1 Corinthians 13:4 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant

NIV: Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

NASB: Love is patient, love is kind, it is not jealous; love does not brag, it is not arrogant.

CSB: Love is patient, love is kind. Love does not envy, is not boastful, is not arrogant,

NLT: Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud

KJV: Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,

NKJV: Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;

1 Corinthians 13:4–7 is much loved the world over. Even unbelievers are attracted to Paul's eloquent description of love in these verses. These words are often quoted at weddings or in romantic settings and featured prominently in artwork and merchandise. It's important to remember that Paul is not writing inspirational poetry. Nor is he penning something meant to be a simple starry-eyed mantra. He is driving home a pointed message to the divided, often selfish Christians in Corinth: This is how God expects believers to treat each other. Lack of Christ-like love was at the heart of every one of the problems described in 1 Corinthians so far.

The "love" Paul speaks of in these verses is from the Greek term agape. This is a selfless love, distinguished from sexual desire—eros—and from brotherly love—phileo. These verses include 14 descriptors of agape, all of them verbs. Godly love, from a godly perspective, is defined by what Christians do or do not do. It is not primarily about feelings; nor is it mostly the words which describe them. Love is action: the choice to do or not do in relationships with all other Christians.

Love is patient. Love actively waits for others without resentment. This would include being patient in the face of being hurt or mistreated.

Love is kind. Beyond mere politeness, kindness involves acting for the good of others even when it does not benefit ourselves.

Love does not envy. Envy was alive and active in the Corinthian church, perhaps including the envy of the spiritual gifts and financial success of others. Love sets self aside and celebrates the successes of Christian brothers and sisters.

Love does not boast. Boasting is the work of self-promotion in obvious and subtle ways. Love quits that job and goes to work praising God and other believers, instead.

Love is not arrogant or "puffed up." Arrogance involves confidence in oneself above all others and the expectation that everyone else should feel the same way. Love removes the obstacle of self from the purpose of serving others well.

First Corinthians 13:1–13 is one of the most loved and well-known passages in the Bible, but Paul places it after his teaching on the spiritual gifts for a specific reason. Some of the gifts may seem impressive, but if attempted without self-sacrificing love for others, they become meaningless, even destructive. Paul uses 14 verbs to describe what love does and does not do. Love is the foundation for Paul's teaching in the following chapter on prophecy, tongues, and even orderly worship. While this section is often quoted in romantic settings, such as a wedding, the concept in mind is that of agape: a self-sacrificing, godly love.

Paul responds to the Corinthians' over-emphasis on certain spiritual gifts by showing them that all gifts are worthless if not practiced through godly love. Paul provides 14 descriptors of love, all action verbs, all choices made out of a commitment to set self aside and serve others. Choosing to love each other in this way would solve many of the problems Paul has confronted in this letter. The spiritual gifts provide a glimpse of what is knowable, but when the perfect comes, we will know all. Love is the greatest of all the virtues.

Paul's teaching on love fits firmly into the context of 1 Corinthians chapters 12 and 14. These sentences have a somewhat different style than the surrounding words, suggesting Paul might have inserted something he'd written previously into this section. These are not meant to be a diversion, however. Lack of love was at the heart of most of the Corinthians' problems and divisions. As Paul describes it, God's kind of love sets self aside, over and over, endlessly, for the good of others. Spiritual gifts exist for the building up of the church now, but believers will live in love for eternity. Christ-like love is the greatest of all the virtues, and it should be the priority of every Christian.

First Corinthians is one of the more practical books of the New Testament. Paul writes to a church immersed in a city associated with trade, but also with corruption and immorality. These believers are struggling to properly apply spiritual gifts and to resist the ungodly practices of the surrounding culture. Paul's letter gives instructions for real-life concerns such as marriage and spirituality. He also deals with the importance of unity and gives one of the Bible's more well-known descriptions of love in chapter 13.