OET interlinear 1 COR 14:19

14:19a

14:19b

14:19

But: The Greek conjunction that the BSB translates as But introduces a statement that the reader does not expect.

Here are some other ways to translate this conjunction:

Nevertheless (RSV)

Yet (GW)

in the church, I would rather speak five coherent words to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue: Because Paul could speak in tongues, one might expect him to encourage it. But instead he preferred to do something different when he was among the believers. He said that speaking five words that instructed others was better than speaking ten thousand words that did not help others.

Consider how speakers of your language make such a comparison. In some languages it may be natural to break this up into two or more sentences.

Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

words that make sense can help the church. That’s why in church I had rather speak five words that make sense than to speak ten thousand words in a language that others don’t know. (CEV)

if I could speak to the church only five words, then I might instruct you a little. But I cannot instruct you at all by speaking in a tongue, even if I spoke ten thousand words.

in the church: The phrase in the church refers to the community of believers, not to the building where they meet. Here is another way to translate this:

in church worship (GNT)

coherent words: The Greek phrase that the BSB translates as coherent is more literally “with my mind.”

Here is another way to translate this phrase:

words that people can understand

to instruct others: The Greek text has a word that the BSB leaves untranslated but some English versions translate as “also.” It indicates that when a person speaks in a language that other people can understand, then everyone, including the speaker, benefits from it. Here are other ways to translate this:

so that I may instruct others also (NASB)

for the benefit of others as well as myself (REB)

Consider if it is natural to translate this word in your language.

ten thousand: The number ten thousand is a single Greek word. It was the largest Greek number that could be expressed as a single word. This is a figure of speech called a hyperbole. Paul did not expect to speak ten thousand words in a tongue but he used this number to emphasize his point. Use a word that is natural in your language to express a large number. For example:

thousands

millions