Bible Strands
1 Corinthians 12:29
Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles?
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Paul addresses the Corinthian church while explaining the distribution of spiritual gifts within the body of Christ. He poses these questions immediately after listing God-appointed roles in 1 Corinthians 12:28.
The words — The Greek μὴ (mē) is a negative particle expecting a "no" answer, and πᾶντες (pantes) means "all." Combined with ἀπόστολοι (apostoloi) and προφῆται (prophētai), they frame the rhetorical challenge.
The thread — This pattern of diverse gifting runs through 1 Corinthians 12:4 and 1 Corinthians 12:14, which establish that unity does not require uniformity. The immediate context in 1 Corinthians 12:28 and 1 Corinthians 12:30 brackets the verse with similar lists and rhetorical questions.
Why it lands — The text states that apostolic, prophetic, teaching, and miraculous roles are not universally distributed. A reader must accept that God assigns distinct functions to different members rather than granting every gift to every person.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles?
Cross-references
- 1 Corinthians 12:4 There are different gifts, but the same Spirit.
- 1 Corinthians 12:14 For the body does not consist of one part, but of many.