Translation
and the well-formed parts of us have no need. But God has mixed the body together,
Go to footnote numberthe deficient
Go to footnote numberhaving been given more abundant honor,
Paraphrase
while our respectable parts have no need of assistance. But God has assembled the body so that the parts that are lacking in some way, have actually been given extra honor,
Footnotes
1
This is a compound word made up of “with” and “mix.” It can be rendered “mix together, assemble, combine, assimilate, agree with, commingle, unite.”
2
This word means to “be late, be behind, fall short, be lacking, be inferior.”
The Purpose of this Illustration
This illustration teaches a general concept about how to view spiritual gifts that are not in the spotlight (such as helping and administering), compared to those that are in the spotlight, such as prophesying (think preaching) and public tongues; it serves as a visual depiction of the reality that, just because something is kept private does not mean it is not special; on the contrary, we keep certain things private specifically because they are special; and it stayed in the readers’ minds, just waiting for the right time later in the letter, when Paul would drop the hammer on those who twisted what God had done by His own power on certain occasions.