FAQ 65: Charity Or Love In 1 Corinthians 13?

Charity. :)

[student]

Charity explains everything what chapter 13 defines! Thank you, today I understood this chapter, after 20 years of life in Christ!

[kerryhalpin]

I agree the word should be charity. In fact, I believe that the passage there is actually defining the word charity for us. Love is a feeling, an emotion that may or may not provoke action, but charity is a combination of all of the descriptions of 1 Cor 13. If one is missing, it is not true charity. Thoughts Bryan? Thanks for the videos!

[timjroughton]

{sigh} the past 7 years I always thought it was 'love', recently I found out it to be charity.. I rejoiced that I know the truth but I am disappointed because I made a request to God to show me by his scripture his definition of what love was, could we use 1C13.3 as a template for 'love' and understand that the real meaning is charity, or would that be delusional and reading into scripture what we want to be there instead of what is? suspect so; still it certainly fitted my prayer request in the sense of.. Love is 'THIS' it is not 'THAT' as 1C13.3 would read if the word was 'love' which it is not.

[xneutralgodx]

i really want a more indebt discussion why these 3 are greater then all else.

[romanstenseventeen]

Which is why we're told in scripture to do this...

2 Corinthians 13:5  Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?

[ohyeah]

Charity. I said last time was last, but I make mistakes. I'm not perfect.

[anonymousperson]

But that doesn't make your case better, for Wycliffe comes from the Latin vulgate (It once again makes me wonder how much of the kjv is really actually from the Latin vulgate and not Textus receptus as many assume). And it wasn't just tyndale or bishops that had love there, but also great bible (1539), coverdale (1535), matthew (1537), geneva (1560). So I don't think it was a debate at all, for I have a way to read 7 versions before kjv, and if it was a debate, then surely more than one of those would have also had charity there.
You probably say it should be charity because the kjv said it that way. Today, deeds of charity may be big or small. Small charity doesn't last, especially if it's only done once. And I'm sure that whole thing of confusing love with lust is a recent worldly thing that the people in bible times either didn't have to deal with or wasn't such a big problem. Now it is, but that's cause problems of sin have gotten worse/temptation has increased to make it that way.
Oh and the reason why Wycliffe used charity was he got it from "caritatem" or "caritas". Example :
1 Corinthians 13 : 4 Latin vulgate
caritas patiens est benigna est caritas non aemulatur non agit perperam non inflatur.

[InfinitelyManic]

Can you provide a citation for the debate which you are referring?

Wycliffe and Rheims used charity instead of love in many places in addition to 1 Cor 13 et seq and the KJV followed almost all of them.

Charity is more descriptive and is derived from love (agape); therefore, charity is not greater than love (agape).

But you are creating a doctrine based on comparing a word with a wide semantic range (i.e., love) with another word that falls within that semantic range (i.e., charity).

What do you say to others whose Bibles may be in another tongue where no distinction is made between love and charity?

charity (n.)
late Old English, "benevolence for the poor, " also "Christian love in its highest manifestation, " from Old French charité "(Christian) charity, mercy, compassion; alms; charitable foundation" (12c.), from "costliness; esteem, affection, " from carus "dear, valued, " from PIE *karo-, from root *ka- "to like, desire."

In the Vulgate the Latin word often is used as translation of Greek agape "love" -- especially Christian love of fellow man -- perhaps to avoid the sexual suggestion of Latin amor). The Vulgate also sometimes translated agape by Latin dilectio, noun of action from diligere "to esteem highly, to love" (see diligence).

Wyclif and the Rhemish version regularly rendered the Vulgate dilectio by 'love, ' caritas by 'charity.' But the 16th c. Eng. versions from Tindale to 1611, while rendering agape sometimes 'love, ' sometimes 'charity, ' did not follow the dilectio and caritas of the Vulgate, but used 'love' more often (about 86 times), confining 'charity' to 26 passages in the Pauline and certain of the Catholic Epistles (not in I John), and the Apocalypse .... In the Revised Version 1881, 'love' has been substituted in all these instances, so that it now stands as the uniform rendering of agape. [OED]

 General sense of "affections people ought to feel for one another" is from c. 1300. From c. 1300 as "an act of kindness or philanthropy, " also "alms, that which is bestowed gratuitously on a person or persons in need." Sense of "charitable foundation or institution" in English attested by 1690s. Meaning "liberality in judging others or their actions" is from late 15c. A charity-school (1680s) was one maintained by voluntary contributions or bequests.

[xneutralgodx]

is perfected love = charity . So charity has love in it. is GOD love or charity?

[student]

Anyone have that Charity vs. Love study URL? Bryan?
ps. Looks like this is it: