can range from addressing someone or referring to someone with contempt (very informal) to expressing the highest level of reference (as used in addressing or referring to God) or any number of levels in-between.

One way to do this is through the usage (or a lack) of an honorific prefix as shown here in the widely-used Japanese Shinkaiyaku (新改訳) Bible of 2017. When the referent is God, the “divine” honorific prefix mi- (御 or み) can be used, as in mi-tama (御霊) or “Spirit (of God)” in the referenced verses.

(Source: S. E. Doi, see also S. E. Doi in Journal of Translation, 18/2022, p. 37ff. )

See also Holy Spirit

Translation commentary on 1 Corinthians 14:1

This Greek sentence is simple but awkward. A literal translation would be “Follow love, but be zealous for the spiritual gifts, but rather that you may prophesy.” “Follow love” makes a real link with 12.31a, and “rather that you may prophesy” introduces an important theme of chapter 14. The underlying thought is “As I have just been saying, love is the supreme gift, but it is in a separate category, and we have no more to say about it. But now, returning to what I was saying earlier, it is good to want to have spiritual gifts, but among these the most important is ‘the gift of prophecy.’ ”

Paul makes it clear in verse 39 that Christian prophecy, namely, proclaiming God’s message, is much more important than speaking with tongues.

The phrase Make love your aim may be rendered as “So, you must strive above everything else to gain this ability to love.”

Desire the spiritual gifts can also be expressed as “desire to gain spiritual gifts” or “… to gain abilities that the Spirit gives.” Translators may use the term “ability” rather than gifts, if that is more natural in their language.

There is little difference in meaning between the verbs translated Make … aim and earnestly desire (compare 12.31; 14.39).

On the subject of Christian prophecy, see the comments on 11.4; 12.10.

Prophecy or “the gift of proclaiming God’s message” (Good News Bible) is certainly divinely inspired, but it is not ecstatic or unintelligible. There is also nothing in this chapter that would lead to our understanding of “prophecy” as foretelling the future.

Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians, 2nd edition. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1985/1994. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .