{"id":3565,"date":"2022-07-25T01:58:07","date_gmt":"2022-07-25T05:58:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jkitchen.org\/?p=3565"},"modified":"2022-07-25T01:58:07","modified_gmt":"2022-07-25T05:58:07","slug":"1-corinthians-1311","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jkitchen.org\/?p=3565","title":{"rendered":"1 Corinthians 13:11"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Verse 11 \u2013 When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Paul now illustrates what he has been saying\u2014that the present is not the fullness; the perfect is coming and, though we are not yet experiencing it, it will come and when it does it will utterly transform our present (even Spirit-given) experiences, understanding, and insight.<\/p>\n

To illustrate, Paul goes back to a time \u201cWhen I was a child\u201d (\u1f45\u03c4\u03b5 \u1f24\u03bc\u03b7\u03bd \u03bd\u1f75\u03c0\u03b9\u03bf\u03c2). The temporal adverb (\u201cWhen\u201d) marks \u201ca period of time coextensive with another period of time.\u201d[1]<\/a> It thus might be translated \u201cas long as<\/em>\u201d or \u201cwhile.<\/em>\u201d[2]<\/a> The imperfect tense of the verb underscores the abiding and ongoing state. The noun (\u03bd\u1f75\u03c0\u03b9\u03bf\u03c2, \u201cchild\u201d) designates a very young child, probably to be considered an infant or a small baby.[3]<\/a> It referred to a child who had not yet learned to speak.[4]<\/a><\/p>\n

Three things were true of that time in Paul\u2019s life. He presents them in telescoping fashion, moving outward from the simple (\u1f10\u03bb\u1f71\u03bb\u03bf\u03c5\u03bd, \u201cI spoke\u201d) to the more foundational (\u1f10\u03c6\u03c1\u1f79\u03bd\u03bf\u03c5\u03bd, \u201cI thought\u201d) and on to the root of it all (\u1f10\u03bb\u03bf\u03b3\u03b9\u03b6\u1f79\u03bc\u03b7\u03bd, \u201cI reasoned\u201d). The first verb (\u03bb\u03b1\u03bb\u1f73\u03c9) simply describes the human ability to emit sound\u2014ranging from simple noises to actual speech.[5]<\/a> The second verb (\u03c6\u03c1\u03bf\u03bd\u1f73\u03c9) means simply \u201cto think,\u201d that is to say, have thoughts about something, form an opinion and hold a view of things.[6]<\/a> The third verb (\u03bb\u03bf\u03b3\u1f77\u03b6\u03bf\u03bc\u03b1\u03b9) describes the more advanced ability to apply logic, reason, extrapolate one thing or a series of things into another. All three are in the imperfect tense, depicting the ongoing nature of a child\u2019s speaking, thinking, and reasoning. The third verb it cast in the middle voice, indicating that the subject takes action upon itself. Thus, Paul underscores the inward, self-driven nature of the reasoning he sets in view.<\/p>\n

A child speaks before it is able to embrace mature thought and the child thinks before his powers to reason are fully developed. Yet in each of these (notice the three-fold repetition) he did so \u201clike a child\u201d (\u1f61\u03c2 \u03bd\u1f75\u03c0\u03b9\u03bf\u03c2). With regard to speaking, he babbled and made \u201cbaby-talk.\u201d With regard to thinking, he was fixated only on the moment and the person or item in front of him. With regard to his powers of reasoning, he as yet had no ability to connect concepts, string together ideas, and formulate logical, linear thought. The child cannot anticipate something that is not yet in existence and thus he cannot practice patience in the face of hope or the discipline of delayed gratification.<\/p>\n

But Paul did not remain \u201ca child.\u201d He continues his illustration by taking up that time \u201cwhen I became a man\u201d (\u1f45\u03c4\u03b5 \u03b3\u1f73\u03b3\u03bf\u03bd\u03b1 \u1f00\u03bd\u1f75\u03c1). He employs again the same temporal conjunction (\u1f45\u03c4\u03b5, \u201cWhen\u201d; see comments above on this verse). The noun (\u1f00\u03bd\u1f75\u03c1, \u201ca man\u201d) is most often used to distinguish an adult human male, but here in contrast to \u201ca child\u201d (\u03bd\u1f75\u03c0\u03b9\u03bf\u03c2) it has emphasis upon the mature, fully-grown nature of the individual. The verb (\u03b3\u1f73\u03b3\u03bf\u03bd\u03b1, \u201cI became\u201d) is in the perfect tense, emphasizing the completion of the action in the past and the ongoing state that results. This contrasts with the imperfect tenses of the three preceding verbs. There was a decisive break when Paul left behind the ways of a child and entered into a settled state of full maturity.<\/p>\n

In that state of maturity, necessarily, he says, \u201cI gave up childish ways\u201d (\u03ba\u03b1\u03c4\u1f75\u03c1\u03b3\u03b7\u03ba\u03b1 \u03c4\u1f70 \u03c4\u03bf\u1fe6 \u03bd\u03b7\u03c0\u1f77\u03bf\u03c5). More specifically, \u201cchildish ways\u201d is \u201cthings of the child\u201d (\u03c4\u1f70 \u03c4\u03bf\u1fe6 \u03bd\u03b7\u03c0\u1f77\u03bf\u03c5). These Paul can testify, \u201cI gave up\u201d (\u03ba\u03b1\u03c4\u1f75\u03c1\u03b3\u03b7\u03ba\u03b1). Here again is the thematic verb found also here in verses 8 (2x) and 10. In those verses it was rendered \u201cpass away.\u201d As noted in verse 8 the verb can range in meaning from to cause something to be unproductive, to cause something to lose its power or effectiveness, or, as here, to cause something to come to an end or to cease to exist.[7]<\/a> In three previous usages (vv.8, 10) the verb was in the future tense, looking to a day yet to come. Here the perfect tense, like the verb just preceding the present one, pictures a decisive break with childhood and its ways. In the previous three usages it was in the passive voice, indicating someone or something acting to bring the partial (though divine) provisions of prophecies and knowledge to an end. Here the active voice pictures Paul\u2019s own personal action in transitioning from childhood to adulthood. He \u201cgave [them] up\u201d of his own free volition, for that is what healthy, normal people do as they age and grow.<\/p>\n

We should not read in Paul\u2019s illustration him labeling as childish those gifted in prophecy, knowledge, or tongues. Nor should we read into their expression a comparison to childish gibberish. The comparison is with the child\u2019s advance into mature manhood. The transition from \u201cthe partial\u201d divine provision of gifts that we enjoy by His grace in this present world will give way to \u201cthe perfect\u201d divine and final provision of eternal life in all its fullness as experienced in the presence of God in heaven.<\/p>\n

[1]<\/a> BDAG, 5412.2.<\/p>\n

[2]<\/a> Ibid.<\/p>\n

[3]<\/a> BDAG, 5087; Friberg, 18993.<\/p>\n

[4]<\/a> Liddell-Scott, 29569.<\/p>\n

[5]<\/a> BDAG, 4502.<\/p>\n

[6]<\/a> Ibid., 7819.<\/p>\n

[7]<\/a> Ibid., 4047.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Verse 11 \u2013 When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. Paul now illustrates what he has been saying\u2014that the present is not the fullness; the perfect is coming and, though we are […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[42,101],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3565","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-1-corinthians","category-love","post-preview"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pgYGxX-Vv","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jkitchen.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3565","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jkitchen.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jkitchen.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jkitchen.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jkitchen.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3565"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/jkitchen.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3565\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3566,"href":"https:\/\/jkitchen.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3565\/revisions\/3566"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jkitchen.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3565"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jkitchen.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3565"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jkitchen.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3565"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}