1 Corinthians 14:2
2. speaketh . . . unto God—who alone understands all languages.
no man understandeth—generally speaking; the few who have the gift of interpreting tongues are the exception. in the spirit—as opposed to "the understanding" (1Co 14:14). mysteries—unintelligible to the hearers, exciting their wonder, rather than instructing them. Corinth, being a mart resorted to by merchants from Asia, Africa, and Europe, would give scope amidst its mixed population for the exercise of the gift of tongues; but its legitimate use was in an audience understanding the tongue of the speaker, not, as the Corinthians abused it, in mere display.
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