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1 Corinthians 13:4-8 KJV
1 Corinthians · chapter 13 · verses 4–8
4Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, 5Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; 6Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; 7Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. 8Charity 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.1 Corinthians 13:4-8 · King James Version
What 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 means
The same paragraph about love, carried one verse further, to charity never faileth. Paul is holding it up against the gifts the Corinthians prized most — prophecy, tongues, knowledge — and saying every one of those stops. Love doesn't. That's the argument the whole chapter is building toward.
Study note provided by TheWay Bible App, separate from the KJV text. Read the full chapter in context and compare interpretations. Report a correction.
1 Corinthians 13:4-8 in context
2And 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.
3And 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.
4Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
5Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
6Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
7Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
8Charity 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.
9For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.
10But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.
Read all of 1 Corinthians 13 →
Commentary
Cross references
- 1 Peter 4:8
- Ephesians 4:32
- Galatians 5:21-22
- Proverbs 10:12
- Colossians 3:12
- 1 John 4:11
- Proverbs 17:9
- James 3:14-17
- 1 Corinthians 10:24
- Philippians 2:3-5
- 1 John 3:16-17
- James 1:19
Key words (Strong's)
- propheciesprophēteiaprophecy, a discourse emanating from divine inspiration and declaring the purposes of…G4394 →
- Rejoicethchairōto rejoice, be glad, to rejoice exceedingly, to be well, thrive, in salutations, hail!…G5463 →
- rejoicethsygchairōto rejoice with, take part in another's joy, to rejoice together, to congratulateG4796 →
- believethpisteuōto think to be true, to be persuaded of, to credit, place confidence in, of the thing…G4100 →
- knowledgegnōsisknowledge signifies in general intelligence, understanding, the general knowledge of…G1108 →
- provokedparoxynōto make sharp, sharpen, to stimulate, spur on, urge, to irritate, provoke, arouse to…G3947 →
- thinkethlogizomaito reckon, count, compute, calculate, count over, to take into account, to make an…G3049 →
- iniquityadikiainjustice, of a judge, unrighteousness of heart and life, a deed violating law and…G93 →
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The apostle gives us in these verses some of the properties and effects of charity, both to describe and commend it, that we may know whether we have this grace and that if we have not we may fall in love with what is so exceedingly amiable, and not rest till we have obtained it.
— Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on verses 4-7