Let the others judge (1 Corinthians 14:29)

“Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the other[s] judge.” (1 Corinthians 14:29)

The purpose of this study is to consider how the members of the church should judge those things that are said.

Peter gives us a good example of what judging looks like:

And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us; and put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith. (Acts 15:8-9)

Peter saw that God had given the Gentiles the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:44), and this showed him that God didn’t make a difference between the Jews and the Gentiles in this matter. The phrase “put … difference” translates the word for “judging”, so judging is making a difference between two things; here Jews and Greeks.

Our ability to make judgments concerning a given situation is a skill that we can develop; consider what Jesus says to the Pharisees and Sadducees about their ability to judge:

He answered and said unto them, “When it is evening, ye say, it will be fair weather: for the sky is red. And in the morning, it will be foul weather today: for the sky is red and lowring. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?” (Matthew 16:2-3)

By following this simple rule, based on observation and experience, they would have been able to make general predictions about the weather because they were able to discern/judge the face of the sky. Jesus is critical of them because their judgment does not extend to their ability to discern the son of God in their midst, despite the many miracles he did. The implication for us is that we can and should be using our judgment to understand signs that God gives us.

We should also be able to judge our brethren:

I speak to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you? No, not one that shall be able to judge between his brethren? (1 Corinthians 6:5)

The context to this verse is important:

Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unjust, and not before the saints? (1 Corinthians 6:1)

The phrase “go to law” translates the word “judge”, the root of the word we are considering. It is used eight times in the first seven verses of this chapter. When Jesus returns the saints will be set over cities as judges (Luke 19:17). We should be developing skill in judgment in this life, to prepare us for the life to come:

Know ye not that we shall judge angels? How much more things that pertain to this life? (1 Corinthians 6:3)

We should also be making judgments when we break bread:

For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. (1 Corinthians 11:29-31)

The problem Paul is addressing here is that the Corinthians were eating and drinking their own food (v. 21) without considering the importance of what it represented. They were not making a difference between their own food and the Lord’s body; this was such a serious problem that some had even died because of it. Paul commands those in Corinth to judge themselves; this is connected to the previous verse:

But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. (1 Corinthians 11:28)

By examining ourselves, we can make judgments about what we are like and how we fall short of the example of Jesus; we make a difference between ourselves and Christ. This process of “judging ourselves” ensures that we are discerning Jesus’ body when we eat it, and not damning ourselves.

The background in 1 Corinthians 14:29 adds depth to this picture. By exercising judgment when listening to the words that are said “in ecclesia”, the listener is able to discern what is true. As the listener makes these judgements about whether the words are true they should also extend this process to themselves, by judging whether they are doing the things that the word commands.

Judging is a skill we need to develop in order to make ourselves acceptable to God. We need to be able to discern what is true, and whether we are doing it, so that we can try to change our behaviour and our mind to remove the differences between us and God.