Can you help me with this?

Geoff Hydon, Mount Forest, Canada

But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away. (1 Cor. 13:10)

It seems there is difference of opinion about the meaning of ‘that which is perfect has come’ in this passage. How should we explain it?

It is perhaps best to see this verse as simply a maxim; when we have a whole thing we don’t have to just manage with parts. The parts in the Apostle’s mind seem to be the spiritual gifts that can edify the church. Perfection implies being completely edified and having all the knowledge we ever need. We are still on the way to that future reality, but we should in the meantime keep things in perspective, not inflating individual spiritual gifts beyond their importance. Instead, we should focus on key things that characterise not just the present situation, but the ultimate objective, when faith, hope and love are fulfilled and love is dominant.

It is good to think about what is meant by ‘perfect’ here, before we try to say when it will be accomplished. Perfect may mean without fault, sinless. However, the Greek word Paul used here is translated in eighteen other places by ‘complete’ or ‘mature’ as well as by ‘perfect’. In fact, Strong’s Concordance tells us that the primary meaning of his Greek word teleios is indeed: ‘having reached its end, complete, perfect’. Paul used other Greek words when he meant faultless or blameless. But here he is not comparing sinfulness with sinlessness, he is comparing something that is only partly accomplished with its final completion. For instance, he speaks of childhood compared to manhood, or seeing a partial reflection versus seeing face to face. He is applying that idea of perfection, in the overall context of his teaching concerning spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthians 12-14. The Corinthians were evidencing wrongful pride in their gifts, and needed to be redirected to a proper evaluation and use of them. So Paul emphasizes that the ones they most highly prize will in fact fade in importance. He lifts their sights to the higher requirements of love and edification.

But what could cause the need for these gifts to cease? One obvious answer, adopted by many in their interpretation of this passage, is to say it will be when the Lord comes back. How true! And that fits well with Paul’s opening words to the Corinthians in this letter. 1 It also fits well with the timing of ‘then’ in 1 Corinthians 13:12, which clearly contrasts Paul’s present experience with a very different future time when Paul’s knowledge will no longer be partial. 2 But could there be something else that would relieve the need for some spiritual gifts even before the Lord comes? Yes!

Here Paul focuses on the miraculous ability to speak God’s word, to prophesy or to speak in tongues. But if God fully reveals His Word, the importance of those partial expressions of its transmission will fade. It is clear that what Christians have to believe and practise is termed in Scripture ‘the faith’. From Jude 1:3 we can see that the faith, the body of Christian doctrine, was not delivered complete all at once, but rather ‘once for all’. It was at first awaited 3 and it was being delivered orally in the days of Acts 6:7; it was defended by Timothy in later years and rejected by others. 4 It was evidently first taught orally by the Lord to the Apostles, ‘the faith’ and ‘the Apostles’ teaching’ being synonyms. The faith became ‘scripture’ when it was recorded in writing and that, too, was the initiative of God. 5 Men’s decisions to include books in the Bible did not make them inspired Scripture; they already were, and later inclusion in the Bible importantly relied upon that.

It is reasonable that some miraculous gifts in Paul’s list 6 would fall away when the written Word of God was complete. Though initially essential, prophecy adding to the Word of God would no longer be needed, the gift of teaching would thus outlive the gift of prophecy. Miraculous signs were intended to confirm that words and actions were from God 7 and were very much needed when everything was learned by word of mouth. Validation now comes from comparison with revealed Scripture. Assuming Jude was not the last writer of New Testament Scripture, his ‘once for all’ was still an unfinished purpose when he and Paul wrote. But subsequent completion of divine revelation is one evidence of Paul’s maxim, even if he had more than that in mind.

References: (1) 1 Cor. 1:4-8 (2) cf 1 John 3:2 (3) Gal. 3:23 (4) 1 Tim. 1:19; 6:12 (5) e.g. 2 Pet. 1:20-21 (6) 1 Cor. 12:28-31 (7) Mark 16:17-20; Heb. 2:3-4 Bible quotations from NKJV