For who among men knows the thoughts of man except his own spirit within him? So too, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.
Parallel translations
- WEB For who among men knows the things of a man, except the spirit of the man, which is in him? Even so, no one knows the things of God, except God’s Spirit.
- KJV For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.
- NKJV For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.
- NASB For who among people knows the thoughts of a person except the spirit of the person that is in him? So also the thoughts of God no one knows, except the Spirit of God.
- NLT No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own 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
Just as only a person's own spirit knows their inner thoughts, only God's Spirit knows the things of God. The Spirit's intimate knowledge of God qualifies Him to reveal divine truth.
Overview
Paul uses an analogy: as a person's spirit alone knows their inmost thoughts, so only God's Spirit knows God. This implies the Spirit's full divinity, sharing God's own self-knowledge. Therefore genuine knowledge of God comes only through the Spirit He gives, not through human reasoning.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Prov 20:27The spirit of a man is the lamp of the LORD, searching out his inmost being.
- 1 Cor 2:10But God has revealed it to us by the Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God.
- Jer 17:9The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?
- Rom 11:33–34O, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments, and untraceable His ways!
- Prov 14:10The heart knows its own bitterness, and no stranger shares in its joy.
- Prov 20:5The intentions of a man’s heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 2:11 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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