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1 Corinthians 12:4

There are different gifts, but the same Spirit.
1 Corinthians 12:4 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB Now there are various kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.
  • KJV Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.
  • NKJV There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.
  • NASB Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit.
  • NLT There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all.

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

There are varieties of gifts, but they come from the same Spirit. Diversity of gifts is matched by unity in their source.

Overview

Paul begins a threefold pattern emphasizing both diversity and unity: many different gifts, one Spirit who gives them. The variety in the church is intended, not a cause for rivalry. This grounds the church's harmony in the one Spirit, countering the Corinthians' competitive elevation of certain gifts over others.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 7

  • 1 Pet 4:10As good stewards of the manifold grace of God, each of you should use whatever gift he has received to serve one another.
  • 1 Cor 12:28And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, and those with gifts of healing, helping, administration, and various tongues.
  • Rom 12:4–6Just as each of us has one body with many members, and not all members have the same function,
  • 1 Cor 12:8–11To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by the same Spirit,
  • Heb 2:4and was affirmed by God through signs, wonders, various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to His will.
  • Eph 4:4–6There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called;
  • Eph 4:11And it was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers,

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (3)

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Commentaries & study tools

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 12:4 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

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.