This chapter of the apostle Paul's has received many names of high esteem in popular discourse and writing, as, "The Anthem of Love," "The Psalm of Love," "The Song of Love" for the New Testament, as the "Song of Songs," which is Solomon's, is for the Old Testament. The Forty-fifth Psalm has the title, "A Song of Loves," and with rich and rare rhetoric it prophesies poetically of spiritual love as much as the Hebrew times could; but in this chapter St. Paul pours forth the message of his consciousness as it was illuminated by the light that shined around him at midday, but which became ever afterward the true enlightenment of his being. Who knows this, Paul's love-song, by heart, knows Paul by heart, as he was able to reflect in his words the divine Principle of man.
It is impossible to make a translation for reading that shall give smoothly all the variations of meaning, gradations of thought, picturesqueness of language, or touches of local color of this song in the Greek; so that, as good as the Authorized Version is, or the Revised, they but poorly render the original into English. Nothing of an extended scholarly discussion along linguistic lines will be attempted in this paper, and yet attention ought to be directed to the principal word in the original and some of the illustrative strokes and shades of meaning which are in the Greek.
The life of the chapter is in the word that is translated "charity" in the Authorized Version, but "love" in the Revised. The word "charity" (from the Latin caritas) has lost its ancient meaning, so that in it the English reader does not get the complete force of the original.
To give the full view of the language, it should be noted that there are two words in the original which are rendered by the one word "love" in the English, and yet they are by no means alike in meaning. There is the classic word phileo (I love), and the New Testament word agapao (I love). Using the infinitive form, philein means to love emotionally, to delight in, to be friendly, kind, sympathetic, fond of, to dote on one, to be prompted by sense emotion, that is, human love. It is used in combination with other words, as philagathos, loving goodness (Titus, 1:8); Philadelphia, brotherly love (Romans, 12:10; 1 Peter, 1:22, and other places); philanthropia, loving mankind, kindness (Acts, 28:2); and such expressions as, "loving one's husband" (Titus, 2:4); "love of money" (1 Timothy, 6:10); "love of self" (2 Timothy, 2:2). In some ways it is a noble emotion, but in others merely a sentiment, and in others, seeks only self-gratification.
But the other word is entirely different. Agapao as a classical verb means "to welcome, entertain, in general, to love; implying regard and satisfaction, rather than affection" (Liddell and Scott), which is shown by phileo. But in the Aramaic dialect of the New Testament it is still kept free from human emotion, sensuous love, and given a distinctive Christian meaning. It expresses love, first as the divine act of showing benevolence, good will, blessing, and saving, as it has been revealed in the Gospel that God acts towards us (John, 3:16). Then it shows the same divine action in Jesus towards men (John, 15:9), and, finally, to express this divine Principle of action as the rule for Christian lives, as Jesus taught (Romans, 13:8).
But the noun, agapa (love), is a distinctive Christian, ecclesiastical word, and found only in the New Testament (Liddell and Scott, Thayer's New Testament Lex.). It can receive the primary meaning of the verb, "admiration, esteem, veneration;" or love as a choice and principle of benevolence, but more especially the divine love of God and the Christian love among men. The love of God is spoken of twenty-three times in the New Testament in which the word love is used, and in all but one of them (John, 16:27), the word is agapa in the Greek. The love of Christ is spoken of twenty-one times in which the word love is used, and in all of them but one (Revelation, 3:19), this word is used. It expresses the love that Christians are to show to one another (John, 15:13; Galatians, 5:6); the love of God towards Christ (John, 15:10); the love of Christ towards men (2 Corinthians, 5:14); the love of men towards God (Luke, 11:42); God as the author of love (2 Corinthians, 13:11). The word phileo does not occur in the first epistle of John in any form, but the other words, noun and verb, occur more than forty times. "That disciple whom Jesus loved" (agapao) used it more than any other evangelist. He caught quickest the new meaning. Those first unique Christian gatherings, when they met "long before day to sing hymns to one Jesus," of course were spoken of with this word, "love-feasts," or, as it is the plural of the word in the Greek, it would be literally, "loves."
The two uses of the verbs contrasted will show more clearly the difference in their meaning. "The hypocrites love (phileo) to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets;" but Jesus commanded us "to love (agapao) our enemies." The Pharisees "love (phileo) the chief seats at feasts;" but Christians are to "love (agapao) one another;" "The world would love (phileo) its own," but Christians are to love "as I have loved (agapao) you."
In the account of the raising of Lazarus (John, 11), the writer uses agapao in speaking of Jesus' loving the family; but the sisters are quoted as using phileo in speaking of Jesus' loving their brother (John, 11:3); and the Jews also used phileo in their exclamation upon Jesus weeping (John, 11:36), showing that but few knew the new use of the verb at that time.
Jesus and Paul both use the word agapao in quoting the second great command of the Law (Matthew, 22:39; Galatians, 5:14). The evangelist uses it in that most precious expression of Jesus' love for his disciples in John, 13:1. The apostle Paul uses the noun in such expressions as, "Walk in love" (Ephesians, 5:2); "The love of Christ constraineth us" (2 Corinthians, 5:14). Either the noun or verb he uses nearly a hundred times, and phileo only twice, except in combination, as before cited. In all these instances the Revised Version renders them by love. When Jesus questioned Peter in that meeting on the shore of Galilee, and asked him, "Lovest thou me?" (John, 21:15—17), in the first two questions he used this spiritual word; but Peter did not understand him, and replied in the friendly word. In the last one Jesus uses the friendly one, and Peter was touched greatly. He could understand the "warmer one" but not the spiritual one, for he had not yet received the baptism of the Spirit.
Thus the new life that came to earth was put into a new word, agapa—new wine into a new bottle; and just as Jesus was laid in Joseph's new tomb "wherein never man was before laid," so this celestial love was put into a new word that never had any corrupt, sensuous sentiment in it. This is the alabaster box of precious ointment, spiritual love, which Jesus broke upon the feet of humanity, and its odor is perfuming the presence of the ages!
Let us now take up the chapter in detail. It seems like an oasis in the apostle's letter to the Christians at Corinth. He had been giving advice on local matters and proper admonitions, when all at once he seemed transported to a far away mount of vision, or to a tropical garden of luxurious foliage, flowers, and fruit—like the scene in the Apocalypse, "on this side of the river, and on that was the tree of life, bearing twelve manner of fruits, yielding its fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations." Then he pours forth a poem, a song perfectly fit to come from the pen of an angel, such an one as he refers to. The address of Portia in "The Merchant of Venice," appealing to the Jew for mercy, is the nearest approach to it in our common literature.
"On each side of this chapter the tumult rages; but within it all is calm: the sentences move with almost rhythmical accuracy. We can imagine how the apostle's amanuensis must have paused to look up into his master's face at the sudden change of his style of diction, and have seen that face lighted up as it had been the face of an angel, as the sublime vision of divine perfection passed before him" (Dean Stanley).
In the twelfth chapter Paul writes of those gifts of the Spirit which were so singular and made the assemblies of the Christians so conspicuous; but in the last verse he tells them, "Desire earnestly the greater gifts. And a still more excellent way show I unto you." That is, the way of this spiritual love, this divine activity, is better than the most brilliant gifts that can come to us as mortals. So the main thought of the chapter is the superiority of this distinctive Christian love to its companion graces; secondarily, that the highest ecclesiastically approved religious duties can be done without any vital, divine activity taking place.
The first reference is to speech. One may have all the eloquence of men or that the angels are supposed to have, yet without this spiritual unction no real good is done; all is but a clanging, banging material noise that Spirit knows nothing of. It is but a brazen nothing! The Greek word translated "speech" means mere utterance, "sound and pronunciation," mouthing, "tonguing," sonorous talk that does nothing to nourish life—it is all as vain "as a painted man upon a painted field."
The next paragraph is even stronger in meaning: one may have the power of prophetic perception of the future or the gift of Christian teaching; also one may be able to discern those mysteries of creation and providence that seem so dark to mortal sense; and may have all faith, and yet if he have not this divine activity of Love he is nothing.
Furthermore, if he doles out, "morsels out" (Rotherham), all his havings by his own hand to the destitute; and in his supposed great devotion gives himself to the glory of martyrdom, without this divine quality as revealed by Jesus as the true Principle of Life, it will not add one lustre to his character.
In the next paragraph he begins that description of this agapa which makes it bear out fully the title given to it by Professor Drummond years ago: "The Greatest Thing in the World." He begins classically to give importance to his subject by putting this word first in the sentence, preceded by the article. "The love long-suffers," long-breathed, long-zealed. The root signifies heavy breathing, heaving of the chest under excitement, and the whole word means, patiently breathing long without action, however great the provocation. Love breathes long and is firm in its divine purpose. "And is kind," shows itself mild; uses not brute means, but holds to the spiritual. "Envieth not." This is a stronger word than we have in English; it means to boil, bubble up, to be hot; Love is not bubbling up with envy or jealousy. The next two words are akin to each other; Love does not act with the rash hastiness of a braggart to display himself, nor is inflated, swelled up with pride and sense of self.
"Doth not behave itself unseemly," is not unbecoming, discourteous, is not deformed in character or manners; "seeketh not her own," seeks not her own material good, makes nothing of her personality; "is not provoked," doth not enrage herself, become "exasperated" (Rotherham). The Greek is literally "paroxized," our word "paroxysm" having been transferred bodily to the English from the Greek. "Taketh not account of evil," does not count upon it, does not keep account of it, has no consciousness of evil but knows only good.
"Rejoiceth not in unrighteousness," that which has no element of justice or right; "but rejoiceth with the Truth," along with the Truth as it goes on manifesting the eternal kingdom by destroying error; "jointly-rejoices" (Rotherham), "beareth all things," or covereth, bears up against, holds out against, everything unlovely, to ward it off; "believeth all things," has a constant consciousness of the Good; "hopeth all things," Life, Truth, and Love are never to fail, and divine expectations will be realized; "endures all things," literally, remains under all things until the last is accomplished. This all bears out the apostle's teaching in Romans, 13:10: "Love is the fulfilling of the law," that is, of all divine order, the highest rule for the life of communities.
He now presents the ever-abiding qualities of this Christian Love. "Love never fails;" the word "fail" means to fall from a higher to a lower plane. Metaphorically to fall from authority, to lose it; but Love never falls from its original position as the absolute divine Principle. Some of its associates in mortal contact will fail, because they are dependent upon human conditions. For instance, "prophecies shall be done away," because they rest on the limited knowledge of mortals; "tongues shall cease," for they rest on imperfect utterance, the language of Spirit is one and universal and eternal; "knowledge shall be done away," the mystery exists simply because of the inability of mortal mind to know Spirit and understand the movements of Mind; but Love can never be superseded, for it is the glorious manifestation of the divine essence. "We know in part and we prophesy in part," that is, like the parts of a play given to different actors; they know not the meaning of their parts until it is all acted together. He illustrates this quality by the immaturity of a child. He speaks, feels, and thinks on the edge of subjects, as though just getting hold of the clew, and his conclusions are crude; all of which characterizes our mortal condition. But when we become men, come to our native spiritual understanding, see with spiritual sense and sight, then we see matters very differently. He still further illustrates our mortal condition by the use of the mirror. At that time metal mirrors only were in use, and often the surface was not true and gave back a distorted image. The word "darkly" is difficult to render into English by one word. In the Greek the word is ainigma with the preposition en, and some good authorities (Thayer's N. T. Lex.) hold that to render the phrase by one adverb, "darkly," is insufficient to convey the strength of the original. Literally, it is like this. We look into, "by means of" (Conybeare and Howson), a mirror in an enigma, "riddle" (mar. R. V.), or, we look into a riddle in, "by means of," a mirror; either expression is a strong characterization of mortality. But when we all come to the complete spiritual consciousness we shall see directly—spiritual man looking straight at spiritual things. Reference is made to Moses (Numbers, 12:8), he could speak to God "mouth to mouth and not in dark speeches." Then we shall know as we are known, "not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, . . . soberly, according as God hath dealt to each man a measure of faith" (Romans, 12:3).
"But now abideth faith, hope, love, these three;" they are companion graces for the present, but the greatest is love, because it is purely an immortal quality of Being.
Among the Christian qualities that were clouded and overpowered by the secularization of the church in the centuries following the early fathers, none was more badly put in abeyance than this spiritual Love. The Love that loves its "enemies," "seeketh not its own," either in the world or in ecclesiasticism, "vaunteth not itself" before men for effect, was quite easily trampled down "at the gates" where the crowd was struggling. And even to-day, with our Christian civilization, the result of the Reformation and the Renaissance, many are insisting that Love's presentations must be explained away as literal expressions of living. One lone Russian reformer, Count Tolstoi, has drawn the adverse criticism of the Christian world, because he persists in advocating that Jesus' teachings about meekness and love are to be lived literally as divine commands.
But none in the present age has put this spiritual quality in such clear, logical, and philosophical setting as our Leader and Mother, Rev. Mary Baker Eddy, in her various writings, and especially in the central one of all, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures." None lives this Love so truly as she, and no body of Christians in this day is making such rapid advances in living this Love literally as the Christian Scientists. No one has made pure divine Spirit the corner-stone, the sole and absolute premise of a cosmology, theology, scheme of morals and system of healing, and proved them to be true, as she has done. Of course it compelled the putting of spiritual Love as the "essence of all devotion," the condition of all healing, and the strength of all character. "God is Love," hence they who would be godly must be lovely in the same essential qualities that God has; there can be no greater manifestation than this grace. "The vital part, the heart and soul of Christian Science, is Love" (S.&H. 7—6). And as it has been proved abundantly by living and healing that the spiritual alone is Scientific, this teaching will be permanent for "love (agapa) never faileth."
