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1 Cor 13:8-12 - "gifts" pass away when you grow up!

(Garth D. Wiebe, extracted and posted separately July 2016, originally written 12/9/2014, 4/14/2015, 1/6/2015, 2/12/2015)

Most are aware of the sacred cow of cessationist teaching that uses 1 Cor 13:8-10 to claim that the supernatural things passed away with the age of the apostles and the writing of the scriptures, as well as the typical response that this will not happen until Jesus comes again, pointing out that "knowledge" hasn't passed away, etc.

How about "neither, nor," but rather, "when you grow up"?

What I found out was that the actual verbiage of scripture is consistent with what was said about the letter to the Corinthians being for carnal infants (1 Cor 3:1-2).

First, specifically three words need to be better defined.

μερος ("meros"), Strong's G3313, LSJ "μέρος": a share, portion, lot, part

τελειος ("teleios"), Strong's G5046, LSJ "τέλειος": complete, mature, full-grown, accomplished, perfected

καταργηω ("katargeo"), Strong's G2673, LSJ "καταργέωv": render idle or unemployed, useless, to no effect.

Now, here is the awkward, but very literal rendering, leaving the punctuation out (since the Greek has none), and highlighting those two words: (you can follow along in any interlinear)

[8] The love never is-failing whether yet prophecies shall-be-being-unemployed whether tongues shall-be-ceased whether knowledge shall-be-being-unemployed [9] out of-a-portion for we are knowing and out of-a-portion we-are-prophesying [10] whenever yet may-be-coming the mature then the out of-a-portion shall-be-being-unemployed [11] when I-was infant as infant I-talked as infant I-was-disposed as infant I-reckoned when yet I-have-become man I-have-unemployed the of-the of-infant

Re-translating the above afresh,

"[8] Love never fails, whether prophecies shall be unemployed or tongues shall be ceased or knowledge shall be unemployed. [9] Out of a portion we are knowing and out of a portion we are prophesying, [10] but when maturity comes then that which is out of portions shall be unemployed. [11] When I was an infant I talked like an infant and acted like an infant and thought like an infant. Yet when I became a man I stopped using the things of infancy."

So, the "portions," or "allotments," or "shares," or "divisions" include the so-called "spiritual gifts" (as they are popularly called), the stuff of what is cited in the previous chapter (1 Cor 12), and connected with being an "infant," whereas "maturity" is connected with "becoming a man," equated with agape "love," which cares for others above oneself. Those who seek or focus on "spiritual gifts" are thinking of themselves first, which is typical of infants; those who do whatever needs to be done to benefit others are thinking of others first, which is a characteristic of maturity. The Corinthians were focusing on the former; we are to focus on the latter. We should operate based on the Golden Rule, which would address any need that you come across "as you go," requiring that you operate in the fullness of the Spirit, instead of partial, incomplete "portions or "allotments" or "shares" or "divisions."

Also, the use of the verb form of μερος ("meros"), εμερισεν ("emerisen"), in Romans 12:3 refers to a similar "list" of "χαρισματα" ("charis-ma-ta") examples as portions/shares/allotments/parts, Paul emphasizing that one should "not think of yourself more highly than you ought," then discussing the principle of "one body, many parts," and then notice particularly that this is also immediately followed by an agape "love" exhortation in Romans 12:9-10. So it parallels 1 Cor. chapters 12-13 closely in principle.

Verse 12 is another helpful addition to this.

Again, literally, interlinearly,

[12] we-are-observing for presently through of-mirror in enigma then yet face toward face presently I-am-knowing out of-a-portion, then yet I-will-be-recognizing-myself according-as also I-am-recognized

The key is the voice of the following verb:

επιγνωσκω ("epi-gnosko"), Strong's G1921, "to know upon some mark, i.e. recognize; by implication, to become fully acquainted with, to acknowledge." This is a combination of επι ("epi"), Strong's G1909, which is the preposition "upon," and γνωσκω ("gnosko"), Strong's G1097, which is the verb "know."

In English grammar, we have the verb active voice, which is to act (e.g. "to loose"), and the passive voice, which is to be acted upon (e.g. "to be loosed"). Koine Greek adds a middle voice, which is to both act and be acted upon at the same time (e.g. "to loose so as to be loosed," i.e. "to loose oneself" ).

At the end of the verse, the first instance of "recognize" is in the middle voice; the second instance is in the passive voice.

Re-translating verse 12 afresh,

[12] presently in an enigma we are observing through a mirror, then yet presently I am knowing out of a portion, yet face toward face then recognizing myself according as also I am recognized.

So, "recognizing yourself as also you are recognized" speaks of our identity in Christ, in this context His fullness, the fullness of the Spirit.