Let me help some of you to come up to speed with a discussion that has been strongly discussed across the entirety of Christendom from at least the 1970's . . . where have you chappies been?
The following are
brief excerpts from various commentaries:
The Charismatics, John MacArthur 1978
A key question arises at this point. What did Paul mean by the “tongues of men and of angels?’’ What is the gift of languages? There is much disagreement today on these questions. I believe, however, that the Bible is exceedingly clear on what this gift was. And the best place to go is to the first mention of tongues in Acts 2.
Acts 2:1-11 describes the great day of Pentecost, the birthday of the church. There was a sound like a mighty rushing wind. Cloven tongues like fire seemed to appear on the disciples. And they spoke in other languages. The Greek word used in this passage is glossa, the normative Greek word for “language.” Many within the Charismatic movement today claim that the gift of tongues is a “private prayer language,” ecstatic uttering in a language known only to God.
The First Epistle to the Corinthians, Gordon D. Fee 1987
That the Corinthians at least, and probably Paul, thought of tongues as the language(s) of angels seems highly likely—for two reasons: (1) There is some evidence from Jewish sources that the angels were believed to have their own heavenly language (or dialects) and that by means of the “Spirit” one could speak these dialects. Thus in the Testament of Job 48-50 Job’s three daughters are given “charismatic sashes” 22 when these were put on they allowed Hemera, for example, to speak “ecstatically in the angelic dialect, sending up a hymn to God with the hymnic style of the angels. And as she spoke ecstatically, she allowed ‘The Spirit’ to be inscribed on her garment.”23 Such an understanding of heavenly speech may also lie behind the language of 1 Cor. 14:2 (“speak mysteries by the Spirit”). (2) As has been argued elsewhere 24 one can make a good deal of sense of the Corinthian view of “spirituality” if they believed that they had already entered into some expression of angelic existence.
God's Empowering Presence, Gordon D. Fee 1994
1 This opening sentence is the reason for the entire argument: “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels.” One may be quite sure that the Corinthians believed they were; indeed, this best accounts for the sudden shift to the first person singular (cf. 14:14-15).43/ On its own this could mean nothing more than "speak eloquently,” as some have argued and as it is popularly understood. But since it is not on its own, but follows directly out of 12:28-30 and anticipates 14:1-25, most likely this is either Paul’s or their understanding (or both) of “speaking in tongues.” “Tongues of men” would then refer to human speech,437 438 inspired of the Spirit but unknown to the speaker; “tongues of angels” would reflect an understanding that the tongues-speaker was communicating in the dialect(s) of heaven.
1 Corinthians, Alan F. Johnson 2004
ul’s first conditional thesis, If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels (v. 1), alludes to the manifestation of tongues inspired by the Spirit (12:10; 14:1-40). “Tongues of angels” may be the Corinthians’ term for some kinds of tongues manifestations, but that does not seem to be Paul’s view. In any case this obscure reference should not be made the focus of any theory or practice about “tongues,” as did Edward Irving in the early nineteenth century. Irving’s theory was that foreign language tongues that were unknown to the speaker were the “tongues of men,” while those utterances that could not be paralleled in any known human language were the “tongues of angels” (Knox 1950:552-53). That tongues were a highly prized Spirit manifestation among the Corinthians is clearly evidenced by the lengthy attention Paul gives to correcting their abuses in chapter 14. Yet not even this highly prized gift, if it is not manifested with Christian love, can produce authentic Christlike character.
The Bible Knowledge Word Study: Acts-Ephesians. Darrell Bock p.294 (2006)
(glossais ... kai ton angeldn)—Given the references to tongues in 12:28, 30; 13:8 and the fifteen occurrences in chapter 14, this expression is probably a reference to the supernatural gift of tongues. Yet, it is not entirely clear whether Paul or the Corinthians (or both) thought that the gift of tongues was the dialects of angels (see Blomberg, 259; Garland, 611; Hays, 223, who see this as likely; cf. Fee, 630, who is “quite sure” that this was the case).
1 Corinthians, Ciampa & Rosner 2010
13: 1 This verse has played a remarkable role in some modern discussions of the viewpoints of the Corinthians and their theological problems. Those who conclude that the Corinthians were suffering from an overrealized eschatology have found in this verse a hint that they may have thought that by speaking in tongues they were already participating in angelic experience as all believers would upon the resurrection from the dead. This thought, that some Corinthians aspired to or imagined themselves to be participating in angelic life and experience, is also considered to be related to their abstinence from sexual relationships (7:1), among other things.22 We find the texts employed in support of such interpretations to have more convincing interpretations that do not depend on overrealized eschatology as the key background issue.
Some interpreters have suggested that by speaking in human or angelic tongues Paul refers to "sublime oratory," picking up on the theme of wise and lofty speech from the first two chapters. 23
And to sample a few more:
- Keep in Step with the Spirit, p.207 (1985)
- 1 Corinthians, Leon Morris p.175 (1985)
- 1 Corinthians, Prior p.229 (1985)
- 1 Corinthians, Kistemaker p.452 (1993)
- 1 Corinthians, Barnett p.243 (2000)
Edit: I forgot to add in the obligatory commentary of Gordon Fee (1987), now rectified.