1 Corinthians 13
New King James Version
The Greatest Gift
13 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of (A)prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, (B)so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And (C)though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body [a]to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.
4 (D)Love suffers long and is (E)kind; love (F)does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not [b]puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, (G)does not seek its own, is not provoked, [c]thinks no evil; 6 (H)does not rejoice in iniquity, but (I)rejoices in the truth; 7 (J)bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8 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 (K)For we know in part and we prophesy in part. 10 But when that which is [d]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 (L)now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then (M)face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.
13 And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
Footnotes
- 1 Corinthians 13:3 NU so I may boast
- 1 Corinthians 13:4 arrogant
- 1 Corinthians 13:5 keeps no accounts of evil
- 1 Corinthians 13:10 complete
1 Corinthians 13
Authorized (King James) Version
13 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. 2 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. 3 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.
4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, 5 doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; 6 rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; 7 beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
8 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. 9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. 10 But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.
11 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. 12 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. 13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
1 Corinthians 13
1599 Geneva Bible
13 1 He showeth that there are gifts so excellent, which in God’s sight are not corrupt, if Charity be away: 4 and therefore he digresseth unto the commendation of it.
1 Though [a]I speak with the tongues of men and [b]Angels, and have not love, I am as sounding brass, or a [c]tinkling cymbal.
2 And though I had the gift of prophecy, and knew all secrets and all knowledge, yea, if I had all [d]faith, so that I could remove (A)mountains, and had not love, I were nothing.
3 And though I feed the poor with all my goods, and though I give my body, that I be burned, and have not love, it profiteth me nothing.
4 [e]Love [f]suffereth long: it is bountiful: love envieth not: love doth not boast itself: it is not puffed up:
5 It doth [g]no uncomely thing: it seeketh not her own thing: it is not provoked to anger: it thinketh no evil:
6 It rejoiceth not in iniquity, but [h]rejoiceth in the truth:
7 It suffereth all things: it believeth all things: it hopeth all things: it endureth all things.
8 [i]Love doth never fall away, though that prophesyings be abolished, or the tongues cease, or [j]knowledge vanish away.
9 [k]For we know in [l]part, and we prophesy in part.
10 But when that which is perfect, is come, then that which is in part shall be abolished.
11 [m]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.
12 [n]For [o]now we see through a glass darkly: but then shall we see face to face. Now I know in part: but then shall I know even as I am known.
13 [p]And now abideth faith, hope and love, even these three: but the chiefest of these is love.
Footnotes
- 1 Corinthians 13:1 He reasoneth first of Charity, the excellency whereof he first showeth by this, that without it, all other gifts are as nothing before God which thing he proveth partly by an induction, and partly also by an argument taken of the end, wherefor those gifts are given. For to what purpose are those gifts, but to God’s glory, and the profit of the Church, as is before proved? so that those gifts, without Charity, have no right use.
- 1 Corinthians 13:1 A very earnest kind of amplifying a matter, as if he said, If there were any tongues of Angels, and I had them, and did not use them to the benefit of my neighbor, it were nothing else but a vain and prattling type of babbling.
- 1 Corinthians 13:1 That giveth a rude and no certain sound.
- 1 Corinthians 13:2 By faith, he meaneth the gift of doing miracles, and not that faith which justified, which cannot be void of Charity as the other may.
- 1 Corinthians 13:4 He describeth the force and nature of charity, partly by a comparison of contraries, and partly by the effects of itself: whereby the Corinthians may understand, both how profitable it is in the Church, and how necessary and also how far they are from it: and therefore how vainly and without cause they are proud.
- 1 Corinthians 13:4 Word for word deferreth wrath.
- 1 Corinthians 13:5 It is not contumelious.
- 1 Corinthians 13:6 Rejoice that righteousness in the righteous. For the Hebrews mean by truth, righteousness.
- 1 Corinthians 13:8 Again he commendeth the excellency of charity, in that that it shall never be abolished in the Saints, whereas the other gifts which are necessary for the building up of the Church, so long as we live here, shall have no place in the world to come.
- 1 Corinthians 13:8 The way to get knowledge by prophesying.
- 1 Corinthians 13:9 The reason: Because we are now in the state, that we have need to learn daily, and therefore we have need of those helps, to wit, of the gift of tongues, and knowledge, and also of those that teach them. But to what purpose serve they then, when we have obtained and gotten the full knowledge of God, which serve now but for them which are imperfect, and go by degrees to perfection?
- 1 Corinthians 13:9 We learn imperfectly.
- 1 Corinthians 13:11 He setteth forth that that he said, by an excellent similitude, comparing this life to our infancy or childhood, wherein we stagger and stammer rather than speak, and think and understand but childish things, and therefore have need of such things as may form and frame our tongue and mind: But when we become men, to what purpose should we desire that stammering, those childish toys, and such like things, whereby our childhood is framed by little and little?
- 1 Corinthians 13:12 The applying of the similitude of our childhood to this present life, wherein we darkly behold heavenly things, according to the small measure of light which is given us, through the understanding of tongues, and hearing the teachers and ministers of the Church: of our man’s age and strength, to that heavenly and eternal life, wherein when we behold God himself present, and are lightened with his full and perfect light, to what purpose should we desire the voice of man, and those worldly things which are most imperfect? But yet then, shall all the Saints be knit both with God, and between themselves with most fervent love, and therefore charity shall not be abolished, but perfected, although it shall not be showeth forth and entertained by such manner of duties as peculiarly and only belong to the infirmity of this life.
- 1 Corinthians 13:12 All this must be understood by comparison.
- 1 Corinthians 13:13 The conclusion: As if the Apostle should say, Such therefore shall be our condition then: but now we have three things, and they remain sure if we be Christ’s as without which true religion cannot consist, to wit, faith, hope, and charity. And among these, charity is the chiefest, because it ceaseth not in the life to come as the rest do, but is perfected and accomplished. For seeing that faith and hope tend to things which are promised, and are to come, when we have presently gotten them, to what purpose should we have faith and hope? but yet there at length shall we truly and perfectly love both God, and one another.
1 Corinthians 13
Young's Literal Translation
13 If with the tongues of men and of messengers I speak, and have not love, I have become brass sounding, or a cymbal tinkling;
2 and if I have prophecy, and know all the secrets, and all the knowledge, and if I have all the faith, so as to remove mountains, and have not love, I am nothing;
3 and if I give away to feed others all my goods, and if I give up my body that I may be burned, and have not love, I am profited nothing.
4 The love is long-suffering, it is kind, the love doth not envy, the love doth not vaunt itself, is not puffed up,
5 doth not act unseemly, doth not seek its own things, is not provoked, doth not impute evil,
6 rejoiceth not over the unrighteousness, and rejoiceth with the truth;
7 all things it beareth, all it believeth, all it hopeth, all it endureth.
8 The love doth never fail; and whether [there be] prophecies, they shall become useless; whether tongues, they shall cease; whether knowledge, it shall become useless;
9 for in part we know, and in part we prophecy;
10 and when that which is perfect may come, then that which [is] in part shall become useless.
11 When I was a babe, as a babe I was speaking, as a babe I was thinking, as a babe I was reasoning, and when I have become a man, I have made useless the things of the babe;
12 for we see now through a mirror obscurely, and then face to face; now I know in part, and then I shall fully know, as also I was known;
13 and now there doth remain faith, hope, love -- these three; and the greatest of these [is] love.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
KJV reproduced by permission of Cambridge University Press, the Crown’s patentee in the UK.
Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.
