Daily Lesson for Monday 10th of August 2026
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 is the heart of the chapter. Paul focuses on the features of love—showing what love is and what it is not, or what love does and does not do. He personifies love so that we can have a glimpse of how a person filled with Spirit-driven love behaves. In his portrayal of love, Paul uses a series of verbs. For him, love is more about actions than about feelings or emotions.
Image © Phil McKay at Goodsalt.com
What, then, does love do?
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Shows patience (makrothymeō). Makrothymeō means to show patience, even amid challenging circumstances. Patience also highlights the ability to be forbearing with one another (Ephesians 4:2).
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Shows kindness (chrēsteuomai). Chrēsteuomai occurs only here in the New Testament, but other words from the same root are common elsewhere. In the Septuagint (the Greek version of the Old Testament), words from this root occur frequently in the Psalms to refer to God’s kindness associated with His mercy (Psalms 145:9). By saying that love shows kindness, Paul meant that one’s love for others must emulate God’s compassion and mercy toward us.
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Rejoices (synchairō) in the truth. Synchairō denotes the ability to experience joy alongside another person (Luke 1:58; Luke 15:6,9; 1 Corinthians 12:26; Philippians 2:17-18).
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Bears (stegō) all things. Scholars debate whether stegō means “to cover,” namely, to keep something confidential (which also has a sense of protection), or “to endure,” with a sense of resilience. The concept of endurance clearly occurs in 1 Corinthians 9:12, leading most interpreters and Bible translators to take the second option as more likely.
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Believes (pisteuō) all things. Pisteuō comes from the same root as the Greek term for faith (pistis). In the context of 1 Corinthians 13:1-13, believing all things means giving one another the benefit of the doubt.
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Hopes (elpizō) all things. In the New Testament, the verb elpizō always refers to the belief or expectation that something good will occur.
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Endures (hypomenō) all things. Likely, there is no difference between the verbs stegō and hypomenō in 1 Corinthians 13:7. They are synonyms, meaning here endurance amid hardship. Paul uses hypomenō at the end of the verse to avoid the repetition of stegō. By repeating the same concept even with a different word, he draws attention to believing and hoping as the focal point. In other words, love endures by believing and hoping.
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Compare 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 to Galatians 5:22-23. What ideas in common do you see between the two passages? How can we manifest this kind of love in our own lives? |
