Therefore I inform you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
Parallel translations
- WEB Therefore I make known to you that no man speaking by God’s Spirit says, “Jesus is accursed.” No one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” but by the Holy Spirit.
- KJV Wherefore I give you to understand, that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost.
- NKJV Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit.
- NASB Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus is accursed”; and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
- NLT So I want you to know that no one speaking by the Spirit of God will curse Jesus, and no one can say Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
No one speaking by God's Spirit curses Jesus, and no one can confess 'Jesus is Lord' except by the Holy Spirit. The confession of Christ's lordship marks the Spirit's true work.
Overview
Paul provides a doctrinal test for genuine spiritual activity: the Holy Spirit always exalts Jesus as Lord and never dishonors him. Authentic spiritual gifts and speech are Christ-centered. This anchors all that follows about the gifts, since the Spirit's purpose is to glorify Christ, and saving confession of his lordship is itself the Spirit's gracious work in the heart.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- 1 Jn 4:2–3By this you will know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God,
- Matt 16:16–17Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
- Rom 10:9that if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
- 2 Cor 3:5Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim that anything comes from us, but our competence comes from God.
- John 13:13You call Me Teacher and Lord, and rightly so, because I am.
- 1 Cor 8:6yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we exist. And there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we exist.
- John 15:26When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father—He will testify about Me.
- Matt 22:43Jesus said to them, “How then does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord’? For he says:
- Deut 21:23you must not leave the body on the tree overnight, but you must be sure to bury him that day, because anyone who is hung on a tree is under God’s curse. You must not defile the land that the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance.
- 1 Cor 16:22If anyone does not love the Lord, let him be under a curse. Come, O Lord!
- Rom 9:3For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my own flesh and blood,
- Mark 9:39“Do not stop him,” Jesus replied. “For no one who performs a miracle in My name can turn around and speak evil of Me.
- John 16:14–15He will glorify Me by taking from what is Mine and disclosing it to you.
- 2 Cor 11:4For if someone comes and proclaims a Jesus other than the One we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit than the One you received, or a different gospel than the one you accepted, you put up with it way too easily.
- Rev 1:10On the Lord’s day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet,
- Gal 3:13Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. For it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.”
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Christ at the center
Christ crucified is the wisdom and power of God; he is our Passover sacrificed for us, the firstfruits of resurrection, the foundation on which everything is built.
How 1 Corinthians 12:3 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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