Mark Tabata’s Weekday Devotionals
Tuesday July 7 2026
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1 Corinthians 13:8-12-Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part. 10 But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away. 11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.
The Apostle Paul teaches us here that when “that which is perfect” arrives, then the miraculous gifts (which are described as that which is “in part”) shall pass away and cease. He gives us an illustration to help us understand what “the perfect” is. It is explained that the “perfect” is like seeing someone “face to face,” whereas before this “perfect” arrives it is like everything is seen “dimly,” as when one looks in a cloudy mirror.
What is going on here?
What is the Apostle Paul talking about?
What is “that which is perfect?”
Let’s study.
The most common interpretations of the “perfect” are that such refers either to Jesus, or to Heaven itself. We know that it cannot be a reference to Jesus, since the word “perfect” is in the neuter gender, and is thus referring to an “it” and not a person.
Could it be talking about Heaven itself?
The answer lies in studying the Old Testament, because Paul is referring directly to those Scriptures. When we consider that background, we will see clearly (no pun intended) that he is not talking about Heaven but about something else entirely.
Both of Paul’s expressions used here (“dimly” and “face to face”) are taken from the Greek translation of Numbers 12. In that passage, God is describing how when He speaks to other Prophets, they receive a revelation from Him that is not as clear or complete as what He communicates to Moses. Look at how God describes speaking to Moses in verse 8.
Numbers 12:8-I speak with him face to face, Even plainly, and not in dark sayings (en ainigmati); And he sees the form of the LORD. Why then were you not afraid To speak against My servant Moses?”
When God says that His revelation to other Prophets is not as clear or as complete as it is to Moses, He uses the phrase en ainigmati. That is the exact same phrase that Paul uses in 1 Corinthians that is described as seeing in a mirror “dimly!” In contrast, when He speaks to Moses, it is “face to face.”
The key to this understanding is the Greek phrase en ainigmati, translated “dimly.” Literally it means “in a riddle.”…When we follow the trail of the word ainigma, it leads us to the Greek Septuagint translation of the Old Testament (the LXX), in Numbers 12: 8. Here Yahweh is explaining to Aaron and Miriam the difference between the way He usually spoke to Moses, in contrast with the way He spoke to most prophets….The phrase “mouth to mouth” is equivalent to “face to face” in 1 Corinthians 13: 12; and “in riddles” is the same as “dimly” in 13: 12. What we see here is that the apostle Paul is using the language of Numbers 12: 8 to contrast the partial and the complete in 1 Corinthians 13. And the contrast in both cases is between two kinds of revelation: the less clear, and the more clear. It has nothing to do with an alleged heavenly form of speaking as distinct from a this-age revelation…Also, 2 Corinthians 4: 6 refers to seeing the face of Christ in the gospel. The comparison with 1 Corinthians 13: 12 is obvious. The piece-meal revelations (tongues, prophecy) are to the completed New Testament what the Old Testament is to the New Testament. Here is an extended paraphrase of the first part of 1 Corinthians 13: 12–“For now, while we depend on occasional revelations through prophecy or interpreted tongues, it is like trying to see yourself in a scratched and cloudy mirror. But then, when the completed New Testament has been given, it will be like seeing a sharp, clear image of yourself in a bright new mirror. (Jack Cottrell, Spirits: Holy and Unholy (The Collected Writings), 2241-2294 (Kindle Edition); Mason, OH; The Christian Restoration Association)
By contrast, when God speaks with Moses, it is said that His revelation is not “dimly” like in a mirror: instead, it is “face to face.”
Exodus 33:11-So the LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. And he would return to the camp, but his servant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tabernacle.
Deuteronomy 5:4-The LORD talked with you face to face on the mountain from the midst of the fire.
Deuteronomy 34:10-But since then there has not arisen in Israel a prophet like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face,
Did God literally speak with Moses “face to face?”
No (cf. John 1:18; 1 Timothy 6:17).
Remember that after the Bible says that God spoke to Moses “face to face,” just a few verses later we are told explicitly that no man can literally see God’s (Exodus 33:11, 20). Thus, seeing God “face to face” was not literal. Ain’t was a figure of speech. We see this all through the Bible. When people in the Bible are said to have “seen” God’s face, they actually only saw theophanies (i.e., manifestations of God).
But what about those statements which indicate that man saw or spoke to God “face to face”? Jacob said, “I have seen God face to face” (Genesis 32: 30). Gideon proclaimed: “I have seen the Angel of the Lord face to face” (Judges 6: 22). Exodus 33: 11 affirms that “the Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend.” First, although these men witnessed great and awesome things, they still only saw manifestations of God and a part of His glory (cf. Exodus 33: 18-23). Second, the words “face” and “face to face” are used in different senses in Scripture. Though Exodus 33: 11 reveals that God spoke to Moses “face to face,” only nine verses later God told Moses, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live” (33: 20). Are we to believe (as Barker and other critics assert) that the author of Exodus was so misguided that he wrote contradictory statements within only nine verses of each other? Certainly not! What then does the Bible mean when it says that God “knew” (Deuteronomy 34: 10) or “spoke to Moses face to face” (Exodus 33: 11)? The answer is found in Numbers 12. Aaron and Miriam had spoken against Moses and arrogantly asked: “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken through us also?” (Numbers 12: 2). God then appeared to Aaron and Miriam, saying: “If there is a prophet among you, I, the Lord, make Myself known to him in a vision; I speak to him in a dream. Not so with My servant Moses; He is faithful in all My house. I speak with him face to face, even plainly, and not in dark sayings; and he sees the form of the Lord” (Numbers 12: 6-8, emp. added). Notice the contrast: God spoke to the prophets of Israel through visions and dreams, but to Moses He spoke, “not in dark sayings,” but “plainly.” In other words, God, Who never showed His face to Moses (Deuteronomy 33: 20), nevertheless allowed Moses to see “some unmistakable evidence of His glorious presence” (Jamieson, et al., 1997), and spoke to him “face to face, as a man speaks to his friend” (33: 11), i.e., He spoke to Moses plainly, directly, etc. (Eric Lyons M. Min., “Seeing God Face To Face,” in Kyle Butt, A Christians Guide to Modern Atheism, 2685-2701 (Kindle Edition): Montgomery, AL: Apologetics Press, Inc.)
Here’s the point: “dimly” and “face to face” in the Old Testament had reference to “partial” and “more complete” revelation of God’s Word. Paul used that same language in 1 Corinthians 13 to describe how miraculous gifts would cease when “that which is perfect” arrived. He illustrated “that which is perfect” with language from the Old Testament that referenced the complete and final revelation of God’s Word (cf. James 1:25).
When the Word of God was completed in the form of the Holy Scriptures (2 Timothy 3:16-17), the miraculous gifts ceased. While God still answers prayers in both natural and supernatural ways in harmony with His will (Ephesians 3:20-21), the miraculous gifts themselves have long since passed away.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all. Amen.