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Now concerning (the) spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. You know that when you were pagans, you were enticed and led astray to idols that could not speak. Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God ever says "Shun JESUS Let Jesus be cursed!" and no one can say "Lord JESUS Jesus is Lord" except by the Holy Spirit Sacred.
Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses.
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This is the Epistle selection to be read aloud on the second Sunday after the Epiphany, Year C, according to the lectionary for the Episcopal Church. This reading will follow one from Isaiah, where the prophet wrote: “You shall no more be termed Forsaken, and your land shall no more be termed Desolate.” That will precede a singing of Psalm 36, where David wrote: “Continue your loving-kindness to those who know you, and your favor to those who are true of heart.” All will accompany a reading from John’s Gospel, where we find: “On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding” … and “the wine gave out.”
Let me first state that the vast majority of the English translations of the Epistles – by all divine authors – are little more than bad paraphrases of the meaning behind the words. People calling themselves “Christian” (those who put forth some efforts to live up to that name) memorize these English paraphrases as ‘Gospel,’ when translations like the one above are misleading and dangerous. Divine language demands divine insight for understanding, because Scripture is not written so just anyone can understand. Paraphrases shine just enough truth to lead true seekers to question, “Is there more to this story?” There is always more; and, this translation of Paul’s letter is embarrassing to see, when compared to that written.
Any reading taken from one of Paul’s letters (especially) that is more than five verses can generate around six thousand words of my explanation. Sheeple do not have the time to spend ‘grazing’ on my explanations. I get tired of writing after three thousand words; and, every word I write is a loving experience for me, hearing the divine voice within lead me to understanding. Still, with all that personal enjoyment, there is only so much my body can easily accommodate in one day. That means an eleven verse 'mega-reading,' like this one, is more than I am willing to fully explain. Therefore, I will only get the true seeker started; and, then I will leave it up to them to finish what I start [Tag! You’re it!].
In the first three verses above, you can see how I have stricken through way too much paraphrase, just to show the truth of what should translate into English. I gave up adjusting the NRSV ‘Scripture’ at that point. I will explain the truth of what the first three verses are saying, with a couple of summary additions after that. That is as far as I am willing to go, as far as in-depth discernment of this reading is concerned.
To begin with, the first word of verse 1 is capitalized. More than being some syntactical rule of English, which says the first word of all sentences should be capitalized, so capitalization is procedural and not denoting significance, does not divine language make. All capitalized word in divine Scripture must be seen as possessing elevated meaning, necessitating that signal to the reader. To further confuse this divine tool of prophets following Yahweh’s Will, the panderers of English translations run amok capitalizing non-capitalized words, as if God tapped them on the shoulders and said, “You speak for me.” Capitalization is a sign for seekers to follow; and capitalization will become more important later in this interpretation.
The first word of verse one is “Peri,” which the NRSV translates acceptably as “Concerning,” but that translation implies something prior stated, which now needs to be further explained. This takes on the meaning, “concerning that stated, let me state further.” That does not work here, as the first word of a new chapter. Because a word following “Peri” is translated as “spiritual,” one knows “Spirit” is the topic in chapter twelve [it is written twelve times in these eleven verses, in one way or another]. Had Paul spent a lot of time writing about the “Spirit” in chapter eleven, then one could assume Paul is now going to give further details about that, “concerning” his having written about “Spirit” prior. However, absolutely nothing is stated in chapter eleven that says “Spirit.”
This leads to two indicator signs, the first of which is the lower-case spelling of “pneumatikōn,” which means “spiritual.” The second indicator sign is the divinely elevated meaning of “Peri” fully complies with the meaning of the word, which is said to be this: “perí (a preposition) – properly, all-around (on every side); encompassing, used of full (comprehensive) consideration where "all the bases are covered" (inclusively). 4012 (perí) is often translated "concerning" ("all about")”. [HELPS Word-studies] This says the word becomes elevated in meaning beyond a simple reference that is “concerning” something, to a divine statement about the “All-around, Encompassing” presence that is the unseen – the “spiritual.”
The first segment of words in verse one are these in Greek: “Peri de tōn pneumatikōn,” which literally translate to say, “All about now of these spiritual”. The NRSV (and BibleHub interlinear) makes the assumption that “spiritual” implies “gifts,” when the word “pneumatikōn” is simply the plural form of “pneumatikos,” meaning “spiritual,” with HELPS Word-studies adding: “(an adjective, derived from 4151 /pneúma, "spirit") – spiritual; relating to the realm of spirit, i.e. the invisible sphere in which the Holy Spirit imparts faith, reveals Christ, etc.” Nothing whatsoever implies “gifts.” That is an assumption brought forward, from a later use of the word “charismatōn” [“of gifts”], found used in verse four. Thus, the beginning of verse one becomes a theme of Paul’s, which is relative to the “All-Encompassing” nature of the “spiritual,” as opposed to the ever-present (in human life) physical and material.
After that first segment’s introduction to the theme topic, Paul then addressed his audience in his letter, writing “adelphoi,” which clearly says, “brothers.” Now all the gutter-dwelling scum that have paid good money (via student loans or church endowments) to seminaries, in order to graduate with a sheet of paper that says “Officially Qualified Hired Hand” – having never once ever entertained the possibility of being filled with Yahweh’s Spirit and made a Saint, thereby never having been ‘ordained’ by the Highest Power – their employers have realized the lady-folk are the ones who pay the most into their businesses. With the power of lady-folk, ever since they first began seeking self-power as voters and then burning their bras in protest over not being able to legally kill their babies in the womb [babies infringe so much on the freedom for lady-folk to run the world], the religious organizations [employers of hired hands] pander to the lady-folk by changing “adelphoi” from “brothers” to “brothers and sisters.” Paul did not write “and sisters,” so I have stricken that out above.
If a reader of Scripture understood the tongues of divine prophets … Saints … they would know the “All-Encompassing now of these spiritual” are then said to be “brothers.” Certainly, you can bet your bottom dollar [meaning go ‘all-in’] that true Christians in Corinth included lady-folk, as well as men-folk. Paul was not writing to the miserable likes that swell [I use that word in COVID jest] the pews of Episcopal churches and the altars of said, as if Paul were a male dominated bigot. It is the “All-Encompassing” that “now” makes the topic come up that is “of these spiritual,” who are now all recognized as "brothers” [Spiritually].
First of all, the word “brothers” is a statement of relationship. It says “of these spiritual” is a clear-cut relationship (use of commas to separate “adelphoi” from that before and after) that says all are “now of these spiritual” related to the same Father (not a physical daddy). Because this is a “spiritual” relationship to Yahweh, all “of these spiritual” are reborn as His Son, with none of them reborn as His daughters [a daughter is a human: a soul in a body of feminine essence flesh]. Thus, it must be understood that “of these spiritual” is when physical sex organ become meaningless, because SOULS have no need for or capability of reproduction. Thus, the are all divinely married souls-in-flesh are deemed masculine, even the divinely married souls found in lady-folk.
After Paul made that distinction clear – “of these spiritual” they are “brothers” – he then completed verse one by writing, “outhelō hymas agnoein,” which literally translates to say, “not I care to be your souls to be unaware of”. In that, the pronoun “hymas” is “you” written in the second-person, which can translate as “yourselves.” Because a “self” should be seen as a “soul,” which is a “spiritual” presence in a body of flesh, Paul is then saying the purpose of his topic is the “All-Encompassing” change that has “now” come upon the true Christians of Corinth, so “of these” Corinthians having become “spiritual” relatives – a togetherness that is “All-around” and beyond blood relations or religious affiliations or racial distinctions, making all [males and females alike] be “brothers” in a “spiritual” way – this is “not” a “spiritual” presence like before, when one’s soul led one’s everything, when everything before was about “I want to be” or “I care to be” about this and that, but not that or this [from “thelō”]. Relative to the new state of being that is from Yahweh and “Encompassing” you, “your souls” [from “hymas”] need to now become something “you are unaware of” or you are ‘to be ignorant of.” In this new “spiritual” circumstance, your souls have fully submitted unto Yahweh and no longer have “ego-presence.” In short, this segment of words says, "not you shall care about the "I" that led your souls around prior, ignorant of Yahweh."
With that theme topic stated, verse two is then more than the NRSV simply states as, “You know that when you were pagans, you were enticed and led astray to idols that could not speak.” To begin with, the first word of this verse is also capitalized, with that being “Oidate,” shown simply as “You know. This form is stating the second-person plural form of “eidó,” meaning “be aware, behold, consider, perceive,” makes this be stating a similar state that was “Peri,” or “Concerning” [NRSV translation]. As such, following the end of verse one saying “to be unaware of” or “to be ignorant of” self-ego, verse two is now making a divinely elevated statement about what “your Awareness” must come from, spiritually.
The Greek of verse two then is written as such: “Oidate hoti hote ethne ēte , pros ta eidōla to aphōna , hōs an ēgesthe , apagomenoi .” This is four segments that literally state: “Aware are you that when heathens you existed , advantageous for these images of worship these without voice , like as if you were led , you being led astray .” In the first of these segments, this divine “Awareness” that each of the true Christians of Corinth had realized spiritually was relative to what “they had been” before. It is then that prior “existence” that Yahweh’s Spirit has let them know that old you must no longer have control over your bodies of flesh. This is because the old you, for all of them, was as “heathens,” which needs further understanding.
The Greek word written – “ethne” – is the plural number of “ethnos,” meaning “a race, a nation, the nations (as distinct from Israel); while in use implying “a race, people, nation; the nations, heathen world, Gentiles.” In this word, the implication is all the Corinthians who were saved by Paul’s presence – their souls married to Yahweh, with each being reborn as Jesus, each a Saint – were Gentiles or non-Jews. The opinion of Paul is that he ministered to Gentiles only, when that must be realized as shear stupidity. As Saul, Paul traveled to where Jews (exiled Israelites) lived, with the luxury of Roman citizenship allowing him access to just about wherever the Roman Empire had power and control. Most likely, the diaspora knew of Saul, so few Christians had blossomed from spores in the wind landing on Jews that lived in places like Corinth. Paul would have gone into the Jewish neighborhoods, in the places his ministry took him; but he certainly would not forbid Gentiles from listening to what he had to teach as an Apostle of Yahweh, reborn as Jesus. Because Saul was a reflection of just how far from Yahweh the Jews had wandered, ALL JEWS were “heathens,” having turned themselves away from Yahweh so far that they had become those they disdained. They were the epitome of 'the pot calling the kettle black.' Thus, Jews and Gentiles alike would have understood [“Aware are you”] this old way of existence was the same for both classes of “people,” before their “spiritual” transformation.
In the second segment of words, following this recognition of the old ways “Known” by the true Christians of Corinth, Paul said, “advantageous for these images of worship these without voice.” In that, the first word, “pros,” means “motion towards to "interface with" (literally, moving toward a goal or destination).” [HELPS Word-studies] The Strong’s translation is “advantageous for,” as “towards” a goal, where “ta eidōla” can mean “these images of worship” or “these idols." There, the word denotes “false gods.” This must be seen as Paul reminding the Corinthians that they all had prior lives, Jews and Gentiles alike, that included a misunderstanding of God [or the gods], which led their reasoning for living what amounted to being sinful lives. They felt justified because they used “false” concepts of God or the gods as their god-given right to cheat others, so they got more in return than they gave [“advantageous for” them].
When the second segment adds “to aphōna,” which then says, “these without voice” or “these speechless, soundless, voiceless, mute or dumb,” the impression is some temple with a statue in it, where people came and left food sacrifices or prayer notes and left, with nothing possible to be spoken by statues. While that would perfectly fit a Greek, who Paul said had a statue to every god known to man, even the “unknown god,” the Jews also worshiped Yahweh similarly. They would parade into synagogues and make offerings before “false shepherds” that were just as “voiceless” as were Greek statues in Greek temples. In that sense, the scrolls of the Torah, Psalms and Prophets were their idols, but before their “spiritual” transformation, none of them could repeat what any of those written words really said or meant. In today’s word of false Christianity, the same can be said of the copies of the Holy Bible in multiple English translations, which are silent in speaking the truth, so true Christians are transformed “spiritually.”
In the third segment of words, Paul then wrote, “hōs an ēgesthe,” which say that silence was “even as” or “like as” the same inability each of them had to speak the truth to others. None of them “had been led” to speak anything of value, based on them having heard nothing of value coming from those serving as hired hands, in any of the houses of the holy. None of the temple priests had taught them to speak the truth, so they “had been led” to an equal state of “speechlessness.”
Paul then ended verse two with one separated word – “apagomenoi” – which means “you being carried away” or “you being led astray.” As a concluding word in this remembrance of the past lives of all the “now” true Christians, who were all “brothers spiritually,” Paul reminded them that before their "spiritual" awakening, as "brothers," they had become like lost sheep. Their shepherds did not care to keep up with them, because they themselves did not know keeping up with anyone other than oneself was beneficial to their souls. That led to a miserable state where all seekers of “spiritual” truth were lost in an ‘every man [and woman] for himself [or her soul]’ life circumstance.
Verse three then is presented in the Greek text as stating, “dio gnōrizō hymin hoti oudeis en Pneumati Theou lalōn , legei Anathema IĒSOUS , kai oudeis dynatai eipein , Kryios IĒSOUS , ei mē en Pneumati Hagiō .” This is a five-segment series of statements; and, in these it is vital to see there are not only eight capitalized words [first letter capital], but there are two words written in all-caps [which the NRSV decided not to reproduce. Let me say now that a capitalized word has a divine elevation that must be realized in that word. That can then be seen as magnified the all-caps presentations [twice] of “IĒSOUS,” so that spelling must each be realized as reflecting a need for extremely elevated divine meaning.
The first segment of words states: “on which account I make known of yourself that no one within Spirit of God speaking”. In that, the first word “dio” needs to be seen as a connection between sinners “having been misled” (and happily having gone “astray”), where it is their newfound understanding that the first-person “I” of each, including the sinner Saul, has had “made known” the greatness of their salvations. This divine “knowledge” is “of yourselves,” where each soul knew it had been divinely changed. In that “knowledge,” all realized themselves had nothing to do with some personal achievement that made any of them special. Saul was so embarrassed about his past “existence” that he changed his name to Paul, purposely known to mean “Small.” Their collective understanding, all known individually, was “none” of them [from “oudeis”] said or did anything [“oudeis” meaning “nothing”] of value that was not “in the Spirit.” The “Spirit” ["Pneumati" is a capitalized word] is greater than that ordinarily “spiritual,” as is a “soul,; but, all that is “spiritual” can only come from “God” [“Theou,” another capitalized word]. Thus everything “known” to Paul and the true Christians of Corinth was “God speaking” through them. Without that presence of “God speaking” through them, they had “nothing” of value to say.
This element of “speaking” must now be linked to “these images of worship” that were “these without voice.” The link here of “God speaking” has to be understood that “God” does not holler down from heaven, telling human beings what to do. “God speaks” through His priests, all of whom have married their souls to His “Spirit,” so they open their mouths and “Yahweh speaks.” This is supposed to have been how any priest of any god (especially Yahweh) tells the faithful how to act, so the gods are pleased. Nobody ever expects a statue to speak to them; so, the truth of the silence that “led them astray” came from bad priests. This is Paul saying that all the Jews who said Yahweh was their God were lying … and Saul knew about that firsthand, having himself been “led astray” by the priests of Jerusalem’s Temple, who told Paul to go persecute Christians.
This must be seen in the second segment of words, where Paul wrote in all-caps “JESUS.” He said, “calls a Curse JESUS,” where the Greek word “legei” is the third-person singular form of “legó,” meaning “he, she, it said, spoke, mentioned, meant, or told,” with the usage implying “commanded.” This command is then to “Curse,” where the capitalized “Anathema” must be seen in the vein of thought that is Temple related, where the usage means “concluding a process, which intensifies,” also as a “oath-curse,” and “referring to something pledged (given up) to destruction.” [HELPS Word-studies] This must be read with the insight that Saul had sworn such an “Oath-Curse,” which set him out so he acted harshly against anyone using the name “JESUS” as their Lord and Savior, saying he had been resurrected within their souls. In this example of what a true Christian has “God say” through him or her, this is not “Him speaking."
In the all-caps presentation of “JESUS,” one needs to see the divine elevation going well beyond a simple capitalized “Jesus.” Besides knowing “Jesus” is the Son of Yahweh made flesh, the name behind the name – the reason Gabriel told Mary what her miracle baby would be named – is it means “Yahweh Will Save.” When that divine elevation is seen, then the all-caps speaks as all those souls who “Yahweh Has Saved,” through being reborn in the name of “JESUS.” The all-caps is then speaking of Paul, all the Apostles, and all the true Christians of Corinth. ALL OF THEM were individually “Jesus” reincarnated. The all-caps then means a much greater existence, more than someone saying simply, "I believe in Jesus being the Son of God." Saul was not seeking them, because his torturous acts were known to have a way of forcing pretenders into confessing the truth [and the Romans would use similar tactics in the arenas that pitted ferocious wild animals and human beings saying they were Christian - meaning those who said, "I am JESUS reborn."]
This then leads to the third segment of words in verse three, which is introduced by the word “kai,” a marker word that indicates importance to follow. By seeing all souls who have been “spiritually” elevated by Yahweh as the meaning of “JESUS,” so none of them can ever swear an oath of destroying the Son of Yahweh, as those who claim to be “JESUS” resurrected, “none” of them “have the power to command.” Here, following the use of the word “legei” as the “call” or “order” to “seek the destruction” of Christians [the truth of “JESUS”], that usage is matched by the word “eipein,” which means to speak in “answer” to a “command.” No one has the “capability” to speak anything [“oudeis” as “nothing”] other than what Yahweh “commands.” Apostles and Saints “answer” when called.
When the word “eipein” leads to a comma, followed by the capitalized word “Kyrios,” meaning “Lord” or “Master,” the standard divine elevation of this word makes it be a statement of Yahweh having married a soul and from that union was raised His Son within that wife-soul. This is the equivalent of a divine possession, where the soul of Jesus is merged with the host soul of a body of flesh, with Jesus being given full control over that body [loving and willing self-sacrifice]. With the body becoming the tabernacle of Jesus, the soul of Jesus is thereby that body’s “Lord.” However, this usage is followed by the all-caps “JESUS,” saying the thing that cannot be “said” is, “I am Lord as Jesus incarnate.” This is precisely what Roman Catholic popes have done for centuries; and, Paul was saying “no one can answer” (himself or herself) to be the “Lord” that all followers must follow, because that one is saying, “I am JESUS.” That is forbidden by Yahweh, as “no one” will make that claim, when his or her soul has Jesus as its “Lord.” [The caveat of this becomes the word "Christian," where the truth behind that identification says, "I am JESUS" indirectly; but still, the point made here by Paul is: Deeds speak louder than words.] Even if a wife-soul of Yahweh knows he or she has Jesus' soul within their souls, none have the right to proclaim, "I am Lord JESUS."
The fifth segment of words appears to give such claims made by popes and false messiahs the right, “if” one’s soul is “in the Spirit Holy,” but that “if” is misread. The word “if” is a statement about when anyone would be so bold as to claim to be a “Lord” over Christians, as “JESUS” incarnate, that is “not” the truth. It is “not” a claim by any soul who is “in” the name of Jesus, as one married to Yahweh and “in” His name. Paul made it clear that the “Spirit” will “not” utter such words “among” Christians. This is “not” the use of divine Word by a “Saint.”
These three verses have now taken me close to four thousand words to explain. I explain them based on a system that allows me to read what is written in a divine syntax, rather than a normal syntax that translates Greek to English. The fact that few other people understand this divine syntax is not for me to discard and pretend the truth is not meant to be known [divine mysteries forever?]. I will now venture a short distance into verse four, using the same systems and talk about the “gifts” that Paul wrote of [“charismatōn”].
In the after the Epiphany time period recognized by these reading selections of the Episcopal Church, this is when Christmas gifts are still new and fun to play with or use. We tend to read of Paul’s “gifts” as if it is something we own, because someone gave us a “gift.” This is very similar thinking to one declaring, “I am JESUS,” as such claims can only be backed up by demonstrations of the “gifts” one possesses. In reality, no one possesses any “gifts” made available only by Yahweh, to be incorporated only by Jesus, who will have been resurrected within a soul’s body of flesh. This says ALL “gifts” are “spiritual,” and no soul [a “spiritual” entity given to flesh by Yahweh] possesses the powers of Yahweh. Only the soul of Jesus is “given” [from “nathan”] the ability to do what Paul says Saints can do.
When this is realized, the remaining verses of this reading explain this ownership of “spiritual gifts.” Still, when verse four begins with the capitalized Greek word “Diaireseis,” meaning “a division,” implying “distribution, difference, distinction,” the divine elevation of that word means Yahweh “Divides” His powers in “Different” ways. This means that Saints will not be able to claim any powers of Yahweh, as Yahweh will allow His Son Jesus to pick and choose when and where a specific “gift” of Yahweh can be exercised. It is not like a Saint has some handbag of “gifts,” from which he or she can pull out a “Different gift” to use, depending on what the brain of a Saint thinks would be best. Again, returning back to the aspect of a true Saint [a true Christian] never claiming to be “Lord” over others, such as Saint Peter could never claim to be pope because he possessed seven “gifts,” which he could use whenever he wanted.
In this example, not long ago the reading from Acts [8] told of Samaritans needing to be baptized with the Spirit, so Peter and John were sent. That chapter tells of Simon the magician, who saw Peter and John “laying hands” on Samaritans, so all were filled with the Spirit and made Saints. Simon asked Peter and John to sell him the trick of giving the Spirit that made people Holy … by laying on hands; and, he was told, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain God’s gift with money!” Peter then added, “You have no part or share in this, for your heart is not right before God. Repent therefore of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and the chains of wickedness.” (Acts 8:20-23)
This says that Yahweh gives His “gifts” to souls in human flesh; and, those “gifts” are His “Spirit” and the presence of His Son’s soul to be one’s “Lord.” Receipt of those “gifts” are the true measure of Christmas. However, the abilities of Yahweh’s “Spirit” are many, “Divided” as needed, only utilized by the presence of Jesus. All “Saints” just say, “Yes sir” and let Jesus tell them what to do. No “Saint” would ever try to make Jesus do what they want; because that could bring about their greatest (on only) fear: losing the presence of Yahweh and the promise of eternal life beyond the flesh.
As a reading chosen purposefully for public announcement on the second Sunday after the Epiphany, the Epiphany now is complete servitude to Yahweh, with no self-ego maintained whatsoever. The true gifts of Christmas are the “Spirit” of Yahweh (through a soul being divinely married to Him) – the Advent season – and then giving birth to Yahweh’s Son, as a Virgin soul having a miracle delivery – the Christmas season. The after the Epiphany period of time – after the rebirth of Jesus has made one Anointed – the truth of being a Christian – is to delight in how Jesus leads one’s life. Nothing is about you anymore. You have died (the death imagery of a crucifix is you on a cross) and been resurrected. A soul saved only does as commanded, willingly and out of pure love.