1 Corinthians 12:21

And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you.

King James Version · Read in your translation · Open the Explore console

Word by word — the Greek

Word	Greek	Strong’s	Meaning
And	δὲ de	G1161	but · conjunction
eye	ὀφθαλμὸς ophthalmos	G3788	the eye (literally or figuratively) · noun — nominative singular masculine
cannot	δύναται dunatai	G1410	to be able or possible · verb — present middle or passive deponent indicative, 3rd person singular
say	εἰπεῖν eipein	G2036	to speak or say (by word or writing) · verb — second aorist active infinitive
hand	χειρί· cheiri	G5495	the hand (literally or figuratively (power) · noun — dative singular feminine
have	ἔχω, echō	G2192	to hold (used in very various applications · verb — present active indicative, 1st person singular
no	οὐ ou	G3756	the absolute negative (compare G3361 (μή)) adverb · particle — negative
need	χρείαν chreian	G5532	employment · noun — accusative singular feminine
thee	σοῦ soû	G4675	of thee
nor	ἢ ē	G2228	disjunctive · conjunction
again	πάλιν palin	G3825	(adverbially) anew · adverb
head	κεφαλὴ kephalē	G2776	the head (as the part most readily taken hold of) · noun — nominative singular feminine
feet	ποσίν· posin	G4228	a "foot" (figuratively or literally) · noun — dative plural masculine
have	ἔχω· echō	G2192	to hold (used in very various applications · verb — present active indicative, 1st person singular
no	οὐκ ouk	G3756	the absolute negative (compare G3361 (μή)) adverb · particle — negative
need	χρείαν chreian	G5532	employment · noun — accusative singular feminine
you	ὑμῶν hymōn	G5216	of (from or concerning) you

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Ezra 10:1-5 Now when Ezra had prayed, and when he had confessed, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, there assembled unto him out…
Nehemiah 4:16-21 And it came to pass from that time forth, that the half of my servants wrought in the work, and the other half of them held both the spears,…
Job 29:11 When the ear heard me, then it blessed me; and when the eye saw me, it gave witness to me:
1 Samuel 25:32 And David said to Abigail, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meet me:
Numbers 10:31-32 And he said, Leave us not, I pray thee; forasmuch as thou knowest how we are to encamp in the wilderness, and thou mayest be to us instead o…

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Corinthians 12:12-26

The apostle here makes out the truth of what was above asserted, and puts the gifted men among the Corinthians in mind of their duty, by comparing the church of Christ to a human body. I. By telling us that one body may have many members, and that the many members of the same body make but one body (Co1 12:12): As the body is one, and hath many members, and all members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ; that is, Christ mystical, as divines commonly speak. Christ and his church making one body, as head and members, this body is made up of many parts or members, yet but one body; for all the members are baptized into the same body, and made to drink of the same Spir…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Corinthians 12:21

The higher cannot dispense with the lower members.

Adam Clarke on 1 Corinthians 12:21

And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee - The apostle goes on, with his principal object in view, to show that the gifts and graces with which their different teachers were endowed were all necessary for their salvation, and should be collectively used; for not one of them was unnecessary, nor could they dispense with the least of them; the body of Christ needed the whole for its nourishment and support. The famous apologue of Menenius Agrippa, related by Livy, will serve to illustrate the apostle's reasoning: the Roman people, getting into a state of insurrection and rebellion against the nobility, under pretext that the great men not only had all the honors but all the…

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John Gill on 1 Corinthians 12:21

And the eye cannot say unto the hand,.... Every member of the natural body is useful and necessary. The eye, the seat of the sense of seeing, cannot say to the communicating and working hand, I have no need of thee: I can do without thee: so the seers and overseers of the church, the ministers of the Gospel, cannot say to the liberal and munificent hands, we have no need of you; for as the one stand in need of the light, instruction, comfort, advice, and direction of the other, so the other stand in need of communication from them; and as God has made it a duty, that he that is taught in the word should communicate to him that teacheth in all good things; and as it is his ordinance that the…

The Church Fathers

If the eye is healthy and one can see clearly, what joy will it have if the other members of the body are missing? How would it appear to be perfect without the hands, the feet or the other parts of the body?
— Origen of Alexandria, HOMILIES ON LEVITICUS 7

The person who is greater in rank or dignity cannot do without those who are lower. For there are things which a humbler person can do which an exalted one cannot, just as iron can do things which gold cannot. Because of this, the feet perform an honorable function for the head.
— Ambrosiaster, COMMENTARY ON PAUL'S EPISTLES

The church has real eyes: its teachers and leaders who see in sacred Scripture the mysteries of God.… It also has hands, effective persons who are not eyes but hands. Do they plumb the mysteries of sacred Scripture? No, but they are powerful in works. The church has feet: those who make official journeys of all kinds. The foot runs that the hand may find the work it is to do. The eye does not scorn the hand, nor do these three scorn the belly as if it were idle and unemployed.
— Jerome, HOMILIES ON MATTHEW 85

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Tongues, Gift of — Granted on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:4), in fulfilment of a promise Christ had made to his disciples (Mark 16:17). What this gift actually was has been a subject of much discussion. Some have…
Feet, The · Necessary members of the body — Necessary members of the body
Hands, The · Necessary members of the body — Necessary members of the body
Head · All the other members necessary to — All the other members necessary to
Selfishness · Inconsistent with communion of saints — Inconsistent with communion of saints

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

1 Corinthians 12:21

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Corinthians 12:12-26

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Corinthians 12:21

Adam Clarke on 1 Corinthians 12:21

John Gill on 1 Corinthians 12:21

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

1 Corinthians 12:21

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on 1 Corinthians 12:12-26

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Corinthians 12:21

Adam Clarke on 1 Corinthians 12:21

John Gill on 1 Corinthians 12:21

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John Calvin on 1 Corinthians 12:14-27

Tyndale Open Study Notes on 1 Corinthians 12:14-21