What is true love?

1 Corinthians 13

The Excellence of Love

1If I speak with the ^(A)tongues of men and of ^(B)angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a ^(C)clanging cymbal.

2If I have the gift of ^(D)prophecy, and know all ^(E)mysteries and all ^(F)knowledge; and if I have ^(G)all faith, so as to ^(H)remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.

3And if I ^(I)give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I ^(J)surrender my body ^[a]to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.

4Love ^(K)is patient, love is kind and ^(L)is not jealous; love does not brag and is not ^(M)arrogant,

5does not act unbecomingly; it ^(N)does not seek its own, is not provoked, ^(O)does not take into account a wrong suffered,

6^(P)does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but ^(Q)rejoices with the truth;

7^(R)bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

8Love never fails; but if there are gifts of ^(S)prophecy, they will be done away; if there are ^(T)tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away.

9For we ^(U)know in part and we prophesy in part;

10but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away.

11When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things.

12For now we ^(V)see in a mirror dimly, but then ^(W)face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also ^(X)have been fully known.

13But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is ^(Y)love.

Footnotes:

1. 1 Corinthians 13:3 Early mss read that I may boast

Cross references:

1. 1 Corinthians 13:1 : 1 Cor 12:10
2. 1 Corinthians 13:1 : 2 Cor 12:4; Rev 14:2
3. 1 Corinthians 13:1 : Ps 150:5
4. 1 Corinthians 13:2 : Matt 7:22; Acts 13:1; 1 Cor 11:4; 13:8; 14:1, 39
5. 1 Corinthians 13:2 : 1 Cor 14:2; 15:51
6. 1 Corinthians 13:2 : Rom 15:14
7. 1 Corinthians 13:2 : 1 Cor 12:9
8. 1 Corinthians 13:2 : Matt 17:20; 21:21; Mark 11:23
9. 1 Corinthians 13:3 : Matt 6:2
10. 1 Corinthians 13:3 : Dan 3:28
11. 1 Corinthians 13:4 : Prov 10:12; 17:9; 1 Thess 5:14; 1 Pet 4:8
12. 1 Corinthians 13:4 : Acts 7:9
13. 1 Corinthians 13:4 : 1 Cor 4:6
14. 1 Corinthians 13:5 : 1 Cor 10:24; Phil 2:21
15. 1 Corinthians 13:5 : 2 Cor 5:19
16. 1 Corinthians 13:6 : 2 Thess 2:12
17. 1 Corinthians 13:6 : 2 John 4; 3 John 3
18. 1 Corinthians 13:7 : 1 Cor 9:12
19. 1 Corinthians 13:8 : 1 Cor 13:2
20. 1 Corinthians 13:8 : 1 Cor 13:1
21. 1 Corinthians 13:9 : 1 Cor 8:2; 13:12
22. 1 Corinthians 13:12 : 2 Cor 5:7; Phil 3:12; James 1:23
23. 1 Corinthians 13:12 : Gen 32:30; Num 12:8; 1 John 3:2
24. 1 Corinthians 13:12 : 1 Cor 8:3
25. 1 Corinthians 13:13 : Gal 5:6