1 Corinthians 14:16 Commentary and Bible Study

He is repeating himself, but he is trying every method possible to get this across to us. Else – if you do not pray with the understanding, but only with the spirit – how can anyone meaningfully say Amen to your prayer? Not only is your own understanding unfruitful – the one praying the prayer – but so too is the understanding of anyone listening to you unfruitful. You have conveyed nothing intelligible by what you have prayed, and so no one can say ‘Amen’ at the end of your prayer, because saying ‘Amen’ is all about agreeing with the intelligible message that has been communicated in the verbally uttered prayer. How shall he that occupies the place of the unlearned’ say ‘Amen’? The unlearned are probably those who do not understand the language, (although Paul uses the word later in this chapter to those who do not understand the gospel at all). He may well be a very learned man, but he is unlearned in that he doesn’t understand the language which you have a gift to speak. ‘For thou verily givest thanks well’ – ‘beautifully’ is the Greek sense of word there. ‘You are giving thanks beautifully.’ In what sense? The earnestness of his tones and his manner? He is so earnest, it so appealing; but I don’t understand a word he is saying. That ought not be, says the apostle. There is a disconnect today. He shouldn’t be leading in prayer, because there is no understanding.