(A continuation from Gifts of the Spirit Part 9)
The Gift of the Interpretation of Tongues
1Co 12:10 To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another [divers] kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:
What is this gift directly tied to? Gift of Tongues
Definition: This is the ability given by the Holy Ghost to understand and make known the meaning of an utterance given through the gift of tongues. The gift may be given to the one who speaks in tongues or to someone else.
The interpretation is not an operation of the mind of the interpreter, but the mind of the Spirit of God.
The Difference between Translation and Interpretation
What is Translation?
Webster: a rendering from one language into another
What does this rendering or process contain?
Translation is the taking the meaning of a text in one language and producing it in another language that communicates the same message.
Translation must take into account a number of constraints,
• including context,
• the rules of grammar of the two languages,
• their writing conventions,
• their idioms and the like.
Idiom: a language peculiar to a certain
People…
Eg., in Virginia… “carry people to church”
“bear down”
Translation is not “word for word” because in the English language we have 3 words which sound the same as 1 word, but have 3 different meanings.
There, their, they’re.
Spanish: there: ahí, allí, allá
Their: su
They’re: están
So translation is taking one language and producing it in another language.
What is interpretation then? Isn’t it taking one language and producing it in another?
Interpret: to explain or tell the meaning of.
It is not the same as interpretation, because interpretation deals with a person knowing both languages and taking the one and producing the other.
The gift of interpretation of tongues is NOT knowing the language being spoken, but through the Holy Spirit being able to give the meaning of what has been spoken in tongues.
Dan. 5: 5 In the same hour came forth fingers of a man’s hand, and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaister of the wall of the king’s palace: and the king saw the part of the hand that wrote.
6 Then the king’s countenance was changed, and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one against another.
7 The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. And the king spake, and said to the wise men of Babylon, Whosoever shall read this writing, and shew me the interpretation thereof, shall be clothed with scarlet, and have a chain of gold about his neck, and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom.
8 Then came in all the king’s wise men: but they could not read the writing, nor make known to the king the interpretation thereof.
24 Then was the part of the hand sent from him; and this writing was written.
25 And this is the writing that was written, MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.
26 This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE; God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it.
27 TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting.
28 PERES; Thy kingdom is divided, and given to the Medes and Persians.
Note: Daniel’s interpretation of the heavenly language written on the wall consisted of many times the number of words on the wall.
So don’t fall out if the message in tongues doesn’t match the same number of words as the interpretation.
Also understand who the Holy Ghost is using: Man.
Man is capable of error.
And one more thing:
it may be given in first, second, or third person.
It is not always in the first person.
For instance, one person may bring the interpretation like this: "Behold, I am coming soon; be ye ready."
The next one may say, "The Lord says He is coming soon and He says for you to be ready."
Still another may bring the same message in other words, as "The Lord is coming very soon; be ye ready."
(one last lesson on Gifts of the Spirit continued in Part 11)
