1 Corinthians 13:9 (DBY)

Passage

For we know in part, and we prophesy in part:

Nearby Context

1 Corinthians 13:7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

1 Corinthians 13:8 Love never fails; but whether prophecies, they shall be done away; or tongues, they shall cease; or knowledge, it shall be done away.

1 Corinthians 13:9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part:

1 Corinthians 13:10 but when that which is perfect has come, that which is in part shall be done away.

1 Corinthians 13:11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I felt as a child, I reasoned as a child; when I became a man, I had done with what belonged to the child.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "part" and "prophesy". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "part" and "prophesy", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 8's "Love never fails but whether prophecies they..." into verse 10's "but when that which is perfect has...", so "part" and "prophesy" belong inside that flow. In 1 Corinthians context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "part" and "prophesy" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.