CHAPTER XIII. _Charity, or love to God and man, the sum and substance of all_ _true religion; so that without it, the most splendid eloquence,_ _the gift of prophecy, the most profound knowledge, faith by_ _which the most stupendous miracles might be wrought,_ _benevolence the most unbounded, a... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse 1 Corinthians 13:2. _AND THOUGH I HAVE_ THE GIFT OF _PROPHECY_] Though I should have received from God the knowledge of future events, so that I could correctly foretell what is coming to pass in the world and in the Church:- _AND UNDERSTAND ALL MYSTERIES_] The meaning of all the types and f... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse 1 Corinthians 13:3. _AND THOUGH I BESTOW ALL MY GOODS TO FEED_ THE POOR] This is a proof that _charity_, in _our sense of the word_, is not what the apostle means; for surely almsgiving can go no farther than to give up _all_ that a man possesses in order to relieve the wants of others. The wo... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse 1 Corinthians 13:4. (1.) _CHARITY SUFFERETH LONG_] μακροθυμει, _Has a long_ _mind_; to the end of which neither trials, adversities, persecutions, nor provocations, can reach. The _love of God_, and of our _neighbour_ for God's sake, is patient towards all men: it suffers all the weakness, ig... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse 1 Corinthians 13:5. (6.) _DOTH NOT BEHAVE ITSELF UNSEEMLY_] ουκ ασχημονει, from α, _negative_, and σχημα, _figure, mein_; love never acts out of its place or character; observes due decorum and good manners; is never _rude, bearish_, or _brutish_; and is ever willing to become all things to a... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse 1 Corinthians 13:6. (10.) _REJOICETH NOT IN INIQUITY_] ου χαιρει επι τη αδικια. _Rejoiceth not in falsehood_, but on the contrary, _rejoiceth in the truth_: this meaning αδικια has in different parts of the Scriptures. At first view, this character of love seems to say but little in its favou... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse 1 Corinthians 13:7. (12.) _BEARETH ALL THINGS_] παντα στεγει, This word is also variously interpreted: to _endure, bear, sustain, cover,_ _conceal, contain_. Bishop Pearce contends that it should be translated _covereth all things_, and produces several plausible reasons for this translation;... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse 1 Corinthians 13:8. (16.) _CHARITY NEVER FAILETH_] Ἡ αγαπη ουδεποτε εκπιπτει· _This love never falleth off_, because it _bears,_ _believes, hopes_, and _endures_ all things; and while it does so it cannot _fail_; it is the means of _preserving_ all other graces; indeed, properly speaking, it... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse 1 Corinthians 13:9. _FOR WE KNOW IN PART_] We have here but little knowledge even of _earthly_, and much less of _heavenly_, things. He that knows most knows little in comparison of what is known by angels, and the spirits of just men made perfect. And as we _know_ so very little, how deficie... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse 1 Corinthians 13:10. _BUT WHEN THAT WHICH IS PERFECT_] The state of eternal blessedness; _then that which is in part_-that which is _imperfect_, shall be done away; the _imperfect_ as well as the _probationary_ state shall cease for ever.... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse 1 Corinthians 13:11. _WHEN I WAS A CHILD_] This future state of blessedness is as far beyond the utmost perfection that can be attained in this world, as our adult state of Christianity is above our state of natural infancy, in which we understand only as children understand; speak only a few... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse 1 Corinthians 13:12. _NOW WE SEE THROUGH A GLASS, DARKLY_] δι εσοπτρου εν αινιγματι. Of these words some _literal_ explanation is necessary. The word εσοπτρον which we translate a _glass_, literally signifies a mirror or reflector, from εις, _into_, and οπτομαι, _I look_; and among the ancient... [ Continue Reading ]
Verse 1 Corinthians 13:13. _AND NOW_ [IN THIS PRESENT LIFE] _ABIDETH FAITH, HOPE,_ _CHARITY_] These three supply the place of that _direct vision_ which no human _embodied_ spirit can have; these _abide_ or _remain_ for the present state. _Faith_, by which we apprehend spiritual blessings, and walk... [ Continue Reading ]