Subject: speaking in tongues |
Bible Note: Greetings Kalos! If I may add to Searcher's response, there is considerable debate about this issue. There are three verbs in question in 1 Cor. 13:8: It is said of prophecies that they will cease - katargeo is used in the future, passive, indicate, 3rd person, plural form. It is said of tongues that they will cease - pauo is used in the future, middle, indicative, 3rd person, plural form. It is said of knowledge that it will cease - katargeo is used in the future, passive, indicate, 3rd person, singular form. The first and the last verb are both passive, which obviously means that they will be acted upon by some one else. They will be made to cease. The second verb though uses the middle form. Some argue from this that they will not be made to cease, but will cease of themselves. However, there are (in my opinion) two major problems with this view. First of all, I think this view ignores that thought that Paul may have changed verbs simply for stylistic reasons. In which case, no great difference in thought was intended. Secondly, I think that this view overstates the significance of the 'middle' voice. Some verbs were used in various voices with varying meanings. For instance, a verb could mean one thing in the passive voice, another in the active voice, and yet another in the middle voice. The reasons for the differences simply evolved over time as the language developed. Pauo is such a verb. In the active voice, it means 'to stop' or 'to keep from', while in the middle voice it means 'to stop', 'to cease', 'to cease from', or 'to be done with'. Thus, the most likely reading of this verse is simply that tongues will end at some point, but with no explanation of how. Logically, this makes more sense as well. Tongues are not alive, so how could they stop themselves? :) Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |