“Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth ; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.”
My Notes
What Does 1 Corinthians 2:13 Mean?
"Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual." Paul distinguishes between two types of communication: words taught by human wisdom and words taught by the Holy Spirit. The apostolic message uses the Spirit's vocabulary, not the academy's. And the method: "comparing spiritual things with spiritual" (pneumatikois pneumatika synkrinontes) — interpreting spiritual realities with spiritually-given language. The content is spiritual. The vocabulary is spiritual. The interpretation is spiritual. Every element of the communication chain is Spirit-governed.
The verse doesn't condemn education or rhetorical skill. It identifies the source of the content: the Spirit teaches the words. Human wisdom teaches different words for different purposes. The gospel requires the Spirit's specific vocabulary.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Where are you translating the gospel into cultural vocabulary at the cost of the Spirit's specific language?
- 2.What's the difference between Spirit-taught words and human-wisdom words — and which do you default to?
- 3.How does 'comparing spiritual things with spiritual' model how to interpret and teach biblical truth?
- 4.What Spirit-taught vocabulary (sin, grace, blood, cross) have you been avoiding because it sounds unsophisticated?
Devotional
Not the words man's wisdom teaches. The words the Holy Spirit teaches. The content AND the vocabulary come from the same source: the Spirit. The preacher doesn't just receive spiritual truth and then translate it into human categories. The translation itself is Spirit-directed.
Not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth. Human wisdom has its own vocabulary — eloquent, philosophical, culturally resonant. The Corinthians loved this vocabulary: impressive rhetoric, sophisticated argument, the kind of speech that gets applause in the lecture hall. And Paul says: that's not what we're using. Not because rhetoric is evil. Because the gospel has its own language — and the Spirit is the teacher of that language.
But which the Holy Ghost teacheth. The Spirit teaches the words. Not just the ideas. The specific linguistic choices — the terms, the metaphors, the connections — are Spirit-provided. Paul's preaching isn't Spirit-inspired content wrapped in human packaging. It's Spirit-inspired content in Spirit-taught packaging. The medium and the message are both from the same source.
Comparing spiritual things with spiritual. Synkrinontes — combining, interpreting, explaining. Spiritual realities are interpreted using spiritual language for spiritual people. The interpretation tool matches the interpreted content. You don't interpret the Spirit's revelations with the world's categories any more than you'd interpret a symphony using a chemistry textbook. The interpretive framework must match the content.
This has implications for preaching and teaching: the pressure to make the gospel 'relevant' by translating it entirely into cultural vocabulary risks losing the Spirit's specific language. The gospel has its own terms: sin, grace, blood, cross, resurrection, Spirit, kingdom. These aren't embarrassing relics to be updated. They're Spirit-taught vocabulary that carries meaning no cultural synonym can fully replace.
The Spirit teaches the words because the words carry the power. The human-wisdom vocabulary might be more impressive. The Spirit's vocabulary is more effective. Because the Spirit's words don't just describe spiritual reality. They activate it.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
But the natural man,.... Not a babe in Christ, one that is newly born again, for though such have but little knowledge…
Which things we speak - Which great, and glorious, and certain truths, we, the apostles, preach and explain. Not in the…
Which things also we speak - We dare no more use the language of the Jews and the Gentiles in speaking of those glorious…
In this part of the chapter the apostle shows them that though he had not come to them with the excellency of human…
comparing spiritual things with spiritual These words have been interpreted in several ways. (1) Wiclif renders them…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture