A student, Sam Bussey, offers several sharp intertextual insights into Paul’s discussion of Spiritual gifts in 1 Corinthians 12-14.

First, 1 Corinthians 12:2’s reference to “dumb idols” hearkens back to the idol polemics of Psalm 115 and Isaiah 46. Isaiah 46 is in the midst of an exodus section of Isaiah, and the humiliation of Babylon’s idols in that passage draws on Exodus 12:12. In the light of Paul’s use of teh exodus story in 1 Corinthians 10, it is plausible that he is continuing the exodus typology into chapter 12, the humiliation of Gentile idols.

Second, Sam noted the connections between the distribution of the Spirit and His gifts in 1 Corinthians 12:4-6 and the spreading of the Spirit of Moses in Numbers 11. Paul is implicitly informing the Corinthians that they fulfill Moses’ wish to have an entire people filled with the Spirit, an entire nation of prophets.

In contrast to the dumb idols, the God of Israel speaks. And in contrast to the mute Gentiles, the Spirit of God forms the church into a chatty company of prophets.