Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of 1 Corinthians
Chapter 13: Charity Never Faileth
1 Corinthians 13 is the 'more excellent way' Paul promised, the great chapter on love. Without charity, the highest gifts are empty: 'though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass.' Prophecy, knowledge, mountain-moving faith, even martyrdom, 'profiteth me nothing' without love. Then Paul paints love's portrait: 'charity suffereth long, and is kind... envieth not... seeketh not her own... beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.' And love outlasts everything: 'charity never faileth,' while prophecies, tongues, and knowledge shall pass. For 'now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face.' Faith, hope, and love abide, 'but the greatest of these is charity.' The chapter shows us that love is the heart of the Christian life, the character of God Himself, without which every gift is nothing.
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of 1 Corinthians chapter 13. For each section you will find the KJV text, the Greek words that sharpen the meaning, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. Here Paul shows that love is the more excellent way, without which every gift is empty, describes what love is, and declares that love alone abides forever. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
Setting the Stage
I Am Nothing
The greatest gifts, without charity, amount to nothing.
Suffereth Long, and Is Kind
Paul paints love in the patient, humble, self-giving acts it does.
Charity Never Faileth
Gifts will pass, but love lasts into eternity.
The Greatest of These
Faith, hope, and love abide, and the greatest is love.
And Have Not Charity, I Am Nothing (1 Corinthians 13:1-3)
The most spectacular gifts and sacrifices, without love, count for nothing at all.
Sounding Brass, or a Tinkling Cymbal
"Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing."
Word Study
"charity," Greek agape (ἀγάπη). The word is the New Testament's great word for love, not mere affection or attraction, but a self-giving love that seeks the good of another. It is the love God is, "God is love" (1 John 4:8), the love shown supremely at the cross, where the one God, come in flesh, gave Himself for us. The King James translators rendered it "charity," from the Latin caritas, to mark it off from ordinary human fondness; it is the love that gives, not the love that merely feels. Paul places this agape above every spiritual gift. A man may speak with tongues "of men and of angels," prophesy, "understand all mysteries," have faith to "remove mountains," even give his body "to be burned", yet without agape he is "nothing," and it "profiteth" him "nothing." Love is not one virtue among many; it is the very substance of the Christian life, the character of God Himself reproduced in us by His Spirit. Without it, the most dazzling gifts are empty noise.
Explanation
Paul weighs the most impressive gifts on the scale of love and finds them worthless without it. Tongues "of men and of angels" without love are mere noise, "sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal." Prophecy, all knowledge, and mountain-moving faith — "and have not charity, I am nothing." Even extreme sacrifice, giving all one's goods or one's body to be burned, "and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing." Gifts, knowledge, and sacrifice are all rendered empty when love is absent. Love is not one virtue among many but the very thing that gives everything else its worth.
Gospel Focus
The Corinthians prized the showy gifts, especially tongues, and rated one another by them. Paul confronts their whole scale of values with a single word: love. "Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal." Eloquence without love is mere clanging noise, empty and even irritating. "Though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing." Notice how high Paul piles the gifts, prophecy, total understanding, mountain-moving faith, and yet, without love, the person is not merely diminished but "nothing." And even sacrifice is not exempt: "though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing." A man could give away everything and die a martyr's death, and if love were not the motive, it would gain him nothing before God. This is a searching word for a gift-obsessed church, and for us. God does not measure us by our abilities, our knowledge, or even our sacrifices, but by love. The gifts are real and good, but they are not the point; love is. A ministry without love is noise; a sacrifice without love is wasted. The one thing that gives everything else its worth is agape, the self-giving love that is the very heart of God.
Charity Suffereth Long, and Is Kind (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)
Paul describes love not in feelings but in the patient, humble, self-giving things it does and refuses to do.
Beareth All Things, Endureth All Things
"Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things."
Word Study
"suffereth long," Greek makrothumeo (μακροθυμέω). The word joins makros, long, with thumos, temper or passion; it means to be long-tempered, slow to anger, patient with people who try us. Paul places it first in love's portrait: "Charity suffereth long, and is kind." Love's very first mark is patience, a long fuse, bearing with the faults and offenses of others without flaring up. It is the same word used of God, who is "longsuffering" toward sinners (2 Peter 3:9), not willing that any should perish. Love learns this patience from God Himself, who has borne so long with us. And it is paired at once with kindness: love not only endures wrong patiently but actively does good. From here Paul unfolds love in a series of plain actions, what it does and does not do, envies not, vaunts not, is "not easily provoked," "thinketh no evil," "beareth all things... endureth all things." Love, in Scripture, is not first a feeling but a way of treating people, beginning with the long patience of God.
Explanation
Paul defines love not by feeling but by action and attitude, in a string of verbs: "Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not... is not puffed up... seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil." It refuses to gloat over wrong but "rejoiceth in the truth." And it endures without limit: "beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things." This is the very portrait of Christ, and the pattern for every believer. Read against a divided, gift-proud church, each line is a quiet rebuke and a call to a better way.
Gospel Focus
Having shown that love is everything, Paul now shows what love is, not by defining it, but by describing what it does. And strikingly, he speaks of love almost entirely in verbs and actions, not feelings. "Charity suffereth long, and is kind", patient under provocation, active in goodness. Then a list of what love refuses: it "envieth not" the blessings of others, "vaunteth not itself" in boasting, "is not puffed up" with pride, "doth not behave itself unseemly" in rudeness, "seeketh not her own" selfish interest, "is not easily provoked" to anger, "thinketh no evil", it keeps no record of wrongs and assumes no evil motive. It "rejoiceth not in iniquity", never delighting in sin or in another's fall, "but rejoiceth in the truth." Then four great "all things": love "beareth all things", covering and enduring; "believeth all things", always ready to trust rather than suspect; "hopeth all things", never giving up on a person; "endureth all things", holding fast under every strain. Read slowly, this is a portrait of Jesus Christ Himself, for every line is true of Him: He suffered long, was kind, sought not His own, bore all things, endured the cross. To read this chapter is to see the character of the Lord, and to measure ourselves against it. We may test our love by putting our own name in place of "charity" and asking honestly whether it is true. This love is not natural to us; it is the fruit of God's Spirit, the love of God "shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost" (Romans 5:5). Only the God who is love, dwelling in us, can produce such love through us.
The Greatest of These Is Charity (1 Corinthians 13:8-13)
Gifts are partial and passing, but love never fails; when the perfect comes, love remains, the greatest of all.
Now We See Through a Glass, Darkly
"Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away. When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity."
Word Study
"perfect," Greek teleios (τέλειος). The word means complete, finished, having reached its end or maturity; it is not merely moral perfection but wholeness, the finished and full state of a thing. "When that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away." Now our knowledge and prophecy are "in part," fragmentary, like a child's understanding, but the teleios, the complete and perfect, is coming. Paul illustrates with two pictures: growing from childhood to adulthood, and the difference between a dim reflection and seeing "face to face." The partial gifts belong to this present, immature age; when the perfect comes, at the coming of the Lord and the fullness of His kingdom, we shall "know even as also" we are "known," seeing God face to face. The gifts are the tools of the "in part" stage; love belongs to the teleios, the perfect state, and so love never passes away. What is partial will be swallowed up in what is complete, but love abides forever.
Explanation
Love outlasts everything: "Charity never faileth," but prophecies, tongues, and knowledge "shall vanish away," for they are partial and temporary. "When that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away." Now we see "through a glass, darkly," but then "face to face"; now we know in part, then fully. Faith, hope, and love abide — "but the greatest of these is charity." Why the greatest? Because when faith becomes sight and hope becomes possession, love will remain, the one grace that carries on forever into glory.
Gospel Focus
Paul now sets love against the very gifts the Corinthians prized, on the scale of eternity. "Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away." The gifts, however precious now, are temporary; love is permanent. Why will the gifts pass? Because "we know in part, and we prophesy in part", they belong to a stage of incompleteness, "but when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away." Paul illustrates with growing up: "when I was a child, I spake as a child... but when I became a man, I put away childish things." The gifts are for the church's childhood; a greater maturity is coming. And he gives one of Scripture's most beautiful images: "now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known." An ancient mirror gave only a dim, imperfect reflection; so now our knowledge of God is real but partial. But a day is coming when we shall see Him "face to face," and know as fully as we are known. In that day the partial gifts will have served their purpose and passed, but love will remain, for love belongs to the perfect state, to heaven itself. So Paul concludes: "now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three." Faith and hope are great and abiding graces; but even they will one day give way to sight and possession, while love goes on forever, for God is love, and we shall dwell with Him. "But the greatest of these is charity." Of all that endures, love is the greatest, because it is the very nature of God, the heart of His law, and the one thing that will fill eternity. Pursue love above every gift, for love is the more excellent way, and love never faileth.
Chapter 13 in Review
1 Corinthians 13 is the more excellent way, love above every gift. Without charity, the highest gifts are empty: tongues become "sounding brass," and prophecy, knowledge, mountain-moving faith, and even martyrdom "profiteth me nothing." Paul then paints love's portrait in action: it "suffereth long, and is kind," "envieth not," "seeketh not her own," "is not easily provoked," "thinketh no evil," and "beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things." And love outlasts everything: "charity never faileth," while prophecies, tongues, and knowledge, which are only "in part," will pass when "that which is perfect is come." "Now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face." Faith, hope, and love abide, "but the greatest of these is charity."
For the Apostolic reader this chapter puts love at the center of everything. The gifts of the Spirit are real and good, but they are not the measure of a life; love is. God does not weigh us by our abilities or even our sacrifices, but by the self-giving love that is His own nature, "God is love." That love is the character of Jesus Christ, seen in every line of the portrait, and it is produced in us only by His Spirit within us. It is the one thing that endures: gifts belong to this partial, childhood age and will pass when we see the Lord "face to face," but love belongs to eternity and never fails. So do not chase gifts and neglect love; seek first the love without which everything else is nothing. Put your own name where the word "charity" stands, and let the Spirit make it true. Faith, hope, and love abide, and the greatest, the one that will fill heaven, is love.
- Without love, the greatest gifts and sacrifices are "nothing" (13:1-3).
- Love is measured in action: patient, kind, humble, unselfish, enduring (13:4-7).
- The portrait of charity is the portrait of Christ Himself.
- "Charity never faileth"; the gifts are partial and passing (13:8).
- Now we see "through a glass, darkly"; then "face to face" (13:12).
- Faith, hope, and love abide, "but the greatest of these is charity" (13:13).
Questions for Reflection
- Do you value spiritual gifts and achievements above love, as the Corinthians did?
- Put your name in place of "charity" in verses 4-7. Where does it ring true, and where not?
- How does seeing this chapter as a portrait of Christ change the way you read it?
- Are you pursuing love as the more excellent way, or chasing lesser things?
References & Sources
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version (KJV). Supporting passages are listed so every claim can be verified in its own setting. Love as the greatest, without which gifts are nothing: 1 Corinthians 13:1-3; Matthew 22:37-40; Galatians 5:6; 1 John 4:20. God is love, shown at the cross: 1 John 4:8-10, 16; John 3:16; Romans 5:8; John 15:13. Love's character, the portrait of Christ: 1 Corinthians 13:4-7; Galatians 5:22-23; Colossians 3:12-14; 1 Peter 4:8. Love shed abroad by the Spirit; love never faileth: Romans 5:5; 1 Corinthians 13:8-13; 2 Corinthians 3:18; 1 John 3:2. If anything here does not look right, a verse, a reference, or a wording, please tell us at info@FruitBearers.net. Thank you for helping us keep Bible Learning error free.
- Without love we are nothing: 1 Corinthians 13:1-3; Matthew 22:37-40; Galatians 5:6.
- The portrait of love, the character of Christ: 1 Corinthians 13:4-7; Galatians 5:22-23; Colossians 3:12-14.
- Love never faileth, the greatest that abides: 1 Corinthians 13:8-13; 1 John 4:8-16; 1 John 3:2.